The hands-on fair

viscom is increasingly becoming a solution-orientated user forum, with more and more machines, materials and technologies being able to be tried out on-site.

Hammering, drilling, polishing – visitors do not come to the viscom Workshop justfor alook, they also want to take part. Anybody can contribute their ideas and skills and lend a hand in realising some of the different projects from the fields of advertising technology and textile finishing on offer. One of the projects for the three days of the fair is a 13m-long wall that will be decorated with different digital fleece wallpapers made by the company Erfurt and designed to demonstrate just how you can customize interior design. The front of a barber’s shop will also be erected by members of numerous trades working directly as a team, enabling visitors to try out different machinery and discover how to work with different materials in situ. In collaboration with experts from Signforum24, viscom is increasingly becoming a solution-orientated user-forum. As Martin Gerhardts of Signforum24 stresses, “Our ideas and wishes are bearing evermore fruit and we are very pleased to have a reliable and flexible partner like Reed at our side”. As one of the core elements of the event, the workshop will be moving to the centre of Hall 13 in 2020. There will be a broad aisle on three sides of the hall, with a directly adjoining café and tables. Commenting on the changes, Martin Gerhardts says, “That way, we have solved the problem of the lack of seating that we had last year”.

The entire Wednesday, 8^th January 2020 has been dedicated to the topic of packaging. Packaging and display experts, designers, agencies, manufacturers and clients will be providing very different perspectives to visitors in different talks and discussions. One of the key focuses will be the long-term trend towards sustainability. Here is an overview of the schedule:

11:30am – 1pm Forum 13 Stage
Topic panel on “The latest information on the topic of sustainability in brand communication.” Moderation: Ute von Buch, publisher and editor-in-chief of creativ verpacken. (in German)

11:30am – 12am Sustainability: branding and green labelling to win consumers. Gary Parker, Sustainability Group Head Intertek Health, Environmental & Regulatory Services (HERS). (in English)

12am – 12:30pm The young brand share makes a charitable donation in accordance with the 1:1 principle for every product purchased. This talk will tell you all about the role sustainable tube packaging plays for the social brand. A brand case on how share’s hand-cream packaging was developed. Alexandra E. Wallner, Pirlo Tubes GmbH. (in German)

12:30am – 1pm Recognising the trend. How the Berlin company Hauptstadtader is creating a furore with vegan stickers, and who they appeal to. Paul Kündiger, CEO, Hauptstadtader GmbH. (in German)

1pm – 2:30pm PSI Members Only Lounge – Hall 9, Stand G20
Packaging Lunch. Business lunch in the exclusive Members-Only Lounge of PSI, with moderated keynote speeches on the topic of love and social brands. Networking and discussion with colleagues and experts.

2:30pm – 3:30pm PSI Members-Only Lounge Stage – Hall 9, Stand G20
Topic panel “Of Advertising, Brands and Dealing with Sustainability.” Presentation: Ute von Buch, publisher and editor-in-chief of creativ verpacken. (in German)

 2:30pm – 3pm 360° green: sustainability does not just play a role when it comes to products, but also in the case of packaging. A talk on holism and the role of packaging in adding value to a product. Uwe Melichar, packaging partner at Factor Design, Hamburg and President of epda – European Brand & Packaging Design Association. (in German)

3pm – 3:30pm How to look better! How sustainability can strengthen your market position. How-to instructions for your own business. Ingo Moeller, brand consultant, brand coach. (in German)

On Thursday, 9^th January 2020, the Interior Design Business Meet-Up will be providing ideas and specific case studies relating to innovative interior design. Manufacturers and professionals with project experience will be showing innovations that are both eye-catching and easy to produce. The occasion offers the opportunity to try out different materials and technologies and to discuss your own projects. There will be experts on-hand to provide information on, e.g. special self-adhesive films and their uses, or on trends in digital large-format printing.

1pm – 2pm Interior Design Business Meet-Up in the viscom VIP Lounge. An hour of product pitches, innovations and expert discussions.

2pm – 3pm Interior Design Panel with discussions and best-practice examples for material trends, printing and innovations.

From 3pm Tour of differentviscom exhibitors

All information regarding the topic of interior design at viscom and the lecture programme.

Dedicated tours lead to the most important stations of viscom. The “Make something out of it” tour is orientated towards the “Road to Discovery”. It takes you to special areas such as “Make Your Shirt”, the workshop, the Nations Wrap Cup and past various boulevard islands, to selected exhibitors. Amongst other things, the Interior Design Circuit embraces lectures in Forum 13, individual islands on the “Road to Discovery”, the workshop and leading exhibitors from the field of printing. A guided tour with Frazer Chesterman will look at different approaches and ideas relating to sustainability. The number of participants on this tour is restricted. Anyone interested can sign up for the tour at: tour.vip@viscom-messe.com.
Meeting point: viscom VIP Lounge, Hall 1, Stand H51