ICE USA 2017, the International Converting Exhibition, and InPrint USA, the Industrial Print Show, are under way at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL this week. Organized by Mack Brooks Exhibition the is taking place April 25 – 27, 2017.

Marking its fourth edition in the Americas, the show is bringing over 250 exhibitors together with thousands of packaging, paper, non-woven and self-adhesive industry professionals. Manufacturers are showcasing their latest equipment and technology from all key areas of converting like web coating, laminating, slitting, rewinding, coating, pouch making and many more.

The InPrint USA show comes to the US for the first time, focusing on connecting manufacturers who use print as a key component of the manufacturing process with leading brands in the fields of industrial specialty, screen, digital, inkjet and 3D technology print solutions. The broad ranging conference program at InPrint USA features top industry experts offering their insights in three key areas: functional, decorative and packaging print.

“For ICE USA, our registration numbers are tracking ahead of previous shows, and we have exceeded our forecast for attendees for InPrint USA,” says Melissa Magestro, executive vice president of Mack Brooks Exhibitions. “We were very excited about co-locating the two shows so we focused on some key strategic initiatives to expand show attendance. We developed really strong technical, educational sessions for both shows for all levels of experience. We reached out to Latin American packaging and converting associations and have received strong support from them expanding the show’s reach and awareness in the region. Finally, we provided marketing support to exhibitors who have taken a strong lead on inviting their customers.”

Getting an ICE education
Part of the 2017 ICE USA experience includes a strong line-up of keynote speakers, industry fundamental workshops, and technical education sessions for professionals at all levels in the converting industry.

“Our goal with the educational sessions at ICE USA is to keep attendees up to date with the latest industry information presented by experts in the converting industry,” says Magestro. “Our programs offer something for every level of experience – whether you are just starting out and need the basics, you are looking for the latest in industry research, or you need advanced troubleshooting techniques.”

Highlights of the ICE USA Conference Educational Sessions include:

•  Keynote Presentation – Dr. Robert Fry, Chief Economist, will present his outlook for the global economy in 2017 and beyond, with emphasis on US manufacturing. In addition to covering the usual array of economic statistics, he'll address the vital role of oil prices, the likely impact of President Trump's policies on U.S. economic growth, and the potential for strong growth when the economy is at "full employment.”
• AIMCAL Fundamentals - The AIMCAL Fundamentals Course is a one-day program for anyone involved in Coating & Drying or Slitting & Rewinding operations of paper, film, nonwovens and other continuous flexible materials.
• ICE USA Technical Sessions – No matter their level of experience, technical personnel in R&D, manufacturing, and operations can learn how to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness in their job with information they can implement immediately through our technical educational programs. Topics include research, new technology and best practices in web coating, printing, drying, web handling, converting, finishing, adhesives, coatings and substrates.
• Future of Converting Theater – Presentations on the show floor will discuss best business practices, M&A’s, sustainability, industry forecasts, and more.

A Latin flare
This year’s ICE USA has received strong support from Latin American packaging and converting associations, expanding the show’s reach and awareness in the region.

“ICE USA gets bigger and better every year, and we are thrilled to be making such strong inroads in the Latin American region,” explains Magestro. “ICE USA is the only show dedicated specifically to the converting industry in the Americas. We chose the Orlando location to make the show easy to attend for Latin American companies looking for the latest technology and complete converting solutions.”

The Latin American Converting Associations committed to sponsoring ICE USA include:

• ACOBAN – The Mexican Association of Label and Narrow Band Converters
• ASEPLAS – Ecuadorian Plastics Association
• ACIPLAST – The Costa Rican Chamber for the Plastics Industry
• Acoplásticos –Colombian Association for the Plastics Industry
• ABIEF – The Brazilian Association for the Flexible Plastic Packaging Industry
• ABIEA – The Brazilian Association for Adhesive Label Industry

Ask the Experts
Converting professionals attending ICE USA 2017 have access to even more solutions and troubleshooting advice for their specific technical challenges thanks to an expanded Ask the Experts program. New to the program is Ingrid Brase, technical market strategist and formerly of Henkel.

The Ask the Experts program is a popular service that ICE USA provides its attendees, offering them the chance to book one-on-one complimentary appointments with some of the industry’s leading consultants. They can use their time to get outside opinions on strategic decisions, discover solutions to expand their business, or receive troubleshooting advice to solve production or operational challenges.

ICE USA has expanded the program this year, launching an Ask the Experts community on LinkedIn, where professionals in the converting industry can connect, share expertise, and continue conversations started at the show any time of the year. 

With the addition of Brase, ICE USA has a team of seven experts offering more opportunities for attendees to book appointments. Brase brings over 20 years experience in the converting industry and is a well-recognized industry speaker on the topic of pressure sensitive adhesives and their applications. Prior to launching her consulting business, she was the market segment director for Henkel Corporation's Pressure Sensitive Adhesives and co-chair of Henkel's Bridgewater Networking Organization for Women's Professional Development Committee.

“We are very excited that Ingrid has joined our Ask the Expert team,” says Magestro. "Her expertise in pressure sensitive adhesives rounds out our team of experts to cover almost every facet of the converting industry. We are also thrilled to have a woman with unparalleled technical expertise join the team to serve as a mentor to women in the industry.”

Brase joina the ICE USA 2017 Ask the Experts Team, which includes:

• Edward D. Cohen (Web Coating) – Cohen is a technical consultant in all aspects of the web coating process. His expertise includes thin film coating and drying process development, litigation support, film defect mechanisms and elimination, formulating coatings, and troubleshooting manufacturing process problems. He has over 50 years experience in coating research and manufacturing technology.
• Vincent DiTrolio (Flexo Printing) – With more than 20 years of experience in the flexographic industry, DiTrolio is highly regarded as a flexo expert and pioneer in formal press operator training. Through DiTrolio Flexographic Institute, an Illinois State Board of Education and Department of Veterans Affairs approved program, his organization has trained hundreds of press operators.
• Kelly Robinson (Static) – Kelly Robinson is the founder of Electrostatic Answers, an engineering consulting company dedicated to eliminating injury and waste from static electricity.
• Dave Roisum (Web Handling & Converting) – Roisum is a well-known authority in the area of web handling and converting. He has authored seven books, including winding, rollers and web handling. He is also a principal of Finishing Technologies Inc., having provided instruction and consulting services at nearly 1,000 sites for those who convert or manufacture; paper, film, foil, nonwovens, textiles, and many other materials.
• Dave Rumson (Slitting & Rewinding) – Rumson, slitting educator/consultant, has 17 years of slitting and winding experience with Dienes Corp. and Parkinson Technologies. He has presented for CEMA, AIMCAL, and TAPPI for over 20 years and has conducted numerous nationwide public and corporate shear, crush and razor slitting seminars.
• Kenneth McCarthy (Clean Room Coating Solutions) – McCarthy has over 35 years of experience in the coating industry. He previously served as senior product development manager at Polaroid and Multilayer Coating Technologies. He now heads up Clean Room Coating Solutions, which provides consulting services in coating, drying, defect characterization, coating heads, mixing, and scale-up projects, and more.

Exhibitor focus
Among the 250+ exhibitors, there are new product launches and machinery demonstrations at ICE USA 2017. 

Delta ModTech, in booth 710, is featuring several machine demonstrations, including Flex EDGE Laser Technology, touted as the perfect solution for markets that demand flexibility, new job setup is quick and the ability to recall saved products speeds up changeovers. This system is completely portable and can be used inline or offline with various configurations to allow for production and R&D use in both roll to roll and sheet-fed.

Delta’s Complex Converting demonstration features a variety of processes including tight tolerance rotary die cutting, multi-layer lamination and precise part placement. This unique system is designed to offer precision parts while minimizing waste of expensive materials. Other Delta ModTech systems may include capabilities such as semi-rotary, full rotary and laser cutting as well as heat seal pouching.

Frontier, in Booth 624, is showing Dynacoat. This coater is a compact and completely self-contained lab-scale coating system that sets the industry standard for coating process optimization. Delta ModTech and Frontier provide converting, packaging and coating solutions for customers in the diagnostics, transdermal, electrode, wound care medical, pharmaceutical, security, automotive, electronics and label manufacturing industries. www.frontiercoating.com

Phoseon is featuring its latest UV LED curing solutions for printing applications at InPrint USA. Visit the Phoseon exhibit, booth number 1324, to learn how Phoseon LED technology is a perfect fit for printing applications due to the compact size, ease of integration, and high intensity output achieved through optimized LED thermal management. Users of Phoseon LED curing systems can process a variety of materials, including thin and heat-sensitive substrates, at maximum production speeds with low-input power

Unilux, a designer and manufacturer of inspection strobe lights, is demonstrating new LED strobes for the inspection of surface and print quality in booth 835. Visitors to the Unilux booth are able to demo the new strobes and learn how these inspection tools can be put to use in their application. One of the new additions to the Unilux product line is the LED-UV inspection strobes. Converters and printers can use the new strobes to examine the quality of optical brighteners in ink and coatings. Unilux recently received the 2017 Sapphire Specialty Design Award for these industry-first LED-UV strobes.

By using LED’s in place of a combined xenon light source and filter, Unilux eliminates the filter penalty. The penalty was the result of using the filter to remove visible wavelengths of light, thereby reducing the strobe light’s overall efficiency. Using UV LED’s increases the amount of power used to generate light in the UV spectrum thereby making these strobes both more powerful and more efficient than their xenon strobe counterparts. “The brighter light lets operators see details in the UV portion under ambient lighting conditions,” said Mike Simonis, President, Unilux. “That’s something they couldn’t do before UV LEDs. At the same time, they can now inspect the entire width of the web at full production speed and make corrections when needed to improve their yield.”

Proton Products International, in booth 966, is showcasing its new, smart, compact InteliSENS SL/SLR Mini Series sensors at ICE 2017. These Laser Doppler sensors set new standards in accurate, reliable non-contact speed and length measurement of moving web products with unrivalled performance and price. The InteliSENS SL/SLR mini-series sensors are designed to replace cumbersome, inaccurate, high-wear speed and length measurement devices used in the web industries. These conventional contacting sensors are prone to excessive measurement errors due to slippage, vibration, wear and dirt accumulation, resulting in product give-away, production losses and non-conformance to specifications. The compact InteliSENS SL/SLR Mini Series has the smallest footprint on the market and provides a direct replacement for conventional encoders. The installation is simple and the sensors compact size can also permit speed and length measurements from parts of the process that were previously unobtainable.

ebeam Technologies, in booth 1173, will exhibit its EID, the world’s first electron beam system for curing inkjet inks on Food Contact Materials (FCMs). ICE USA attendees will be able to discover more about the production of high-quality, durable, food-safe finishes achieved through printing with ebeam-curable inkjet inks and inline curing by the EID.

Karl Swanson, VP Global Sales, ebeam Technologies, comments, “Converters looking for ways to help their food brand customers differentiate their product through personalization and eliminate challenges such as the need for UV photoinitiators in their packaging should visit us at ICE USA to discover how ebeam technology solves these problems. Food packaging converters are keen to avoid the risk associated with photoinitiator migration from UV inks used on indirect food contact materials. With ebeam, this issue is eliminated because the EID provides a compact curing stage for photoinitiator-free ebeam-curable inks.”

Karlville, exhibiting in booth 931, has recently launched two new lines for can sleeving: Low speed (100cpm) and High speed (up to 500cpm). "As a leading global manufacturer of shrink sleeve converting and shrink sleeve application equipment, we take control of your challenges and help you deliver, on time and on cost, innovative solutions that will support your growth with a little effort on your part and a lot of great ideas to delight your customers," says Karlville's Raul Matos, adding, "Custom can decoration is now an affordable investment through shrink sleeve technology. This opens up new opportunities and increases speed to market. No volume is too small, nor are design or colors too complicated, just let us know what you have in mind and we will deliver quickly and at right cost with high quality."