“These are challenging times for exhibitors at trade shows,” says Chris Raney, a veteran of many of them. As President of Baumer hhs Corp., a leading supplier of gluing, quality assurance and camera verification systems, he can attest that the relationship between the costs and the benefits of exhibiting at a trade show “is getting harder to justify.”
Raney says this is why Baumer hhs has chosen to participate in PRINTING United (Dallas, Oct. 23-25, 2019), a new trade exposition that addresses the full spectrum of the graphic communications marketplace - not just the segments traditionally served by print industry trade shows.
“We’ve been looking for the right venue,” he explains. “PRINTING United covers a broader customer base and will give us a different level of attendee” from what Baumer hhs has experienced at other events.
Based in Krefeld, Germany, the company manufactures cold glue and hot melt adhesive systems for applications including folding carton, corrugated, cigarette and pharmaceutical packaging; end-of-line packaging; Braille printing; and envelopes. The company also offers a full line of camera inspection systems and other quality assurance solutions.
Raney believes PRINTING United will give Baumer hhs a fresh opportunity to promote its technical leadership in products like these, which it sells in more than 70 countries. He also thinks that the event’s theme, convergence - graphic service providers moving beyond their primary offerings to seek new sources of revenue in other segments — makes sense in light of what is happening among Baumer’s own customers.
“Everyone wants new sources of revenue, so everyone wants be a one-stop shop,” Raney observes. “People are looking to control the customer more than ever.”
Helping graphic service providers discover how to cement customer loyalty by offering them an expanded gamut of capabilities is the main mission of PRINTING United, a joint venture of the Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA) and NAPCO Media.
PRINTING United is the successor to SGIA Expo, the industry’s premier showcase for graphic and visual communications. Following SGIA’s final edition (Las Vegas, Oct. 18-20, 2018), PRINTING United will present a new perspective on profiting in segments from garment to graphic, packaging to commercial and industrial to in-plant.
It will be accompanied by BRAND United, a co-located learning experience aimed at brand owners, marketers and other consumers of the B2B products and services that PRINTING United will showcase.