Industry news

Coming up is a one-day digital conference in Milan, Italy, on September 30th , developed with Fespa Italia and leading Italian fashion & textile associations.

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Growth opportunities

Fespa  will hold its next Digital Textile Conference on September 30,, 2016, in Milan, Italy. The one-day conference builds on the success of a series of Fespa-led Digital Textile Conferences which have taken place over the course of the last eight years. These conferences have been designed to help members of Fespa’s global speciality printing community realise the growth opportunities in digital printing on textile substrates for a range of applications. It is co-located with Fespa Italia Day, aimed at members of Fespa’s Italian association, thus enabling them to efficiently combine participation in both events. The conference programme will be delivered in English and Italian. Registration for the Digital Textile Conference is open to any printer.

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Optimistic forecasts for digital printing

Textile was indicated as the dominant growth application for the community by the Fespa Print Census, published in May 2015. Digital technology was identified as the key enabler, with over half of respondents expecting digitally produced garments to become an important alternative to traditional screen printing in the next two years. Fespa CEO, Neil Felton, comments: “A year on from the Fespa census, printers are turning interest into action.  Today, digital accounts for only a small proportion of all textile printing, but this is forecast to grow substantially in the years ahead, with estimates suggesting that digital could account for 5% of textile printing by 2020, up from 2% today. Clearly that’s a significant diversification opportunity for printers already invested in digital output technology and supporting workflows.”

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Insight, feedback, guidance and updates

The dual aim of Fespa is to promote screen printing and digital imaging and to share knowledge about screen and digital printing with its members across the world. At Fespa Digital Textile Conferences there’s a focused environment in which to learn and network, both for printers already active in digital textile printing and for those still seeking to explore the opportunity. The conference programme will provide print service providers with insights into the diverse market segments of digital textile printing, feedback from printers who have successfully entered the sector and technical guidance on how to address the opportunity, including updates on the latest technology developments in machinery, software, inks and textiles.