Organized by All India Federation of Master Printers (AIFMP) in association with Print-Packaging.com, Pamex 2017 opened to a positive response on 18 December, at the Bombay Exhibition Center with visitors from across the country in attendance. Some of the biggest brands in the printing and related industries are exhibiting at the event with companies such as Monotech, Konica Minolta, Canon, Insight Communications, Xerox, Pratham Technologies, Excel Machinery, TechNova Imaging Systems, Techno Graphic Services India, FujiFilm India, Provin Technos, among others showcasing their latest offerings.
The first day of the event saw the announcement of a joint venture between Monotech and Pressline for joint development, production and marketing of a high-speed digital inkjet press to cater to the newspaper, transactional and book printing markets in India and overseas.
Other new offerings are also expected to be launched at Pamex 2017. Mumbai-based Advanced Graphics System will be introducing new products such as text verification software called TVT while Konica Minolta is showcasing its array of digital printing solutions such as Accurio Press C6100.
Concurrently running with Pamex 2017 is the India Packaging Show 2017, where some leading companies manufacturing packaging machines, packaging films, sealing machines, inspection systems, etc. are displayed. Packaging films manufacturer Cosmo Films is showing its latest films and offering for the label industry. Emerging Graphics is promoting software for the corrugated, carton and graphics industry.
Promotional efforts of the last few months have culminated with the inauguration of the Pamex 2017 edition. The organizers held meetings in more than 50 cities, both big and small, in the last few months. The 2017 edition of Pamex is expected to see a significant increase in the visitor count compared to the earlier edition in 2015.
2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India
Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and
multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.
The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry.
While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately
their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book
printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.
The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.
Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.
Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.
Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.
