The Printing Industries Association of Australia announced recently that the industry’s awards programme are being revitalised to become bigger and better with two major changes afoot.
Andrew Macaulay, Chief Executive Officer for Printing Industries says “printing awards are a tangible demonstration of the exceptional capability within the printing industry and we have done a good job at celebrating our success. The timing is right to utilise our awards programme as an inspirational vehicle to promote the industry to a much wider audience”.
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| Chief Judge Jen Baile |
“The impressive creativity and production of work in our industry deserves to be shared beyond printers and their suppliers, to key influencers in the choice of communication channel such as advertising and marketing agencies, clients, policy makers and training institutions to name a few”, Macaulay says.
Printing Industries is looking to create wider engagement with the awards programme through a range of initiatives such as a revitalisation of the categories to reflect the industry today, increased engagement with the target audience, and wider promotional communication.
In addition to expanding the promotion of industry through the awards, the procedure for entering the National Print Awards will also change.
State-based Printing Industries Craftsmanship Awards (PICA) will occur across all major states in October and November 2017. For some states, this is a continuation of what has happened in recent years, for some it is a reinstatement for what happened in the past, and for others it is a new opportunity.
Achieving a medal at the PICA reflects that the entry is at the top echelon of performance within the state. These award-winning entries will then compete at the 2018 National Print Awards for judging on the national stage.
Chief Judge Jen Baile said “PICA celebrates the uniqueness that each state has to offer as local industry best understands what is important to their region. Each state has its own unique strengths and challenges, and this will be judged and showcased locally”.
“Whilst preserving that state celebration, the change in procedure provides the opportunity for printers nation-wide to be measured on a truly national stage. PICA medalists will be recognised as the best in their state, and then be judged independently against peers from other states. The National Print Awards will resume its prestigious position as being the best of the best, the pinnacle of design and print quality in Australia” Baile said.
As part of the revitalisation, there has been a review and alignment of categories from the PICA to the National Print Awards. Baile said, “The judges recognise things have changed and need to change. There is not an industry that is not touched by change and that change is what enables industry to thrive.”
“The judges are excited about the modifications to the categories that will see a consolidation of some categories as a reflection of the convergence of technological processes, and an opening up of new categories that will appeal to a broader audience.”
“The national judging panel includes independent experts who can constructively review work. If not exactly the same panel, we hope to include a representative from the national judging panel across all state judging panels to ensure some consistency across regions.”
It is an exciting time ahead but you need to hurry, time is short. Entries for the Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia PICA open on Monday 17th July, and Western Australia will open within the next few weeks.
It is definitely time to start gathering your precious samples and collating your entries.
For more information about the awards including dates and categories, and to enter, visit www.printingawards.com.au
Printing Industries Association of Australia
www.piaa.org.au
