Eurosmart has reported that the smart security industry notched up double-digit growth in all market segments in 2011.

Of particular interest to those in the security document credentials industry was the strong growth in shipments to the government/healthcare sector, which was driven by national eID programmes and ongoing smart healthcare schemes. Eurosmart says 240 million smart secure devices were shipped to the government/healthcare sector in 2011; this is expected to rise by 25% to 300 million units in 2012. Worldwide the number of smart secure contactless devices shipped to this sector in 2011 hit the 130 million mark. Eurosmart predicts this will climb by 31% to 170 million units this year.

The Eurosmart General Assembly has also elected a new bureau:

·         Oyvind Rastad (Gemalto) is the new chairman, for a one-year term;

·         Dr Jochen Schöllmann (Giesecke & Devrient) is vice-chairman, for a second term;

·         Jérôme Ajdenbaum (Oberthur Technologies) is vice-chairman;

·         Sonja Gatzke (Infineon Technologies) is the new treasurer;

·         Bruno Dupont, as secretary general, is also a member of the bureau but has no voting rights.