interzum forum italy is the exhibition event dedicated to the future of the furnishing supply chain, organised by Koelnmesse, which will be held at the Bergamo exhibition and congress centre on 6 and 7 June 2024 and will take place every two years. 

The strong point of interzum forum italy is a palimpsest of events, with different formats dedicated to educating and informing visitors, with the aim of providing companies and professionals with those elements that are today essential for making short and long term choices. A rich programme of conferences and meetings aimed at operators in the sub-contracting and interior design sectors, manufacturers of furnishing materials and technologies, general contractors, companies and design studios and designers. 

Topics such as the production of materials, components and technologies, the sustainable development of companies and regulations on transparency and surveillance are receiving increasing attention from institutions. For this reason, a wide-ranging proposal of contents will be offered, ranging from green to the digital revolution, from certifications to innovative production processes, from modern housing trends to latest-generation materials.

Investment in research and product innovation 

With regard to the issue of sustainability, a recent survey by CSIL, a partner of interzum forum italy, shows that the majority of Italian furniture manufacturers have already embarked on the path towards a green transition by investing in both the sustainability of production processes and product development: for more than 40% of the companies sampled by CSIL, the transition is in progress, and for about 30% it is at a good stage of progress. 

The CSIL Observatory data also show that in the two-year period 2021-2022 the furniture industry in Italy has recorded exceptional growth, of over 20% in current values compared to 2019, reaching over 20 billion euro in value in 2022 and registering excellent performances on the domestic market and in exports. This extraordinary growth is now followed by a physiological slowdown also due to a weakened global scenario. 

According to the CSIL Forecast Report on the furniture sector in Italy (November 2022), in order to cope with this drop in demand and at the same time with the still high prices of raw materials and components, Italian furniture manufacturers are prioritising investment in research and product innovation, while also seizing the opportunities arising from the transition to digital and sustainability.

The products of excellence of Italian design 

The recognised vitality of the sector is determined by further factors. As Anna Barbara, President of the Board of Directors of POLI.design, also a partner of interzum forum italy, emphasises: "Materials, surfaces, finishes, which for years were considered decorations to be applied to products and projects in the final phase, are increasingly becoming the authentic DNA of the products of excellence of Italian design. Behind this extraordinary world, there are companies, universities, innovation centres that carry out advanced research and explore new areas of application, that invent complex materials and performance, that build performance technologies to meet increasingly advanced requirements. 

This articulated design system is strategic to guarantee the success of Italian brands and recognised qualities. For this reason, it will be necessary to continue to support education and training in the culture of surface, material and also immaterial design'.