According to the Association of German Machine Tool Manufacturers (VDW), 47.8 percent of employees in the German machine tool industry work in this region. This is the basis on which AMB has become the leading international exhibition for machine tools and precision tools.Visitors from all over the world will come to this summit meeting of the industry in Stuttgart, the state capital of Baden-Württemberg, from September 16-20 2014. The AMB slogan "Key to markets" is very apt: this exhibition is held in the area with the world's highest concentration of manufacturers. The majority of these companies, including many world market leaders and innovation leaders, will naturally exhibit at their "home exhibition." However, the target public of the exhibitors is also domiciled in southwest Germany: with more than 450 companies in Baden-Württemberg, it is Germany's autoland, the cradle of medical technology and the region with the highest turnover of the entire German mechanical engineering industry. An extraordinary concentration of manufacturing companies, component suppliers, customers and research and training institutes has turned Baden-Württemberg into this high-tech hub in Europe. The economy of the third largest German federal state (population: around 10 million) is characterised by a large number of small and medium-sized manufacturers who operate extremely successfully around the world. According to the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Finance and Economics, 50 percent of the workforce in the mechanical engineering industry in Baden-Württemberg work in companies with fewer than 500 employees while 60 percent of companies have fewer than 100 employees. "Walter AG will naturally again present new high-tech metal-cutting tools and productivity solutions in order to make metal cutting even more efficient and more economical," said Mirko Merlo, CEO of the Tübingen-based company Walter AG. "This is a clear indication of our engineering expertise. We are always aware that our customers face tough worldwide competition." Many of the exhibitors from Baden-Württemberg are family-run companies. Behringer GmbH in the small town of Kirchardt in the Heilbronn District is a owner-run complete supplier on the sawing technology market. The company will exhibit energy-efficient, high-performance band-sawing machines with a very high cutting speed at AMB 2014. Gebr. Heller Maschinenfabrik GmbH, a traditional family-owned mechanical engineering company from Nürtingen, will also be represented at AMB 2014. The focal point of Heller's presentation at AMB 2014 will be complete machining. Heller will impress visitors with a range of machines and technologies for 4-axis, 5-axis and milling-turning tasks, supplemented by a range of modular services for maximum availability. Founded in 1867 in Salach, EMAG is managed by the Hessbrüggen family and, since 2009, by a Chinese textile machine manufacturer on a 50 percent basis. The company initially started as a foundry and is now the international market leader in its special field, i.e. the manufacture of pick-up lathes. The range of products of the EMAG Group extends from standard machines through to customised solutions. At present EMAG is increasingly developing modular products and will present vertical pick-up lathes for processing chuck parts and shafts at AMB 2014. Over 90,000 trade visitors and approximately 1,300 exhibitors are expected to attend AMB 2014. The exhibitors will present innovations and further developments in the areas of metal-cutting processes and precision tools, but also chucking tools, CAD, CAM, CAE, software, grinding machines, handling of workpieces and tools, and measuring systems. AMB 2014 will be supported by the promotional supporters VDMA Precision Tools Association, VDMA Software Association and the Association of German Machine Tool Manufacturers (VDW).