PacPrint 05 to be a large press-free zone

Visitors to PacPrint 05 in Melbourne next year (Tuesday May 24 – Saturday May28 www.pacprint.com.au will be able to see plenty of printing presses – up to a point and a size. But if they want to eyeball full size, 100cm plus (40 inch) presses, they’ll have to take up the suppliers’ invitation to visit reference sites at customer’s premises in Melbourne or in Sydney showrooms.

A quick head count of major suppliers confirms none are intending to install large sheetfed presses at the show, although most will have plenty of half-sheet and A3 presses on their stands. Heidelberg, KBA, Currie & Company and Graphic Controls (Mitsubishi) all confirm their intention of focusing on smaller presses at the show. (Komori could not be contacted at time of going to press - but Gerard Wintle has since confirmed CPI will likely have a Lithrone 10-colour at the company's showroom, but not on the stand.) IPP Print& Pack, which concentrates heavily on large format MAN Roland presses, will combine its stand with prepress subsidiary GSA and not show any presses.

According to Meredith Darke, marketing manager, the decision is in line with the company’s global strategies. “Our decision has been made in consultation with IPP in Germany and follows a close analysis of the recent drupa exhibition where the overall consensus was that the industry is entering a phase of consolidation and steady growth rather than spectacular change.


“Clearly, the market is changing; the cycle of major technology releases every four or five years no longer applies, new technology is constant but incremental, and there is less need for expensive showcases. Customers are demanding optimum value for money and do not appreciate suppliers who go into the red in order to display their products,” she said.

For Bernie Robinson, general manager of Currie & Company, PacPrint still provides an opportunity for the company to heavily promote its Shinohara range. His largest press on the stand will be a Shinohara 75 MultiColour (five-colour), backed up by three Shinohara 52 MultiColor machines; a five-colour hi-pile, a four-colour lo-pile and a two-colour.

“We see PacPrint as a showcase for our very popular new-generation Shinohara presses, which are enjoying very good sales throughout Australia. We don’t play in the large format so the question [of exhibiting a large-size press] doesn’t arise,” he said.

There is no embarrassment for Andy Vels Jensen, managing director Heidelberg Australia and NZ is adopting a pragmatic approach to exhibiting at the show. He believes there are other ways of developing relationships with key customers. “The costs of installing a Speedmaster XL 105 for five days at PacPrint is prohibitive,” he says.

Heidelberg’s show will focus on its half-size Speedmaster CD 74 with new perfector, along with a four-over-four Speedmaster 52, which many at drupa considered to be the hit of the show.

For Dave Lewis, sheetfed manager KBA Australia, the largest press on the stand is likely to be the company’s Genius 52. He doesn’t believe people buy large presses on the basis of seeing them at an exhibition. “We’re doing very well at the moment, the market is picking up and we’re looking forward to PacPrint, but not with a large press.”

At this rate the only contender for a large press at the show may be new supply arrival Cyber, which has the Akiyama agency.