Eurobois 2026 in Lyon
Successful trade show appearance for AKE France – Managing Director Thierry Schmitt of AKE France takes stock
Eurobois in Lyon is one of the most important industry trade fairs for wood and material processing in France. Every two years, manufacturers, distributors, and users from across the industry meet here to present new technologies, tools, and solutions.
From February 3 to 6, 2026, the French subsidiary of AKE Knebel GmbH & Co. KG, AKE France, also participated as an exhibitor and presented its comprehensive portfolio of precision tools for wood, aluminium, and plastic processing.
With around 30,000 visitors, the trade fair provided an excellent platform for exchanging ideas with existing customers as well as for gaining new business contacts. From AKE France’s perspective, participation was therefore an important step toward further strengthening its market position in the French market.
Long-standing partnership and company history
The relationship between the German parent company and the French branch has a long tradition.
Managing Director Thierry Schmitt has led AKE France for more than ten years. However, the corporate partnership goes back much further: as early as 1975, his father Raimund Schmitt founded the French company together with Albert Knebel.
Over five decades, this collaboration developed into a close and successful partnership that still forms the basis for international cooperation within the AKE Group today.
Eurobois as the central industry platform
Eurobois is regarded as the most important national trade fair for wood and material processing in France. It brings together manufacturers of machines, tools, and technologies with users from trades, industry, and sawmills.
Numerous international and national competitors were represented at the trade fair, including, among others:
- LEUCO
- Leitz
- Forézienne
In addition, an increasing presence of Chinese suppliers was observed, who are making greater efforts to establish themselves in the European market—particularly in France.
Against this backdrop, participation in Eurobois had particular strategic importance for AKE France in order to visibly strengthen its market position and to showcase the quality and innovative strength of its products.
Product portfolio and trade fair highlights
At the exhibition stand, AKE France presented its entire product portfolio for various applications in industrial and trade processing.
The presented product segments included:
- Circular saw blades for solid wood processing
- Saw blades for aluminium and plastic processing
- Units for CNC machining centres
- Diamond tools for demanding applications
Trade fair visitors showed particular interest in the stepped and chrome-plated Mustang saws, which were developed specifically for optimised use in sawmills.
These products proved to be a real eye-catcher at the exhibition stand and led to numerous in-depth technical discussions with interested parties from the industry. The Mustang saws therefore served as an ideal conversation starter and made a significant contribution to generating new contacts.
Trade fair results and outlook
Overall, AKE France draws a very positive conclusion from its participation in Eurobois 2026.
In addition to exchanging ideas with many long-standing customers, numerous new contacts were also established. The high visitor frequency at the stand and the strong interest in the products presented confirm the relevance of the trade fair as an important platform for market presence and business development.
“We were very satisfied with our trade fair appearance. Eurobois is a key event for us in the French market. We were able to win many new customers while also maintaining existing contacts,” summarises Managing Director Thierry Schmitt.
Based on the positive trade fair experience, AKE France is confident that it will generate additional projects in the coming weeks and—similarly to after Eurobois two years ago—further increase its sales volume.
