Andreas Pleßke, CEO of the German manufacturer Koenig & Bauer since 2021, was appointed chairman of the Drupa committee at its founding meeting on February 8.
Wolfgang Poppen, Managing Partner of the German printing company Freiburger and President of the German Printing and Media Industries Association (Bundesverband Druck und Medien), was reconfirmed as a deputy. Both candidates were unanimously elected.
Andreas Pleßke succeeds Claus Bolza-Schünemann, the former CEO of Koenig & Bauer, who had chaired the committee since 2012.
"I am looking forward to proactively contributing with my new position to the further development and international position of Drupa, in order to strengthen its unique selling point as the world's leading trade show." he said.
The Drupa Committee was founded at the first Drupa in 1951. The committee is made up of exhibitors and visitors and advises the event organizer, Messe Düsseldorf, on the strategic development of the trade fair. The committee consists of 16 members, six representatives of (mainly German) industry associations and representatives of (mainly German) companies, including the paper manufacturer UPM, the film manufacturer Kurz, the ink manufacturer Epple and the flexible packaging machine manufacturer Windmöller & Hölscher.
The next Drupa will be held at the Düsseldorf exhibition center in Germany from May 28 to June 7, 2024, and will focus on digitalization and sustainability. The drupa 2024 applications exhibitors are now open.
