PRINTING United Alliance announces 2026 honorees

PRINTING United Alliance announced the distinguished industry leaders who will be recognized through several of the organization’s most prestigious honors in 2026, including the newest members of the Ben Franklin Honor Society (BFHS) and the Academy of Screen & Digital Print Technologies (ASDPT), also known as The Academy. The Alliance will also recognize the recipient of the 2026 Joe Clarke Innovator Award and this year’s Swormstedt Best-in-Class Award winners.

The honorees will be celebrated on Sept. 23, during PRINTING United Expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Celebrating leadership & a commitment to the industry

The Alliance’s honor societies represent a long tradition of recognizing individuals whose contributions extend well beyond their own organizations. Through volunteer leadership, education, mentorship, technical advancement, innovation, and service, their members have helped strengthen the printing and graphic communications industry while sharing their experience with those who will carry it forward.

“An industry doesn’t move forward on technology alone. It moves forward because experienced people are willing to share what they know, challenge conventional thinking, mentor others, and give their time and expertise back to the community that helped shape their careers,” said Ford Bowers, CEO, PRINTING United Alliance. “That spirit of service is at the heart of both the Ben Franklin Honor Society and The Academy, and it’s what makes these honors so meaningful. This year’s inductees and award recipients represent an extraordinary depth of leadership, technical knowledge, innovation, and commitment to print. We’re incredibly proud to recognize them on the industry’s biggest stage at PRINTING United Expo.”

Welcome, BFHS Class of 2026

The Ben Franklin Honor Society recognizes individuals who have made significant and lasting contributions to the advancement of the printing and graphic communications industry. Honorees are recognized for meritorious service that can encompass industry and association leadership, technological innovation, entrepreneurial achievement, support for education and scholarships, industry vision, and other meaningful contributions.

The BFHS Class of 2026 includes:
• Lane Hickey-Wiggins, Douglass Screen Printers, Inc. dba DPRINT
• Michael Magerl, Trabon
• Matthew Rhome, Sticker Mule
• John Seymour, Clemson University
• Chris Ulmer, Crystal Coast Graphics

The 2026 class will be inducted on Sept. 23 at this year’s Expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The Ben Franklin Honor Society itself carries a rich industry legacy. The Society was formed in 2005 through the consolidation of two established industry honor societies — the Ash Khan Society of Printing Industries of America and the Society of Fellows of the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation — bringing their traditions of service and recognition together under one organization.

The Academy welcomes its 2026 class

Established in 1973, the Academy of Screen & Digital Print Technologies is an international body of experts recognizing individuals for distinguished, long-term contributions to the development, application, and advancement of screen and digital printing and associated imaging technologies.

Academy members represent printers, suppliers, manufacturers, educators, and technical experts who have distinguished themselves not only through professional achievement, but also through their willingness to share what they know. Members remain active throughout the industry by providing technical education and consultation, authoring and reviewing technical materials, speaking at industry events, supporting print-quality evaluation, and helping advance the technical and commercial development of printing technologies.

The Academy Class of 2026 includes:
• John MaGee, Avient Specialty Inks
• Kevin Kauth, SAATI Americas Corporation
• Michelle Moxley, The Ink Kitchen

Their induction continues a tradition spanning more than five decades of recognizing individuals whose technical knowledge and willingness to share that expertise have helped move the industry forward.

2026 Joe Clarke Innovator Award recipient named

The Alliance and The Academy will also honor Riley Hopkins as the recipient of the 2026 Joe Clarke Innovator Award during The Academy luncheon on Sept. 23.

Named in memory of industry innovator Joe Clarke, the award honors professionals who embody Clarke’s commitment to improving the industry through innovation coupled with a willingness to openly share knowledge for the benefit of others.

Throughout his 49-year career, Clarke invented, researched, tested, documented, and implemented new approaches to screen and digital printing while sharing his findings extensively through technical papers, articles, books, training, and seminars.

The award recognizes that same spirit among today’s innovators — individuals whose contributions through new or improved products, processes, technologies, or methodologies have helped make the printing industry better and more profitable.

2026 Swormstedt Best-in-Class honorees

The Academy will additionally recognize the 2026 Swormstedt Best-in-Class Award winners, celebrating exceptional technical and educational writing that contributes valuable knowledge to the industry.

This year’s Best-in-Class recipients are:
• Graphic/Flat Stock Screen Printing: “Control the Thickness of Ink Deposit,” by Michel Caza
• Apparel Textile Screen Printing: “AI Generative Art in 2025,” by Michelle Moxley
• Functional and Industrial Screen and Digital: “Overcoming the Particle Barriers to Functional Printing,” by Ray Greenwood
• Business – Technology – Historical: “Fahrenheit AI,” by Michelle Moxley

The Academy membership selected Michelle Moxley’s “AI Generative Art in 2025” as the overall 2026 Swormstedt Award winner.

The late Michel Caza, whose decades of technical expertise, teaching, writing, and contributions to screen printing earned international recognition, will be honored posthumously for “Control the Thickness of Ink Deposit.” Andy MacDougall is expected to accept the Best-in-Class recognition on his behalf.

Carrying industry knowledge forward

Together, the 2026 honorees reflect something fundamental to the printing industry: progress depends not only on new technology, but on experienced people who are willing to lead, teach, volunteer, experiment, document what they learn, and share that knowledge with others.

The Alliance’s honor societies and awards preserve that tradition while ensuring the expertise developed over decades continues to benefit the next generation of printing professionals.