Innovation and progress inevitably occurs at the intersection of technologies, skills, experience and knowledge. At PacPrint 2017, there will be plenty of opportunities to connect with the people and ideas which can help you innovate into a successful future.
PacPrint has always been the venue at which business owners and decision makers can view and compare equipment, systems and services all under the one roof. That showcase is the platform on which such shows are built – and PacPrint 2017 will be no exception – but more than that, this year’s show is shaping up as a hub for industry professionals to connect with the people who can help translate new ideas into future realities.
The show’s focus on the future will become immediately apparent approaching the MCEC from the Yarra River concourse, where a large, walk-through installation of printed organic photovoltaic (OPV) solar panels will grace the lawns adjacent to the Polly Woodside.
Brought to the show by the University of Newcastle, the installation will be staffed by researchers and technology specialists from the Universities of Newcastle and Wollongong and the CRC for Polymers, keen to discuss the commercial potential of this, and other functional print applications, with print service providers and industry suppliers. A public lecture on the progress of their research will also be held at 5.30pm on Wednesday May 24.
Inside the exhibition space, Currie Group will certainly be one of the most impressive exhibitors, featuring eye-catching examples of automation and end to end solutions, which flow from input to finished product, reducing touchpoints and increasing productivity and profitability. The show will see the Australasian debut of the drupa-release HP Indigo 8000, claimed to be the fastest digital label press in the world, connected to an AB Graphics Series 3 finishing line, designed for high-end embellishment. There will also be an HP Indigo 7900 demonstrated for the first time in the world connected inline to the fully-automated Horizon SPF 200 booklet maker; a new range of fluoro inks, and new applications of the company’s EPM high productivity mode technology.
HP Australia, working closely with partners Currie Group, will encourage visitors to ‘reinvent printing’ with an array of large format design and industrial printers. A number of HP Indigo digital presses making their Australian debut and customised innovation will feature, with the HP SmartStream Mosaic software driving production of personalised bottles of wine for the first 5000 registered PacPrint visitors, bespoke wall and window coverings produced on HP Latex, and corrugated applications on HP Scitex. HP DesignJet T3500 and Z6800 wide-format printers, HP PageWide XL 5000 and 8000 models will complete the range.
During the show, a range of materials from A2 and A3 personalised posters, pamphlets, stickers and even customised tablecloths will be produced for Cancer Council Australia.
Another big player, Canon is also taking the opportunity to launch several new releases to the market at PacPrint, most notably the Colorado 1640 64” roll-to-roll production printer, the first featuring Canon’s UVgel technology, as well as the new cutsheet digital colour imagePress printers – the 100ipm C10000VP and 80ipm C8000VP digital colour printers.
The Fuji Xerox Australia display will centre on two of its high-end digital solutions, the versatile Versant 3100/180 presses, which the company says combine workflow flexibility, automation and productivity with industry-leading quality, to produce a wide range of innovative and relevant print pieces, and the productive iGen 5, the flagship cutsheet digital press, with clear toner option, which Fuji Xerox says has been ‘built for the changing world of printing’.
Agfa Graphics will cover the prepress, sign and display sectors, with its Avalon N4 thermal CTP system which embodies Agfa’s latest thermal plate technology, Energy Elite Eco; the economical and productive Arkana Smart Plate Processor; and the latest in the popular Anapurna printer range, the high-performance M3200i RTR 3.2m wide six-colour roll-to-roll UV inkjet printer, and H3200i LED high-speed hybrid UV LED-curable inkjet system which can handle board and roll-to-roll print jobs.
The latest Ferag Skyfall overhead conveyor system will dominate the WRH Global stand, where visitors will also be able to see the Tolarans inline stitcher for quaterfold products, innovative Planamet adhesive technology, Xingraphics Primus Plus thermal plates and the IBF Direct-T develop-on-press plate.
Starleaton’s varied display will feature the OKI ColorPainter range of eco-solvent wide-format printers, including the super-fast M-64S and new economy version, the E-64S. They will be shown alongside Zünd table die-cutters, colour management systems, inkjet media, films and laminates, inks, toners and coatings, cutters and laminators, monitors and plan storage systems.
Nowhere will the focus on the future be more apparent than on the PES stand, which will feature the ground-breaking Massivit 1800 3D printer that created excitement at drupa with its capacity to create super-sized, 3D displays for advertising, promotions, marketing activations and entertainment. PES will also demonstrate other solutions including the latest Durst Rho P10 160 HDR wide-format printer.
Spicers will also point to the future with an innovative LG LCD refrigerator on stand, but the focus will no doubt be more on its popular range of Elitron SDC automatic cutting and routing solutions, the heavyweight EFI Vutek super-wide printer, Mimaki JFX-200 and JV-400 LX printers, and the company’s new Spike by Ike smartphone measuring system. The display will be rounded out by a huge range of substrates including Dichroic and Di-Noc from 3M, Dichroic and Di-Noc from 3M, X-Board, Fotoboden, dtec Acrylic and Skybond.
Also in media, Rojo Pacific will present a range of wide format media products, including its versatile and eco-friendly Katz Display Board, which it says is the perfect alternative to rigid plastics and ugly corrugateds, SupaCling vinyls, Rodure synthetic papers and magnetic media and Rotex fabrics. Alushine will present its aluminium composite panels and Pozitive will demonstrate the new, improved DGI Fabrijet range of reliable, sublimation printers for the sportswear, clothing, textile and soft signage markets.
PacPrint will be a pivotal show for Graph-Pak, which will launch its own range of ancillary equipment and host the Australasian launch of the latest-generation smart collators from blue chip supplier, Col-Tek, among other solutions from Busch, Autobond, D&K Europe, Vacuumatic, TRS and Thermotype.
Those interested in finishing and value adding will not want to miss stitching solutions from Miruna or Trimatt Systems range of inkjet addressing, numbering and barcoding, and polywrapping and inserting systems, which can help enclose printed media ready for mail and distribution.
In the sign and display sector, Sign Essentials will bring the Lamidesk EasyShift flatbed application tables and Impact CNC Lightning CO2 lasers, illuminated signage options will feature on stands like SA LED and LED Works and Multicam will focus on its latest routers.
In the areas of MIS, workflow and colour management, several leading names will bring their latest solutions including PrintIQ, Tharstern, Esko, Optimus, Accura and Objectif Lune. Workflowz will feature its breakthrough Chili publisher, iC3D real-time, all-in-one 3D packaging design software, Enfocus tools for PDF file quality control and workflow automation solutions.
Nearby, Kodak, will be featuring new digital and packaging capabilities and cloud connectivity in its Prinergy Workflow, and colour management and ISO colour certification specialist.
For those in packaging and labels, PacPrint stalwarts Aldus Tronics will demonstrate the latest
Mark Andy Digital One press, Rotoflex label inspection rewinders and digital finishing systems, as well as products for flexo plate washing, roller cleaning and web inspection, while Bottcher will be taking visitors through its innovative solutions for commercial printing, flexo and labels and carton board packaging.
Visitors will also be able to connect with a range of business and trade services, from equipment finance options from Ecolease, to a new W2P portal from wide-format print specialists, Vivad. The company says its Vivtrack 2.0 has been custom-designed for the notoriously diverse large format industry, and will make it easy for print service providers to expand into sign, display and exhibition solutions with a reliable trade partner. Also presenting as a trade partner are digital label printer Foxcil and continuous plastic poster printer Roller Poster.
PacPrint co-hosts Visual Connections and Printing Industries will present their range of services at the show, with the Packaging Council of Australia also represented on the Printing Industries stand. PrintNZ will once again bring a strong contingent to provide representation for the hundreds of Kiwi visitors expected to attend.
Perhaps most importantly, PacPrint visitors will be able to connect with each other, in the aisles of the exhibition, at events like the Women in Print Breakfast on Wednesday May 24 from 7.30 – 9.30am and the National Print Awards Presentation Night, which will be held on Thursday May 25 in the adjacent Convention Centre, and at the free PacPrint Forum Series which will run throughout the show to inform and inspire.
Morning keynote sessions – from futurist Steve Tighe, helicopter paramedic Peter Davidson, comic and author Marty Wilson, and rescue and film pilot Jerry Grayson – will be followed by panel discussions, in-depth presentations and hands-on workshop sessions on a wide range of topics from future technologies, to industry issues, opportunities and challenges, business management and marketing, funding and tender opportunities, employment issues and industry best practice. More information is on the PacPrint website.
PacPrint 2017 is hosted by Printing Industries and Visual Connections, and will run from 23-26 May at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre. Register online for PacPrint 2017 now, or find out more at www.pacprint.com.au.
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