Xeikon, the digital print and OEM manufacturer behind much ‘Agfa Graphics’ branded newspaper prepress equipment, is bring back its Innovation Days, with this year’s event slated for June and held in both Belgium and the US.
Part of Flint Group since 2015, Xeikon’s current focus is predictably on digital label and packaging production, but the event promises a programme of live demos, customer conversations, application showcases and hands-on experiences designed to accelerate decision-making.
The events are at in Lier, Belgium from June 9-10, and at the Chicago Innovation Center in Elgin, Illinois a week later on June 16-18.
The company says the Innovation Days carry significance “far beyond the event itself”, and will serve as a visible expression of a broader transformation –Xeikon’s evolution into Flint Group Digital Xeikon, a core digital business within the newly rebranded Flint Group Packaging Solutions.
FGPS president Walter Benz
Described the event as “a statement of intent”, and an invitation to experience how the business is evolving.
“We see this as a reboot in the best sense of the word, a renewed Xeikon with sharper focus, stronger backing and a broader solutions story.”
Then Xeikon chief executive Wim Maes joined Flint as president of its digital printing solutions division when Flint bought XBC, which owned more than 95 per cent of Xeikon in November 2015. The company had its roots in 1961 when Dirk Strobbe formed a Belgian company to make photomechanical typesetting machines. It introduced its first CTP system – aimed at the newspaper market – in the mid 1990s, and quickly signed an OEM agreement with Agfa to produce its CTP equipment, helping both to market leadership. In 1999, Strobbe was acquired by Punch Group which was renamed Xeikon - after its higher profile digital printing brand - in 2011. Xeikon also made flexo plate imaging equipment, sold as ThermoFlexX, a disused brand name it bought from Kodak.
This year’s event programme will feature conference sessions, customer-centric discussions, partner contributions and live demos of Xeikon’s digital press portfolio, including the new Ecolyne and Idera presses. Key topics will include AI in workflows and end-use applications, new growth paths for digital printing, customer-driven innovation, sustainability, and the practical role of connected solutions in modern label and packaging production.
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