drupa 2008, the print media industry's largest exhibition, ran May 29 through June 11 at the Düsseldorf fairgrounds with nearly 170,000 square meters of net space and more than 1,800 exhibitors—the biggest edition in the show's 50-plus-year history. Themes included cross-industry digitization, workflow automation, inkjet roll presses, and integrated packaging production—areas directly relevant to flexible packaging converters evaluating print and finishing investments.
Packaging South Asia reported increased packaging machinery presence versus drupa 2004, when 1,866 exhibitors attracted 394,478 visitors. Flexo4All, a strategic alliance of 19 companies including Bobst, Comexi, DuPont, EskoArtwork, Fischer & Krecke, Gidue, Siegwerk, Sun Chemical, and Windmöller & Hölscher, organized guided tours promoting flexography for short runs and cost-effective package printing.
Gidue demonstrated the Athena UV flexo sleeve press (530–730 mm) for food packaging and shrink sleeves, highlighting solvent-free inline production. A supplier consortium including Gidue, IST Metz, Air Liquide, Softal, and Sun Chemical presented turnkey UV flexo for food packaging with Aldyne plasma treatment, inert-atmosphere UV Time curing, and Solarflex LM Inert low-migration inks.
Bobst Group reported sales of Fischer & Krecke FP 16S-10 and FP 14S-8 flexo presses during the show for plastic film flexible packaging, plus Titan slitter-rewinders to customers in Colombia, Poland, South Africa, Italy, and Germany. Rotomec gravure and coating demonstrations ran both on the main stand and at Bobst Group Deutschland in Meerbusch via shuttle service.
Yet the global financial crisis already constrained post-drupa conversions. KBA forecast a 2008 loss in September, noting drupa order-book earnings failed to meet expectations as sheet-fed customers struggled to finalize financing. Industry histories later estimated more than 30% of drupa 2008 press deals were canceled—flexible packaging orders fared relatively better because projects were further advanced, but capex delays still rippled through 2009.