The Complete Story

The merger of the three Institutes brings together over 2000 members and a wealth of knowledge. For anyone working in the industry, membership of IP3 will be an enormous asset

Board members from the three separate organisations, Institute of Paper, Institute of Printing and Institute of Publishing have worked tirelessly to bring about a new, amalgamated body, the Institute of Paper, Printing and Publishing. Although this will be its more formal title, we hope that the more catchy IP3 will become adopted and come to represent excellence in this fascinating sphere.

The mission of IP3 will be

“To offer individuals an organisation that represents their interests; enables them to change career frequently knowing that their membership keeps pace with them; gives them credibility in terms of qualifications and professional recognition; provides opportunities for networking across different disciplines; and fosters and promotes the belief that they belong to a profession.”

There are a number of very good reasons for these three organisations to come together. Perhaps the most obvious one is cost. There can be little doubt that one institute can be run more cheaply than three, but we hope the advantages will extend far beyond mere monetary prudence. Most of those involved in bringing about IP3 believe that this new body will be much greater than the sum of its parts. We believe that it is not merely about sharing resources in an effort to give value for money, it’s about sharing knowledge in order to tell the full story of the industry from paper through printing press to publication.

There are those who think that IP3 has taken a long time to get off the ground and perhaps there is some truth in this. The discussions between the three former Institutes have been long, sometimes arduous and certainly thorough. Each Institute has done its upmost to make sure that their members are fairly represented within the new organisation, and this is as it should be because the Institute is all about the members. So long as IP3 can give real value to its members, then the organisation can only succeed.