Seiko & Fraunhofer IPA: A New Model for Inkjet Innovation in Functional Printing and Advanced Manufacturing
In industrial inkjet, meaningful innovation rarely happens in isolation. It emerges where deep technical expertise, practical experimentation, and cross-industry collaboration come together. A new partnership between Seiko Instruments and Fraunhofer IPA is proving exactly that — and offering a blueprint for how inkjet can accelerate its expansion into functional printing and advanced manufacturing.
To explore this evolving collaboration, the FuturePrint Podcast welcomed two experts at the centre of the project: Fabio Tallarico, Technical Support Engineer at Seiko Instruments GmbH, and Jan Janhsen, Group Manager for Additive Manufacturing of Photopolymers at Fraunhofer IPA.
A Strategic Shift Creates an Opportunity
For years, Seiko’s in-house lab enabled waveform development, print testing, and hands-on experimentation with partners. But following the decision to close the lab, the company faced a challenge: how to maintain momentum in inkjet R&D without its own dedicated facility. Instead of slowing down, Seiko saw potential for a smarter model.
“We asked ourselves: how can we continue to innovate without a lab?” recalls Fabio. “Because of our strong relationship with Fraunhofer IPA, it was a natural step to explore a collaboration. And it has turned out to be extremely beneficial for both sides.”
Fraunhofer IPA’s Stuttgart facility offers a sophisticated laboratory environment equipped with rheometers, surface-tension measurement systems, particle analytics, drop-watching rigs, and open print test platforms. For Seiko, this provides access not only to equipment but also to specialist scientific expertise. Just as importantly, Seiko’s engineers now gain exposure to a wider spread of inks, materials, and functional applications than is typical in a hardware-centric R&D environment.
Fraunhofer IPA’s Perspective: Real Problems, Real Relevance
For Jan and his team, the partnership is equally valuable - and aligns perfectly with Fraunhofer IPA’s mission of applied research. “Fraunhofer is not about doing research just for the sake of research,” he explains. “We want industrial relevance. Collaborations like this give us real-world inkjet challenges and keep our work aligned with what industry actually needs.”
The partnership also strengthens Fraunhofer IPA’s work in functional inkjet, a fast-emerging field where inkjet is used not to print images, but to deposit materials that perform a function - conductive layers, adhesives, insulating films, coatings, and even 3D structures. To enable this, Fraunhofer IPA focuses heavily on ink characterisation, wetting and adhesion behaviour, high-viscosity jetting, and hybrid manufacturing methods that combine inkjet with moulding, coating, or additive manufacturing. “The ambition,” Jan says, “is to combine scientific depth with practical impact.”
Pushing Printhead Technology Further
One unique advantage of the partnership is the ability to test the limits of Seiko’s printheads - not just under ideal laboratory conditions, but in demanding, real-world scenarios. Fabio explains: “We want to understand high-viscosity behaviour, conductive inks, UV systems, water-based inks for sustainability, and how the printhead performs across different gap heights or on uneven substrates. Fraunhofer IPA enables us to explore all of this.”
As Seiko launches its next-generation printhead -the RCE2560 - the collaboration will focus increasingly on waveform development, droplet control, and application-specific testing. The institute’s infrastructure even allows Seiko to investigate new areas such as bio-based inks, adhesive jetting, fuel-cell layers, and surface-functional coatings — all priority applications in advanced manufacturing.
A Broader Ecosystem, Not Just a Partnership
Both guests emphasised that this collaboration does not exist in isolation. Instead, it forms part of a wider ecosystem involving ink developers, machine integrators, OEMs, and end users. Jan summarises it well: “You need more than a printhead and more than a research lab. You need integrators, software, application expertise, and a real machine running at a customer site. That ecosystem is essential.” The FuturePrint community has long championed this collaborative model - one in which technology developers and industrial manufacturers work together early to define specifications, understand limitations, and shape practical solutions.
Where Inkjet Is Heading Next
Both guests expressed confidence in the growth of industrial inkjet beyond graphics - a trend driven by sustainability regulations, cost pressures, material savings, and the ability to digitally manufacture functional components.
Jan highlighted two major opportunity areas:
Adhesive deposition for fuel cells, electronics, and motor systems
Surface decoration and 2.5D/3D textures for automotive and consumer goods
Meanwhile Fabio pointed to rapid market shifts in textiles, corrugated, and packaging, where sustainability pressures are pushing manufacturers toward water-based inks, bio-derived materials, and low-waste production models. Both also see AI playing a growing future role - for waveform optimisation, defect detection, print strategy development, and potentially even predictive modelling of ink behaviour.
From Challenge to Opportunity
Ultimately, the closure of Seiko’s in-house lab, initially seen as a setback, has created something far more valuable: an expanded R&D capability, deeper scientific insight, and a new model for open, collaborative innovation. Fabio sums it up well: “We always try to see the positive. Closing the lab pushed us to think differently; and this collaboration has given us more possibilities, more knowledge, and more room to explore new areas than before.”
Jan agrees: “It’s a great example of how something that seems negative at first becomes an opportunity. This partnership is already proving that.” As inkjet continues its journey into advanced manufacturing, these kinds of cross-disciplinary collaborations will be essential - combining chemistry, physics, engineering, automation, and application knowledge to unlock entirely new capabilities.
And for Seiko and Fraunhofer IPA, this is only the beginning. Want to discuss anything in more depth with Seiko or Fraunhofer IPA? Meet them at FuturePrint Industrial Print Technology for Advanced Manufacturing Conference in Munich and use code SALE100 at checkout for a free delegate space.