Smart’ Screen Printing and digital inkjet within industrial print production were among the topics discussed in detail at InPrint's functional and decorative industrial print conference programme, in collaboration with ESMA, the leading, non-profit association in Europe for specialist printing manufacturers of screen and digital print technology & IMI, Europe’s leading inkjet technology conference organiser.

The two-day conference programme focused on speciality screen printing and industrial inkjet and highlighted the ‘best of both worlds. It also showcased ESMA’s expertise particularly within the advanced functional print sector.

During the two days, Peter Buttiens, CEO of ESMA and Robin McMillian, Chairman of ESMA’s  Technical Exchange Committee gave a in-depth presentation on "Industrial Printing, the 360° View!". Other sessions by ESMA members included Marabu on screen - inkjet - pad printing in direct product decoration, Sefar on the opportunities of industrial printing in screen printing and Encres Dubuit sharing its expertise on digital printing on 3D objects.

Daniel Gandner, Senior Manager Marketing & Communication, Marabu says: “InPrint was the perfect platform for Marabu to present itself as a development partner for the industry. We were able to show our expertise of integrating screen, digital, and pad printing into complex production processes. Each printing technology and related ink system has its specific characteristics. This is why it is so important, at the moment of choice to fully understand the ink, the substrate, the machinery and all the production processes behind each technology.”

Further key note discussions included The Future of Digital Manufacture is Here by Tim Phillips, Xennia, Create Value with Digital Decoration in Rapid Changing Mass Market by Volker Till, Till GmbH and Industrial Single-Pass Printing for Decorative Surfaces by Michael Hesse, Hymmen.

Mike Willis of IMI comments: “Over the past decade ink jet has been increasingly used for industrial decorative and functional applications and we were therefore delighted as co-organisers of the conference programme to have helped stimulate the hugely interesting discussions that took place during this inaugural InPrint event.”

Peter Buttiens of ESMA concludes: “With its strong focus on specialty and industrial printing applications, InPrint proved to be an excellent match for ESMA. The quality of the visitors was excellent and so was the attendance at the seminars! Attendees were delighted by the variety of topics covered and the level of expertise provided. There were many subject areas that overlapped a number of sectors providing a great deal of interest for everyone. We were keen to present an unrivalled knowledge bank to enable everyone to leave with a greater level of understanding to help them grow their business both physically and profitably.” To download the ESMA presentation at InPrint, go to www.esma.com/inprint