CMTS 2025 keeps up optimism amid trade war
October 6, 2025
by Sadi Muktadir
Almost none of the manufacturers queried at CMTS were unaffected by tariffs, with many manufacturers citing mitigation strategies to protect themselves.
From Sep. 29 – Oct. 2, CMTS 2025 brought together more than 750 manufacturing brands over four days, showcasing demonstrations, keynotes, sessions and exhibitions for the estimated 10,000+ executives across the manufacturing industry.
Manufacturers explored solutions, partnerships and other innovations in an effort to stay competitive throughout a tumultuous year, with show expectations reflecting an optimism found on the hubbub of the show floor.
MAPAL Inc., a German tool manufacturer with a distribution presence in Canada spoke to their CMTS experience and expectations.
“For us, being here is about networking and building contacts. We want to build a brand awareness and get our name out there, that’s our main goal here this week. We’re a product line that’s not an easy sale here, we like to sit down with our customer and understand what their manufacturing needs are, so we’re interested in having those conversations and building out our network,” said Ralph Davoli, Product Manager for Aerospace at MAPAL Inc.
Other companies had similar things to say about a CMTS experience focused on more than just sales.
“We want to get our name out there. That’s going to lead to sales, for sure, but we want to network, find new customers,” said Mike Nickell, Automation and Projects Manager at Ferro Technique, an industrial equipment supplier. “So far, the traction we’ve had has been good. We’ve had a lot more quality leads rather than quantity of leads which we like.”
The international presence was also present at CMTS 2025, with Mexican 3D printing manufacturer Honpe Prototyping also asked about their show experience and expectations.
“It’s a nice show, a lot of people have come by the booth and aren’t aware of what we do. We’re hoping to form more connections with entrepreneurs or established players that might need the services we have,” said Cecilia Acevedo, Design & Business Developer at Honpe Prototyping.
Canadian manufacturer of material handling products, KLETON Manufacturing Inc., was also asked about their CMTS expectations.
“There seems to be a lot more interest in Canadian-made manufactured products this year,” said Sean Haggart, Brand Manager at KLETON Manufacturing, when asked about how this show compared to the one from two years prior.
“For us, the main reason to be at CMTS is for brand recognition. We want to keep expanding, especially out west. Now that we have improved equipment and the improved capacity to produce more products we want to start moving into different markets,” he added.
Larger companies like Elliott Matsuura Canada Inc. were also asked about their presence at CMTS 2025.
“We’re very pleased with the amount of traffic that we’re getting,” said Mike Ballerscheff, Business Development Manager at Elliott Matsuura Canada Inc., a machine tools manufacturer. “Our goal is to connect with some of the people we’ve worked with over the years, put a face to a name, and network.”
Hanging over the four-day show was the detrimental effects of the tariffs, and the ongoing trade dispute with the U.S., something that was ever-present on the mind of most manufacturers at the show.
Almost none of the manufacturers queried at CMTS were unaffected by tariffs, including Elliott Matsuura Canada Inc.
“We have been affected by the tariffs. Some of our builders are located in the U.S., and will now import equipment that they’ll have to pay tariffs on. This then increases our purchase price of the equipment, so we’re watching the situation quite closely as it evolves. At the end of the day, Mark Carney needs to talk to Trump to make a deal happen immediately,” said Ballerscheff.
In the context of tariffs, KLETON’s Haggart said that interest in the company’s products has increased from potential customers looking for a ‘Made-in-Canada’ solution.
“The tariffs have definitely been on our radar. We do import some products from overseas so there is that pressure from the U.S. to try and impose tariffs on our end on overseas suppliers, so we’re keeping an eye on it. We’re trying to find suppliers in Canada or Europe to avoid the impacts of potential tariffs as a result, but we do most of our manufacturing in Canada already,” said Haggart.
Honpe Prototyping was also asked about tariffs and their effects on the business.
“Right now, because we are based out of the U.S., we have the ability to export from Mexico, or from China, to avoid tariff penalties based on what works for our customers,” said Acevedo.
Ferro Technique was also asked about the tariff situation and how it’s affected the company.
“Right now, machine tools are not being tariffed, so we’ve been okay. But we are struggling, and we’ve seen our customers struggle with it too,” said Nickell. “We have plan B’s in our back pocket just in case, but we haven’t had to use any of those thus far. It’s a situation we monitor closely.”
And so it seems to be, with most manufacturers preparing mitigation strategies and watching the ever-evolving situation closely, as they try to remain resilient in the face of ongoing trade threats from the U.S.
