Picture News

— —A lively and innovative promotional trip for Print China 2019 to North America 

At the gracious invitation of the sponsor of Print 17 - a major printing exhibition in North America, the seven member-Publicity Team for Print China 2019, led by Mr. Lu Chang’an, Vice Chairman of the Printing and Printing Equipment Industries Association of China and Mr. Chen Jun, President of Guangdong Printing Association, paid an inspection visit to Print 17 held at the McCormick Place, Chicago, the USA on Sept. 9-14, 2017 local time.

During their stay in the USA, the Publicity Team paid courtesy calls to various officials of the sponsor. They also had extensive contacts with representatives of the participating manufacturers, both Chinese and foreign, in a bid to explore the industry trend. On the afternoon of Sept. 12, 2017 local time, the Press Conference for Print China 2019 was held on the site of the exhibition, offering a comprehensive introduction to the development of China’s printing industry over the past years, as well as the general idea, major measures and preparations for Print China 2019. The Press Conference was warmly received and greatly supported by news media, international printing organizations, printing and packaging associations, and participating enterprises from the USA and beyond.

Print 17 – The evolution history of the printing industry

Print 17 is jointly sponsored by the National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL), The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies (NPES) and the United States Printing Industry Corporation (PLA) and organized by GASC. Founded in 1976, the quadrennial event has been held consecutively for 10 sessions and recognized as the most representative comprehensive printing exhibition in North America. At its peak, the exhibition boasts a display area of over 120,000 square meters. Recent years have seen Print shrinking its overall size as the North America printing market experienced a period of adjustment under the impact of the internet, mobile internet and other modern information technologies.

According to statistics, Print 17 features nearly 40,000 square meters of display area and 485 participants from across the globe. Exhibits mainly cover the following fields: wide-format digital, inkjet printing, package printing, paper converting, folding carton, soft roll, label & trademark, corrugated case, commercial printing, postal printing and packaging equipment, manufacturing and industrial printing, 3D printing, printed electronics, RFID, QR code scanner, augmented reality technology, decorative transactional printing, fast printing, small-scale business printing, book & periodical printing and publishing, newspaper printing, digital imaging, marketing and creative service, media and printing procurement. 30,000 or so professionals from various states of the USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Central and South America visited the exhibition. Meanwhile, 68 information sessions, product presentations and technical seminars were launched concurrently by the sponsor and major exhibiting enterprises.

Survey at the exhibition site – Feeling the cutting-edge innovation of enterprises

To enhance the international reputation of Print China 2019, the Publicity Team has especially set up a booth at Print 17 to promote the event among exhibitors and visitors as Print has become the most influential printing industry event in North America this year. Publicity materials have been distributed and onsite presentations have been carried out, which drew wide attention from people in the North America printing business.

During the exhibition, the Publicity Team, led by Vice Chairman Lu Chang’an and President Chen Jun, paid a visit to such renowned Chinese enterprises as Synnex, Global Tech, Donghang and Jinbao, to learn about their exhibition results. Through the visits, they surveyed the market demand and overall rating of the North American printing market on Chinese printing equipment and apparatus and on this basis, discussed the strategies and measures necessary for Chinese printing enterprises tapping the North America printing market.

The Publicity Team also made a targeted visit to memjet – the well-known nozzle manufacturer of the USA, to understand the technical features of improved nozzles. Furthermore, they discussed with their American counterpart about the possibility of reducing ink price to expand the market, to which the manufacturer attached great importance.

During a special trip to KONICA MINOLTA BUSINESS SOLUTIONS (CHINA) CO., LTD., the Publicity Team met with Mr. Tadahiko Sumitani, Chairman and General Manger of the company, as well as Mr. Li Gang, Manager of the Printing System Division. While having an in-depth understanding of the main performances and technical features of the new-type digital printer exhibited by Konica Minolta at Print 17, they visited the newly developed AccurioPress C6100 printer, winner of the BLI PRO AWARD. AccurioPress C6100/C6085 can print up to 100 pages and 85 pages (A4) per minute. Meanwhile, with improved paper adaptability, it can easily print on 52-400g/㎡ papers, and even the 400g/㎡ papers without suffering its output capacity.Showing a strong interest in their new products Vice Chairman Lu Chang’an and President Chen Jun sincerely invited these two enterprises to sign up for Print China 2019 as early as possible and together contribute to the success of this grand occasion.

Market monitoring – Grasping the general trade of the industry

North America is an upscale market of the printing industry. Through an intensive survey of Print 17, the Publicity Team has made a serious conclusion as to the development trend of the world printing industry.

To begin with, domination of the digital printing and post-press equipment at Print 17 shows that digital printing will keep expanding in width and depth towards the top of the industrial chain. That will be a striking feature of developments in the world printing industry for some time in the future.

Second, digital inkjet technology has experienced new developments.

So far, nozzle manufacturers have made further improvement in nozzle resolution, chromatic number, print speed, width and splice length of single nozzle, quick replaceability and cleaning. For instance, the new-type nozzle developed by memjet reaches up to 222.8mm long, with a splice length of up to 2,563.6mm. A single nozzle is able to jet five different colors of ink with a resolution of up to 1600 dpi. With a lower resolution, it can print up to 203 meters per minute. It takes only 45 seconds to clean the nozzle, which can be made after every 1.5 meters of printing. What’s more, the nozzle can be dismantled and installed very quickly for easy maintenance and replacement.

Third, the functions of digital printers have been furthered improved.

The △E color management technique, 3D printing technology, local UV varnishing, gold blocking and frosting functions of Konica Minolta, for example, have brought along the upgrade of the printing materials. Apart from 520, 640 and 750 product widths, the company’s B1+ width product for the packaging industry has also been put on the market.

Fourth, Print 17 displays a great variety of post-digital printing devices. Aside from the POD integrated solution, visitors to the exhibition can find a dizzying array of post-press finishing solutions. Publish on demand, packaging and labeling, and creative products are major highlights of the exhibition.

Fifth, from the various digital printing equipment that are on display at Print 17, it is evident that personalized surface treatment technology has gained new developments while the color management technology has been maturing gradually.

Last but not least, the technical added value of package printing has been further increased thanks to the extensive application of the personalized surface treatment technology, 3D printing and augmented reality technology.

In conclusion, digital printing has emerged as a major direction of development for the world printing industry. To meet the needs of such modern information technology as the internet, mobile internet, IOT, big data and cloud-computing, the global printing sector will inevitably quicken its steps towards digitalization, intelligent production, eco-friendly materials and personalized service. During this process, more attention will be paid to raise efficiency, reduce labor and cost, and increase benefits, thus opening up a balanced, coordinated and sustainable path of development.

The survey indicates clearly that, as market changes, the entire printing industry is shifting further from traditional printing of books and periodicals to emerging technologies, such as commercial printing, packaging printing, label printing, silk-screen printing, 3D printing and printed electronics. Therefore, it is imperative that the whole printing sector work together to upgrade the industry for better quality and efficiency. It is therefore a top priority of the industry to focus on innovation and supply optimization, thereby exploring new philosophies, models and paths of development.

Strengthened publicity – Launching the Press Conference for Print China 2019

On the afternoon of Sept. 12 local time, the Press Conference for Print China 2019 opened grandly in 401D Conference Room, McCormick Place South Building, Chicago. More than 40 people attended the Press Conference, including representatives of NPES - sponsor of Print 17, visiting persons-in-charge of printing associations of India, the Philippines and other countries, as well as representatives of both Chinese and foreign exhibitors, as well as professional media from the USA and foreign countries.

Ms. Wang Fengna, Deputy Secretary General of the Printing and Printing Equipment Industries Association of China, took the chair. At the Press Conference, introductions and illustrations on Print China 2019 have been made, including industrial background, marketing environment, historical development, philosophy and overall pan, among other issues of common interest.

 Mr. Lu Chang’an, Vice Chairman of the Printing and Printing Equipment Industries Association of China, spoke first. Lu began his keynote speech by giving a brief introduction to Print China. He then provided a systematic illustration of the basics and future trend of China’s printing industry, focusing on the development trend of publication printing in China, package printing, digital printing and green printing. Lu pointed out that package printing has, in recent years, risen to be a major force driving the Chinese printing market, accounting for over 75% of the industry’s total output. Based on this, experts have predicted that in the coming five years, the Chinese printing market is expected to maintain an annual growth of 6% to 8%. Representatives at the meeting were all amazed at the robust development momentum and brisk demand of the Chinese printing sector, expressing their intentions to bring more domestic enterprises to Dongguan, China for Print China 2019.

Mr. Zhao Hui, General Manager of China Print Show Company Limited, gave a vivid illustration of the preparation and overall planning for the show. In the PPT presentation, he depicted to the audience a clear time schedule and route map for the expected visit to China in 2019, which arose in everyone a strong desire to participate in the coming event.

Towards the end of the meeting, the English video titled Print China 2009 – Creating a future with you was played. Especially made by the Organizing Committee for the show, the advertising video consists of five parts: Chinese economy shouldering the responsibility for the world; The printing industry showing great vigor and vitality; Spanning one decade with boundless passion; Comprehensive planning for new achievements; and The grand occasion demonstrating greater beauty of Guangdong. From Chinese economy to the Chinese printing industry, the video featuring intense and breathtaking pictures and passionate narration, systematically introduces the economic setting and market environment of China against which Print China 2019 has leapt to be a world-renowned printing exhibition. It struck a responsive chord in the hearts of all representatives.  Everyone was so impressed by the fighting spirit of the Chinese printing community. NPES immediately asked the Organizing Committee for a copy of the video so that it can be played at meetings of the Printing Industries of America and among its members. And that would allow more people from the American printing circle a better understanding of the Chinese economy and Chinese printing industry.

Representatives at the Press Conference have all expressed their desire to enhance exchanges and interactions through Global Print and Asia Print. Going forward, they would leverage printing exhibitions-based in their own countries to make new contributions to the sound and sustained development of the world’s printing industry. Amidst friendly discussions and earnest expectation for future development of the industry, the Press Conference was brought to a successful end.