Ipack-Ima 2018

Sep 12, 2017

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29 May - 1 June 2018, Fiera Milano Rho, Milan

Ipack-Ima
With a year to go until the opening, over 600 Italian and foreign concerns have already reserved exhibition space at Ipack-Ima 2018, which confirms its position as one of the world’s most important international processing & packaging events.
The promotional activities implemented by Ipack Ima Srl (a joint venture of Fiera Milano and Ucima) have been warmly welcomed by the business community, including through positive feedback from international operators. Newsletter subscriptions and followers on official social media platforms also continue to grow.
Another strength of the upcoming edition has been its teaming up with Plast, Print4All, Intralogistica Italia and Meat-Tech to create “The Innovation Alliance”, which will combine the maximum potential of the five fairs at one location and time to represent these synergic and complementary industries.

Snapshot of a complex industry
A look at Ipack-Ima 2018 registrations reflects its pluri-sectorial physiognomy.
In the first place, the fair confirms itself as a major global showcase for technological innovations dedicated to the agri-food supply chain: 22% of exhibitor concerns are part of the pasta, bakery & milling business community.
Confectionery operators also enjoy ample representation with a 13% share of the total, as do those of other food sectors; in particular, the fresh & convenience operators represent 25% of registrations.
Beverage operators are another large group, but more generally, so are non-food enterprises offering liquid filling solutions (10%).
The latter make up part of the larger category of chemical products and cosmetics (20% of total).
Then there is a diverse group of companies operating in packaging for industrial & durable goods (10%), including automotive, fashion, furniture and construction products.
Another well-represented group is operators in the cross-cutting sectors of processing and primary packaging – labeling, tracking, coding and marking – which will be offering the state of the art in fundamental arenas: food safety, serialization and anti-counterfeiting.
Ample space will also be dedicated to producers of innovative materials, secondary packaging and end of line.
Registration numbers have also been strong for Meat-Tech, the only Italian fair dedicated to the meat industry: numerous prestigious concerns will present the latest new additions to their processing, packaging, preservation and refrigeration technologies, along with a vast offer of ingredients, spices and processing additives.
The complete list of exhibitors already registered in the next editions of Ipack-Ima and Meat-Tech is online as of July at www.ipackima.com.

Panoramic on initiatives
In addition to commercial visibility and networking opportunities on an international scale, Ipack-Ima 2018 will offer an important contribution to the progress of packaging industry culture with a schedule of informative events treating trending and vital sector issues. The event will rely on the support of major associations and bodies (Aidepi, Assografici, Istituto Italiano Imballaggio, Cpa – Contract Packaging Association, Iippo – International Packaging Press Organization), which will be involved in various ways in the program’s development.

Ipack-mat. This new exhibition area at Ipack-Ima will be entirely dedicated to the most advanced solutions in materials, semi-processed goods and components for high value-added products and packaging. It is part of the “Innovative Material Solutions 2018” project, promoted by Ipack-Ima and Plast in partnership with Material ConneXion Italia. The focus of this first edition will be anti-counterfeiting, traceability and smart packaging (sensors and RFID tags, NFC, UHF, tracking systems, conductive materials, displays…), as well as solutions for luxury packaging (finishing and decoration processes, materials, specialty papers, decorative foils and films, finished products and components).

Designing the future. This space has been developed in partnership with CONAI, the Italian national packaging consortium, in order to promote sustainable packaging development. The discussions will also touch on eco-compatibility of industrial plants, economic development and corporate social responsibility.

Industry 4.0. Ipack-Ima will feature a thematic pathway that will shed light on the competencies of suppliers of machinery and installations, taking into account the new parameters changing the face of industrial manufacturing.

Packaging design. During the fair, there will be numerous occasions during which the potential of appropriate packaging design will be stressed, showing how well-designed solutions can combine technical competency, good taste and sustainability. One such occasion will be the presentation of the Packaging Oscars for Best Packaging, the historic reward ceremony organized by Istituto Italiano Imballaggio.