FABTECH

Name

FABTECH

Legal name

FABTECH (a registered trademark of The Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, International)

Website

https://fabtechexpo.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Trade Shows / Manufacturing Events

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

akta.pro primary industry

Manufacturing, Industrial Equipment & Automation Shows Organizers (THAHABAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Exhibition & Trade Show Management (Conference-Adjacent) (THAHACAF), Professional & Association Conferences (MPAGAGAB)

Keywords

• Metal fabrication trade show
• Welding industry expo
• Manufacturing conference events
• Sheet metal forming show
• Industrial finishing expo

Headquarters

HQ city

Elgin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Exhibition Booth Sales: Exhibitors pay to reserve booth space at the Las Vegas Convention Center to showcase their metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing equipment and services to attendees.
2. Conference Registration Fees: Attendees pay for access to 180+ conference sessions and workshops. Early-bird pricing ranges from $175 for individual sessions to $720 for full conference access. Additional tracks available from IFCA ($125-$450) and AWS ($50-$500 for welding track).
3. Sponsorship Fees: Companies pay for branding, digital signage, banners, keynote slots, panel discussions, lounges, and networking event sponsorships. Pricing ranges from $5,000 to $25,000 per sponsorship opportunity.
4. Advertising: Exhibitors and sponsors can purchase enhanced directory listings, print advertising, and digital advertising placements in show materials and publications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

FABTECH produces North America's largest metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing trade show, held October 21–23, 2026 at the Las Vegas Convention Center with 1,400+ exhibitors across 700,000+ square feet and 31,000+ attendees. The event bundles an exhibition floor, a 180+ session conference program across 12 tracks, keynotes/special events, and supporting services (directory, mobile app, exhibitor resources, marketing/advertising) into a comprehensive annual industry gathering.

Product overview

FABTECH is North America's largest metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing trade show, produced by leading industry associations (FMA, AWS, SME, PMA, IFCA). The core product is the annual trade show exhibition at the Las Vegas Convention Center, complemented by a comprehensive conference program with 180+ sessions, keynote presentations and special events, and an Emerging Leaders Program for young professionals. Supporting products include the exhibitor directory and interactive floor plan, exhibitor manual and resources for show preparation, a mobile app for on-site navigation, and marketing/advertising services for exhibitors. The event serves as a 'one-stop shop' venue for the metal fabrication industry to discover new technologies, connect with experts, and find solutions for productivity improvement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FABTECH Trade Show Exhibition North America's largest metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing trade show featuring 1,400+ exhibitors across 700,000+ square feet at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Runs October 21–23, 2026, with free admission for attendees registering before October 16, 2026. Designed for manufacturing professionals and equipment/service providers in the sheet metal industry.
• FABTECH Conference Program Educational conference with 180+ expert-led sessions and workshops across 12 tracks including automation/robotics, forming & fabricating, finishing, job shop operations, laser, management, marketing & sales, smart fabrication, stamping, welding, and workforce & talent development. Priced individually ($175 early-bird) or as full conference packages ($720 early-bird for 5–10 sessions). Includes IFCA Finishing Track and AWS Welding/Weld-Ed sessions.
• FABTECH Keynotes & Special Events Special event programming featuring keynote presentations, panel discussions, and networking events including the Women of FABTECH networking breakfast. Notable speakers include Amber Mac, Jerry Rice, Vanessa Heim, and Steve Darnell. All keynote and panel events are free and open to all attendees.
• Emerging Leaders Program Half-day leadership development program for manufacturing professionals under 35, featuring networking lunch, keynote, and hands-on workshop. Covers management vs. leadership, leading without title, coaching basics, and transitioning from doer to leader. Registration fee is $125, with an $8,000 leadership coaching giveaway sponsored by Your Leader's Edge.
• Exhibitor Directory & Floor Plan Online searchable directory and interactive floor plan for FABTECH 2026 exhibitors. Attendees can search, filter, and view the exhibitor directory to plan their show experience and locate booths at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
• Exhibitor Manual & Resources Comprehensive exhibitor toolkit including the exhibitor manual, booth products and services ordering, shipping information, official vendor contacts, and exhibitor services checklist. Covers event schedules, building details, rules and regulations, and labor jurisdictions.
• FABTECH Mobile App Mobile application for accessing show information including real-time exhibitor, speaker, and event updates. Features personalized scheduling, exhibitor bookmarking, interactive floor plan navigation, and real-time alerts.
• Exhibitor Marketing & Advertising Services Marketing and advertising solutions for exhibitors including print and online advertising packages, sponsorship opportunities, enhanced directory listings, pre-registered attendee list rental, magazine advertising, and targeted list rental. Sponsorship options range from digital signage ($7,500) to exclusive branding packages ($25,000).

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FMA - Fabricators and Manufacturers AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFMA is a professional organization reaching 135,000+ industry professionals worldwide. Founded in 1970, FMA brings metal fabricators and fabricating equipment manufacturers together through technology councils, educational programs, networking events, and co-sponsorship of FABTECH. FMA publishes The Fabricator magazine and maintains the FABTECH website. FMA has a technology affiliate, Tube & Pipe Association, International (TPA).
• AWS - American Welding SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAWS was founded in 1919 to advance the science, technology and application of welding and allied joining and cutting processes. Headquartered in Doral, Florida, AWS serves about 70,000 members worldwide across 22 Districts with 250 sections and student chapters. AWS provides the Welding Journal as an official show publication and hosts the Weld-Ed Educators Conference at FABTECH.
• SMEcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSME connects manufacturing professionals, academia and communities, sharing knowledge and resources to build inspired, educated and prosperous manufacturers. With over 85 years of experience, SME promotes manufacturing technology, develops skilled workforce, and publishes Manufacturing Engineering & Technology as the official show publication.
• PMA - Precision Metalforming AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPMA represents the $137-billion metalforming industry of North America—companies using stamping, fabricating, spinning, slide forming and roll forming technologies. With nearly 800 member companies, PMA leads through advocacy, networking, statistics, the PMA Educational Foundation, FABTECH and METALFORM tradeshows, and MetalForming magazine.
• IFCA - Industrial Finishing & Coating AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormerly the Chemical Coaters Association International, IFCA is a technical and professional organization providing information and training on surface coating technologies. IFCA has active local chapters across the U.S. and Mexico and operates the IFCA Education Foundation with scholarship programs. IFCA hosts the IFCA Finishing Track at the FABTECH conference.
• onPeak (Official Housing Provider)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial hotel provider for FABTECH 2026. Provides discounted hotel rates and complimentary shuttle service to attendees who book through onPeak.
• Delta Air LinesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial airline partner offering special meeting discounts for FABTECH 2026 attendees using meeting code NY4GM. Discounts valid for travel October 7-31, 2026.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• JIMTOF: Japan International Machine Tool Fair held in Tokyo, focused on machine tools, forming, and automation. Comparable in audience (manufacturing professionals and OEMs) and category overlap, competing for global machine tool exhibitor investment.
• TIMTOS x TMTS: Taiwan's flagship machine tool and metalworking trade show, jointly organized by TAITRA and TAMI. Comparable in category coverage (machine tools, forming, automation) and competes for Asian-headquartered exhibitor marketing budgets that may also consider FABTECH.
• EMO Hannover: World's leading trade fair for metalworking held in Hannover, Germany, organized by VDW. Comparable in category coverage (turning, milling, grinding, forming, laser) and exhibitor scale; competes for global manufacturing technology exhibitor budgets.
• AMB - Exhibition for Metal Working: Biennial metalworking trade fair held in Stuttgart, Germany, focused on cutting machine tools, precision tools, and surface finishing. Comparable exhibitor/attendee profile and category overlap with FABTECH's forming and finishing tracks.
• METALFORM: Annual metalforming trade show produced by the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA), one of FABTECH's own co-sponsors. Directly comparable in scope (stamping, forming, fabricating) and audience, but smaller scale; the dual relationship is both a peer and a partner.
• HANNOVER MESSE: Deutsche Messe's flagship industrial technology trade fair covering automation, digital industry, energy, and metalworking. Comparable in manufacturing vertical focus and global exhibitor/attendee profile, though broader in scope than FABTECH.
• IMTS - International Manufacturing Technology Show: AMT-owned biennial trade show held at McCormick Place in Chicago, focused on metalworking and manufacturing technology. Directly comparable in target audience (manufacturing professionals, OEMs, job shops) and category overlap (forming, fabricating, welding, automation), and competes for the same exhibitor wallet share.
• Schweissen & Schneiden: Leading international welding and cutting trade fair held in Essen, Germany. Direct overlap on the welding track of FABTECH, sharing exhibitor bases (e.g., ESAB, Lincoln Electric, Miller) and competing for global welding industry marketing dollars.

Broad incumbents

• Messe Frankfurt: Global trade fair organizer hosting major industrial events including Ambiente and Texworld. Comparable as a peer organizer with deep manufacturing exhibitions experience; broader portfolio but overlapping target audiences in industrial automation and metalworking.
• Informa Markets: Largest global trade show organizer operating hundreds of B2B events across industries including manufacturing, automotive, and aerospace. Comparable as a peer organizer but with a much broader portfolio; competes for manufacturing exhibitor share-of-wallet across multiple events.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fabtechexpo
• Instagraminstagram.com/fabtechexpo
• TikToktiktok.com/@fabtechexpo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fabtech-expo
• Xx.com/fabtechexpo

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FABTECH