The Fakuma – an “affair of the heart”

The 30th Fakuma will be a five-day celebration of the plastics industry in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance from Monday the 12th through Friday the 16th of October, 2026. The trade fair has evolved into a significant European platform for plastics processing, emphasises Dr. Christoph Schumacher, Vice President of Global Marketing at ARBURG. The machine engineering company from Loßburg, Germany, is an integral part of Fakuma’s history.

We congratulate Fakuma wholeheartedly! It’s no exaggeration to say that this event is one of our most heartfelt passions. Right from the very beginning of this success story, it was clear how close the ties between Fakuma and ARBURG were, and still are. As its largest exhibitor, we’re very pleased to contribute to this success, and our booth in hall A3 is a cherished destination for all visitors.
The mutual success story began in 1981 with a modest 70 exhibitors – after a trip to Loßburg a year earlier. I’ve often heard the story, as told by our late senior partner Eugen Hehl who passed away in 2023 at the age of 94, about how Paul E. Schall travelled to Loßburg in the fall of 1980 and told him about his idea of organising a trade fair for injection moulders in Friedrichshafen in the tri-border region on Lake Constance.
This founding story is an integral part of our company’s historical canons – and most certainly an integral part of Fakuma’s history as well. The idea and the location were appealing, and ARBURG came on board without hesitation! And according to Paul E. Schall himself, that was the decisive factor that prompted him to embark on the “Fakuma” venture. Two determined entrepreneurs and visionaries with strong business instincts came together to launch, develop and promote a project.

The tri-border region was the right location and the concept was consistently coherent: right from the outset, it focused on practical relevance. What’s technologically conceivable was presented to a large, international audience at “K” in Düsseldorf, whereas European practitioners were dealing with the technically feasible at Fakuma in a very pleasant working atmosphere. And thus Fakuma evolved into an important industry meeting place: practical relevance and professional expertise were, and still are in demand on Lake Constance.
The decision to hold Fakuma only in the non-K years has demonstrated its wisdom and proven to be a pioneering move: deliberately distancing itself from the world’s leading trade fair worked extremely well, helping to set the pace for the industry and enabling it to develop into a major European platform for plastics processing.

In addition to activities such as initiating business deals, imparting information and exchanging expertise, trade fairs also always serve as events offering inspiration and networking opportunities. And that’s where Fakuma excels in every respect – time and again, the nearly family-like atmosphere of this very special industry event is emphasised, which encourages an intensive exchange of ideas. And the fact that all of this comes together on the scenic shores of Lake Constance adds to the experience. This is clearly demonstrated by the visitor numbers.
Fakuma is thus an integral part of ARBURG’s finely structured, strategically motivated international trade fair concept – a fact which is not least underscored by our continuous presence on the trade fair advisory board. For us it feels like coming home in the autumn of the Fakuma years when we arrive at the exhibition grounds in Friedrichshafen.