Iran hosts first international gravure seminar

Organized by the Iranian Toranj Group in co-operation with the European Rotogravure Association (ERA), the first international gravure seminar took place on May 29 in the country’s capital Tehran, and attracted around 150 delegates from the country’s gravure industry and students from the graphic faculty of Tehran University.

Toranj Group is an organization conducting seminars and educational training courses for the Iranian printing industry.

ERA currently has some 90 members from the packaging, publication and decorative printing sectors as well as associated industries such as paper and ink makers, printing and finishing equipment manufacturers and the leading cylinder engravers.

Iran, a large country with a young and growing population of currently 75 million people, is a market with great potential for gravure, according to ERA. As a consequence of political and economic sanctions, the Iranian printing industry has in the recent past turned its attention to Asian technology suppliers. However, as the Iranian printing industry is traditionally oriented towards European, and particularly German, technology, it would be interested in reinstating ties with European suppliers.

ERA said the ‘time seems ripe to start a closer co-operation’ as the tension between the West and Iran about its nuclear program has calmed down since President Rohani was elected a year ago. In any event, ERA has agreed to work together with Toranj Group for the benefit of the gravure process.

Headed by ERA secretary general James Siever, the ERA delegation included experts from member firms such as Windmöller & Hölscher, Janoschka, Heimann, GMG and Daetwyler, who gave technical lectures at the conference.

The ERA delegation also visited the Permanent Gallery of Printing and Packaging and some packaging gravure printers in the outskirts of Tehran, where it was shown the technical skills within the Iranian gravure industry which, despite the long standing sanctions against Iran, has maintained and developed its capability to produce all types of modern packaging material to a competitive standard, the European association stated.