Fespa Digital, held in May in Amsterdam, was recently discussed by The EAGLE. One of the items we covered was the format, almost all digital, with its emphasis on rapidly moving technologies, rather than the myriad of more slowly moving and more traditional products that make up the balance of the screen printing market. Fespa, we indicated, as well as SGIA Digital, held last December, did a very credible job of making it easier than in that larger and more typical format of being able to review competitive products virtually side by side.

Wandering the floor, there were still many different kinds of products being displayed. Unlike earlier days, especially in the offset world, we were missing the kind of large company booths/stands where all of the products that a screen printer might need for production could be seen in one place. We could see products, but not help a prospect to gather more information about what was now possible for different kinds of efficient production and for new ideas that could be sold to client customers.

Screen printers are now being challenged to provide quality products in smaller quantities for less money. But, who is teaching this to the buyers who know nothing about efforts in the longer-run markets with standards such as JDF and CIP4?