The STC combines cross-disciplinary expertise to take IPACK-IMA well beyond the days of the exhibition itself. It will connect key issues reshaping the industry: digitalization and AI; sustainability, materials, regulations and energy; markets and internationalization; safety, traceability and health; the relationship between technology users and manufacturers; and new business models. Its work is built around four key words: observe, interpret, connect, support.
“The STC is a think tank where we aim to encourage dialogue between worlds that are often regarded as separate: technology manufacturers and users, companies and the research community, large corporations and SMEs, as well as different industrial sectors that can share technologies, challenges and solutions,” says Chairman Luciano Sottile. “Our real ambition for 2028 is therefore for IPACK-IMA not simply to be the place where people meet during the exhibition, but a point of reference that the professional community can turn to over time to understand how its sector is changing and help shape its evolution.”
The STC will drive a programme of activities accompanying IPACK-IMA on its way to 2028: multichannel editorial content, from magazines to videos and social media, as well as institutional meetings with stakeholders and representatives of key target markets. These will be complemented by dialogue with schools and universities, the involvement of young professionals and events leading up to IPACK-IMA 2028.
The STC’s members are:
- Luciano Sottile, Chairman of the IPACK-IMA Scientific & Technical Committee
- Carlo Alberto Carnevale-Maffè, Professor of Strategy at SDA Bocconi
- Erik Ciravegna, Coordinator of the Packaging Innovation Observatory at the University of Bologna
- Alberto Palaveri, Vice President of Assografici
- Anna Paola Cavanna, President of Laminati Cavanna
- Antonio Feola, Sustainability Director at Unione Italiana Food
- Luca Baraldi, Chief Research Manager at MECS
- Marco Taisch, Professor of Digital Manufacturing at Politecnico di Milano
- Francesco Legrenzi, Director of the Italian Packaging Institute
- Gianni Squitieri, Coordinator of the Presidency Committee of the Foundation for Sustainable Development
