Esko has announced that the EskoWorld 2015 user conference, attended every year by leading brands, designers, prepress and trade shops, and converters, will take place in Scottsdale, AZ, USA, with the theme “Improve Today. Dream for Tomorrow.” According to Esko, the company plans to improve on last year’s event in Orlando.

From June 14-16, more than 70 sessions, covering digital flexo, commercial print, digital finishing, packaging, structural design, 3-D design and brand management will be held to enhance users’ knowledge about the Esko solutions they currently operate and to expand their understanding about the industry’s latest trends. 

“This year’s theme expresses that Esko has always looked at EskoWorld as a learning experience for both our users and ourselves,” says Udo Panenka, Esko president. “We hope that our users can gain valuable information about what is possible with the help of tools from Esko and our industry partners—as well as by networking with their peers at the event. We would like them to walk away with at least a couple of action items that will help them improve their production the moment they return from EskoWorld. At the same time, we hope that they gain a vision of how they can optimize their businesses tomorrow with Esko’s help. Just as important for Esko, we expect that the feedback from our users during EskoWorld will help us set the right priorities for our product development roadmaps and inspire our overall strategy.”

“EskoWorld has grown into a very meaningful event for our users,” adds Jon Giardina, president, Esko Americas. “The focus is purely on education. We have planned a wide variety of sessions that should provide attendees a great opportunity to return to their offices with very constructive courses of action. Our extensive hands-on training sessions, product review sessions, product roadmaps, and solutions-based presentations offer users significant information that they can productively use after our event.”

Brad Montgomery will serve as this year’s keynote speaker. Montgomery, a motivational speaker, teaches people how to use happiness to boost productivity, creativity, innovation and sales. He turns typical meetings into transformational events using the power of happines while instilling his brand of comedy. His clients include Microsoft, Verizon, the FBI, the CIA and the IRS. Montgomery specializes in using humor, interactivity, sound, music and visuals to ignite audiences so that they can use happiness as a tool in their lives and their jobs. 

The agenda will include the following topics:

The first opportunity for users to learn about packaging content management and MediaBeacon, whose acquisition was recently announced.
A presentation of an automated workflow with complete integration, applying Automation Engine Connect to pull data from an MIS, using Automation Engine to drive the prepress workflow and CDI flexo plate imager, and driving the Kongsberg table to cut label and carton plates and mount them with Digital Flexo Suite.
A session about industry standards presented by Steve Carter, senior vice president of Technology at Phototype, and Lieven Plettinck Esko director, Software Development — both Ghent PDF Workgroup members.
A review by Esko color experts Mark Samworth and David Harris of the production of the October 2014 cover of Flexo Magazine, which was created with seven-color expanded gamut.
A new feature at EskoWorld 2015 is a track of sessions exclusively prepared and reserved for brand owners.
A series of sessions discussing how to use CAPE products for palletization, to use formulas to create flat-glued cases (KDF’s), or to arrange and design cases and pallets.
Flexo print quality and economics, explaining the combined advantages of Full HD Flexo along with Equinox expanded gamut printing, led by flexo imager experts Rory Marsoun and Jan Buchweitz, with color expert Mark Samworth. 

The Esko Partner Pavilion will also feature a number of companies whose technologies complement Esko solutions. DuPont, a long-term partner will be in attendance, as will CHILI Publish, EFI, Flint Group, Global Vision, HP, MacDermid, MetaCommunications, Videojet and X-rite, among others. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet MediaBeacon, as well.

“Even with the broad base of Esko users, there really is something for everyone at EskoWorld,” explains Giardina. “I have seen the hard work our staff has put in to build an event that is truly worthwhile. I can also see with the involvement of the EskoWorld Advisory Board that users take this event very seriously and are invested in building a very close and engaged Esko community. Every year, Esko learns from the previous events and puts together a program that offers an even more valuable learning experience for our guests. We’re looking forward to greeting everyone in Arizona.”