LOPEC 2017 looks set to impress

LOPEC stands for Large-area, Organic & Printed Electronics Convention and has become the leading international event for everyone involved in the printed electronics industry. It will take place in Munich at the end of March 2017. The two day exhibition (March 29–30) and three day conference (March 28–30) will provide attendees and delegates with a great opportunity to keep right up to date with all the latest developments in this increasingly important and rapidly growing technology sector. LOPEC 2016 saw 148 exhibitors from 18 countries taking part, an increase of more than 10 percent over 2015. And, for the first time, Indian, Spanish, and South Korean companies were among them and joined the international pavilions from France and Japan as well as the high number of exhibitors from the UK and the USA. The exhibitors were seen by around 2,100 visitors from over 40 countries with the most strongly represented nations being the UK, the USA, Japan and, of course, Germany. According to exhibition director Barbara Ismaier (pictured), all the signs point to a bigger and more successful event in 2017.

Industry growth predicted

The global revenue for products using printed and organic electronics during 2016 is estimated to be 26.9 billion US dollars, and according to the consulting firm Smithers Apex, the market volume is predicted to grow to an estimated 43 billion US dollars by 2020. So, comments Barbara Ismaier, against this backdrop of industry growth, the signs are good for LOPEC 2017.

Printed electronics technology is already being used in applications across a large number of industries. In the medical sector, these include interactive devices and pharmaceutical packaging while in automotive, OLED tail lights and in consumer electronics, displays and sensors.

LOPEC provides visitors with the chance to see and discuss every aspect of printed electronics from the theory and practice behind this exciting technology to its application and the commercial potential made possible by its adoption. A large number of key industry players have already registered for the 2017 event, including Bosch Rexroth, Cambridge Display Technology, Coatema, Fujifilm Dimatix, DuPont, Kroenert, Merck, NovaCentrix, PolyIC, RK PrintCoat Instruments, Thieme, Schott and VTT.

The Conference

With around 200 presentations from 27 different countries, the LOPEC Conference is the world's leading communication platform for research, information and solutions in the printed electronics industry. The conference presentations are tailored exactly to the interests of delegates with a business biased programme focussing on business strategies, market analyses, and business models; a technology programme geared towards industry and applications; and a scientific conference where scientists can discuss the latest concepts and the results of their research.

The first keynote speakers for the plenary session have already been confirmed. Jean Yves Gomez from ISORG, France will discuss applications using optical sensors for medical technology while Sangyon Lee will focus on current activities at electronics group Samsung and the use of printed and organic electronics in South Korea. Jennifer Lin from AUO, Taiwan, will speak about printed transistors for flexible applications – particularly in displays.

LOPEC is organized jointly by Messe München and the OE-A (Organic and Printed Electronics Association).