HANOVER, Germany – Ligna has reported 93,000 attendees from over 100 countries for the world's largest trade fair for woodworking and wood processing plants, machinery and tools. There were more than 2.8 million business contacts, and five continents represented.

"Ligna 2017 will go down as a milestone in the digitalization of the wood industry,” said Dr. Andreas Gruchow, member of the managing board, Deutsche Messe. “The show's international pulling power has also shot up considerably, thus underscoring the show's reputation as the industry's No. 1 event worldwide."

Significant growth in total space booked was also reported, with more than 1,500 exhibitors from 50 countries. The exhibition has more than 1.3 million square feet of display space in 10 halls and an open-air site to showcase new technology and innovative ideas.

Ligna also featured an optimized thematic layout shaped to mirror the latest market shifts, spotlight on a huge array of smart, digitally integrated manufacturing systems, and the Wood Industry Summit, an International forum for primary industry

Ligna 2019 will be held May 27-31. See http://www.ligna.de/home.