Staying true to its four-year cycle, drupa will be held again in May 2028, this time as a nine-day event. As the world’s leading platform for printing technology, the trade fair is adjusting to the changing needs and expectations of exhibitors and visitors and reflecting the continued transformation of the industry.
The printing and packaging industry is undergoing a dynamic transformation that requires industry events to evolve as well. This also applies to drupa, which once again demonstrated its importance and relevance as a leading global trade fair in 2024 and provided pioneering inspiration. The industry can already look forward to the remake of the number one event for printing technology which will be held in Düsseldorf from 9 to 17 May 2028.
“drupa 2024 was more international than ever, and the positive atmosphere throughout the halls reflected our industry’s determination to drive profound change in order to make the printing and packaging industry more sustainable through automation, artificial intelligence and strategic partnerships. And these are exactly the kind of important goals that will continue to require a reliable platform such as drupa in future. What was also apparent, however, was that, as a B2B trade fair with a very high proportion of decision-makers from all over the world, the length of stays at drupa has become shorter. That’s why we want to facilitate trade fair visits with maximum efficiency,” Wolfram N Diener, chairman and CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, explains the decision. At this year’s drupa, 76% of visitors were part of top and middle management. “We believe that this adjustment is also confirmed by the experience we have gathered at our leading global trade fairs in the fields of machinery, plants and equipment, interpack and K, that address comparable customer profiles and do very well with a similar duration.”
The unique presentation of cutting-edge technology and machines in operation remains a USP of drupa. The new rules for trade fair duration will continue to allow exhibitors to effectively present and stage wide-ranging product portfolios, machines and workflows as well as an impressive stage program.
Dr Andreas Pleßke, chairman of the drupa committee and CEO of Koenig & Bauer AG, emphasizes the trade fair’s importance and is a supporter of the new duration: “For Koenig & Bauer, drupa offers an unbeatable marketing format, as this year’s event has once again impressively demonstrated. We expressly welcome the new trade fair duration starting in 2028, as it will meet changing industry requirements without limiting the international scope of the trade fair. This is also demonstrated by the fact that visitors from 173 countries attended drupa, emphasizing the global appeal of the event. No other format generates such a high level of interest from the industry.”
“We comprehensively and carefully analyzed the recommendations of our drupa committee, the results of exhibitor and visitor surveys and feedback from partners and associations,” says Sabine Geldermann, director of drupa. “Shortening the fair’s duration is a direct response to the industry’s desire for a more focused, efficient event that continues to provide international participants with a unique opportunity to discover groundbreaking innovations and technology.”
The conceptual direction, new key visual and future claim of drupa 2028 will be presented to the industry in 2025.
Other important global drupa dates are Pack Print Plas Philippines in October 2024, Printpack Alger in February 2025 and the Print & Digital Convention in May 2025 in Düsseldorf.