SGIA and NAPCO Media Announce New Wide-format Summit

SGIA and NAPCO Media have announced the Wide-format Summit, a hosted, invitation-only conference to be held April 20-22, 2020, at the Hyatt Lost Pines in Austin, Texas. The new event will be co-located with the 8th annual Inkjet Summit and will share networking functions, evening receptions and dinners, and will have its own content track.

The Wide-format Summit is designed for senior managers and executives in wide-format inkjet printing businesses who want to understand how current and future digital printing technology, substrate options, finishing technology, and data management solutions will impact their businesses and investment decisions. This Summit will provide strategic-level insights into what printing industry leaders must do to grow, improve, and optimize their businesses.

The Summit is designed for printers from commercial, in-plant, and graphics environments within three primary segments:

1. Soft Signage for Graphic Applications (Textile): Exhibit displays, retail displays, etc.
2. Production Display Graphics (Roll-to-Roll): Vehicle/fleet wraps, floor graphics, window graphics, wallcoverings, banners, etc.
3. Production Display Graphics (Flatbed): Rigid signage, POP displays, exotic materials, etc.

Attendees will meet and learn from leading wide-format experts through a program developed by conference co-chairs Dan Marx of SGIA and Steve Duccilli of NAPCO Media. They will work in close conjunction with an advisory board representing some of the best minds in the wide-format market, proven thought leaders and subject matter experts. The board will ensure that the Summit addresses the most pressing subjects in the field today. The board includes:

• Dan Marx, director of content development, SGIA (Conference Co-Chair)
• Steve Duccilli, vice president / brand director of Wide-Format and Industrial Printing, NAPCO Media (conference co-chair)
• Mark Hanley, president, IT strategies
• Tim Greene, research director, IDC
• Eric Zimmerman, director of Wide-format Printing, Keypoint Intelligence
• Denise Gustavson, editor-in-chief, Wide-format Impressions
• Mark Michelson, editor-in-chief, Printing Impressions
• Bob Neubauer, editor-in-chief, In-plant Impressions

"The Summit is truly a unique event -- there's nothing else like it in today's market," says Dan Marx, SGIA's Director of Content Development. "Industry suppliers and attendees both will benefit from the event's intimate learning environment. Attendees learn from industry consultants, market-leading suppliers, and importantly, their peers on topics addressing needed technologies, how to adopt them, and how to use them successfully. The Wide-format Summit provides a top-notch experience for the segment's top business leaders -- and directly benefits all who are involved.”

The unique, invitation-only hosted format provides a valuable experience for attendees to acquire knowledge from the "who's who" in the wide-format space through keynote sessions, user panels, case studies, segment-focused breakout sessions, and numerous networking activities and receptions.

Just as printers are seeking information and guidance, suppliers are looking for ways to identify and develop relationships with highly qualified decision makers. The Summit provides sponsors with private case study presentations and prescheduled 1:1 meetings with executive attendees who drive their companies’ research, strategy, and purchasing.

“The goal of the Summit is to bring together the leading industry suppliers and attendees in an intimate learning environment, something that is like no other event in the market right now. Attendees will learn from experts in the field — industry consultants, market-leading suppliers, and most importantly, their peers — about what technology is needed and how to adopt these new solutions and be successful,” says Denise M. Gustavson, Editor-in-Chief, Wide-format Impressions. “The Wide-format Summit and its unique format accomplishes this and will be a win-win for both sponsors and attendees in the wide-format market.” For information on sponsoring and/or attending, please visit www.wideformatsummit.com or email wfsinfo@napco.com.

About NAPCO Media

NAPCO Media successfully operates magazines, trade shows and online services for the various markets it serves. Currently, the company produces 16 magazines, 22 e-mail newsletters, two subscription services and two trade shows, and employs more than 120 people. NAPCO's flagship publication, Printing Impressions, is the most influential and widely read resource for commercial printers worldwide. NAPCO Media also publishes several other well-known titles serving the direct marketing, promotional products and consumer electronics markets. For more information, visit napco.com.

About SGIA

Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA) is the premier printing and graphic arts trade organization that provides members with cutting edge resources, tools and education to promote growth and convergence into new market segments. SGIA members have unparalleled access to current industry information, trends and events, including, but not limited to, PRINTING United in Dallas on October 23 - 25, 2019. For more information, visit SGIA.org.