Page 15 - Print21 Magazine March April 2021

Events
while Australia has so far kept one step ahead, browsing the aisles of a trade show now seems something of a luxury, and one we are unlikely to take for granted any time soon.
It is against this backdrop
that planning for PacPrint 2021 continues apace, with the events team at Visual Connections, the supplier association which co-hosts and organises the show, quietly confident that it will proceed without incident.
History of innovation
PacPrint is not only a showcase of innovation, the event itself has transformed time and again over its 50-year history, as the industry has evolved to respond to rapid technological advances, shifting market trends and new opportunities.
The industry’s first major expo, PacPrint, was launched in October 1970 at the stately Royal Melbourne Exhibition Buildings. It was co- hosted by a loose association of industry suppliers, together with the industry’s employers’ association, the Printing and Allied Trades Employers’ Federation of Australia (PATEFA).
PATEFA would later be renamed the Printing Industries Association of Australia (PIAA) and most recently, the Print & Visual Communications Association (PVCA) which is still a co-host today. The merchants – more of an informal networking group in the 1970s – would later consolidate into the
Graphic Arts Merchants’ Association of Australia (GAMAA), which merged in 2015 with the Visual Industries Suppliers Association (VISA) to become the event’s other co-host, Visual Connections.
Over the years, PacPrint has changed from a predominantly heavy metal show with offset at the centre, to one in which digital technologies, workflow and data management,
join output technologies which embrace everything from direct
mail and commercial applications,
to labels and packaging, fabrics
and soft signage, furnishings and customised interiors, and even 3D and functional print.
This reflects the ever-changing face of the print and media communications landscape, and means PacPrint continues to provide an internationally relevant, B2B event for business owners and decision-makers from Australia, New Zealand and throughout the Asia- Pacific region.
While the industry – and, indeed, the world – continue to change rapidly, the fundamental aims
of PacPrint remain remarkably consistent with the original mandate set by PATEFA and the industry’s suppliers in 1970. That is to raise the status of the industry’s trades, promote friendly relations among members of the industry, and above all, to deliver the ideas, information and solutions which will help industry businesses equip themselves for the future.
Above
New expo for
new world
This year, though it will feature many of the same players and co-located expos, PacPrint will undoubtedly be different again.
Visual Impact Melbourne, which targets sign, display and wide-format businesses, and the Label & Packaging Expo, which provides an increased focus on this dynamic and perennially exciting sector of the industry, will once again share space at the MCEC. The popular PacPrint Forum Series of seminars and workshops will run, the National Print Awards presentation will be held on Thursday 30 September, and an Asga Fespa Australia conference programme is also planned to run on the opening day.
PakPrint as
it then was
in 1996 was a heavy metal fest, this year’s event will be focused on
the connected digital print world.
Pics courtesy
A McCourt.
“We’re excited to see the way the show is shaping up, and looking forward to providing industry businesses with the latest trends and technologies first- hand.” — Peter Harper, Visual Connections
It would be naive, also, to think that the pandemic would not have an impact. The show’s theme – Review, Rebuild, Reconnect – is a nod to the challenges both industry businesses and suppliers face in a post-Covid world. Peter Harper, general manager at Visual Connections, however, is firm in his confidence
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