VDMA: Joint Exhibition Appearance at PACK PRINT International and T-PLAS 2017 in Bangkok

• German medium-sized companies present the latest packaging, printing and plastics technology “Made in Germany” in Thailand
• The Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy organises a joint pavilion – good visitor response and positive exhibitor feedback

If everything goes according to the “Thailand 4.0“ development plan, the Kingdom will evolve into a modern hub of the printing and packaging industry and a supplier for the whole region in the next few years. According to Dr. Somchai Harnhirun, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry of Thailand, speaking on the occasion of the opening of the PACK PRINT International 2017 exhibition in Bangkok last week, it`s all about “Packaging and Printing for the Future“ with networked 4.0 solutions in order to supply what customers need on-demand.

Especially as far as printing technology is concerned, the industry of Thailand is dependent on imports for the implementation of these plans. Therefore, more than 500 international exhibitors used the PACK PRINT and the T-PLAS trade fair for the plastics and rubber sectors held alongside it last week (from 20-23 September) to showcase the latest printing and packaging technologies as well as modern solutions for the plastics and rubber industry.

German Pavilion meets with great response

The Ministry of Economics and Energy had again organised a German Pavilion where nine medium-sized companies presented machinery, plants and equipment. The exhibition was carried out by Messe Düsseldorf. The VDMA provided support for the joint pavilion. With a positive response: “It`s the first time that we participate in the German Pavilion at the PACK

PRINT and we witness that the quality pledge “Made in Germany“ is very attractive in Thailand“, said Yan Wei Phin, Regional Manager Southeast Asia of CGS publishing technologies international GmbH.     

Ralf Plautz, Managing Director and owner of H&K GmbH, confirmed this positive impression: “Participating in this exhibition generated considerable added value for our company.” Moreover he stated that existing contacts had been strengthened, numerous new ones made in the Asian region and that good ideas for the further development of products and business areas could be gained during the talks at the pavilion.

Collective attention – also for smaller exhibitors

Tim Klappe, Managing Director of OneVision Software (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd., also expressed his high satisfaction. “Thanks to the joint pavilion, we, a small company, can also take part in this important exhibition,” he stressed. According to Dr. Markus Heering, Managing Director of the VDMA Printing and Paper Technology Association, this is exactly the idea pursued with this joint presentation. “Especially for smaller medium-sized companies, the joint pavilions are an excellent and favourable opportunity to present themselves in important markets and to attract concentrated attention to their products and solutions,” said Heering, adding that in particular in an environment like Southeast Asia, where the transformation to Industrie 4.0 is in full swing, the German mechanical engineering industry with its high-quality solutions is very attractive.

Perhaps the trend towards networked 4.0 process chains offers the possibility to regain recently lost ground in Thailand. While Germany is still the most important supplier of printing and paper technology, the competitive pressure has massively increased there during recent years. Exports of German printing and paper technology to Thailand went down 13.5 percent last year, whereas the demand for food and packaging machines from Germany increased by 8.8 percent to 98.3 million €. In the printing, packaging and plastics sectors, in total machines and equipment worth 201 million were shipped to the Kingdom so that it remained one of the most important sales markets in that region.

Positive résumé of the exhibition

The German exhibitors used the four days of the exhibition in Bangkok to give printing and packaging experts from the whole region a description of the advantages of a digitally networked production. “The solutions of our printing and packaging technology manufacturers can make an important contribution to the realisation of the `Thailand 4.0 plans` – and thus the modernisation of the whole Southeast Asian printing and packaging industry,” said Markus Heering, explaining that the good response experienced at the German Pavilion is a good sign.  

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