29 July 2024

Thoughts from Aimee Orton - Drupa Apprenticeship Winner

Drupa is a trade fair in Dusseldorf Germany centred around the printing industry that takes place every 4 years. There are many different vendors, some focusing on paper printing, packaging and others focusing on heat-sealable logos.
The venue where it was held had multiple different buildings that were all filled with people and vendors. To say it was massive would be an understatement as there were even people getting busses to and from the different sections of the venue. People from all over the world that work in the printing industry go to Drupa to see new products, sell machinery or products and potentially buy products.

If you ever get the opportunity to attend Drupa, you should but make sure to wear comfortable shoes as there is a lot of walking involved. There are so many things to see in the industry such as new models of robot-like machinery that help with packaging and loading prints onto vehicles, already existing products and there was even new machinery to clean screen printing equipment.

I personally found Drupa very educational as it helped me learn more about other types of printing and more about digital and screen printing. Me and my employer also got to see and speak to our suppliers which means that I got to learn all about our machinery and now know what to tell customers if they ask certain questions.

Altogether, I had an amazing time. It was my first time leaving the UK and going on a plane and it was wonderful. If you are working in the printing industry, please go to Drupa even if its out of your comfort zone. I would have regretted it if I hadn't have gone as it was a wonderful experience and so educational.