DAY 1
WHAT IS INKJET?
Optional „Inkjet 101” session for absolute beginners
INKJET CHEMISTRY OVERVIEW
Primers, inks and other fluids
INKJET PHYSICS OVERVIEW
Printhead landscape (piezo, thermal and others) | Ink channel design | Fluid dynamics | Waveform generation and meniscus behaviour | Drop formation | Grayscale formation | Data path and printhead electronics
FLUID DELIVERY
Fluid supply landscape | Meniscus and pressure control | Recirculation vs. gravity
TECHNOLOGY ECOSYSTEM
Hardware, process, integration | Printing machine overview | Machine design and modularity | Market segments
DAY 2
PRINTHEADS, FLUID CHARACTERISATION AND FUNCTIONALITY
Manufacturer overview | Object geometry (linear vs. helical jetting) | High resolution vs. high laydown | Waveforms | UV and water-based and solvent inks | The White Ink Dilemma | Ink composition and density | Low shear rate and fluid transport analysis | Long-term ink stability | Particle size analysis: Inks with heave particle loads | Surfactants, PIs and cosolvents | Temperature sensitivity | Safety and sustainability | Degassing and filtration
IMAGE QUALITY AND COLOUR MANAGEMENT
RIP overview | Colour gamut (CMYK vs. EG printing) | Spectrophotometers and light reflection | Traditional vs. spherical light sources | Printer linearisation and profiling | Ink saving strategies | Ink-surface dependencies and artefacts
DROP WATCHING
Drop placement | Strategies for missing nozzles and image stitching | Grayscale generation vs. binary printing modes | Drop formation and waveform
Participants are welcome to bring their own inks and other jettable fluids for testing.
DAY 3
INK FORMULATION
UV and water-based ink formulation | Components and additives | Pigments (organic, inorganic) and dyes
CURING AND DRYING
IR and nIR | UV and UV LED | Curing issues by reflection around the object or in machine | Dosage and output | Wavelength influences
PRE-TREATMENT
Surface behaviour, energy and tension | One-time vs. multiple treatment | Flame and silane treatment | Influence of primers and additives | Ink adhesion strength and ink detachment | Hydrophobic vs. hydrophilic | Plasma treatment
DAY 4
PATENTS AND INNOVATIONS, MARKET AND TRENDS OUTLOOK
Selected patents and innovations from inkjet printing | Haptic lacquers and layering techniques | Helix vs. segmented print | 3D object printing software | Mergers and acquisitions | Supplier ecosystem
PERSPECTIVES OF THE INDUSTRY
Guest presentation TBA
FOCUS ON SUSTAINABILITY
Guest presentation TBA
PROBLEM SOLVING, OPEN DISCUSSION
Pre-treatment | Ink wetting, adhesion and robustness | Filling lines | Filled goods | Lip contact lines | Stitching and pinning | Printhead motion control | Printing irregular shapes | Printhead motion control
Programme
15-18 June 2026, Selb, Germany
Monday, 15/06/26
10:30-12:30 What is inkjet? (optional intro for beginners)
13:00-13:30 Lunch and welcome
13:30-15:00 Inkjet chemistry overview
15:00-16:30 Inkjet physics overview
16:30-17:30 Fluid delivery
17:30-18:00 Technology ecosystem
Tuesday, 16/06/26
08:30-09:00 Printheads
09:00-10:00 Fluid characterisation and functionality
10:00-10:30 Filtration
10:30-11:30 Image quality and colour management
11:30-12:30 Drop watching
12:30-13:30 Lunch break
13:30-17:30 Practice sessions in groups: Fluid characterisation and filtration, fluid supply and drop watching
18:00 Social evening and BBQ
Wednesday, 17/06/26
09:00-09:40 Ink formulation
09:40-10:20 UV curing
10:20-11:00 (N)IR drying
11:00-12:00 Pre-treatment
12:00-13:00 Lunch break
13:00-17:30 Practice sessions in groups: Surface treatment, colour management, UV curing, (N)IR drying
Thursday, 18/06/26
09:00-10:00 Patents and innovations, market and trends outlook
10:00-10:30 Perspectives of the industry
10:30-11:00 Sustainability and chemical regulations
11:00-12:00 Problem solving and open discussion
12:00-13:00 Certificates and (take-away) lunch
For whom
The ESMA Academy is targeted towards companies who:
• want to obtain a well-founded overview on digital printing technologies, especially on piezo inkjet, in order to make an educated decision to what extend inkjet technologies could be integrated into their production process.
• want to obtain basic inkjet know-how in order to plan a possible introduction of inkjet technologies into their organisation and facilitate their investment decisions.
• are planning to start with inkjet or have already installed inkjet equipment in their organisation but are still at the very beginning of the learning process.
Tutors
• Oliver Baatz, Pall
• Jochen Christiaens, ImageXpert
• Christian Gächter
• Bart Hallmark, Trijet
• Oliver Kammann, K-Flow Consulting
• Holly Steedman, IST Intech
• Adam Strevens, Neatjet
• Tri Tuladhar, Trijet
• Felipe Wolff-Fabris, EZD
ESMA Certificate
Participants will receive a certificate after attending all sessions.