I n the chilly first week of December in Beijing, the organisers of China Print 2017 had invited media representatives from 20 countries to showcase the progress of the mega show slated from 9 to 13 May 2016. Despite the biting cold, it was interesting to explore the ‘hot’ print industry in China.

According to The Statistics of Annual Examination of Printing Enterprises released by State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China, as of the year of 2015, the total output value of China’s printing industry reached 1,124.62 billion Chinese Yuan (Rs 11,065.36 bn).

There are 104,000 domestic printing enterprises with 3,176,000 employees. The gross value of assets of China’s printing industries is 1,235.73 billion Chinese Yuan (Rs 12,158.59 billion), including 69.86 billion in gross profit and 86.52 billion in the foreign processing trade. In the year of 2015, the total value of China’s printing industry realised the increase of 3.6% comparing with that in 2014.

Jian’guo Xu, president of Printing and Printing Equipment Industries Association of China (PEIAC), said, “In recent years, proactive financial strategies and prudent monetary policies have been adopted by Chinese government, aiming at to maintain improvement whilst keeping stability when confronted with the complex and rapidly changing global economy. Thus, China managed to keep an increase of 6.7 % in this year’s GDP, which demonstrates the solidity of domestic economic status and the successful implementation of the schemes.”

“China’s printing industry is in a new stage of transformation of development mode. At present, China’s printing industry, like the global printing industry, has been affected by the economic downturn, facing the pressure of rising resource costs, environmental constraints, high demand for equipment automation and intelligence. Manufacturers and printers must look at innovation and development, improvement in quality and efficiency, and opening new ways to enhance the overall competitiveness of enterprises in the industry.”

China Print: The mega show
Despite Drupa in 2016, which was attended by over 13,000 Indians; and PrintPack India 2017 in Noida to be held in February, the Beijing show is expected to have a significant footfall from Indian printers and converters.

According to Kamal Chopra president of All India Federation of Master Printers, more than 2,000 delegates from India attended the show in 2013. This constituted 16.19% of the total number of international visitors.

Shijun Zheng, vice president of China International Exhibition Centre Group, said, “The 2017 edition will be bigger and better. In this era when the economic recovery and the printing industry both progresses very slowly, China Print 2017 has obtained strong supports from printing enterprises. As of the 30 November 2015, 1,056 companies from home and abroad submitted their applications online with more than 1,58,000 square metres exhibition area already reserved. The eight indoor halls have been fully occupied. Supporting halls covering 40,000 square metres will be constructed right outside the exhibition halls, so as to meet the needs of the exhibitors.”

The organisers estimate the total number of visitors to surpass two lakh, surpassing its previous records.

The big players
With the biggest presence at China Print this year HP will occupy 3,100 sq/m of space in hall E1. 

The second largest stall of 2,000 sq/ft will be hosted by Heidelberg making a major leap forward with the launch of its driverless presses, under the ‘Push to Stop’ concept, which will see its presses not only automate printing itself, but also take over the ordering of consumables, the production planning and the management of maintenance.

Konica Minolta will focus on value-added products. Business operation director, Li Gang, said, on-demand UV foiling with Accurio range of products, alternative to traditional label applications, to assist in the long version of VDP packaging.

In the finishing segment, Masterwork will be betting big at China Print.

Other exhibitors who have booked 300 sq/m and more space are Muller Martini, Ricoh, Fuji, Scodix and Highcon, RMGT, Komori, Bobst and KBA among others.

Besides this, the other feature that makes China Print a must-attend show is the massive presence of Chinese manufacturers. The general perception that Chinese kit is low-grade is not completely true. Though these machines cannot be compared with the European technologies, one can sacrifice a bit on precision and automation and get a cost-effective deal with quicker ROI, especially in case of entry-level machines.

That’s what makes China Print an important show for Indian printers. You must visit the show not to see new technologies or to get a grasp of industry’s future but to add a quick fix and inexpensive kit with a bit of automation plus quicker ROIs to their arsenal and remain competitive in the market.

Top 15 exhibitors at China Print 2017