By Marcus Timson
Talking to delegates at the InkJet conference it is clear that within the next 12 to 15 months we will begin to see a tipping point for new applications in industrial production.
InkJet is incredibly flexible and has considerable value on a number of levels, but will we see complete transformation of industries such as graphic and ceramic?
The overwhelming opinion is that this is unlikely to happen. At least not as quickly. However inkjet is making considerable gains in productivity and quality, so much so we are not far off seeing its adoption into these new applications on a much larger scale.
This means that it will be integrated into production but it is likely to do new things, creating new value that will blend with traditional technologies.
Jan De Vooght, Business Manager, Industrial Inks from Agfa explains, "Agfa is performing extremely well in industrial application areas and it is with confidence that I sense we are reaching a new tipping point for industrial inkjet. I think this next stage will see considerable and noticeable advances both functional and decorative. For example in 2015, we expect the inkjet printed laminates with water based pigments inks to really take off and we will see direct to shape printing continue to develop and become integrated into production lines as we are seeing an increase in demand for our low migration UV inks."
www.industrialprintshow.com
