The technical evolution in wide-format printing has expanded business opportunities far beyond the original applications of blueprints and posters/billboards. Today we see applications such as custom textiles, vehicle wraps, wallpaper, interior decor, circuit boards, flooring, packaging prototypes, custom packaging, backlit displays, banners and even dimensional print. These technological advances have created excellent opportunities to expand your print business well beyond its existing client base.
The Digital Imagine Association (DIA, Toronto) has created two timely, helpful webinars to examine the opportunities and challenges in these growing wide-format markets. The first (Wednesday, April 21) will address Industrial Market Applications and the next webinar (Wednesday, May 19) will address Commercial Market Applications. The April 21 event will take place at 12:30 Eastern Standard Time and will last approximately one hour. More information on the May 19 webinar will be released shortly.
Industrial wide-format is a high-volume application based on inkjet technology. The market is widespread and involves situations where printing steps are integrated into the manufacturing process and thereby contribute to the manufacture of the end product (for example, fibreboard decorating that mimics wood textures to produce furniture that looks like real wood, but is really inkjet media laminated onto the fibreboard). Gravure, flexography and screen printing have been the technologies used to produce these commercial products, but digital inkjet is definitely starting to replace them.
The panel for the first webinar April 21 will include:
Agfa, represented by Jason Hamilton, Director of Digital Print Strategies & Sales Operations, North America Offset & Inkjet Solutions.
HP, represented by Thomas Giglio, North American Latex Business Lead for HP’s Large-Format Production business.
Wide-format user, Peter Spring, President of TI Group, (a printer with extensive experience in this sector) will reveal opportunities and challenges in the Industrial Wide Format market.
Panel Moderator will be Stephen Longmire, President of the Digital Imaging Association and National Sales Manager at print-finishing specialist Sydney Stone (Mississauga, Ontario).
For more information and to become a DIA member, please visit the Digital Imaging Association’s website.
