The AIP and the WPO were back in Vietnam less than a year after the first Residential Packaging Training Program and once again it was an experience being involved in a five day residential training program (RTP) in Packaging Technology in Tra Vinh City, Vietnam. At the 2016 Residential Packaging Training Program there were 33 students from industry and 42 students from the Applied Chemistry Department at Tra Vinh University. We used the facilities at one of the University’s satellite facilities, state of the art Mylan Group, located just outside the city of Tra Vinh in the heart of the Mekong Delta.
The standard was high during the five-day intensive training and all students absorbed a massive amount of information and were asking for more. They were keen and eager to learn which was evident in their final course related presentation on the final day. Although this recent RTP covered the entire spectrum of packaging technology the key questions that were asked included: how one can improve packaging, how do you reduce packaging costs, what are their packaging counterparts doing in developed countries and how they can improve packaging of foodstuffs to reduce wastage. The challenge I found was conveying the information; especially the technical aspects to the students. We were privileged to have Ms Hua Kim Thanh helping us; who was an exceptionally patient translator and my sincere thanks and appreciation for translating non-stop for 5 days.
As part of the training program we visited converting facilities, state-of-the-art and the first high tech company in the province, i.e. Mylan Group’s flexible manufacturing plant for high barrier films used for food and pharmaceuticals. This facility matches; and in many cases is better than, any European based facility that I have ever seen.
The mere fact that this is the second RTP run in Vietnam is a step in the right direction in helping packaging training across a broad spectrum of packaging technologists of the future in Vietnam. Much more education is required at all levels of the packaging spectrum, i.e. formal and informal sector, but at least the WPO/AIP is present and doing something about education.
Similar training programs undertaken by the AIP and supported by the WPO are planned for the following 12 months. The countries scheduled include Indonesia, China, Iran, Italy and Ghana. The aim is purely to get more people in developing countries educated in Packaging Technology. It will be a long road but a hugely rewarding one.
Pierre Pienaar MSc, FAIP, CPP
Vice President – Education – World Packaging Organisation (WPO)
Education Director – Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP)
