The comprehensive public procurement expo, ‘Korea Nara Market Expo 2024,’ has opened at KINTEX in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do.
The Public Procurement Service announced that the Nara Market Expo will be held at KINTEX from the 17th to the 19th under the theme ‘Technology Innovation K-Procurement, to the World! to the Future!’
The purpose of the Nara Market Expo is to create domestic and international procurement demand for innovative and venture company products and to support the overseas expansion of excellent procurement companies’ products. This year marks the 24th event, with a record scale of about 650 outstanding procurement companies participating, showcasing innovative products, new technologies, and new products at over 1,100 booths.
The Public Procurement Service operated exhibition halls on-site, including the ▲New Growth Hall ▲Venture Nara Hall ▲CES Hall ▲Excellent Procurement Products Hall ▲Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Products Hall ▲Service Hall ▲Joint Hall, providing visitors with themed experiential opportunities.
Last year at the Nara Market Expo, an overseas buyer visiting a procurement company booth is greeting a company representative and requesting an explanation about a new product. Photo by Public Procurement Service
The New Growth Hall exhibited innovative products such as low-corrosion eco-friendly de-icing agents using starfish, AI-based pedestrian safety systems, and explosive and drug residue detection technologies. The Venture Nara Hall showcased new products from startup and venture companies without public procurement delivery records (companies registered in the exclusive Venture Nara mall), helping participating companies enter the procurement market and providing opportunities to develop sales channels on-site.
The CES Hall displayed products that won the ‘Innovation Award’ at the International Consumer Electronics Show held in the U.S. last January. Representative products include a non-falling indoor bicycle, a robot that detects and removes pollutants on the sea, and a robot that manages and removes green algae. These products are recognized as new technologies that have already been acknowledged for excellence at the U.S. International Consumer Electronics Show.
The Joint Hall was filled with products supported by local governments and public institutions, including special halls from Gyeonggi-do, Gimhae-si, and Cheongju-si, the Public Market Development Hall from the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Technology Market Joint Hall from the Korea Expressway Corporation. Notably, this year’s Nara Market Expo featured newly established halls for the Ministry of National Defense and the Service Hall, attracting visitors’ attention. The Ministry of National Defense Joint Hall exhibited military innovative products that allow visitors to directly experience K-Defense technology, such as autofocus binoculars, polyurethane safety boots, and vacuum blankets.
Additionally, the expo added significance by moving beyond product-centered exhibitions to showcase the development status and future directions of intangible public services, including coffee subscription services, AI-based high-immersion video conferencing, and electronic tag inventory services.
During the Nara Market Expo, the Public Procurement Service is also conducting about 30 domestic and international procurement-related events. A representative domestic event is the ‘Win-Win Growth Public Purchase Consultation,’ where participating companies meet with public institutions and large enterprise purchasing managers who demand products, sharing product information and expanding sales opportunities.
For international events, a venue was prepared to introduce domestic company products and conduct export consultations by inviting 90 overseas buyers. The ‘World Central Procurement Agencies Multilateral Meeting,’ involving six advanced procurement countries including Korea, the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Italy, and Chile, will also be held simultaneously at the Nara Market Expo site.
Lim Gi-geun, Administrator of the Public Procurement Service, said, “This year’s Nara Market Expo will be a festival where procurement companies, domestic and international buyers, and citizens interested in public procurement come together. We will spare no support to help procurement companies that have grown in the domestic procurement market expand overseas and enter a second growth phase through the Nara Market Expo.”
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