Now in its fourth year, nGage’s 2016 Inkjet Summit attracted 117 attendees and 46 sponsor companies. The concept of the event is relatively simple—locate prospective buyers of high-speed inkjet equipment, pay their way to a resort location, sit them down for case study presentations and one-on-one meetings with sponsors, and foster highly informative panel discussions with industry peers. This model is designed to bring decision-makers and suppliers together. In most instances, the participants will have done their research ahead of time and will already have a good idea of what they need. At this year’s event, about 80% of the attendees were just starting their inkjet journey. The remaining 20% were existing users who attended to share their experiences and educate the market.

For 2016, nGage created a series tracks focused on critical trends and new applications in direct mail, book publishing, commercial printing, and transactional printing. There were also a number of sessions that focused on inkjet trends and technologies, substrates, and what to expect at Drupa.

Since its inception, the Inkjet Summit has served as an accurate barometer for understanding the market dynamics associated with production inkjet. At the inaugural event in 2013, print service providers were questioning inkjet’s total cost of ownership and wondering whether the marketplace would accept its print quality levels in comparison to the output from offset presses. During 2014 and 2015, the focus shifted to the availability of paper stocks, emerging cut sheet technologies, and the cost of ink. This year, participants readily acknowledged that the market was quickly maturing, and the emphasis was on successful strategies for implementation. No one was questioning the validity of the market anymore; the focus was on how to effectively get in the inkjet game.