Projects

INSTITUTE OF PACKAGING AND GRAPHIC ARTS TECTUS - IatT, Croatia


Croatian Institute of Packaging and Graphic Arts Tectus -IatT was founded in 2001 under the auspices of Tectus Ltd., and was in 2008 registered as a legal entity, with the aim of enhancing the economic cooperation between Croatian economy, foreign companies and international organizations, and promoting the packaging and graphic arts professions in Croatia and the region.
This is achieved by continual publishing activities, organization of professional assemblies, consultations, conferences, round tables, and the founding and the organization of the annual award  competition for best packaging on Croatian market CROPAK, thanks to which the packaging of Croatian products is presented on the global level.
Today the institute has 21 members, both users and producers of packaging. In 2008 the Institute became a member of EPIC (European Packaging Institutes Consortium) and WPO (World Packaging Organization).
 


PROJECTS OF THE INSTITUTE ARE

National competition for best packaging CROPAK

CROPAK is the annual award for best packaging on Croatian market. Its goal is to promote and reward technological achievements of packaging as means of protection, marketing and identifying the product as well as to motivate packaging producers, users, designers and printers to enhance technical and quality levels of packaging; encourage student creativity and emphasize the importance of headway in Croatia's visual identity, graphic and industrial design, ecological aspects of Croatian products and development in machinery, devices and equipment for packaging and packaging waste management.

CROPAK is awarded in eight main categories: Technical Performance of Packaging, Packaging of Croatian Product/Series, Packaging of Foreign Product/Series on Croatian Market, Packaging with Distinct Visual Identity of Croatia, Design of Packaging, Display and Label of Croatian Product/Series, Prototype, Student Works and EKO CROPAK.
CROPAK OF THE YEAR is an award in a special category given to a Croatian product/series which receives the best overall score from the expert evaluating committee (2006: Bracchia olive oil, which went on to win the WorldStar award in 2007).

CROPAK award panel members are selected from various distinguished Croatian institutions (Croatian Academy of Engineering, Croatian National Institute of Public Health, Means of Mass Communication, State Inspectorate of the Republic of Croatia, Faculty of Architecture, Design studies, Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Graphic Arts, University of Zagreb, Croatian Chamber of Economy – Affiliation of Packaging Industry, HDD (Croatian Design Society), Consumer Association and others.

Regional competition for best packaging REGPAK


International conferences
With the goal of knowledge transfer, the company Tectus, the Institute of Packaging and Graphic Arts, and the trade journals Ambalaža and REGprint have, for a number of years, successfully organized professional assemblies from the packaging and graphic technologies field. Nineteen events have been organized so far (Plastic packaging, Computer systems for the production of cardboard boxes and corrugated cardboard, Packaging – design – printing – environment, Technological achievements in the graphic arts and packaging industry, Offset printing, Print finishing, Coding, marking and labelling on packaging, Packaging and flexoprinting, Polymeric materials in packaging, Trends in graphic arts industry, Packaging – experiences from Croatia and the world, etc.), that attracted numerous expert lecturers and participants from many countries.
 
Trade journals
Ambalaža (Packaging) and REGprint are trade journals for the packaging and graphic arts industries in Croatia and countries of the region. Ambalaža has been published quarterly for 21 years now – in March, June, September and December. REGprint emerged in 2006, out of one of the parts of Ambalaža dedicated to the graphic arts industry, and is also published quarterly. Numerous Croatian and foreign experts are authors and associates of the trade journals.

Ambalaža and REGprint are distributed to users and producers of packaging, graphic arts and printing experts, suppliers of materials and equipment, marketing agencies, design studios, publishers, representative agencies and distributors, companies, educational institutions and professional associations in Croatia and the countries of the region. The journals keep up with the latest graphic arts and packaging trends in Croatia and the world through their various sections (Interview, Focus, World Experience, Packaging and the Environment, Prepress, Printing, Printing Substrates, Design, Glossary, Fairs and Exhibitions, Review, News from Croatia, World News, etc.).

Publications
Traceability manual, a practical guide for companies which manufacture or use food packaging how to face the development of a traceability system.

Let’s Play, Learn and Protect the Environment, Didactic Toys from Packaging, a reference book by Mijat Barišić-Ružić.

Who is Who in the Graphic Arts and Packaging Industry in Croatia (1st and 2nd edition), a printed guide with information about manufacturers of packaging, packaging materials, devices, machines and equipment, as well as information about business entities from graphic arts and printing, and contact details of state administration bodies, educational institutions and professional associations.

IatT also published a university textbook Packaging for Foodstuffs (group of authors: Ivan Vujković, Kata Galić, Martin Vereš).

Packaging web portal
Web portal www.ambalaza.hr / www.ambalaza.com  is the central place to get information on the packaging and graphic arts industry in Croatia and the leading national and regional internet page for professionals and users of their services. According to the statistical data for 2008 the portal had a monthly average of more than 10,000 visitors. It is mostly used by product managers, advertising agencies and graphic design studios, publishers, representatives and distributors, graphic artists, printers, and suppliers of equipment and materials for the graphic arts industry. The portal abounds in news and information that the end users need in order to find their future partners, and which professionals need to get acquainted with the competition and find potential partners. Additionally, the portal also features an active Who is Who in the Graphic Arts and Packaging Industry in Croatia guide which provides information on companies from the industry.

Newsletter
Since 2009, the Institute also started publishing a monthly newsletter as a modern and efficient tool for conveying information. The monthly dynamics of the newsletter is intended to supplement the trade journals by providing the freshest information on the most actual events in country and the region.