Packaging

INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY AT LABELEXPO AMERICAS

Thursday 25. September 2008 - Labelexpo Americas 2008, the largest event for the label, web printing, product decoration and converting industry in the Americas, took place in Chicago between 9 and 11 September.

Despite the current unstable economic situation, Labelexpo Americas proved the label industry is still a resilient and innovative sector. The show demonstrated an excellent quality of attendees, with numbers exceeding 12,000. By the end of the show over 80% of the exhibition space had already been rebooked for Labelexpo Americas 2010.
The show saw 420 national and international suppliers bringing their latest developments in technology and materials to demonstrate to the North American market. There were many presses launched by the market leaders: Nilpeter introduced its new FG-line of UV flexo presses; Mark Andy unveiled the Comco C1 ProGlide and demonstrated its updated XP5000 shaftless press. EFI Jetrion showcased its 4000 UV-inkjet printer; HP Indigo debuted to the North American market its ws6000 digital-offset press; Xeikon for the first time in the Americas demonstrated its new digital label press, the 3300; Epson’s new digital label press was on display showing its integration with the EskoArtwork and Kodak pre-press software/hardware and the Grafisk Maskinfabrik DC330 converter.
For suppliers the show was not only a great launch pad, but also the most effective medium to make sales and set up new partnerships. Sales orders kept coming in, and the suppliers witnessed a lot of purchasing power coming from Latin America and Eastern Europe. Nilpeter sold 29 presses at the show, five of which were sold in the first three hours of the show!
Among the most popular areas of the show were the newly introduced feature areas – the Digital Printing Experience and Gather on the Green.
The Digital Printing Experience pavilion, located in Hall F, gathered the leading suppliers in digital printing technology – HP, Xeikon, EFI Jetrion, Epson, Impika, Degrava, Sun Chemical, Xaar, Konika Minolta to name a few. The pavilion had more digital printing technology than ever showcased at any Labelexpo event or any other converting event before. Attendees were offered the best pick of digital presses, as well as digital pre-press software, platemaking and and post-press finishing, with live demonstrations running continuously. In addition, the pavilion had a series of seminars and panel discussions, which focused on the present and future of digital printing and its role in the development of the label industry worldwide. The pavilion enjoyed good visitor traffic during all hours of the show giving suppliers plenty opportunities to demonstrate their groundbreaking technologies and discuss in detail their products’ offering.
Sustainability was an important theme of many conference sessions and also during various presentations at suppliers’ booths. The conference program was organized in partnership with the TLMI.
Avery Dennison, UPM Raflatac, Mactac, among many, showcased their latest environmentally-friendly products. The new feature area, Gather on the Green, received a lot of attention as converters were eager to see the wide selection of products created with the use of sustainable technology.
The conference sessions that ran for the duration of the show provided visitors with a good opportunity to hear the latest industry news and developments from the high calibre speakers. Highlights of the conference program included several international panel sessions that focused on the subjects of most interest and concern to the label community: the current market situation, the industry’s future growth, digital printing technologies, sustainable technology and end-user requirements, advancements in flexo presses and many others.
The conferences started with a keynote presentation by Dean Scarborough, President and CEO of Avery Dennison, who, as always, delivered a most engaging and stimulating speech. Mr Scarborough discussed the challenges and opportunities in the North American market.
Expressing his view on the success of the show, Roger Pellow, Labelexpo Managing Director, said: “We are very pleased with the event results. The American economy is going through an uneasy period, and many industries are suffering as a result. Despite this, Labelexpo Americas attracted high quality of visitors who were willing to invest in new technologies and keep their businesses developing. I was very pleased to see many sales orders put through at the show, which once again demonstrated that Labelexpo Americas is the number one event for the American label industry. We had an excellent attendance from Latin America, and the quality of attendees was very high.
The launch of our new Digital Printing Experience Pavilion was a great success. Converters had a unique opportunity to see the latest and most innovative developments in digital printing technologies, and the suppliers were overwhelmed with enquiries and requests. The show unveiled a lot of new innovative technology, and I very much look forward to seeing the industry advance and continue to thrive in the future.”