It's time to do Interpack

It's soon time for Interpack, and many of us will be heading for Dusseldorf where we will be obliged to leave behind a huge quantity of our under-valued dollars. But Interpack is not something you'll want to miss, so I have ten suggestions on how to do it and not have it do you. Perhaps these suggestions can make Interpack a more valuable experience.

1) Approach Interpack as a window on innovation, not as a resource for your current project. This doesn't mean that you can't be on the lookout for things for an upcoming project, but organize your visit to seek out new ideas. If there are breakthrough technologies on the horizon, you'll find them at Interpack.

2) Don't allow your existing suppliers to occupy your time. I recently heard of a company who had a large number of packaging engineers but yet the management complained that they could not identify emerging packaging technology. One of the reasons was that the engineers focused too much on existing suppliers. Sales people are trained to control their accounts. Don't allow this to happen at Interpack. Time there is too valuable. OK, maybe you can attend an evening cocktail party or have one dinner with them, but that is all.

3) Wander first through the whole show (yes, all 19 halls), looking for the most unusual things and looking for trends or people breaking trends. Make notes as you go, and then use your remaining time to prioritize and return to the most interesting booths.

4) Visit all of the halls, not just the ones that you think are relevant. At the last Interpack, a colleague of mine made his most important packaging discovery in a processing hall.

5) Look for enclosed areas within booths where vendors may be showing new technology “by invitation only”. Ask others what they saw that was unique or different. When you find something, don't be afraid to ask for more details. Ask to look under the covers, if you think the underlying technology may be relevant.

6) If you are going with others, split up and work as a team. Meet before or after the show and share notes and observations. Large corporations rent conference rooms on site and hold daily meetings before the show opens for just this purpose.

7) If you go to Pack Expo, don't spend time in the American pavilion.

8) Minimize advance appointments. These have a place, but they often require that you waste a lot of time moving from appointment to appointment. Make appointments only for a specific business purpose. When you make appointments, try to schedule them in one hall during one time period.

9) Use the bus that runs between the halls. It saves time and gives you a few moments to sit.

10) Use the public transportation in the Dusseldorf area. Your Interpack admission ticket gives you certain free transportation options.

?) For 2005 Interpack, there was a free searchable exhibitor database and map that could be downloaded to a PDA. I've not found one yet for 2008. Does anyone know if there is one available?

I'm sure that readers have other tips to share. Feel free to post them as a reply.

I'm looking forward to wearing out a pair of shoes at Interpack 2008. I'm betting that custom-integrated robotics is going make a big splash. If you have insight on breaking technology that will debut at Interpack, let me know. Don't forget to pack your On The Edge teeshirts. See you in Dusseldorf!

TrackBack

Comments Post a comment (If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.) Name: Email Address: URL: Remember personal info? Comments: (you may use HTML tags for style) Type the word 'packaging' (required):