This follows news that major finishing technology player Industria Meccanica Lombarda (IML) has partnered with Perfect Bindery Solutions to quadruple the size of the latter presence and take one of the very biggest stands at the exhibition.
Another key testament to The Print Show’s success, and another vindication of its move to The International Centre for 2017, is that highly-respected UK print finishing technology supplier Encore Machinery has signed up to exhibit. Its managing director Paul Davidson says it was ‘only right’ after the exhibition helped significantly grow its sales and has praised the facilities and professionalism of the venue.
HP and IML join the likes of Epson, KBA, Morgana, Kluge International, Premier Paper, B & R Moll, Intec, AXYZ International, Vivid Laminating Systems, and Grafityp as leading manufacturing names—to name but a few—that have thrown their backing behind the show. Still more are soon to be announced.
Speaking about the news, event director Chris Davies praised HP’s decision to support The Print Show, explaining that the manufacturer can now look forward to welcoming visitors from all areas of the industry.
“To secure the backing of one of the global print industry’s leading manufacturing brands is a massive boost for the whole team,” says Davies. He continues: “This will be the first time that HP will have its own stand at a UK commercial print show for many years and their presence at the event once again is testament to the strength, value, and professionalism of the exhibition.”
HP has an impressive arsenal of technology that it can martial, as it caters for high-end commercial print applications with its Indigo presses, while also having a large market share in the wide-format inkjet technology sector with its Page Wide, Scitex, Latex, and Design Jet presses. Each is targeted at a different segment of the market and remarkably the manufacturer has achieved either the largest, or a very substantial, market share in each.
Perfect Bindery Solutions goes big
Meanwhile, in a significant demonstration of support for The Print Show, Perfect Bindery Solutions has opted to more than quadruple its stand space at this year’s event with partner IML. The company has supported the exhibition since its inaugural edition in 2015 and, having experienced what it describes as a “run of outstanding results” at both the 2015 and 2016 shows, has boosted its presence for year three.
Steve Giddins, operations partner at Perfect Bindery Solutions, explains that the larger stand space will allow the company to better demonstrate its wide range of solutions, including a number of new systems from Italian manufacturer IML Machinery that will have their global launch at the show in October.
“The new systems from IML are going to change the way the short-run book production market works,” Giddins says, adding: “The Print Show 2017 will be a watershed event—a real ‘I was there’ occasion.”
The first new IML system is an automated single clamp, on-demand binding line that Giddins describes as “totally flexible”, adding: “Feeding can be by hand or in-line, glue application can be wheel-and-pot or nozzle, PUR or hot-melt, and, of course, it has milling, side-gluing and cover feeding for standard paperbacks, too.”
Giddins goes on to bill the system as the ‘Holy Grail’ for commercial printers that want to produce as much as possible in-house, saying that “at the flick of a switch”, it can change over from conventional softback book production to perform end-papering and back-lining for book block production.
The system will be shown in line with a new, automated IML 3-knife trimmer; a solution that Giddins says “helps square the circle”.
Perfect Bindery Solutions has enjoyed previous success with product launches at the show, having used last year’s event to introduce IML’s Perfect Box Solutions range, and Giddins is hoping for a similar performance this year.
He concludes: “The response to those systems has been astonishing and we’re still being run off our feet with the business generated there. Pound-for-pound it was the best trade show Perfect Bindery Solutions has ever attended.
“Last year proved to us that The Print Show is a good environment to meet the right people—people who mean business. The organisers have shown that they listen to the industry and will bend over backwards to make it work for us and I don’t see why this year should be any different.”
Giddins also spoke positively about the new venue for the show this year and is optimistic about what impact this could have on the event.
He says: “The International Centre is smart, modern and just the right size to give our industry the dedicated focus it deserves. The hotels and town, too, provide the kind of intimate setting that is perfect for our manufacturers to host overseas agents and guests.
“As for location, we already have a waiting list of customers booked to see the new binding line at a beta site on the continent, so Telford won’t be a problem.
“Timing was another important factor for us in deciding to stick with the winning formula of The Print Show: you wouldn’t run a ‘County Show’ at harvest time and November is ‘harvest time’ for most of our customers.”
Encore, Encore!
Another company to have paid tribute to the new venue is Encore Machinery, which recently signed up to return at the show this year after a successful time at the 2016 event.
Paul Davidson, sales manager at the firm, said the company is hoping for more of the same this year and has fully backed the show to succeed at the International Centre. Encore specialises in selling print finishing equipment such as folders, creasing machines, drills bits, hooks, and needles.
“After a very successful show last year we felt it was only right we continued to support the show and after visiting the change of venue earlier in the year we believe visitors will be pleasantly surprised,” says Davidson.
He continues: “We were pleasantly surprised at the centre’s facilities and easy access for being able to install machinery. Customers will be impressed by the venue and being able to park directly outside the exhibition centre without needing to catch a shuttle bus to the halls is a real plus point.”
Davidson went on to say that while Encore is still in the process of finalising its plans for the show, which runs from October 11th to 13th, it will be displaying a number of new products.
“We still haven’t finalised our exact show offering but customers can be assured we will be showing a number of new solutions for short run packaging, paper over board products, photobook production, laminating machines, high speed creasing and folding solutions,” Davidson comments.
