TheIJC (The Inkjet Conference) will return and take place on October 24-25, 2017 in Swissôtel Düsseldorf, Germany. An increased number of new companies have already confirmed and revealed their presentation titles raising expectations of a record breaking year. TheIJC 2017 will feature 50 presentations, an exhibition of 70 tabletops and an expected total of more than 400 attendees.

Entering its fourth edition, TheIJC is organized by ESMA with an ongoing support of drupa and sponsorship of MS Printing. The organizers praise the educational and match making aspects of the event. “This conference has become a game changer for the industrial inkjet community. It is a platform where the finest development companies, big players and aspiring start-ups initiate projects for all possible market applications. The two-day, two-track format generates real business opportunities, as repeatedly confirmed by participants since the very first edition of TheIJC,” says Peter Buttiens, CEO of ESMA.

“Since 2014 TheIJC provides a venue for those who build the future – of inkjet engineering and inkjet chemistry – but also the future of manufacturing in general,” says Steve Knight, co-founder of the conference. “Future trends are notoriously difficult to predict but following core technology developments allows us to envision the equipment of tomorrow. This year at the conference, we see an increased networked community. Those that are building the future do not do so in isolation – whether inks, printheads, data path software or integration, we work with technology partners, and the meeting point where we present our latest technology is TheIJC.”

As the meeting point of the industry, TheIJC attracts hundreds of attendees coming from all over the world. For two days, OEMs, brands, engineers, chemists, researchers and all technology users gather together with the suppliers – printhead manufacturers, ink producers, software and hardware designers. By the time of this release, 45 companies have already booked a tabletop in the “networking arena,” which traditionally buzzes with business talks culminating at the sit down networking dinner at the end of conference day one.

Each year, the conference features a balanced lineup of long-time supporters and first-time exhibitors. From the 10 new exhibitors and speakers in 2017, visitors can expect to hear and see more about thermal inkjet in industrial applications, advanced integration know how, specialized ink manufacturing technology and new niche applications.

Following on the successful format of the previous years, TheIJC offers 25 hours of technical talks, which address topics ranging from printheads and ink improvements to inkjet in packaging, textiles and pharmaceuticals. Speakers who have confirmed their attendance so far are all acknowledged experts in their fields, including renowned research institutes. Professor Simon Gaisford from University College London will talk about inkjet printing for control of pharmaceutical polymorphism and Professor Marc Van Parys  (TexZeppelin, UC Ghent) will explain how to make digital technologies accessible for textile SMEs. Kerstin Gläser will present Hahn-Schickard Society’s research of inkjet and aerosol jet in the field of micro technology.

Presenting for the first time at the conference, HP Printhead Division will provide details of their thermal DOD technology for industrial print. Other titles include:
•         “Brand color communication in digital printing workflows” and “Color management in digital surface decoration” by ColorGATE
•         “Bubble-free ink for digital printing – membrane degassing with advanced module design” by 3M
•         “Digital coatings: Markets and technologies” by TTP
•         “Filtration, degassing and oxygen measurement technologies for inkjet printing applications” by Pall
•         “How surface science equipment can advance inkjet technologies” by Krüss
•         “Image enhancement techniques” by Global Inkjet Systems
•         “Instantaneous and low thermal stress inkjet post-processing” by Adphos
•         “Multi-purpose picodrop dosing system for fast and easy testing of ink-substrate interactions and printing behavior” by Dataphysics
•         “New technologies to monitor pigment properties in the process and in the final product” by Microtrac
•         “Ultrasonic production of nano-size dispersions and emulsions” by Hielscher Ultrasonics
•         “Widening the window – Powerdrop’s approach to opening up inkjet” by Archipelago Technology