Droptimize - innovation in printing
Raphaël Wenger for Fri up
Droptimize's revolutionary approach
In a world where precision and print quality are paramount, Droptimize stands out with an innovative solution.
We spoke to the team behind this promising startup to find out how they’re transforming the industrial printing sector.
How did Droptimize come about?
I co-founded Droptimize with my partner Florian Bourguet as a spin-off from the Iprint Institute, affiliated to the Fribourg School of Engineering and Architecture.
My partner also works at Polytype, one of Fribourg’s leading industrial companies specializing in printing, which puts us at the heart of a dynamic local digital printing ecosystem.
At first, we developed our software in “garage” mode, devoting our evenings and weekends to it, and reducing our work rates.
Around 2021, we began offering our services, marking the official start of our adventure with Droptimize.
What is the main printing challenge your solution seeks to solve?
The major challenge lies in the print’s fidelity to the original image.
We want the end result to be as close as possible to what the user expects, mainly in terms of sharpness and contrast.
Today, a growing number of companies are interested in more ecological or functional inks.
However, their use remains limited by the difficulty of achieving the desired print quality.
Our aim is to make inkjet printing more accessible.
Is your solution unique on the market?
Yes, our approach is based on big data and test automation, which sets us apart.
Unlike our competitors who focus on visualizing ink drops, we offer a complete solution that automatically applies parameters to achieve the desired quality without intensive manual intervention.
Our data-driven approach enables us to converge on a robust solution.
This still requires the user to define what he wants to test, i.e. which parameters he wants to play with.
The tests are then carried out automatically, and data visualization tools make it easy to find the optimum points.
What are the benefits of your solution for users?
Our system saves significant time and resources.
By automating the testing and optimization process, we reduce the need for trial and error.
What’s most interesting is the time saved in the process, which can be reduced by a factor of 5 to 10.
In a world where experts with these skills are very rare and in demand, particularly in Europe, it’s very interesting to be able to increase their productivity.
What’s more, from a technological point of view, the interest is also ecological.
No machine modification is required to change the image, as everything is digital.
Secondly, only the quantity of ink required is printed, so there’s no excess thickness or waste.
Finally, it’s very flexible, so it’s usually printed “on demand”, which limits waste.
How does your company work with Fri Up?
We have established strong partnerships with local companies and institutions such as Fri Up, which helped us to put together a financing package with PromFR.
This enabled us to finance and develop our prototypes.
This local collaboration is essential to our development and growth.
What are the next steps for Droptimize?
We are now in the promotion and customer acquisition phase.
Our goal for this year is to sell our first machines, marking the start of a new era in industrial printing.