At LOPEC 2026, the spotlight was on the products and projects entered in the OE-A Competition and Start-Up Competition. 

Fifteen ideas and products from seven countries competed in the OE-A Competition, with the best in each category receiving awards at the LOPEC Award Show.

A jury of international experts evaluated the submissions in three categories. Visitors to LOPEC were also able to vote at the OE-A booth; they selected their favorite innovation for the “Public Choice Award.” 

“This year, we saw a significant increase in submissions for the areas of industry safety and healthcare. The products are impressive due to their market readiness,” said Dr. Klaus Hecker, Managing Director of the OE-A, the international working group for flexible and printed electronics within the VDMA and partner of LOPEC. 

The competition motivates the industry to present its latest innovations every year. At the LOPEC Award Show ceremony, the winners received their awards.

OE-A Competition Winners

• Best Prototype & New Product: Leakage Detection System for Industrial Plants – Flexoo, Germany
• Best Freestyle Demonstrator: Smart Sensing System for Diabetic Foot Ulcer Care – Hochschule Niederrhein-University of Applied Studies, Germany
• Public Choice Award: Printed Headrest Loudspeaker CeNTI – Centre for Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, Portugal

LOPEC Start-up Competition Winners

• Best Business Care: Jörg Dickerboom, Kronos Mechatronics GmbH, Germany- “Printing the Future in Every Dimension”
• Most Impactful Technology: Dr. Erik Khranovskyy, GRAFREN AB, Sweden- “New Generation of E-Textiles Enabled by Ordered Placement of Two-Dimensional Nanocrystals on the Surface of Individual Fibers”.

The OE-A Competition 2027 will open in June 2026. The competition entries will then be on display again at the next LOPEC from March 2 to 4, 2027, in Munich at the OE-A booth.