Fritz Bircher studied electrical engineering at ETH Zurich. After graduating in 1985, he worked as an R&D engineer for different companies developing mechatronic system solutions for the machine industry. In 1993 he was appointed professor at the Engineering Department of Bern University of Applied Sciences in Burgdorf, where he started his research in large scale printing processes studying and exploring all possible jetting and dispensing principles. With a focus on inkjet, Fritz successfully conducted for over 15 years government funded research projects on a national and international level as well as many feasibility studies printing all kinds of materials for a wide range of applications. In summer 2012 he was offered a professorship at the University of Applied Sciences of Western Switzerland in Fribourg, where he founded iPrint Institute in which academia and industry are being brought together in order to create a printing competence centre in the Fribourg area of Switzerland. Fritz’s main research interests based on inkjet include: packaging printing with optic and haptic effects, material printing including 3D printing and bio printing. Since 2014, Fritz Bircher chairs the Scientific Board of The Inkjet Conference.
