The inaugural Automation World Vietnam, a trade show dedicated to smart factory solutions and automation, will be held in Binh Duong Province, north of Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City, from Sept. 25 to 27, event host Coex said Wednesday.

The upcoming event will be the first Automation World expo held outside Korea. AW, hosted by Coex, which operates a convention center under the same name in Seoul, is one of the largest gatherings of the smart factory industry. The Seoul event in March this year attracted 450 companies and 2,000 exhibitions -- the largest ever in scale.

In response to the rapid digitalization of Vietnam's manufacturing sector, Coex signed a memorandum of understanding with the Korea Smart Manufacturing Office -- a subsidiary of the Korea Technology & Information Promotion Agency for SMEs -- in late May, to host the first overseas Automation World Expo and is currently recruiting participating companies.

The Vietnam event plans to feature over 150 companies across 200 booths, showcasing cutting-edge technologies in industrial automation, including industrial PCs, cameras, sensors, machine learning, robotics and artificial intelligence.

According to Coex, this event comes at a critical juncture. Vietnam’s smart factory and automation market is projected to grow from $120 billion in 2021 to $260 billion by 2025, driven by the demand for digital transformation in logistics and manufacturing.

“As global supply chains continue to diversify, Vietnam is rapidly emerging as a key player in the manufacturing sector, and Automation World Vietnam 2024 provides an opportune moment for industry leaders to engage with this dynamic market,” said Coex.

The highlight of the event is the K Smart Factory special exhibition, where 39 Korean companies will showcase advanced smart manufacturing technologies, organized in collaboration with South Korea's Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Global giants like Germany’s Siemens and Japan’s FANUC, alongside leading Korean firms such as Autonics and Daekhon Corporation, will participate, reinforcing the event's international significance.

Running simultaneously with AW Vietnam is the Vietnam Electric Energy Show (ELECS), following last year's event in Hanoi and now held in Binh Duong.

Under its recently announced Eighth National Power Development Plan, Vietnam aims to secure power generation facilities and expand renewable energy distribution by 2045, with an investment target of $320 billion.