Forum tickets are selling well and directories are now live for AUSPACK 2022 in Melbourne this May.
AUSPACK 2022, the largest event of its type in the southern hemisphere, is on track for an exciting show next month.
Mark Dingley, chairman of the Australian Packaging and Processing Machinery Association (APPMA), which owns AUSPACK, said, “The main exhibition is free to the industry to attend across all four days, and registrations have been very good so far. The anticipation behind the show across the industry has been building due to this event being the first in-person show since 2019.”
Dingley said tickets for the AUSPACK Leaders Forum went on sale last month, with many taking advantage of the “super early bird” from 4 March. Tickets will be available on the website.
“In the true spirit of hybrid offerings, we’ve made online tickets available for those who can’t attend the in-person sessions or choose not to. These offer great value.”
He said the AUSPACK Business Leaders’ Forum, which will take place during the middle two days of the main exhibition, 18-19 May, will also run onsite at the MCEC.
“We created the AUSPACK Leaders Forum to offer business owners the opportunity to benchmark their businesses as an organisation of the future, gain knowledge and inspiration, and network with like-minded, forward-thinking leaders.
“We have chosen the forum topics by what’s necessary on the business front across the manufacturing sector: Australia is at a critical recovery stage after the COVID-19 pandemic with supply chain disruption, sustainability demands and technology and automation leaps, then combine that with fast-paced changes in consumer buying habits, environmental impact and regulation and governance. All of these factors are driving unprecedented organisational transformation in manufacturing and the packaging and processing industry.”
Dingley encouraged attendees to visit the program online, to see the full range of presentations across the two days, which fit into the key themes of Future Technology, Sustainability & The Circular Economy, Investment & Collaboration, Future Supply Chain, Adapting & Diversifying for Commercial Success and Future Workforce.
The highly searchable online program means if attendees just want to attend certain sessions, they can filter for those interests and “favourite” them.
Directories live
Dingley said the exhibitor and product directories on the event website had proven popular for people to search.
“Our aim is for visitors to have a valuable experience. Enhancements to both the exhibitor and product directories mean visitors can search for very specific areas.
“For instance, to search the Product Directory, visitors can enter a keyword in the ‘search’ field, or filter by product type under ‘filters’, selecting from dozens of categories under auxiliary packaging means, components, packaging, packaging machinery, packaging materials and means, plant equipment, processing machinery, and software and services.
“Visitors can also browse the exhibitor directory, and ‘favourite’ companies to follow up at the show so they can plan their visit. Catching up face to face with current suppliers or customers and seek out potential new ones is a perfect way to both reconnect and generate new business.”
Strong anticipation
Members of Open IIoT (Stand G130) are looking forward to the exhibition for several reasons.
Open IIoT is an initiative of some of Australia’s most prominent automation brands – SMC Corporation ANZ, Beckhoff Automation, NORD DRIVESYSTEMS, Balluff, ZI-Argus and KUKA Robot Automation.
A spokesperson said, “AUSPACK is such a well-respected event that everyone in the industry looks forward to, and we couldn’t think of a better place to bring IIoT and Industry 4.0 to the forefront.”
The group is anticipating gaining new ideas and feedback about how IIoT can best be used by manufacturers by talking to the manufacturers themselves at the exhibition.
“We are also looking forward to interacting with people who may be completely new to the concept and explaining it as simply and practically as possible. Finally, we are looking forward to networking with our industry peers and reconnecting with those we haven’t been able to see face-to-face for a long time and making our mark at this pivotal moment for the Australian manufacturing and packaging sector.
“We will be exhibiting our demo unit at AUSPACK 2022, which demonstrates the benefits of full IIoT integration in a visually accessible way. Visitors to the Open IIoT stand will be able to see first-hand how the collaboration of automation components can create a comprehensive IIoT end-user system, complete with a production dashboard that unlocks the power of the system data collected.”
Two members – Jim Wallace sales manager for Balluff and Jozef Ceh, SMC Corporation’s digital transformation and Industry 4.0 manager – will also be presenting at the Solutions Seminar Series.
Their seminar, “Quick Wins for Industry 4.0 Implementation”, will be interactive session that will give visitors real-life examples of where to start their Industry 4.0 implementation, critical steps on the digitisation journey and quick wins to data gathering.
APPMA’s Mark Dingley encouraged people to register for the main free exhibition and make sure they didn’t miss out on tickets to the Gala Night, where the results of the APPMA Awards of Excellence will be announced, or the AUSPACK Leaders Forum.
Following strict COVID-Safe guidelines, AUSPACK 2022 will be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, 17-20 May 2022. Tickets to the exhibition are free and are now available on the website. Entry to the Solutions Theatres is also free, via the registration pass.
Tickets to the AUSPACK Leaders Forum (18-19 May) and APPMA Awards of Excellence Gala Night (18 May) are now on sale.
Please visit www.auspack.com.au for more information.