Chennai |
3-5 September 2026 |
Engineering a Sustainable Future
The Basics
Event: IMECE India 2026 – ASME’s International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition
Host: ASME India (American Society of Mechanical Engineers)
Dates: 3-5 September 2026 (main congress)
Pre-events: 1-2 September 2026 at Anna University (MEEd India Symposium + Brain Bolt Finals + Welcome Reception)
Venue: Chennai Trade Centre, Nandhambakkam, Chennai
Theme: Engineering a Sustainable Future
The Numbers
3,000+ Delegates
600+ Speakers
900+ Papers
50+ Exhibitors
12 Technical Tracks
4 MSME Plenaries
5 Focal Programs
The 4 Pillars
Energy |
Mobility |
Manufacturing |
Digitalization
The 5 Focal Programs
1. Student Engagements – Brain Bolt
2. MEEd India 2026 Engineering Education Symposium
3. MSME Conclave 4 dedicated plenaries
4. Innovation Square + ISHOW India 2026
5. Women in Engineering (WIE)
Confirmed Keynotes
Dr. Vivek Lall – Chief Executive, General Atomics Global Corporation
Ajit Prabhu Co-Founder & CEO, Quest Global
ASME Leadership Present
Thomas Costabile – Executive Director & CEO, ASME
Dr. Janis Terpenny – ASME President 2026-27
Anand Sethupathy – Chief Strategy Officer, ASME
Madhukar Sharma – President & Director, ASME India
Avni Malhotra – Deputy Director, ASME Foundation India
Headline History
IMECE India 2025 (Hyderabad): 1,845 delegates | 505 papers | 11 tracks | the first IMECE ever held outside the United States. abstracts
1,094
Why It Matters
Second edition after the historic 2025 Hyderabad debut the first time IMECE ever left US soil.
Combines the flagship congress with four dedicated MSME plenaries targeting nuclear, aerospace, deep-ocean and digital supply chains.
Draws senior government participation from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Goa, Uttar Pradesh and the Government of India.
Event website: https://imece.asme-india.org/2026/about-imece
About ASME India
ASME India brings the world’s largest mechanical engineering community to India building certified manufacturers, professional engineers, and future engineering talent for the country’s next industrial decade.
Why It Matters
India is one of ASME’s fastest-growing markets and produces some of the world’s best mechanical engineers.
ASME India helps 700+ Indian manufacturers plug into global supply chains through certification.
It is the operational backbone of IMECE India – ASME’s flagship engineering congress, now anchored in India annually.
Fast Facts
Present in India since: 2008
Members: 8,300+ and growing
Member sections nationwide: 180+
ASME-certified manufacturers in India: 700+
Professional member sections: 10+
Standards & technical groups: 15+
President & Director: Madhukar Sharma
About ASME Foundation India (AFI)
arm building India’s next generation of engineers
Established on 10 April 2024, ASME Foundation India funds education, careers and hardware-led innovation to make sure India’s engineering opportunity reaches beyond elite institutions.
Why it Matters
India has one of the world’s largest engineering education systems-1.4 million students enter engineering every year – but faces a widening gap between what’s taught and what industry needs.
Women account for “40% of India’s engineering graduates but less than 30% of the STEM workforce; AFI is directly working to close that gap.
social innovators a rare offering in Indian philanthropy. AFI’s ISHOW India brings grant capital and engineering mentorship to hardware-led
FRIDA
Fast Facts
Established: 10 April 2024
Structure: Philanthropic arm of ASME
Three pillars: Education That Inspires | Careers That Matter | Ideas That Innovate
ISHOW India 2026: 8 shortlisted ventures competing for US$30,000 in grants
Women in Engineering (WIE) Interest Group: launched 8 March 2025
Deputy Director: Avni Malhotra
Reach: 170+ student campuses; 10+ professional sections
Key Programs
MEEd India Engineering Education Symposium; anchoring MEEd India 2026 at Anna University on 2 September
ISHOW India international accelerator for hardware-led social innovation; finals on 3-4 September in Chennai
Women in Engineering (WIE) India 2026 spotlight panel of women founder-CEOs at IMECE
Brain Bolt The Engineer’s Sprint national student make-a-thon, prize pool 3L/₹2L/1L
Student Sections & E-Fx/E-Fests campus engagement, competitions, festivals
Did You Know?
ISHOW alumni have gone from prototype to market-scale ventures across Asia, Africa and Latin America an accelerator with genuine hardware DNA.
India’s total CSR spend crossed US$4.28 billion in FY 2024-25, with education taking the largest share the ecosystem in which AFI now operates.
ISHOW India 2026 winners will be announced on 4 September at IMECE India 2026 in Chennai.
ASME Global
Founded in New York in 1880, ASME writes the global engineering codes and standards used to build and safely operate power plants, pipelines, elevators and pressure vessels across the world.
Why It Matters
ASME’s Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code is used in around 80 countries-few standards touch more physical infrastructure worldwide.
Nearly every industry using pressure, heat or motion from nuclear plants to elevators relies on an ASME standard.
ASME is a not-for-profit powered by 6,400+ volunteer engineers, not a trade body or corporation.
What ASME Does
Codes and standards development
Certifications for manufacturers and engineers.
Learning and professional development
Research, conferences and publications
Government engagement and public policy
IMECE (Global)
ASME’s flagship – the world’s largest interdisciplinary engineering congress
Launched by ASME in 1996 in the United States, IMECE is the singular global forum where research leaders from academia, industry, government and national labs converge across every mechanical engineering discipline.
Fast Facts
Launched: 1996, United States
Host: American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
Status: ASME’s flagship congress
Positioning: World’s largest interdisciplinary engineering congress
First edition outside the US: IMECE India 2025 (Hyderabad)
First Indian edition scale: 1,845 delegates, 505 papers, 11 technical tracks, 1,094 abstracts4
US edition 2026: Vancouver, Canada (8-12 November 2026)
What Happens at IMECE
Peer-reviewed technical paper presentations across multi-disciplinary tracks
Keynotes and plenaries from global engineering leaders
Industry expositions and startup showcases
Government policy conversations on national industrial priorities
Talent, workforce and academia-industry engagement
Did You Know?
IMECE’s Indian debut in 2025 recorded the highest-ever participation by Indian scholars at ASME IMECE in 30 years.
The inaugural IMECE India covered aerospace, semiconductors, oil & gas, manufacturing, clean energy and thermal technologies – all in one congress.
ASME now runs twin IMECE congresses annually one in North America, one in India.
“The future of engineering and the future of global industry will be shaped by what India builds in the coming decade. ASME is here to support that journey and is committed to India for the long term.”
Thomas Costabile
Executive Director & CEO, ASME
“ASME has always been more than a professional society. It is a global community of engineers. educators, innovators, and problem-solvers. ASME is a technical home for everyone who believes engineering can improve lives, strengthen communities, and help solve some of the world’s most important challenges.”
Anand Sethupathy
Chief Strategy Officer, ASME
“IMECE India 2026 brings together the entire engineering ecosystem: academia, industry, MSMEs, students, researchers, and government on one platform. For many years, Indian engineers travelled abroad to participate in these conversations. Now, the conversation has come home to India.”
Dr. K. Shanmuga Sundaram
Congress Chair, IMECE India 2026 | Director, Centre for University-Industry Collaboration (CUIC), Anna University
“ASME India has spent nearly two decades building the foundations of a stronger engineering ecosystem through standards, workforce development, technical communities, industry engagement, and innovation platforms. IMECE India 2026 is the proof of that. The larger story is how ASME India will continue to enable Indian engineering competitiveness in the decade ahead.”
Madhukar Sharma
President & Director, ASME India
“Engineering ecosystems are ultimately built by people students, women engineers. educators, and innovators. At ASME Foundation India, our mission is to strengthen that pipeline of talent and opportunity, because the future of engineering depends on the people we invest in today.”
Avni Malhotra
Deputy Director, ASME Foundation India