“In the last couple of years we have seen the accelerating adoption of printed, flexible, and hybrid electronics in a wide range of products and markets,” states Klaus Hecker, managing director of OE-A (Organic and Printed Electronics Association), summing up a latest Roadmap Whitepaper published by the association, a working group within VDMA, which represents 3,600 German and European mechanical and plant engineering companies.
The new edition of the ‘OE-A Roadmap for Flexible, Organic and Printed Electronics’ offers an in-depth exploration of the industry’s advancing maturity. In addition to updates on key technologies and capabilities, the roadmap incorporates the insights of over 100 industry experts, who provide detailed short, medium, and long-term forecasts for various markets.
It also offers insights into the present state and prospects of flexible, organic, and printed electronics. The Whitepaper delves into key markets such as automotive, consumer electronics, healthcare, printing and packaging, smart building, and internet of things, providing comprehensive analyses and forecasts for each sector.
“These are exciting times for our industry. We will see more flexible and even stretchable displays, building facades that harvest energy with transparent OPVs. Car interiors will change completely with the widespread integration of sensors, light sources and heating in the interior trim. Printed electronics will also play a major role in improving healthcare, for example with sensors that make it easier to monitor vital signs. And these are just a few examples for what is afoot,” adds Klaus Hecker.
Market trend sustainability
The market for flexible and printed electronics continues to show strong growth. New technological approaches in both production and products are the basis for significantly increasing energy and resource efficiency along the value chain. It is clear that the technology is opening up new possibilities when it comes to sustainable production processes and sustainable materials.
Printing, as an additive process, consumes less material and energy, and reduces the amount of waste. Printing plus related advanced processing enables broader use of recycled or eco-friendly materials to support product lifecycle circularity.
“The OE-A Roadmap Whitepaper highlights the wide-ranging opportunities made available by printed electronics technologies,” adds Klaus Hecker.
