Wide format printer manufacturer Roland DG announces that Terry Carpenter, a service engineer with Fargo, North Dakota-based Roland dealer Far From Normal is the winner of its 2015 Global SE awards contest.

Twenty-one finalists from around the globe, all Roland service engineers, were recently flown to the company’s headquarters in Hamamatsu, Japan, to compete in two days of intense competition that included a series of written tests and hands-on inkjet printer troubleshooting tests. Carpenter bested the competition and was crowned 2015 world champion.

“Winning this prestigious event and bringing the championship trophy home to the States is a tremendous honor,” says Carpenter. “It was a pressure-filled two days that really tested the limits of my endurance, as well my product knowledge and technical abilities. This event brought together the very best Roland SEs from all around the world, so coming out on top against such a talented field was a truly thrilling experience.”

At this year’s event, the competing SEs took part in an extensive series of timed (15- to 30-minute) test modules covering everything from network systems and color theory to electrical schematics and printer troubleshooting. Carpenter came out on top, followed in second by Alexandre Geraldi, representing Roland DG Brazil, while the third-place finisher was Peter De Bont, representing Roland DG Benelux in Belgium.

Roland DG’s first SE awards competition was in 2008, but the early competitions were limited to Roland SEs from Japan only. In 2013, the company opened up the competition to SEs from Roland subsidiaries around the globe. This year local competitions were held in 15 different locations from February through August, with 449 certified SEs participating in those regional contests. Carpenter beat out 20 other finalists from 18 countries to claim the crown.