Bart Calis’ first lecture to his 3rd Bachelor students in Print Media was a special one. The lecturer at Arteveldehogeschool Gent and Packaging Prepress expert invited Jan De Clippeleer, innovation enabler at EY, and former manager at Agfa-Graphics, to join him in informing the students about the first online international hackathon for the Graphic Arts Industry. The VIGC Hackathon, taking place on October 12 & 13, will prepare the graphic sector for the future. “‘We, as students, are the future of packaging and labelling and we challenge you!”, the students exclaim.
Combine ‘hacking’ and ‘marathon’ and you will immediately understand the purpose of a hackathon. In 24-hours’ time, the participating teams work on predetermined challenges. The goal is to come up with new concepts, business models, processes and deliver tangible results. At the end of the hackathon, the results are presented to a jury which subsequently highlights the most promising projects.
Form or join a team
The connection between creative students and tech-savvy, business-minded entrepreneurs, is the perfect recipe for many fruitful innovations. In addition to that, a dedicated team of coaches and industry experts will support you during the process. Register here as an individual or as a team.
“We are organizing this hackathon in an open innovation way. What does that mean? Connecting many actors in the industry, across all segments of the industry: we’re inviting not only established organizations, but also startups and scale-ups, creatives, entrepreneurs, and universities and students”, Jan De Clippeleer explains. All sector stakeholders, from students to corporates, are invited to contribute to the sector’s most pressing challenges: Commercial Printing, Packaging & Labels, Publishing and Industrial Printing.
“If people think about the graphic industry, they are thinking about printing books, magazines, commercial print, etc. However, there’s a lot more in the graphic industry, such as packaging, the sign and display market, and so on”, says Bart Calis. “Let’s think about artificial intelligence, machine learning, 3D. Since we are already designing in 3D, the link with Virtual Reality, AR, Immerse rooms, etc. is very close. In my opinion, those technical solutions are the connections we must make to future-proof the graphic industry”.
Opening doors
Nicky Malfliet, Digital Marketing lecturer at Arteveldehogeschool Gent and entrepreneur herself, eagerly stimulates all students and creatives to participate. “You will get in contact with a lot of people, with a lot of knowledge. You can share knowledge on a very informal basis. And out of the hackathon, it’s possible you start a company. Or you work on a great idea, and maybe you’ll become the next entrepreneur of the year. So, as a student you should be a part of this. In only two days you can make a lot of contact. This can even define your future.”
“The nice thing about this hackathon is that the students can work on real cases. During this 3-year bachelor, they already had some training in design thinking. However, working with real cases and together with the industry, is a great opportunity for students. Not only during this hackathon but also looking at the future. Next year, they will step right in the industry”, Bart Calis adds.
Register now
This event is organized by VIGC (Vlaams Innovatiecentrum voor Grafische Communicatie), joining forces with the innovation team of EY. Together with the entire graphics industry, the aim is to find highly targeted and innovative solutions for the sector.
Participation is free. First Prize is €3.000 and 3 months of mentorship by Sappi. The Second and Third Prize is a 2 months of mentorship by VIGC. The 3 winning teams will be interviewed by Inkish.tv and host Francesca Vanthielen at VIGC ‘Het Congres’ on Thursday October 15th.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity! Register here to join the VIGC Hackathon and get exposure among various stakeholders in the graphic industry. Together we will shape the future!