| WMF 2026 Opens in Shanghai: Celebrating Four Decades of Woodworking Innovation and Honoring 20 Industry Pioneers |
 |
| Publish Date: 2026-09-05 |
| |
|
【Shanghai Hongqiao, 5 September 2026】WMF 2026— the China International Furniture Machinery & Woodworking Machinery Fair (Shanghai) officially opened today at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai, Hongqiao). This year’s event marks the WMF's 40th anniversary, making it a major milestone for the exhibition and the industry it serves. Forty years represents more than the passage of time. It reflects the evolution of an entire industry—from traditional woodworking machinery and CNC processing to automated production, flexible manufacturing, digital factories, and smart manufacturing. Throughout this journey, the technological boundaries of furniture and wood-product manufacturing have continued to expand. From mechanization to smart manufacturing, and from equipment displays to design challenges and technical solutions, WMF’s 40th anniversary opens a new chapter for smart woodworking. Under the theme “The Smart Balance of Manufacturing．Connecting Global Markets with Smart Innovation”, WMF 2026 features a special 40th anniversary program, the “Design Sets the Challenge · Technology Provides the Answer” showcase, scenario-based technology demonstrations, and a series of industry forums. Together with furniture manufacturers from around the world, WMF looks back on the industry’s remarkable journey while exploring the direction of its next stage of development.     40 Years of Partnership: 20 Leading Companies Enter the WMF 40th Anniversary Hall of Honour An exhibition that has flourished for four decades could not have done so without the long-term support of its industry partners. Over the years, WMF has grown alongside woodworking machinery and furniture production equipment companies in China and around the world, witnessing their continuous advances in products, technologies, and brands. To commemorate its 40th anniversary, WMF established the“WMF 40th Anniversary Hall of Honour” and“WMF 40th Anniversary Valued Partner”awards. Based on long-term participation, sustained contributions, and industry influence, the awards recognize partners who have made lasting contributions to the exhibition and the sector. The honored companies represent key areas of manufacturing, including panel furniture production, surface finishing, wood-based panel technology, upholstered furniture technology, and solid-wood processing. The Hall of Honour Partners are Sufoma, Nanxing Machinery, HOMAG (China), KDT Machinery, WEINIG (Yantai), HOLD, Excitech, Huahua, Siempelkamp, DIEFFENBACHER, Shanghai Wood-based Panel Machinery, Bacci, Yongqiang Futai, HonCho, Qianchuan, Yuetong, Qingcheng, V-HOLD, Lianrou, and Kehua Smart Quilting. Together, these companies represent the evolution of Chinese furniture manufacturing technology over several decades. They also illustrate the industry’s clear shift from single-machine efficiency to system efficiency, and from standardized production to flexible manufacturing.   The 2nd “WoodTech Atelier” Returns: Design × Intelligent Manufacturing, Woodworking Reborn An important innovation at WMF 2026, the 2nd “WoodTech Atelier” officially debuted under the theme “Design × Intelligent Manufacturing, Woodworking Reborn”. The program creates a collaborative platform bringing together woodworking equipment, innovative materials, and solid-wood furniture brands. It features the latest technologies in high-end bespoke woodwork manufacturing, advanced materials, and original solid-wood furniture designs. The Atelier brings together technologies and craftsmanship in panel processing, solid-wood processing, surface finishing, curved processing, and special-shaped processing. Eight key technical highlights demonstrate how smart manufacturing can empower both design and production—from 0.01 mm precision coordination, seamless edge banding, and precision curved-surface processing to AI-powered cutting and shaping, cross-material composites, and sustainable practices across the value chain.   Participating equipment and materials companies include Guangdong Hongma, Nantong Yuetong, Bacci, Cosen CNC, Motimac, Falit, Guangdong HOLD, V-HOLD, Cangao, Vario, Ruinuo CNC, Purete, Jinhua Youjiang, and Nanping Honglian Environmental Protection New Materials. Finished-furniture brands including Gaomi Guan Carpenter Furniture, LINSY Home, Yinzhuo, Chaoqu, and Dongguan Kaimo join them. Together, they present a series of original solid-wood works, including the Morgan bar chair, solid-wood football, guitar components, Su Mu Lingxiao Pagoda, high-gloss dyed wood veneer samples, skeletal-line door panels, a high-end curved drawer cabinet, the Monet flip-door display cabinet, a retro solid-wood dining chair, the Ten Thousand Scrolls chair, the Starry Night bedside cabinet, the Moon Gate side table, and the Huineng lounge chair. The exhibits demonstrate the practical application of advanced processes such as five-axis precision machining, precision mortise-and-tenon joinery, thermoforming, smart spraying, curved processing, and special-shaped processing. They present a complete path from design concept to finished product. The “WoodTech Atelier” is more than a showcase of technologies and materials. It is a platform for meaningful dialogue between designers and manufacturers. By connecting materials, smart manufacturing, and design across the full value chain, it helps move advanced technologies from equipment to products and from factories to the marketplace. Here, technology responds to design, equipment engages with finished products, and partners across the industry work together to shape the next chapter of smart woodworking. WMF at 40: A Look Back — and a New Beginning for the Future WMF’s 40-year journey mirrors the furniture manufacturing industry’s continuous efforts to break boundaries and reinvent itself. At the beginning of a new industrial cycle, WMF aims to be more than a witness to technological change. It seeks to remain a connector and catalyst linking design, materials, craftsmanship, equipment, and manufacturing companies. Looking ahead, WMF will continue working with partners across the global industry to ensure that technology responds to design, manufacturing enables creativity, and woodcraft connects the world.   About WMF The China International Furniture Machinery & Woodworking Machinery Fair (Shanghai) (WMF) focuses on furniture production equipment, woodworking machinery, wood-based panel technology, surface finishing, solid-wood processing, upholstered furniture manufacturing, and smart production. It is committed to promoting technological exchange and cooperation across the global woodworking and furniture manufacturing industries. WMF 2026 takes place from 5–8 September 2026 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai, Hongqiao). The event brings together more than 400 exhibitors from nine countries and regions across an exhibition area of over 52,000 square meters. With the theme “The Smart Balance of Manufacturing”, WMF 2026 combines exhibitions, technology demonstrations, industry forums, and special 40th anniversary programs. It aims to connect design, materials, craftsmanship, equipment, and the global furniture manufacturing industry while building a new ecosystem for the sector. |
Firefox
Chrome
Safari
QQ
Edge