drupa 2021 to be cancelled and goes online as ‘virtual.drupa’

The 2021 edition of drupa has been cancelled due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The next event will take place as scheduled from May 28 to June 7, 2024.

The 2021 will now go online in a four-day digital event titled ‘virtual.drupa’ to take place from April 20 to 23.

Erhard Wienkamp, COO at Messe Düsseldorf, said: “The pandemic has caused a great deal of uncertainty among exhibitors and visitors in terms of their attendance at drupa 2021. Travel restrictions and budget constraints have further exacerbated the situation in the printing industry.

“We have taken this decision in consultation with our partners, who are entirely supportive of it. It was preceded by a detailed process of considering the current conditions and the needs of the industry.”

Sabine Geldermann, project director, print technologies, added: “Our primary goal remains to support the industry in any way we can to keep in contact at a national and international level, further develop their network and generate leads. To this end, we will be holding an interim event from 20 to 23 April, providing our exhibitors and visitors with an additional sales channel and allowing them to make reliable plans.”

Claus Bolza-Schünemann, chairman at König und Bauer and president of drupa, welcomes this approach: “A virtual event is exactly the right format in the current time. Attending drupa under the usual parameters was just too great a risk for many exhibitors, given declining export and turnover figures, as well as significant travel restrictions, which would also affect visitors. The new digital forum is a virtual platform, providing a reliable pillar and an opportunity to maintain valuable communications within the industry until 2024.”

Launched in October, the drupa preview platform already offers an impression of what ‘virtual.drupa’ will look like. It will give companies the opportunity to showcase themselves and their innovations virtually, as well as maintain existing contacts and establish new ones via the matchmaking feature. In addition, the conference schedule of the five drupa hot spots will provide key incentives and set the agenda for an online transfer of knowledge. For instance, international speakers from vertical markets will present success stories of Future Technologies in the Cube, outlining the future of our industry.

The printing industry continues to fully back its leading global trade fair, whose international reach remains unbroken. As a platform demanding open and competitive market comparison, it is a driving force for innovation, benefiting exhibitors and visitors in equal measure. Through direct contact, people can experience and compare technology trends and innovations and discover new synergies. Replicating its impetus, selling power and unique atmosphere, as well as the ability to exchange ideas with like-minded industry colleagues and nurture relationships, has certain limits when conducted in an online format.