PIAA and GASAA could be merged by end of the year

The PIAA and GASAA could merge after the two trade bodies signed a Heads of Agreement to explore the possibility.

The Printing Industries Association of Australia and the Graphic Arts Services Association of Australia will now consult with members to prepare a Scheme for Amalgamation, which will need to be endorsed by the boards of both bodies then lodged with Fair Work Australia.

Once signed off by Fair Work Australia, it may need to go to a vote of members for final sign-off.

The associations expect the process to be finalised toward the end of 2012.

If it goes ahead, it is expected that GASAA would become a division of the peak body, with executive officer Garry Knespal expected to stay on.

PIAA chief executive Bill Healey said a major benefit for that trade body would be the addition of GASAA's considerable expertise in the digital printing space, as well as its traction with agencies.

"There is a growing awareness there needs to be closer cooperation across the different bodies representing the elements of the industry," said Healey.

The presidents of both bodies said that in the new world order facing print, the industry needed to speak with a single voice.

PIAA national president Susan Heaney, managing director of Gold Coast-based Heaney Performers in Print, said: "There is a view that many of the traditional boundaries that have defined the 'turf' of industry organisations are no longer relevant.

"This is supported by a growing desire for a single voice to represent the interests of the industry, an industry that is at a cross roads where print markets have and will continue to change dramatically.

"We must all strive for relevance, the new currency that can either buy success or consign a business to failure," she added.

GASAA president Theo Pettaras, managing director of Sydney-based Digitalpress, said: "There is a need for the industry to reposition itself to ensure that the value of print continues to be appreciated by the broader community.

"It is widely acknowledged that the organisations representing the industry need to understand the changes and challenges occurring and be able to help members address these and reap the benefits of new circumstances.

"I believe the proposed new arrangement will allow member services to be enhanced by the pooling of the very considerable human and financial resources of both bodies," added Pettaras.