Signature Events
Forum and INFO*FLEX set new benchmarks in attendance and satisfaction. Nearly 2,000 flexographers made the trip to Nashville, TN for the events, held May 3-6 at the Omni Nashville Hotel and Music City Center. Returning from a successful stint in 2014, Anderson & Vreeland’s Jessica Harrell served as co chair, along with Berry Plastics Corp.’s Jennye Scott.
Attendees made it clear the combination of sessions and speakers made this year’s Forum the best ever:
- 95 percent rated speakers very good or excellent
- 86 percent rated topics very good or excellent
- Overall, 85 percent rated Forum as very good or excellent
- Nearly three-quarters attended this year’s Forum because of the past experience at the event
In written evaluations, they singled out the topics presented (the future of packaging, understanding the geeky aspects of flexography, “Toolbox Tuesday”), the way speakers handled the material covered (the FTA Hall of Fame roundtable discussion), the location (“I loved that the Omni was close to downtown, which encouraged additional networking even after the sessions were finished for the day,” read one comment card), and the knowledge gleaned and insights learned.
Across the street at INFO*FLEX, exhibitors saw unprecedented foot traffic, deal making and business card swapping:
- 100 percent connected with their existing customers
- 99 percent said exhibiting was beneficial to their company
- 96 percent met new potential customers
Similarly, attendees welcomed the additional hour split across both days to peruse the record 280 booth spaces and find new solutions to their modern challenges:
- 91 percent rated the exhibition’s length very good or excellent
- 84 percent rated exhibits very good or excellent
- 77 percent met a vendor they intended to do business with
In honor of one of flexography’s greats and a pillar of FTA for many years, the Gary Hilliard Memorial Golf Tournament had its inaugural tee off Sept. 8. The event took place at Bearpath Golf & Country Club in Eden Prairie, MN—Gary’s hometown—in partnership with Twin Cities Flexo Association (TCFA). More than 50 printing pros/amateur golfers hit the links, followed by a dinner. The first place team comprised Bill Calendar, Jack Fulton, Rick Pomerenka and Mike Schliesmann. A scholarship was also set up in Gary’s name.
Fall Conference 2015 saw record shattering attendance, as 470 flexographers—a more than 50 percent jump from last year’s 301—made their way to Columbus, OH for the three day event. With a litany of sessions built around the printing and analysis of FLEXO’s November cover supplement, attendees were able to walk through every step of the print job, review and understand the decisions made, and hear explanations from the flexographers who were on site for the printrun. A record 70 exhibitors comprised the tabletop exhibit.
Association Happenings
Two Flexo Seminar events were held, in May in Kansas City, MO; and in September at Gallus’ offices in Philadelphia, PA. Both received large turnouts, overwhelmingly positive comments and, as a result, FTA is preparing to announce future events in 2016.
Polymount’s Pete Hartman began his two year term as FTA’s Chairman of the Board. Jean-Pierre Delage, of Master Packaging Inc., joined the FTA Board of Directors and FFTA Board of Trustees
Coming one year after the reveal of FIRST 5.0, FIRST 5.1 was announced at Fall Conference. The revised book included more than 140 edits and changes.
Among the more notable updates:
- To the Design section, the addition of guides on constructing general outlines and creative briefs
- To the Prepress section, substantial new content covering profiled proofs, steps to generating proofs and resolution options
- To the Print section, updated example photos, new commentary on sleeve cleaning, maintenance and plate mounting, and improved continuity when referencing other sections of the book
- To the Appendix, the Murray-Davies equation for converting densitometric data into halftone values was replaced by the SCTV (Second City/No Spot Color Tone Value) equation, specifically for spot color calculations
FTA’s online home for purchasing resources, renewing membership and more received a substantial update. The store’s backend was migrated to WordPress to join the flexographic.wpengine.com domain, which made the switch the year prior. Items were reorganized in a more logical way and descriptions were updated. And everything received a fresh coat of paint, to bring www.ftastore.com in line with the organization’s branding and style.
A new online course, titled “G7, Flexography and The Production Environment” was launched. In partnership with IDEAlliance, it is designed to provide to flexographers in production and non production roles an overview of the G7 methodology and how to properly implement it. Over the course of eight self guided modules, it teaches calibration techniques, optimization practices, fingerprinting procedures, process control techniques, relevant standards and more.
Nine webinars—free to FTA members—were held, covering subjects like ink proofing, sustainability, digital printing and more. Ensuring the next generation of flexographers is as talented and dedicated as those before them, FTA announced the formation of the Emerging Leaders Committee. The group will be staffed with young flexographers and seek to attract and educate practitioners new to the industry. Its first event will be the FTA Emerging Leaders Golf Outing, the day before Forum 2016 at the The Golf Course Fossil Creek in Fort Worth, TX.
FTA served as a member of the PACK EXPO Partner Program and exhibited at the event, from Sept. 28-30 in Las Vegas.
Looking To 2016
With drupa fast approaching (the now triennial event is set for May 31 – June 10 in Düsseldorf, Germany), Forum and INFO*FLEX 2016 are on an accelerate schedule. Forum 2016 takes place from March 6-9 in Fort Worth, TX, with INFO*FLEX 2016 on March 7 and 8. That means session planning is already well underway.
As 2016 is nearly upon us, with all the further advancements, growth and changes it will bring, it’s further proof things in the world of flexography are not slowing down any time soon.