PackPlus Review

July 12, 2009 | By Ron Augustin

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On Saturday July 11, the fourth and last day of the PackPlus 2009 exhibition ended on a busy note, with visitors flocking in -- who none of the exhibitors had expected anymore after three days of empty hallways. On the first three days, the exhibitors, who numbered around 300, interacted mainly amongst each other. They were, however, not too unhappy about this, as the technologies on show were of high quality, with both technology users and suppliers exhibiting, and the relaxed atmosphere being an occasion to exchange ideas and addresses. Synergies that could have been fused by organising the PackAge Conference within or close to the exhibition grounds were spoilt by holding it at a fancy far-away hotel, thus keeping away conference participants from the exhibition and exhibition visitors from the conference.

IppStar, in the meantime, held its careers4u event, a two-day workshop on training gaps and career opportunities in the packaging industry. A large space near the main entrance of Hall 11 was made available for this event by the PackPlus organisers. In collaboration with the Heidelberg Print Media Academy, a discussion was initiated on the morning of 9 September on recruitment policies, job descriptions, education, industry practices and career outlooks. After the by Professor PV Inderesan and a presentation by Rajendrakumar Ayanath of the Heidelberg PMA, Vijay Sood of Packaging Legends, Pawandeep Sahni of Weldon Celloplast, Sandeep Bhargava of Kumar Printers and Neeraj Bhargava of HBD Packaging shared their views.

On the morning and afternoon of 10 September Professor Ayanath made an inspiring presentation on the industry’s educational and training needs and the exciting opportunities for those come to the printing and packaging industries. MK Bhargava of Kumar Printers and other potential employers from the packaging industry shared their views on what they considered important requirements in staff hiring and career development. One-on-one discussions were held with more than 50 candidates including student trainees looking for project placements. They presented their CVs for employment in the industry, which will be made available to employers by IppStar.