What is innovation?

To my mind, wide-format digital print has been innovative from its inception and, certainly, I have watched it move from being a wobbly print process to become the mainsteam print method it is today. I have seen it grow from a Heath Robinson modus operandi which might be of use in the future to its present position where we can take its versatility as a given. So, in a sense, where inkjet is today is through the innovation of its early adopters, plus the continued research and development by manufacturers of machines, printheads, inks and materials. This has been driven by end users and their demands and, whilst everyone always wants faster throughput at the best price, the potential for diversification comes into the mix.

I see our early days as being a fledgling industry steeped in analogue mindsets, helped by the advances made generally with computerised technologies, gradually being given a new way of designing and producing a printed product. None of this happened flawlessly; there were many mistakes along the way, but we learned from these and overcame them.

We shouldn't knock on the head analogue production, however. As a parallel, and using the excellent Fespa Sensations book as an obvious example, it is easy to see how innovation continues to play an important role in screen-printing for instance. It has had to demonstrate its degree of innovative options in order to confirm its ability to produce jobs which, thus far, cannot be output using alternative processes.

Wide-format inkjet still has its limitations but, for innovation to work, it is the responsibility of everyone involved to turn ideas into reality. We can't produce speciality products without the inks and the materials to enable that to happen. And machine manufacturers listen and see new opportunities for themselves. But we can generate new ideas from what's already out there and that needs motivation. One of the huge benefits with digital is its freedom from conventional constraints; if an innovative idea comes to mind using existing capabilities, it is not expensive to put it to the test.

Nor does our industry's innovation have to rely on expensive tooling, origination systems and risky investment. Most of today's display producers already have the equipment; they just need to add their creative juices into the mix. And everyone should look at what's around them and see what can benefit their customers in terms of new ideas.

Look to the younger generation as they will drive innovation in the future. Furthermore, these are the people already largely responsible for the huge increase in the use of social media; they represent the socio-economic band which brings to the front, and has popularised, a sea change in communication methods. Mobile technology no longer needs to remain isolated from the printed product; for example, it can provide a link with a poster which contains a QR code and bring additional value to an application.

But what exactly is innovation? Is it a loose term which can be appended to anything new or does it mean we've all been liberated to go out and experiment with whacky and unusual applications? This simple word, which happens to include 'nova' near its centre, means different things to different people; economists have tendency to concentrate on the results of its process whilst those involved in digital print technology might view it from a more creative standpoint.

It is no coincidence that this year's Fespa exhibition in Munich has 'Catch the new wave of innovation' as its theme. And in the pages of Image Reports the constant messaging is that it's imperative for print businesses to become more innovative in the way they operate. Whatever interpretation you use, it's clear that the economy overall will benefit from innovation in any and all of its guises and so too will print businesses and their customers. It's time to start coming up with some inspired ideas.