Show Preview: GRAPH EXPO’s Growing Role
If the printing company of tomorrow is going to look vastly different than it did even just five or 10 years ago, then it stands to reason that the printing trade show of tomorrow is due for an infusion that goes beyond Botox and a fanny implant. These changes will be more philosophical than cosmetic, and certainly more long-lasting.
Truth be known, the printing industry can't go it alone anymore when it comes to trade exhibitions. Many industry observers have pointed to changing industry tides: Equipment manufacturers invite their client and prospect VIPs to their demo centers to see new or beta gear in action, far from the distraction of competing offerings. And, as the economic slump completes its third year, many printing companies—particularly those with tight travel budgets—simply cannot justify letting employees browse. If they're not buying, then what's the point in going?
Ralph Nappi has heard all the whispers and not-so-low murmurs regarding the state of GRAPH EXPO. The president of the Graphic Arts Show Co. (GASC), which produces the GRAPH EXPO and PRINT shows, endured the pain of a 2010 show without showcase heavy- hitters Heidelberg and Komori (which opted out instead of scaling back their presence; both return this year). Nappi knows that there is strength in numbers and sees the value of making this country's premier annual print show a Mecca for its membership, a Must See 'em pilgrimage in its own right.
More than Gear
While the U.S. economy will eventually improve and credit markets will loosen the purse strings—allowing for more robust capex investments—the changing face of the printing industry and the alternative sources for equipment manufacturers to allure clients to their new wares dictate that in order to survive long-term, Graph Expo needs to be more than an equipment show. Nappi & Co. appear well on their way to transforming the exhibition, which will be held Sept. 11-14 at the venerable McCormick Place in Chicago.
That changing face of print is evident with the 2011 debut of the Marketing Pavilion sponsored by the Chicago chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA). The pavilion's objective is to offer a complete, single-source destination for marketing education, resources and networking. It is also an acknowledgement of the major trend of commercial printing companies redefining themselves as marketing services providers.
"Are companies printers or marketing solutions providers? We're trying to focus on that perception/reality," Nappi relates. "Regardless of what you call a company, it's certainly providing more marketing (services) than ever before. With so many companies moving in this direction, we felt a Marketing Pavilion would help satisfy the need for products, information and knowledge."
The pavilion will focus on the tools and technologies needed for printers to beef up their marketing expertise, including digital marketing services, social media/content gathering tools, lead generation/management services, search engine optimization, e-mail marketing services/software, marketing automation technology, database management and analytics, mobile and Web-based offerings, and creative services.
The pavilion will also feature a marketing theater, which will provide a series of educational presentations and workshops on the "how-to" of marketing. The Chicago AMA has designed its program to address the needs of both novices and experienced marketers.
Also of significant interest this year is GASC's continued push for co-located events. Twenty organizations chose GRAPH EXPO last year as the hub for their meetings, conferences, users groups and galas. By the time September rolls around, Nappi is expecting nearly a 50 percent increase, raising the awareness of Graph Expo as the place to be for related annual convergences.
"We have organizations representing all aspects of our industry, from digital to analog, newspaper to marketing, postpress and dealers—all suggesting this is the right place for them to hold their events, since they know so many of their members, customers and/or colleagues will be part of the show," Nappi remarks.
Join the Party
A sample of the co-located events includes the Association of Independent Mailing Equipment Dealers (AIMED) conference; the BindRite member meeting; the IDEAlliance and IPA G7 Summit; the International Newspaper Group (ING); Agfa Apogee, EFI Fiery, HP Dscoop, KBA, Kodak, manroland and Muller Martini user group meetings; and the ePublishing and Print Buyers International (PBI) Print & Media conferences.
So what can we expect in terms of trends and technologies at GRAPH EXPO? We asked some of the industry's most notable pundits to offer their views on what we can look forward to when the show floor at McCormick Place South opens 10 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11.
"Some very exciting things are happening in software," notes Clint Bolte, principal of C. Clint Bolte & Associates. "I don't expect a lot of equipment to be there, which would continue the trend during the last three years."
Bolte concurs that the show's best attraction moving forward is as a hub of industry activity in terms of peer groups, management conferences and the like. In terms of how much buying will be taking place, that's the $60,000 question.
"Certain printers are seeing some spark back in terms of volumes, but it's amazingly inconsistent—it'll be good for a week, then cobwebs will grow for three or four days," he says. "That's more of the 'L' shaped recovery that economists have been talking about."
Despite being intimately involved in the show as chairman of the Must See 'ems programs, Bill Lamparter has never been one to paint a happy face when the situation calls for a more somber viewpoint. Still, the president of PrintCom Consulting Group isn't quite taking a glass-half-empty approach to Graph Expo, despite a slow economic recovery. The real excitement, he believes, will come on the heels of next year's monster international show in Germany.
"This show is a precursor to Drupa. At next year's (GRAPH EXPO) we'll see some of the equipment that was introduced in Germany," Lamparter notes. "Recognizing that few Americans actually go to Drupa, industry trade shows in the U.S. take on greater meaning."
For this year's event, Lamparter expects an emphasis on digital gear, management information systems (MIS) and automation, including (but not limited to) JDF workflows. Inkjet- and toner-based digital printing will certainly garner much attention. He's less bullish on binding and finishing technologies.
Lamparter feels 2011 has been a year of "uncertainty and unanticipated results." Much of this can be tracked to the general economy, which the industry veteran is forecasting as a "sawtooth" economic situation for the final six months of the year. "We see a lot of false starts. The effect on print is uncertainty, not robust," he notes.
Considering that Drupa is less than a year away, RIT Professor Emeritus Frank Romano isn't expecting anything earth-shattering to debut at Graph Expo prior to the Düsseldorf, Germany-based mega-show next May. "We'll be looking at improvements, not innovations," contends Romano. "With the new models that are released, (manufacturers) will change the last digit or two of the machine to indicate they've increased the resolution, speed or sheet size. But there's not going to be anything major, from what I can tell."
Inkjet will rule the McCormick Place roost, Romano believes, with new machines in the wide-format, continuous-feed and sheetfed areas. Toner-based products will be seeing major tweaks in terms of faster speeds, larger format sizes, enhanced quality and quality control. And "workflow" will be on just about everybody's lips.
For those who handicap what dark horse items might be the best sellers, Romano offers up the decade's answer to "plastics." He points out that within 10 years of their initial introduction, about 90 percent of the printing community has embraced computer-to-plate (CTP) technology. Platesetting systems, on the whole, have performed quite admirably, but now they're becoming long in the tooth and need upgrading.
Want another tip from the wandering print guru? Plate usage in the United States is on the rise, not because there's more work, but due to demand for shorter, more frequent print runs. The result? "A lot of printers are going to realize that they're better off running jobs on digital printing systems," according to Romano. "That's why printers will be at Graph Expo looking for digital printing technologies."
The 2011 event will feature nine pavilions in all—including the new Marketing Pavilion, News Print, PackPrint, the Mailing & Fulfillment Center, GREENspace, Future Print and Education Main Street. More than 50 educational sessions, concentrated on 11 print-related markets, will be offered. And, of course, there will be roughly 450 exhibitors showcasing their products and services across a wide printing spectrum.
For more information and to register, visit www.graphexpo.com. PI
