Print4All Kicks Off on May 29th

The event for printers, brand owners, and creatives will take place from 29 May to 1 June at Fiera Milano. Four days in which professionals will have the opportunity for improving and growing their businesses, thanks to Print4All, the new trade fair dedicated to the Printing and Converting industry.

Besides showcasing innovation, Print4All offers a platform of events through which industry players can acquire useful tools to make their business more competitive while getting to know the latest market trends and discovering new creative ideas. The programme was made in collaboration with Business International – a company of the Fiera Milano Group specialising in management training – and aims at meeting professionals’ requirements in a new way.

A hands-on approach, dynamism, and ease of use are the keywords of this edition. From the format of the Intensive Seminars, which last 30’ each and focus on specific topics, to real discussions with gurus on the next future, which will take place during the “The future of” cycle. The offering also includes events organised by sector associations and publishers to take stock of the market and today’s ‘hot’ topics, and technical workshops curated by exhibitors, so as to explore the potential and characteristics of the most innovative machines and solutions.

One of the main topics of the entire event will be “Industry 4.0” to which every sector must adapt. It will be an opportunity to take stock of the ongoing changes and find the best ways to face them. Right from the opening event of “The Innovation Alliance” – the supply chain event of which Print4All is part. In fact, Driving the Change (the name of this event) will analyse how the new industrial era is changing processes and professions in all sectors. It will do so through the contribution of institutions and companies.

To better understand the status of Italian companies and draw inspiration from the choices of those who have been more foresighted, Print4All will present the results of six months of research conducted by Federazione Carta e Grafica, which has mapped the application level of the Industry 4.0 practices.

Other events will dig deep into specific aspects related to the industry 4.0 revolution. For example, how the way we communicate products is changing and thus the opportunities that may arise from using ennobling printing techniques, which can make consumers shift from paper to digital media and vice-versa, taking them through new sensory experiences.

Finally, Print Matters for the Future: Print 4.0 – the international conference on the future of the printing industry organised by Intergraf – will focus on the relationship between printing, IT and digitisation, outlining how sharing knowledge and the relationship between industry leaders can help face the common challenges of this sector.

In the afternoon, after the business sessions, it will be time for The Future of…, a series of meetups where players of the printing industry – those who print or use printing techniques for their brand, or provide promotions and creative solutions through printing – will have the opportunity to learn more about the industry and its future challenges. Every day a different expert will talk about a different topic: a new format and a unique opportunity for personal and professional training and bringing new ideas and energy.

Alberto Mattiello, manager of Future Thinking by J. Walter Thompson International, will talk about Printing Business; Carlo Alberto Carnevale Maffè, Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at SDA Bocconi School of Management, will talk about Print Market. Then, it will be the turn of Daniele Pes, Digital Transformation Director of Altromercato, to talk about Customer Experience. Ivan Ortenzi, Chief Innovation Evangelist and Partner Bip, will end these sessions talking about Product & Process Innovation.

On the 30th of May, James Clough, keynote speaker for AIMSC will talk about the typographic masterpiece of the Renaissance age. “We have talked many times about the role of printing within customer journey, from the launch of the product to its production, its arrival in the shops, and beyond. This has become a crucial topic for the evolution of the printing business. Today the printing industry requires professionals who can understand the dynamics of the decision-making processes of consumers, and thus, provide innovative and engaging solutions. Technology has turned consumers into attentive active players who can search, share, and spread information and move among different channels to understand what and how to buy. Understanding this journey and how printing can play an essential role to provide added value to the brand’s communication has become essential,” said the organisers in a statement.

That’s why, the Seminar about the Art of loyalty, i.e. the new customer loyalty concept, aims at digging deep into these aspects. On the other hand, “The Future of…” cycle will engage participants in learning more about Customer Experience and how to enhance the value of a company from the customers’ point of view. Never stopping is the secret to be always competitive in the global market.

Being printers or being involved in creative decisions that may influence the printing of products and packaging means working for a dynamic industry that requires professional development, specific competencies, and attention to innovation to meet the requests of increasingly demanding customers. Don’t miss the seminars, which will provide vertical insights (new skills required, new techniques, such as digital ennobling, value-added labels, what’s new in the bookbinding industry, UV printing, the various possibilities of corrugated carton, technology integration, and counterfeiting) and Taga Italia’s pills (printing according to Fogra PSD, spot colour under control, and customer-supplier relationship).

There will be also room to talk about flexible packaging, the ever-growing focus on their sustainability. Giflex has organised two meetings to talk about the battle against food waste. You cannot talk about business without analysing the market.

The trade fair will also be an opportunity to show the results of the survey on Industry 4.0 conducted by Federazione Carta e Grafica and those of another survey on European printers commissioned by Print4All and conducted by Keypoint Intelligence to take stock of the technologies, challenges, and trends of this sector. The resulting data will be discussed on 30 May during one of the seminars and “The Future of…” cycle.

Other vertical insights will involve dynamic and ever-growing markets, such as the labelling market, which, according to Finat, has grown by more than 5% in Europe in 2016, showing an even greater potential in specific areas.

A seminar, in particular, will focus on the sales prospects resulting from the implementation of Web To Print solutions. An opportunity to seize, by 2020, 40% of printed volume in Europe is expected to result from Online Printing. The market’s future will involve also young professionals. That’s why Print4All not only offers a visit to graphic schools’ students, but also hosts the XXVI Pellitteri’s day, the event that rewards 50 students of printing, graphic, communication, and multimedia schools indicated by school and training institutions.

The trade fair’s schedule will also include private association assemblies while exhibiting companies will show the benefits of their most innovative technologies.