Packaging and processing professionals gathered in Chicago earlier this month for PACK EXPO International and Pharma EXPO 2014, the largest packaging and processing trade show in North America. With preliminary figures topping 48,600 attendees, show owner and producer PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, Reston, VA, anticipates recording a 6.5 percent attendance jump over 2012.

The four-day event, Nov. 2-5, covered more than 1.2 million net square feet of exhibit space in McCormick Place with 2,352 exhibiting companies, an increase of more than 19 percent for exhibiting companies from PACK EXPO International 2012.

“PACK EXPO International 2014 was definitely a success,” says Jim Pittas, senior vice president, PMMI. “Exhibitors sold machines right off the show floor and collected high-quality leads from the steady flow of attendees.”

Pre-show registration was well ahead of 2012 figures, and that momentum continued on site. Pharma EXPO, which PMMI produced in partnership with the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE), contributed to the surge in attendance, with twice as many attendees identifying their primary or secondary markets as “pharmaceutical.”

Pittas notes the successes of Pharma EXPO and PACK EXPO International 2014 strengthened the groundwork for excellent results for exhibitors at upcoming PACK EXPO trade shows, including PACK EXPO East (Feb. 16-18, 2015; Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia) and Pharma EXPO and PACK EXPO Las Vegas 2015 (Sept. 28-30; Las Vegas Convention Center).

“Exhibitors begin planning their strategy for the next PACK EXPO almost immediately after the close of the previous year’s show, and they need to know they’ll get a strong return on their investment,” says Pittas. “The success of the inaugural Pharma EXPO proves the strength of the PACK EXPO brand across all vertical markets and reinforces the industry’s view of PACK EXPO as the pre-eminent North American packaging and processing show.”

For more information about upcoming PACK EXPO shows, visit www.packexpo.com.