Page 27 - FINAT Yearbook 2012

operators’ day ambassadors
In preparation of the exhibition, FINAT interviewed three ‘ambassadors’ about their expectations. Michael Jagiella, Technical and Production Leader at Germany’s Gundlach LOGO, commented: “I regularly visit Labelexpo, as it’s the most important show for our industry. Operators’ Day is a very important initiative – it’s the perfect opportunity to learn about new technologies and get updates on all the key issues affecting our business. It’s also a great place for making new contacts and sharing information. I’m looking forward to discovering how my peers do things, and how I could incorporate what I’ve learned into our production process.”
Michal Jagiella
Jan Kerkwijk
For Jan Kerkwijk, Foreman at Kolibri Labels (NL), Operators’ Day represented a chance to fill in any knowledge gaps: “We work in a fast-changing environment. And with technology advancing all the time, there are always new things to learn. Ultimately, the better you know your machines and everything they can do, the more value you’ll get from them. Operators’ Day is crucial because it gives us a chance to really get on top of the latest technological developments. And because it’s within an educational context, we can explore how the latest innovations could be deployed at our own companies, and get an understanding of the impact they might have from both a production and commercial perspective.”
Meanwhile Yohann Peyronnet, Operator at French label manufacturer, Stratus Packaging, said: “Operators’ Day will be a great opportunity to meet face to face with suppliers. We’ll be able to share with them the challenges we’re facing, and discuss how we can overcome them. Also, it’s very nice to have a day dedicated solely to operators – it’s recognition of how important it is that we have the opportunity to build on our print education and develop our skills.”
FINAT Managing Director, Jules Lejeune, believes Operators’ Day not only advances
operators’ skills and knowledge, but also benefits the whole company: “Operators’ Day
focuses on a very important group in our industry. It’s really important for companies to
invest time and resources in them. Operators’ Day aims to do just that. It will be an educational experience – operators will be able to put what they learn into practise at their own print environments.”
prepared a special ‘pilot’ activity around the closing day. This Operators’ Day, honoured the skills and competences of operators running the press and other technical staff members. A special ‘Show Trail’ programme, which attracted 155 participants from 10 companies based in Germany, Switzerland, Poland, and France, lead the operators to the stands of 22 FINAT member supplier companies, that had prepared special demonstrations and assignments around their booth. The show trail not only contained an educational but also a competition element that encouraged (teams of)
operators to qualify for prizes offered by sponsoring exhibitors which were awarded at the closing ceremony on 1 October. Although it has meanwhile appeared that Labelexpo Europe will move to working week days as of the next edition, Operators’ Day was an interesting learning experience, also for FINAT and the participating companies and sponsors.
labelexpo – finat partnership: beyond labelexpo europe
The Labelexpo – FINAT partnership not only covers the days of the Labelexpo Europe shows. The leadership of both
organisations meets at frequent intervals as part of an on-going dialogue on matters relevant to the label industry and its leading trade shows. Following the 2011 edition, feedback was on the quality of the show and its venue and FINAT offered the platform to bring togeher a delegations of visitors, exhibitors and the management of the show to discuss possible adjustments and improvements for the next edition.
From their global outreach through Labels & Labeling, the various exhibitions and summits held world-wide, Tarsus
Yohann Peyronnet
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FINAT YEARBOOK 2012 |