This was the 14th edition of the event, which was started in 1979 and takes place every two years. Stone+tec 2005 drew 1,058 exhibiting companies and a crowd of more than 40,000 visitors. Of the exhibitors, 68% hailed from 49 foreign nations. The figures for exhibitors and visitors are checked and certified by the Society for Voluntary and Independent Control of Fair and Exhibition Statistics (FKM) of Berlin, reported the show's organizer.

"In contrast to most other building exhibitions in Europe, Stone+tec has had a large share of international exhibitors for years," stated Bernd A. Diederichs, managing director of NürnbergMesse, the show's organizer. "This is because natural stone differs from other building materials in that it is traded on a worldwide basis -- and more than ever before."