The schedule for the first Textile Printing and Sustainability (TPS) conference is packed with interesting and engaging topics. The event will be held on September 8-9, 2022, in the Dorint Kongresshotel Düsseldorf-Neuss in Germany, and will welcome attendees from all stages of the textile value chain.

Peter Buttiens from the European specialist printing manufacturers association, organizer of TPS, said that the textile sector is under greater pressure than ever from sustainability regulations. The EU's Green Deal targets textiles as one of the most polluting industries in the world. On a global scale, they consider the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and efforts such as the United Nations Alliance for Sustainable Fashion. Their timetables of 2030 and 2050 may appear distant, but the moment to act and share knowledge is now. With the new TPS conference, they want to contribute to the solution from the standpoint of printing.

According to the organizer, the 24 lectures will be delivered by professionals from industry and academia and will focus on technological choices, automation methods, and environmentally sensitive business models.

Textile Printing and Sustainability will examine the essential issues and worldwide trends that impact the current and future state of the textile sector, including customer-made fashion, responsible companies, quality concerns, customization and personalizing. The event will bring together industry professionals from the key printing and dyeing processes to promote best practices, explore new application domains, and explain the advantages and disadvantages of specific technological options.

A keynote talk will kick off each conference day. Karin Ekberg, former head of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, will highlight five sustainability leadership principles. Bianca Seidel, a pioneer in sustainable fashion design, will make a call for change and optimism in the world of tomorrow. Debbie McKeegan will discuss the benefits and hazards of on-demand business models, while Alexandra De Raeve will discuss the digitalization of textile design and manufacturing.

Brother and Epson, the world's largest printer hardware firms, will discuss their approaches to environmentally responsible production, resource management, and current reshoring developments. Representatives from ink and chemical firms will provide an in-depth review of the most recent material solutions, pigment ink breakthroughs, including a revolutionary white pigment concentrate, and the consequences for certain printing procedures. Two firms will concentrate on dyeing and reducing its environmental effect, including the removal of textile prints and efficient fabric recycling at the end-of-life stage.

RWTH Aachen, HS Niederrhein, DITF Denkendorf, and the Saxon Textile Research Institute will all have strong academic participation. They will present their most recent research findings on smart textiles with integrated electronics, textile functionalization with digital printing, microfactory sustainability evaluation, circular economy, and eco-labels.