Four new show features at Packaging Innovations

Packaging Solutions

Packaging Innovations 2017, which returns to Birmingham’s NEC on 1 and 2 March 2017, has four new show initiatives, plus a series of returning visitor favourites.

This year’s show sees the launch of The Inclusivity in Packaging Feature, bringing leading experts together to examine how packaging can be more inclusive at the design stage to better meet customers’ needs and maximise appeal. Hosted by David Wiggins of DRW Packaging Consultants, visitors will be shown how to measure the impact their design decisions have on the consumer and how to develop a business case for implementing improvements.

New for 2017 is The Ideas Factory, which will enable visitors to gain fresh ideas and inspiration by learning from leading experts from non-packaging based companies such as British Gas, Mintel, Cambridge University, Blippar and Knowledge Transfer Network. This will allow cutting edge techniques and knowledge from other industries to be applied to the packaging sector.

In a first for the show, Campden BRI, the UK’s largest independent food and drink research body, is hosting a series of intimate, topical sessions for the FMCG industry. Topics will cover an array of subjects, from packaging defects and labelling updates, through to contact materials and openability. Campden BRI will also be hosting a competition for attendees, to see if they can guess the 'foreign body'.

The final new addition for 2017 is The Pentawards Display, which will see the 2016 Diamond, Platinum and Gold Pentawards winners showcased live on the show floor. The display will be made up from the awards’ five main categories – beverages, body, food, luxury and other markets – and will include packaging from brands such as Dominos, Marc Jacobs and Sony.

There will be additional show floor entertainment in the form of The Drinks Symposium which will see innovative new drinks brands, Asterley Bros, Brighton Gin and Gigglewater explain the stories behind their new products. They will discuss how, in today’s crowded marketplace, original thinking, a unique story and imaginative packaging can enhance a new product’s desirability and create a strong brand identity.

Also returning is The Pharmaceutical Symposium, where an array of global leaders will examine the core issues and trends from the industry. Greg Anderson, device director at GSK, will explore ‘Medicine manufacturing industry partnership – Opportunities to engage for the packaging technology sector’, while Sanjay Patel, global innovation connector at Coca-Cola, will look at ‘Can employing FMCG innovation tools deliver novelty and thus improvement in patient treatment adherence?’.

The show also features five seminar theatres packed with over 30 hours of free to attend educational content. These sessions are being delivered by packaging industry leaders from companies such as Co-Op, Amazon, Innocent Drinks, Lucozade Ribena Suntory and Mondelēz International.