Canon Communications acquires Plast-Ex, Expoplast from CPIA; Plast-Ex shifted to May 2011

Canon Communications LLC has acquired the Plast-Ex and Expoplast trade shows from the Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA), and will be shifting the Plast-Ex show to May of 2011.

Plast-Ex, which had been scheduled to run in May 2010 at the Toronto Congress Centre, will now be held at that location from May 10-12th, 2011. The show will also be combined with the PACKEX show, Canada’s packaging industry exposition, as well as automation, design and manufacturing, Green Manufacturing and processing events.

Based in Los Angeles, Calif., Canon is a leading producer of trade events, publications, and electronic media for the global manufacturing industry, and is responsible for 62 trade shows, 16 publications, and over 50 e-media offerings throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

The Plast-Ex show featured 500 suppliers from 13 countries and 8,000 attendees in its last edition in 2007, while Expoplast, the regional event for Quebec province, showcased some 200 exhibitors last October. According to CPIA president and CEO Mark Badger, Canon and CPIA will work together in developing and promoting these acquired shows in a new co-located event format.

Under the terms of the agreements, CPIA staff will continue to work with Canon on the arrangement and management of the two trade shows. In addition, Canon and CPIA intend to maintain the existing Canadian show committees, composed of representatives from the industry, to help with arrangement of the shows.

“The partnership is a winning proposition for the Canadian plastics industry,” Badger said in a press release. “Members of CPIA will continue to be offered discounted exhibition space at the Plast-Ex and Expoplast shows, and will benefit from Plast-Ex being co-located with other highly synergistic successful trade shows serving the packaging, automation, processing and design and manufacturing sectors.”

In a telephone interview with Canadian Plastics, Badger added that there hasn’t yet been discussion about moving the date of the next Expoplast show, currently set for October 2011. “The consensus among the Plast-Ex exhibitors that I’ve spoken with, meanwhile, is that moving the Plast-Ex show to 2011 is a good thing, because the economy will be more favorable by that point,” he said. “Also, Canon’s intention to co-locate the event is very good news, and will drive more traffic to the show.”  

The arrangement with Canon also frees up CPIA to focus its resources on promoting and protecting plastics through communication, lobbying activities and enhancement of industry competitiveness through innovation, Badger noted, as well as enhancing industry visibility through a stronger trade show presence.