Aurora’s Expressions semi-gloss and matte products, in addition to Aurora’s Accent Knit fabrics, have been on display at the IT Supplies networking reception held in cooperation with the Digital Textiles Printing US 2018 conference, which took place from 7-8 June in Chicago, IL.

Organised by Smithers Pira, Digital Textiles Printing US 2018 took a close look at advances in the industry as well as the future of textile digital printing. Presentations included topics on workflow management, colour management, new inks, new printing technologies, sustainability and the impact of new advances in the digital printing of textiles for home décor and soft signage applications.

At the IT Supplies networking reception, several of Aurora’s printable textiles were used by printers to demonstrate their printing technologies. This includes Aurora’s popular Expressions Canvas products, which were being printed on Canon’s new Oce´ Colorado UV printer and HP’s 360 latex printer. Meanwhile, Aurora’s Accent Soft Knit 5 was being printed in a dye sub transfer demonstration.

Mark Shaneyfelt, Aurora’s Marketing & Sales Director for Printable Textiles, and Marcia Ayala, Vice President of Aurora, attended the conference. Mark Shaneyfelt said the IT networking reception was a great showcase for several Aurora products specifically developed to optimise colour and print output at manufacturing speeds on the industry’s latest digital printers.

“It was a great forum to network with others …. and learn about challenges and new technologies in the industry,” said Ayala. She added that the growth in printable textiles “was consistently reported as double-digit per year,” and soft signage is a significant part of that growth. “The future is bright for soft signage. We want to continue to serve and offer new products for that market.”

Shaneyfelt added that the conference reinforced how quickly textiles are becoming a mainstream media for digital printing. “If printers are not already printing with textiles, they are seriously considering printing on textiles in the near future,” he said.

Aurora Specialty Textiles Group, is a leader in coating, dyeing and finishing of both woven and non-woven fabrics. Based in Yorkville, IL, US, the company has a 135-year tradition of innovation and in 2015 invested in a new state-of-the-art, wide width coating and finishing line, and a new facility.

Products include digitally printable textiles through Aurora’s Northern Lights Printable Textiles line, specialty home products, industrial products and tape products for a wide variety of industries.

www.auroratextile.com