drupa Switches to Three-year Cycle

If you've been thinking that four years is just too long to wait in between drupa shows, rest easy. The world's largest graphic arts trade fair just announced that, after its 2016 event, it will switch to a three-year cycle. (So mark your 2019 calendar.)

The decision was made Tuesday by the drupa committee at its meeting in Düsseldorf, Germany, host city of the event, which is taking place next year, from May 31-June 10.

"The entire print process chain has changed radically because of the Internet and digital technologies," explained Claus Bolza-Schünemann, chairman of the drupa advisory board and president of Koenig & Bauer Group. "New applications and solutions are developing and opening up new fields of business. At the same time, there is more focus on innovative technologies, such as 3D printing, printed electronics and functional printing."

One positive side effect of this change is that drupa will no longer take place in 2020, the same year as interpack, the No. 1 international trade fair for the packaging industry and the closely related process industry.

"For the drupa exhibitors who specialize in packaging printing, 2020 would have been an incredibly stressful year so the change will clearly benefit customers," emphasized Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, president and CEO of Messe Düsseldorf.

The exact dates have not yet been finalized, but it is certain that drupa will take place in the traditional drupa month of May in 2019, 2022 and 2025 in Düsseldorf, Germany.