As in the previous stop, the Pune roadshow was structured around a half-day conference and a full day table-top exhibition. The event not only recorded a great number of attendees but also provided a unique informal atmosphere for participants to network and share with each other their experiences on convergence. 

Convergence in print: the way forward continued to be the topic of the panel discussion and set the tone for the technical conference. The panel included Vinay Nalawade of Parakh Agro Industries; Rajesh Kulkarni of Keetronics; Sourin Shah of Viraj Prints and Sachin Patil of Bobst India with Pawandeep Sahni, Omet India performing the role of the moderator.

“In simple words, convergence is the merging and integration of two or more distinct technologies in a single system,” said Sahani in his opening remarks.

The discussion revolved around what convergence meant to all the panellists and how they were applying it in their respective fields. It raised some interesting points on how the direction of convergence needs to be different for each printer depending on their core strengths.

The discussion was followed by two technology presentations, one by Mohan Pailwan from Vinsak India and the other by Pawandeep Sahni of Omet India. Where on one hand Mohan spoke about the essence of smart packaging while underlining the importance of brand protection and consumer interaction, Pawandeep took the attendees through convergence strategy, approach and execution. 

Talking about the convergence mindset, Pawandeep said, “How we define ourselves, defines how we think convergence. The new approach will certainly require reimagining operations.”

The parallel exhibition saw participating companies like Vinsak; Omet; Advanced Specialty Materials; Creofoil; Global Graphics Machineries; Jefferies Metal Stickers & Plant Manufacturers; Keetronics India; Konica Minolta; Standard Printers Providers; Suba Solutions; Viraj Prints; Impel Services; Zhongke India and Print & Publishing, present their products and solutions through catalogues, collections and samples. 

Earlier, the event was kicked off with the lighting of the lamp at the hands of Raveendra Joshi, president, AIFMP; Raghabendra N Dutta Barua, general secretary, AIFMP; Anant Vishwanath Joshi, vice-president, West, AIFMP; Tushar Dhote, co-chairman, Pamex, AIFMP; Tirthraj Joshi, vice-president, PPOA; Girish Datye, former president, PPOA and Anil Arora, president, Print-Packaging.com.

Girish Datye welcomed the delegates giving a roundup of the activities of the association and promising full support to Pamex while exhorting the assembled delegates to plan their visit well in advance to the March event in Mumbai.

“Pamex is the flagship event of AIFMP, and in 2023, it is set to break all past records,” said Raveendra Joshi. He also gave an overview of the upcoming AIFMP Bhavan and the details of NAEP awards, which is concurrently held with Pamex. 

Tushar Dhote gave a rundown of the status of Pamex 2023 highlighting the growth of the event and the rationale of the underlying theme of the exhibition. “The theme of convergence in print emerged in the deliberations of the core group consisting of leading printers, technology providers, AIFMP officials and the event managers. The structure of the promotional roadshows was also mooted in these meetings,” Dhote said.

Indore is the next destination for Pamex promotional journey, where the conference and table-top exhibition will be held on 24 January 2023.