The Printing industry has a long and proud history of training and structured skills development. Not only is the industry recognised as one of the earliest recognised crafts' of the early civilised world, it was in fact the printing industry that was used to record history as we know it. Along with Stonemasons, Carpenters and Ironmongers, Printers were among the earliest trades to recognise their skills and craftsmanship. Entry to these guilds' was by a long and detailed master/apprentice arrangement, which very much has formed the basis of the apprenticeship system, as we know it in modern times. Many other trades occupations have learned from these old'crafts and it was not until the mid twentieth Century that many trades finally removed the requirements for an apprentice to undertake a journeyman's' stage of the apprenticeship. (Many trades in Europe still maintain the principles of the journeyman as a critical and important part of the skills development process.) The Printing industry, despite having gone through massive change in the past two decades, still very much values a set of principles and practices to its training regime which have been developed over many years. .
The advent of new technology and the development of new electronic based products, particularly within the multimedia field, has increased the overlap between the Printing industry and other industry sectors (eg multi media, graphic design, desktop publishing, internet publishing etc) For this reason, the Printing industry recognises the increasing common interests between it and the Graphic Arts industry sector. This is reflected in the professional relationship both industry associations share on matters of common interest (eg industry standards, protocols and work practices). .
This increasing overlap of common interests overlap of Industries has seen a growing convergence of the Printing, Multimedia and IT Industries, primarily bought on by the massive advances in technology.
