Four trade fairs in two months and one positive conclusion: top-class discussions and intense exchanges contribute to outstanding success.
ECMA: 18-20 September 2013, Dubrovnik
The annual European Carton Makers Association congress took place this year in Dubrovnik. For the second year running, Venoplex™ from Mayr-Melnhof Karton (MMK) won ‘carton of the year’ at the Pro Carton Awards. The Pro Carton jubilee brought another reason to celebrate. For 25 years, Pro Carton has not only passionately represented the interests of the cartonboard and folding carton industries, it has also provided a valuable stimulus in current discussions. The commitment of MMK board member Franz Rappold was particularly honoured, as he has energetically supported the organisation from the very beginning.
LabelExpo: 24-27 September 2013, Brussels
MMK was well represented at the LabelExpo in Brussels, the world’s largest trade fair for the labelling and packaging printing sectors. Participants could see for themselves the outstanding characteristics of MMK’s Silvawhite™ and MM Digicarton™. Xeikon and HP Indigo, the two leading digital printer manufacturers, demonstrated digital printing at the highest level at the event. Both producers homologated these and further MMK cartonboard qualities as the first for use in digital printing. In addition, a new collaboration between MMK and Xeikon was announced: MMK will join the Xeikon Aura Partner Network, positioning MMK as a strong partner in this growing market.
Plastics trade fair: 16-23 October 2013, Düsseldorf
Over 3,000 exhibitors promoted their plastics services and products in Düsseldorf. It was particularly important for MMK to learn about the latest developments in the areas of barrier materials and coating solutions. Solutions to new challenges, such as preventing the migration of unintended substances from newspaper and packaging print colours into packaged foodstuffs, were requested by many parties. Surprisingly, this topic was practically ignored at the plastics trade fair and no packaging solutions for the protection of foodstuffs were presented. MMK has already found the answer in the FOODBOARD™ innovation.
FEFCO: 22-24 October 2013, Copenhagen
MMK was also represented at the annual European Federation of Corrugated Board Manufacturers conference as one of few liner producers. The conference is considered the most important event in its field. The MMK exhibition stand established itself as the contact point for many interested parties, and the meeting point for existing and new business contacts. In addition to the presentation of informative liner brochures and the new liner sample box, it was the live presentation of the 180gsm MM X-Liner™ on an EB flute that received attention from around 800 participants.
We would like to thank you for all the interesting conversations, and we look forward to tackling new challenges alongside our customers.