São Paulo – The renewal of the agreement between the Brazilian Machinery Manufacturers Association (Abimaq) and the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex), signed today (18th) in the city of São Paulo, intends to turn around the 40% decline in machinery industry exports recorded in 2009 compared with a 2008, when the country sold US$ 13 billion in machinery and equipment to foreign countries.
The Integrated Sectorial Project (PSI, in the Portuguese acronym), which spans the period from 2010 to 2012, will allocate 16 million Brazilian reals (US$ 8.9 million) to 45 actions in 12 target markets: the United States, Mexico, Central America, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Angola, South Africa, India and Russia. The events include 23 trade fairs, six buyer projects, four seller projects, and actions geared towards brand strengthening and data bank management.
Another initiative of the agreement was the creation of a brand logo to be used by companies participating in the project and at events for the industry in foreign countries. The brand should convey standards of quality and innovation regarding Brazilian machinery and equipment.
Through the concept Brasil Machinery Solutions, the inventive global partner, the new brand aims to change the country’s image from “festive” to “professional,” said Valerie Engelsberg, a consultant and partner of Top Brands, the company that designed the enw brand. In 2004, the Abimaq and the Apex had already promoted an advertising campaign in 14 different markets, with the slogan we know how.
“Every single large country has a strong machinery and equipment industry,” stated Alessandro Teixeira, president of the Apex. According to him, the industry is modernizing itself in Brazil, and this must be made known to importers. “This new agreement is going to work on the brand of our quality and innovation.”
To Luiz Aubert Neto, president of the Abimaq, technological innovation makes the industry perennial. “We cannot miss our exports, 30% of our revenues come from exports. Nearly half the exports go to developed countries, and this shows that we have quality,” he claimed.
Another point that Aubert highlighted is the need to convince small and medium businesses in the industry to export. According to him, 80% of the Abimaq affiliates are in these categories. Initially, the project should involve 90 companies, but is expected to reach 200.
Next week, an online portal will be launched, with space for promotion of participating companies, exhibition of new products, and news about the project.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
