In its next edition (8-11 May), Hispack will allocate more than 2,000 m2 net surface area to creating four spaces for thought, knowledge, and innovation about the main vectors that are transforming packaging, and which will mark its medium-term development: sustainability, usage experience, automation, and packaging logistics. The essential conferences and activities of the fair will be concentrated in this large areas known as "Hispack Challenges". A total of nearly 70 sessions, with the participation of 185 speakers, in addition to workshops, demonstrations, exhibitions, or guided tours.

More than 45 experts, including representatives from the offer, demand, and sector bodies, formed into work groups, have participated in the definition of Hispack's value proposition for each of the selected packaging challenges, as well as in the thematic structure of the contents, and in the search and selection of speakers.

Director of Hispack, Xavier Pascual, highlights the "qualitative leap" that can be seen this year in the activities program of the fair, a result of the "collaborative work by different representatives of the value chain of packaging in order to meet the needs raised by the demand sectors, and also by very diverse professional profiles".

For his part, the President of Hispack's organizing committee, Javier Riera-Marsá, indicates that these areas of activities "are evidence of the necessary internal transformation of the packaging industry both in terms of processes and of the application of new technologies, placing value on the economic and social function of the package, as well as packaging's unavoidable responsibility with its surroundings and the environment".

Sustainability by Hispack

Through approximately 15 conferences and round tables, this space related to sustainability in packaging will present answers regarding the preservation of natural resources, the use of new materials, processes, and applications, taking into account both its final use, and its later recovery and reintroduction in the system. Subjects related to the improvement of food safety and the life cycle of the products in order to fight waste, will be addressed. There will also be discussions about sustainable materials, eco-design, and circular economy, about the processing and waste recovery, about certification and alternative sources of supplies, as well as about digitization and new business models.

The area will also include three exhibits where the certification of packaging materials will be explained, exhibiting the European Commission's LIFE program R&D projects that have an impact on packaging, and presenting sustainable solutions and materials developed by technological centres.

User Experience by Hispack

This area will be dedicated to highlighting the optimization of the usage experience of packaging so that brands can seduce, interact, and gain the loyalty of consumers through the package. The conferences and round tables will revolve around six major axes: structural design of the package; printing applications; branding strategies; experiences and interactions through smart packages; neuromarketing and design centred on the consumer; and construction of the Premium experience in food, perfume, and cosmetics products.

As a complement, this area will include a historical sample of products in order to see the evolution of different brands through their packages; a workshop based on the "design thinking" methodology to think about solutions linked to the usage experience of packaging; demonstrations of the application of augmented reality in packages and packaging; an exhibition of innovative products in the categories of printing, premium, convenience, and smart packaging, as well as cases of success in branding; and a sample of design projects developed by students. The contents of this area related to the printing of packaging have been coordinated by the Graphispag hall.

Automation by Hispack

The area dedicated to automation seeks for companies that use packaging solutions to understand how to evolve towards the digital company model through their package and packaging operations, and what the technologies to achieve this are.

Almost ten conferences and round tables related to success cases and the presentation of the latest technological developments, will take place. The key presentations will explain the roadmap for digitizing the packaging processes, the technologies to provide flexibility to operations, and the essentials to achieve a robust digital packaging ecosystem (cybersecurity, protocols, standards, etc.

Packaging Logistics by Hispack

With important synergies with the automation area, packaging logistics wants to visualize the importance of the package and the packaging throughout the supply chain, from the production centres all the way to the sales and consumption point. The contents that will be addressed in the conferences will be related to traceability and optimization of the monitoring and control of the products via smart packaging; collaborative robotics; the 4.0 warehouse with Smart processes and operations; regulatory trends and changes in the stability of cargo; urban logistics and deliveries in the last-mile of the chain, and the packaging keys for electronic commerce.

As complementary activities, there will be an exhibition of the latest developments and technology for smart intra-logistic operations, as well as a workshop about planning methodologies and supply chain management.

Likewise, both the packaging logistics area and the automation area will organize guided tours of the commercial exhibition zone in order to directly learn about the most advanced solutions of each field, as well as the technologies and processes for evolving towards the 4.0 industry. A space for the communication of offers from technological centres will also be present with products and services for industrial digitalization and their application in the fields of automation, logistics, maintenance, and the supply chain.

Packaging & Shopper Marketing Zone

Beyond the Hispack challenges, the fair will have a space sponsored by the Graphispack Asociación where the role of packaging as a marketing and sales element in retail will be analysed. Through approximately 20 conferences, the impact of packaging at the moment of purchase, the disposition of the establishment to capture the consumer's attention, or matters of neuromarketing will, for example, be analysed. At the same time, real cases will be presented showing how the graphic process can be a determining factor in the production of packaging through new materials and inks, labels, printing processes, personalization, etc.

Hispack's educational program will be complemented with other technical sessions and conferences organized by professional associations, bodies, and publications.

Barcelona, March 2018

CHECK OUT THE PROGRAMME here