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What Exhibitors Are Saying About Gulf Print & Pack 2022

Sanjeev Varma May 19, 2022

1 14 minutes read

In order to know more about their expectations from GPP and their plans for the biggest print extravaganza in the Middle East, we asked exhibitors their take on the upcoming show as well as the state of the industry, post-COVID.

Giuliano Bianchet, VP, Regional Sales, EAMER, Kodak

As global markets are gradually showing an upward trend with the pandemic receding in most parts of the world, how important is it for a major company like yours to participate in an event such as the Gulf Print & Pack 2022, the only dedicated commercial print, label, and package printing trade show in the MENA region?

GPP is a very important trade show for Kodak because it gives us an excellent opportunity to meet with customers face to face with live demonstrations of our industry-leading solutions. We are already experiencing enormous interest from existing customers, prospects and channel partners from the Middle East and North Africa region particularly since this is one of the first in-person trade shows in which we are participating after a Covid-enforced two-year hiatus. That’s why we anticipate a good attendance at the show. We encourage all print and packaging professionals from MENA to take this opportunity and attend the Gulf Print & Pack show.

With a major exhibition being held in great anticipation, what do you expect to achieve through this exhibition?

With our participation in GPP, we aim to further strengthen Kodak’s position in the dynamic print and packaging market of the MENA region. Our goal is to show GPP attendees that Kodak is a leading provider of innovative and sustainable digital printing, prepress and workflow solutions that will help them grow their business and profits. And last not least, we expect to achieve good business deals at the trade show to lay the foundation for successful sales in the subsequent period.

What are the changes brought about by the pandemic as far as your business strategies are concerned, and how would you showcase some of those in GPP 2022?

Despite all the challenging circumstances of the global pandemic, Kodak continued to execute against our long-term strategy: strengthen our financial position, put our customers first and deliver solutions that help printers all over the world drive growth and profitability. What has changed is that we have been prompted to be even more flexible and responsive to our customers’ needs. Delivering on our commitment to Print that Pays, Kodak launched a range of new print solutions, even under the difficult conditions of the pandemic. We will present some of these solutions at the GPP show.

Caslon’s market research has predicted analog print volumes to decline by more than 2% per year until 2030 as compared to digital output that would grow by 4.6%. With the global market shifting from offset to digital print production, how do you see your company’s future in the rapidly evolving international marketplace?

Kodak has a tradition of developing digital prepress and digital printing technologies that goes back many decades. With our innovative electrophotographic and inkjet digital printing solutions targeting different segments of the Commercial Print and Packaging markets, we are excellently positioned to successfully participate in the predicted growth of digital output.

Kodak is continuously innovating in groundbreaking, industry-leading technology for the print industry. The world premiere of a new solution will be announced at a customer innovation event in June 2022 along with the launch of the recently announced KODAK ASCEND Digital Press and the KODAK PROSPER ULTRA 520 Press, announced in 2020.

How has the global focus on digital technology prompted you to introduce newer products into the market? Could you highlight some of your latest smart technology products that will be on display at the GPP 2022 along with their USP?

A highlight at our booth will be the KODAK NEXFINITY Digital Press, which is the most versatile digital press on the market and can help printers expand their business into high-revenue, high-margin applications. It offers an unprecedented variety of substrate types as well as sheet sizes and thicknesses. NEXFINITY also provides a unique range of print embellishment options in its fifth imaging unit. All these features enable the NEXFINITY Press to produce an extensive range of high-quality, highly customized jobs.

The Kodak team will also run live demos of KODAK PRINERGY on Demand Workflow Solutions, the industry’s leading prepress automation software which enables printers to increase productivity, cut turnaround times and lower costs. PRINERGY Workflow is a perfect solution for printers of any size. It offers powerful automation, support for offset, flexo, digital and gravure printing, compatibility with virtually all third-party software and equipment, and connectivity with the broadest range of digital presses.

As the manufacturer of the most comprehensive range of CTP solutions, Kodak will feature the KODAK TRENDSETTER Q800 Platesetter showing live imaging of KODAK SONORA XTRA Process Free Plates. SONORA XTRA is our next-generation process free offset plate. It delivers a stronger image contrast, faster imaging speeds and improved handling robustness, plus sustainability and waste savings in prepress and on press. In addition, we will demonstrate the KODAK Mobile CTP Control App that enables KODAK CTP solutions to be monitored remotely and proactively.

Ayman Ali- Senior Regional Marketing Manager, Canon Middle East

Ayman Aly, Senior Regional Marketing Manager, Canon Middle East

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way businesses operate and over the last two years we have relied upon virtual communication and replaced human interactions with virtual meetings. Now, through GPP we have an opportunity to engage in-person again and we are eager to meet everyone and experience first-hand all the technology that will be on display at GPP. Canon was one of the first exhibitors to confirm their participation at GPP and booked a stand that spans an impressive 240 square meters. It is important to be able to engage in person and showcase the benefits that our technology can offer and GPP is a great event where partners, vendors and clients, all come together. I am very excited to be able to, not only meet our clients, partners and industry peers, but also to see the different cutting-edge technology that will be on offer and exchange ideas with other industry leaders.

With a major exhibition being held in great anticipation, what do you expect to achieve through this exhibition?

GPP is an opportunity for our industry to come together and showcase the latest innovations from the world of commercial and package printing. We will be using our participation to underscore the depth and diversity of our printing range, as well as offer counsel and expert advice for those seeking assistance with the latest technology that will further their post-pandemic recovery. While we will be showcasing our portfolio across different kinds of printing applications, spanning various industries including packaging, labeling, retail, and so much more, one of our main objectives is to help customers better understand the pros and cons of all our technologies and offer guidance and assistance in how they can benefit from integrating these innovative products and solutions.

What are the changes brought about by the pandemic as far as your business strategies are concerned and how would you showcase some of those in GPP 2022?

One of our main themes at GPP 2022 is to focus on the industry trends that emerged during the pandemic, (including the shift to digital printing), as well as helping customers understand how they can use our innovative products and solutions to their advantage, in a post pandemic era. We will have trained experts on-site to meet with customers, especially the ones who are not familiar with digital solutions, to let them know what are the main differences between technologies and how to get the maximum benefits.

We will have 5 dedicated product “zones” at our stand at GPP, so that we can easily show the different applications of our technology. For example, in our “Inkjet” zone we will educate our high volume customers, especially those who have already shifted to or are considering shifting to digital, (especially inkjet), on what different inkjet technologies there are, how they can plan to adopt it and the benefits it can bring in the form of superior quality and cost savings. Within these zones we have our full portfolio on display, including all our toner-based cut sheets, including the imagePRESS color and varioPRINT black & white series. We will also be showcasing our wide format range, including the flatbed Arizona 135, the Colorado 1650 and our imagePROGRAF range – especially the imagePROGRAF TZ-30000, a high-end poster and CAD printer and the imagePROGRAF GP-4000. Our end-to-end workflow from pre-press to post-press technology will also be demonstrated.

They say, Catalon’s market research has predicted analog print volumes to decline by more than 2% per year until 2030 as compared to a digital output that would grow by 4.6%. With the global market shifting from offset to digital print production, how do you see the company’s future in the rapidly evolving international marketplace?

There is no doubt that COVID-19 has adversely impacted businesses worldwide, including the printing business, however, from June 2021, we witnessed a rebound with print volumes and service revenue starting to climb, as compared to the same periods in 2019. Moreover, since June 2021, our digital printing business, in particular, has seen steady recovery, underscoring the point that there is a significant shift from offset to digital. Canon managed to hit record units and installations in 2021 across the Middle East region and is continually developing its portfolio within the digital print category to help meet our customers’ evolving needs, especially as we emerge into a post-pandemic era. Our line-up of new product launches during GPP are a testament to the importance of digital print production, with our brand-new cut-sheet digital colour press, the imagePRESS V1000 leading the way, by setting a new standard in production print.

How is the global focus on digital technology prominent to you to introduce newer products into the market? Could you highlight some of the latest smart technology products that will be on display at GPP along with the USP?

It’s very clear now as we enter the post pandemic era, that digital will be a solution for so many challenges within the printing industry and I think this trend will continue. One of our biggest launches at GPP will be the unveiling of the imagePRESS V1000. A completely new technology, which yields a much higher output quality and increased productivity. This technology will cause a big shift in the market due to its level of quality, media handling and applications that can be produced. I am also excited about the upcoming imagePROGRAF GP-4000 launch at GPP, as it is particularly unique and supports graphics applications in fluorescent colors, enabling creative signage applications, especially across the retail industry. Also during GPP we will be launching a new print portal. The print portal is a gate between print requesters/buyers and print service providers. It would be a Canon platform that can receive jobs from some companies who don’t own the technology and then can pass these jobs to print service providers that meet Canon’s quality standard.

Jayakrishna Valluru, General Manager, Age Graphics

As global markets are gradually showing an upward trend with the pandemic receding in most parts of the world, how important is it for a major company like yours to participate in an event such as the Gulf Print & Pack 2022 (GPP 2022), the only dedicated commercial print, label, and package printing trade show in the MENA region?

I feel it’s very important for major companies to come forward and participate in such events as this will build confidence in the market which will accelerate the market growth.

With a major exhibition being held in great anticipation, what are your expectations?

Through this exhibition, we expect to achieve a lot of things that will help us in expanding our business. Physical interactions that we missed in the last two years will help us to build confidence amongst our customers. Such interactions also help in collaboration which will become a breeding ground for new ideas that will boost business growth. Also, this is an ideal platform for us to showcase our new products that we have to offer namely, the paper bag-making machine.

What are the changes brought about by the pandemic as far as your business strategies are concerned, and how would you showcase some of those in GPP 2022?

“Expansion” is one strategy that we have undertaken during the pandemic. We have spread our business beyond GCC boundaries and in to the African market, which has proven to be a good decision. Another good decision we have taken, is to expand our offerings. As a result, we are also now dealing with paper bag-making machinery.

Caslon’s market research has predicted analogue print volumes to decline by more than 2% per year until 2030 as compared to digital output that would grow by 4.6%. With the global market shifting from offset to digital print production, how do you see your company’s future in the rapidly evolving international marketplace?

With our customer interactions, we already see this trend. We are in talk with a few organizations for a mutual collaboration so that we are able to contribute in fulfilling the market requirements in this area.

As mentioned earlier, we will be soon introducing products in the digital area of printing.

We will be promoting our new ERP software for the printing industry and will showcase our pre-press packaging software along with PAPER BAG SOLUTIONS.

Ahmed Fathy, Sales Manager – Middle East (Ricoh Graphic Communications), Ricoh International BV

As global markets are gradually showing an upward trend with the pandemic receding in most parts of the world, how important is it for a major company like yours to participate in an event such as the Gulf Print & Pack 2022 (GPP 2022), the only dedicated commercial print, label, and package printing trade show in the MENA region?

With market demand growing for on-demand printing that can rapidly respond to shifts in volume, we are presenting a broad range of digital sheet-fed and inkjet technologies that can efficiently manage small highly-customised jobs. We are excited to share the huge variety of creative applications possible, while reinforcing Ricoh’s strategic focus and commitment in the Gulf Print & Pack, continuing to build on our trusted client partnerships and offer a focused platform where new insight and knowledge can be shared.

With a major exhibition being held in great anticipation, what are your expectations?

In today’s connected world, market and technological trends are more dynamic than ever. To be successful, commercial printers must boldly embrace opportunities to transform their business. When they diversify at pace and extend applications from their equipment, they can better respond to their clients’ evolving needs, drive profits, and create a sustainable business. Gulf Print & Pack is a unique moment offered to Print Service Providers (PSPs) with the opportunity to reimaging their operations.

What are the changes brought about by the pandemic as far as your business strategies are concerned, and how would you showcase some of those in GPP 2022?

Dedicated zones will feature real-life applications from a wide array of Ricoh systems delivering inspiration around the creativity possible. End-to-end workflow will provide real-time insight into optimum production possibilities.

Our focus in Gulf Print & Pack 2022 will be on short run packaging, commercial printing, and industrial printing.

HENKAKU is the Japanese word for Transformational Innovation, perfectly summing up Ricoh’s innovation mindset. By applying knowledge and insight, we can help PSPs shape their successful future, create new opportunities, access new markets, overcome production challenges, and speed up processes. We want to help them thrive using real-world solutions with game-changing technologies.

In the industrial printing market for packaging and wide format graphics, there is an increasing demand to meet a variety of client needs such as smaller lot sizes and shorter delivery times, as well as finer image quality. This has resulted in the rapid digitisation of industrial printing to deliver greater flexibility and productivity.

Ricoh International is launching Ricoh Pro TM L5130e/L5160e latex roll-to-roll printers in the Middle East region.

Designed for sign and display specialists and graphic arts printers who need faster short-run production, broader job capabilities and enhanced productivity, the Pro TM L5130e/L5160e series combines reliability and media versatility. Additional features include automated maintenance, durable design, Ricoh’s GREENGUARD-certified latex inks and industrial grade Ricoh print heads. Its curing technology ensures jobs produced are output ready for finishing as soon as they are printed while a three-way intelligent heater helps prevent melting or warping of thinner substrates.

Ricoh launches gold and silver toners to add a luxurious look to printed communications and support growth of graphic arts innovators.

Graphic arts specialists can increase their revenue and attract new clients by broadening their product range with Ricoh’s new gold and silver toners. The exciting additions significantly enhance digital print enhancement capability as brand owners increasingly look for differentiation and cut through in their printed communications.

Print Service Providers can now benefit from highly flexible print production on roll-fed media, as well as rigid media, with the Ricoh Pro TF6251 hybrid flatbed UV printer.

Building on the successful Ricoh Pro TF6250, the all-in-one hybrid system supports the versatile production of a wider range of applications in sign and display, industrial, graphic arts, and interior decor. It also delivers high productivity with its 12 Ricoh inkjet print heads. On its compact 2.5m x 1.3m sized table, the print heads enable flatbed print speeds of up to 116 sqm per hour in four-colour draft mode. For roll print, speeds are up to 67 sqm per hour in four-colour draft mode. Excellent image quality and exceptional reliability are also integral attributes.

Sina Haghi, Chief Executive Officer, Magic Trading Co. (MTC)

As global markets are gradually showing an upward trend with the pandemic receding in most parts of the world, how important is it for a major company like yours to participate in an event such as the Gulf Print & Pack 2022 (GPP 2022), the only dedicated commercial print, label, and package printing trade show in the MENA region?

We (www.mtc.ae) consider ourselves as a major supplier of promotional printed gift items and equipment and supplies to print on such products. After over two years of not having the opportunity to meet our clients in person, we are excited to participate in Gulf Print & Pack 2022. We think it’s crucial for us to attend such events which give us a great opportunity to keep in contact with our customers and showcase our latest products and remind them that we are still in business.

With a major exhibition being held in great anticipation, what are your expectations?

We intend to showcase our wide range of eco-friendly promotional gifts made of bamboo and recycled plastic and also some of the printing machines that we promote. We hope to speed up orders from our old clients while at the same time meet new customers to build our existing client base.

What are the changes brought about by the pandemic as far as your business strategies are concerned, and how would you showcase some of those in GPP 2022?

Decrease in revenue due to the pandemic has prompted us to increase efficiency in our operational methods as a matter of survival. Our work schedules were reorganised and we focussed more on online work flow management programmes. During GPP 2022, we will introducers customers to www.heattransfer.com, our online purchase store.

In our business of promotional gifts where clients demand pre-production samples, traditional ways like screen printing are not feasible. However with UV digital printing and easier transfer technologies, work has been simplified and we are now able to print multi colour in short runs without big investments. As a future plan, we are continuing to invest in digital equipment.

With the introduction of new digital printing technologies we are able to print on almost any promotional product on a wide range of materials.