(From left to right): Davide Garavaglia, newly-elected President of ERA in the Competence Center of Bobst Italia with James Siever, Secretary General, and Max Rid, Vice-President of ERA

The European Rotogravure Association (ERA) has elected Davide Garavaglia of BOBST as ERA President during the General Assembly that took place on 21 September 2022 in Baveno, Italy.

The Assembly was held in conjunction with the ERA Annual Conference and the Packaging & Decorative Conference held at the same location 21 – 23 September.

ERA is a non-profit organization that has been promoting the development of gravure technology and supporting gravure printers in all fields of application since 1956. Davide Garavaglia, Head of Product Lines Gravure, Vacuum Metallizing, Coating and Laminating at BOBST, takes over from Manfred Janoschka, of Janoschka Holding, who held the position for two consecutive terms.

“I am honored to have been trusted with this role and consider it a great privilege to represent the fellow members of the association and continue on the groundwork laid by Manfred Janoschka” comments Davide Garavaglia “The gravure technology supply industry has introduced significant new developments in recent years which are enabling gravure to gain momentum by making it suitable for all of today’s new market requirements. Despite the challenging times, the potential ahead is compelling, and I will endeavor to be a strong voice for the association in fostering a successful future for the sustainable growth of gravure technology world-wide.”

Because the 3-day event took place this year in Baveno at a short distance from Bobst Italia, BOBST center of excellence for gravure, coating and laminating technologies, ERA participants had the opportunity to visit the company’s production plant and packaging center in San Giorgio Monferrato. The visit provided an additional opportunity to discuss the latest developments of the gravure process for flexible packaging applications, in terms of both printability of new recycle-ready monomaterial substrates, and printing methods. Indeed, the demonstration on a gravure press of the RS 6003 platform, was a job printed with gravure oneECG Extended Color Gamut technology, as proof that today’s gravure has the credentials to be a strong player in the packaging industry’s ongoing transformation.