Members of The Label and Tag Manufacturers Association of Australia (LATMA) and the Australia New Zealand Flexographic Technical Association (ANZFTA) will vote this month on plans for a long-anticipated merger of the two industry supply groups.
Although a name has yet to be officially confirmed, the provisional title of the new organization is the Flexographic & Label Printing Association Australia (FLPA).
LATMA and ANZFTA have asked their members to vote on a draft version of the new association’s constitution before LATMA’s AGM to be held in Sydney on 26 November. LATMA president Mark Easton says the two organisations 'need to move with these times’ and he’s confident the planned amalgamation will go ahead.
“There are challenges facing our industry today that require our associations to come together and maintain a strong position,” he said. “Those challenges include an ever-decreasing pool of members as acquisitions of businesses become more prevalent and consolidation continues amongst suppliers and end users. It is becoming more and more difficult to raise sponsorship dollars that we as not-for-profit organisations rely on to continue. Cash flow and budget constraints are affecting all organisations as the competitive tension grows in today's business world."
If both member groups agree to the proposal, the new association will be launched at the beginning of 2016, with the first leadership council made up of an equal portion of members from both current associations. Easton said a merger would deliver considerable benefits for members.
“Consolidation and therefore expansion of a combined association will broaden opportunities, improve quality of programs, speakers, training and workshops. We will have a greater monetary reserve to spend on training and education, and we will have the numbers to grow and be strong and survive for many more years than would have been possible had we not proposed this venture.”
Easton urged all LATMA members to attend the AGM to be held at Dockside in Darling Park, Sydney, at 5.30pm on 26th November 2015 in Sydney.
“We need a great attendance to decide on the final draft of the constitution then we’ll take it out on the road and get some feedback before there’s a final vote of all members early next year.” AGM registration forms for members can be found here.
A proxy voting form on the merger [see link below] for LATMA and ANZFTA members must be completed and returned no later than 5pm on the 23rd November 2015.