IPEX 2006 — BRITAIN INVADED

Drawing a contingent of more than 60 journalists from 30 countries, IPEX 2006 Inward Mission offered a glimpse into the upcoming international trade show of the same name. Held recently in Birmingham, UK, on the grounds of the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the press event was a precursor to IPEX 2006, running from April 4-11.

Owned by Picon, IPEX has evolved from the Great Exhibition of 1851 and is now one of the largest and most anticipated exhibitions on the international printing industry calendar.

Picon reports 575 exhibitors committed to this year’s show, and expects a visitor base of 74,000 attendees. The show’s ownership feels the exhibition will be well placed to take advantage of growing optimism within the international printing industry.

A new initiative at IPEX 2006 is the 200-seat INNOV8 Theater in Hall 10, which will host expert briefings every morning of the show on different countries and business sectors. Afternoons will see keynote speakers from industry leaders, roundtable sessions, networking events, interactive debates and live interviews with pioneering companies.

Other features of the show include: international days; sector-specific days; free technical training; the Flexible Packaging Centre of Excellence; a JDF Pavilion; product-specific zones and pavilions; and more.

Several IPEX exhibitors were on-hand at the Inward Mission to announce their plans for the show. With the largest exhibit—taking up almost the entire area of Hall 3A—Xerox Corp. will demonstrate its digital technologies and reinforce its end-to-end workflow and business development offerings.

The Xerox booth will be divided into four zones, showing Xerox’s technology solutions, workflow tools and digital applications supporting “The New Business of Printing” theme. At 55,000 square feet, the booth will accommodate more than 70 pieces of Xerox equipment, including the Nuvera family of production systems, Xerox wide-format printers, and the flagship iGen3 digital production press.

Count on Partnerships

“Partnerships are fundamental to the growth of our business and to meeting the needs of our customers,” said Valerie Blauvelt, vice president of worldwide marketing, Xerox Production Systems Group. “We will have a number of business partners exhibiting with us at IPEX, including software, workflow and finishing companies, and we see the show as another key opportunity to establish and build partnerships with customers and prospects.”

The Xerox booth will also feature the ProfitAccelerator Theater, which offers practical presentations from key Xerox partners and industry players on issues such as making money in digital printing, growing revenue with digital printing as a complement to offset, and creative and personalized printing.

Another large exhibitor, Goss International, gave an update on the company’s growth since its acquisition of Heidelberg Web Systems in August 2004. The successful integration of the two companies has led to Goss announcing $1 billion in projected sales for 2005, confirming its status as one of the largest web offset suppliers in the world.

Recent technology developments include new features for the Goss Web Center workflow system, Goss Contiweb FD pasters, now capable of handling 60˝ diameter paper reels, and the latest Automatic Transfer technology for non-stop web printing.

Additionally, the ENHANCE program has been a major growth area over the last year for Goss, enabling customers to maximize the performance, productivity and reliability of existing presses through a flexible upgrade system tailored to individual business needs.

Hewlett-Packard (HP) used its customer, SP Group, a St Ives company, as the location to divulge its plans to “present the world’s broadest portfolio of commercial and industrial digital printing solutions” at IPEX 2006.

HP says it is leveraging these products to “accelerate a convergence of digital and conventional printing, delivering higher impact printed communications for end users while opening new business opportunities for print service providers.”

HP’s IPEX stand will feature end-to-end solutions running real-life scenarios to demonstrate the power and potential of digital printing for the commercial, label, direct mail, creative and photographic markets, as well as for wide- and super-wide format printing for indoor and outdoor applications.

Star Performance will be the theme for QuadTech’s participation at IPEX, the company revealed.

“We will be highlighting some of our customers who have become ‘stars’ to their own clients by embracing QuadTech technologies,” commented Sharon Quint, director of marketing. “By increasing performance, these companies provide higher quality and more timely products to end users, as well as ensuring a more prosperous future for themselves.”

The Star Performance theme also highlights the differentiators that QuadTech relies on as a supplier of ancillary control equipment for web printers, Quint noted. These include color management and control; faster mark recognition for web and ribbon register; seamless integration across its product range; and comprehensive worldwide service and support.

The color management products from CGS Publishing Technologies to be announced and demonstrated at IPEX are designed to be the backbone of any cross-enterprise printing project, explained John Parsons, director of marketing communications. By offering a range of professional products, based on high-end and ‘desktop’ color experience, CGS provides workflow solutions to service bureaus, color trade shops, and production departments within publishers and printers.

Proofing Presentations

For example, ORIS Soft Proof streamlines the prepress process, saving time and money and eliminating misunderstandings between repro professionals and printers, as well as other parties in the print production chain. CGS feels the initial success since its launch suggests that ORIS Soft Proof has the potential to become an industry standard for “virtual” proofing, due to the combination of CGS’ color management and Adobe Acrobat’s collaborative PDF workflow.

PrintCity also unveiled details of its IPEX plan, which include demonstrating technology to address customer needs through integration and expertise, while retaining and strengthening the images of all participating companies.

Integrated production facilities for the packaging and commercial segment—with JDF once again a core component—will be the centerpiece for a Manufacturing Integration Center. Joint presentations by PrintCity members on complete workflows will include all elements from prepress to converting, as well as product-oriented presentations from participating PrintCity companies.

“IPEX will be another big step forward for PrintCity and will give our member companies the opportunity to demonstrate in a real and practical way some of the solutions that have been developed, many through the networking and expertise within PrintCity,” said John Dangelmaier, president of PrintCity.

If the early interest and attendance at Inward Mission is any indicator, IPEX 2006 should be an important trade show on an international level. North American printers interested in attending the show should visit www.ipex.org for more information.