Hardware - Wide Format Print

Epson is building on the success of its wide-format printer range for signage and POS applications with the launch of the SureColor SC-S30600.  A 64-inch (162.6cm), four-colour (CMYK), roll-fed printer, the SC-S30600 sets a new price/performance ratio in this highly competitive sector.

Designed from the ground up to offer efficient and environmentally-friendly production at the lowest total cost of ownership, the SC-S30600 enables print firms, signmakers, digital copy shops and repro centres to expand their service offering.

The SC-S30600 can produce everything from posters, signs, banners, backlit panels and POS materials to vehicle wraps, interior decorations and exhibition displays. A wide range of roll media is supported, allowing users to print reliably and cost-effectively on vinyl, PVC and clear film, photographic paper and a range of popular banner substrates.

Richard Barrow, senior product manager at Epson Europe, says, “Setting up the SC-S30600 is fast and easy. Loading heavy media rolls, usually a two-person job, can be handled by one operator with ease thanks to our unique jack. And media tensioning, traditionally only accessible from the front of the printer, is controllable from both front and rear, so operators don’t waste time going back and forth. This reduces set-up time and maximises productivity.”

Epson’s precision engineering and proven Micro Piezo printhead technology ensure continuous and trouble-free operation, minimising maintenance and lost production time.

High-volume workloads are handled with ease, with print speeds from 7.3 to 29.4m2/hour depending on printing mode; the former being typical for indoor poster use and the latter for outdoor banner applications. There is also a maximum quality mode for the most demanding close inspection work, which uses the printer’s full resolution of 1440 x 1440dpi.

Epson has developed a new ink – Epson UltraChrome GS2 – designed to work perfectly with the SC-S30600 and Epson’s new generation of TFP printheads. UltraChrome GS2 builds on the strengths of UltraChrome GS (used in the Epson Stylus Pro GS6000) with a new yellow formulation that is lightfast for longer. UltraChrome GS2 is odourless, nickel-free and requires no special ventilation, allowing the SC-S30600 to be used in an office environment.

Costs and environmental impact are reduced with the printer’s ENERGY STAR-qualified power efficiency.

The Epson SureColor SC-S30600 will be demonstrated on the Epson booth (E20) for the first time worldwide at FESPA Digital 2012 (21st-24th February in Barcelona) and for the first time in the UK at Sign & Digital (Stand E70, 27th-29th March at the NEC, Birmingham). The printer is available from March 2012, priced at £11,995.

For more information, please visit www.epson.com

Following the recent introduction of the Mimaki TS34 dye sublimation printer, Mimaki has added to its portfolio by announcing the imminent launch of the world’s fastest sublimation inkjet printer along with a new ink. Designed to enhance productivity for the textile, apparel and soft signage markets, the Mimaki TS500-1800 printer and the new Sb300 sublimation ink are expected to be released in April 2012.

“We are excited to bring to market the world’s fastest dye sublimation printer, capable of printing at 150 square meters per hour on transfer paper,” comments Sakae Sagane, Managing Director of Mimaki Europe. “This printer is ideal for production of textile apparel and soft signage, both of which are seeing growth in run lengths appropriate for digital printing. We believe the TS500-1800 will enable manufacturers of apparel and soft signage to capitalise on the growing demand for shorter runs and customised or even personalised products in these two burgeoning digital markets. Our new ink delivers brilliant colour, and using RasterLink 6, printer operators can easily convert special colours to specific Pantone references to ensure colour integrity.”

Commenting on the launch of the new machine, Duncan Jefferies, from Mimaki’s exclusive UK & Ireland distributor Hybrid Services Ltd adds, “The combination of the new Mimaki printer and ink should allow customers seeking a volume dye sublimation solution to deliver a massive increase in productivity to their business. Mimaki’s digital textile heritage is enviable so we’re confident that the larger polyester printing companies will see this as an important announcement.”

The TS500-1800 features a number of new capabilities that set it apart in the marketplace, including:

• Unmatched printing speed for sublimation paper at 150m2/h in high-speed mode. The TS500-1800 uses newly developed print heads that achieve a maximum speed in four- or six-colour mode. The printer includes a three staggered array of six print heads.
• Mist removal filter to prevent problems caused by ink misting and enhance the stability of print operations by suctioning the mist inside the printer.
• Mimaki Degassing Module. The Mimaki degassing module (MDM-20) eliminates any gasses or bubbles that can occur in inks during the printing process, decreasing the likelihood of nozzle blockage and improving the accuracy of ink dot placement. In addition to this, the module enables the printer to use un-degassed bottled inks instead of conventional degassed ink packs, further reducing ink costs.
• New dye sublimation ink. Mimaki has developed a new ink, optimised for dye sublimation printing and for use with the TS500-1800. The Sb300 ink offers an attractive price point, dries quickly and produces brilliant colours. Mimaki Sb300 ink is available in six colours – blue, magenta, yellow, black, light blue and light magenta.
• Auto Media Feeder (AMF). Mimaki’s unique Auto Media Feeder provides stable feeding and take-up of print media, eliminating much of the need for operator intervention during printing
• Larger Roll Media Size - The TS500-1800 can accept rolls of media up to 60kg and 300mm in diameter further improving operator productivity by eliminating the need for frequent media changes. Larger orders can be continuously printed without interruption

For more information, please visit www.hybridservices.co.uk

Pankarte PLV, based in a 4000m2 building in Nordhouse near Strasbourg and close to the German border, was founded twenty years ago. Over the years the company has become a specialist in the design and manufacture of POS products, and its quality products and expertise are recognised by customers across the board in many household names from within the food, beauty and healthcare industries.

Already an Inca Onset user since 2010, the FSC-certified company has recently installed an Inca Onset S40 flatbed digital printer from Fujifilm to enable it to provide customers with top quality marketing collateral in the shortest turnaround times.

“We chose the Onset S40 printer because it is, quite simply, the best machine in the world,” says Michael Hartmann, managing director of Pankarte. “It is fast and produces great quality graphics, and the additional handling system has really sped up our production time. Our customers, many of whom are pioneers in their field, require suppliers such as us to push them to the limits. The Onset S40 allows us to do just this.”

The Inca Onset S40 prints at up to 470 sqm/hr (5,059 sq ft/hr) and offers ‘best-in-class’ quality and flexibility at a low cost per print. Providing outstanding levels of performance, it meets the high-volume, fast-turnaround production needs of specialist display print companies such as Pankarte.

“We are very, very happy with both the performance of the Onset S40 and the technical and sales support we received from Fujifilm – it has exceeded our expectations,” continues Michael.

“Pankarte is a key player in the French POS print market and has some important customers in Germany. We are delighted that they have chosen to work with Fujifilm and install an Inca Onset S40,” adds Philippe Vautier, Wide Format Inkjet Sales Manager at Fujifilm Graphic Systems France.

Velmex Distribution has recently signed an agreement to distribute Epson’s eco solvent, 64 inch, GS6000 large format printer. The product provides a high end solution to fit around Velmex's existing aqueous wide format range and will be sold through a selective group of partners.

The Epson GS6000 printer will provide Velmex Distribution with an eco-solvent offering to complement their current aqueous large format printers from Canon.  Managing Director Mark Keeley comments, "We see this product fitting very neatly around our existing product range. The GS6000 provides our resellers with a strong eco-solvent product, which produces fast outstanding results, is cost effective and environmentally sensitive."

The GS6000 will be sold through a selective group of resellers who concentrate their business model on providing a value added service. Velmex also expects many of the GS6000 to be sold using the Big Print Plan, a scheme Velmex launched 12 months ago which offers customers a complete solutions with no large capital outlay. The plan has been extremely successful and provides a positive peace of mind for customers.

"The big print plan not only provides a fast next day solution with no large upfront investment," adds Mark Keeley.  "Customers simply pay a monthly rental charge which includes the total cost ownership and ink usage. Support is included and with remote diagnostic tools it means we can support the products quickly and effectively."

For more information on Velmex Distribution, please visit www.velmex.co.uk

E.S. Digital of Rishon LeZion, Israel, has purchased three new HP Scitex wide format printers - an HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press, an HP Scitex TJ8600 Industrial Press and the HP Scitex XP5300 Industrial Printer - to deliver high quality and fast turnaround times.

E.S. Digital was established in August 2011 with the goal of providing a complete, quick turnaround solution to businesses wishing to advertise and enhance their visibility. Investing in groundbreaking technologies and machinery, the company aims to be among the most professional and progressive wide format digital printers in its market.

"When I founded the business I thought to myself, 'how can I differentiate the company?'" said Eyal Shemesh, founder and CEO, E.S. Digital. "Longstanding experience in the field has taught me that customers want their orders immediately, so I've purchased equipment that will allow me to build up a system that enables very quick turnaround."

E. S. Digital produces a wide range of products including outdoor signage, promotional posters, self-adhesive vehicle wraps and point-of-purchase branding. Its customers span companies in the communications, health, fashion industries, retail outlets and other leading companies in the Israeli market.

Common to all three HP Scitex machines purchased by E.S. Digital is their high productivity and their ROI yield. All three use UV-curable inks that deliver vibrant colours and feature outdoor durability and resistance over time.

The HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press is designed for screen printers and provides users with high print productivity and quality.

It uses a six-colour process to maximise print-quality and enhance applications that span POP displays, signage, exhibition graphics, backlit displays, bus shelters, posters and more.

The HP Scitex TJ8600 Industrial Press prints on a wide range of flexible matte or gloss sheet- and roll-fed media and can produce double-sided output cost-effectively. Specialty applications using full or spot gloss to produce top colour accuracy, enable an increased range of products.

The HP Scitex XP5300 Industrial Printer delivers faster print speeds and unprecedented ink coverage that minimises the cost of printing. It prints both outdoor signage at industry-leading speeds as well as high-quality indoor point-of-purchase displays.

Although established just a few months ago, E.S. Digital's newly installed HP machines have already been put to productive use to turn out a number of large projects. The new HP Scitex TJ8600 Industrial Press produced the indoor signage and branded wall decor at two visitor centres belonging to Israel's largest health insurance agency.  The same machine also printed the branding for 1000m of interior stairwell and theatre walls at a new wing of a large cinema complex near Tel Aviv. Their HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press has also been hard at work on a project involving Kapa-bloc mounted signage for one of Israel's leading retail supermarket chains. All the jobs were turned around in just 24 hours.

"The competition's machines may be cheaper, but I know from my own past experience in the field that HP is a top quality associate delivering excellent service and remarkable capabilities," Shemesh concludes. "Equipped with these advantages, we should be fully ready to meet our goals soon."

More information is available at www.youtube.com/hpgraphicarts or follow HP on www.twitter.com/hpgraphicarts.

[photo shows HP Scitex XP5300 Industrial Printer]

Award winning display and POS printer, SMP Group, was the first company to place an order for Agfa’s new :M-Press LEOPARD, after also being the first in the world to install an :M-Press TIGER. The :M-Press LEOPARD flatbed inkjet press was developed in response to customer demand for economical, low to medium run-length digital printing.

“Around 25% of our work is 50 sheets or less and the Leopard is a production unit that is ideal for these smaller quantities. It provides us with the flexibility to switch from one job to another very quickly as well as changing media. We also have a demand for double-sided display printing and this machine is the best solution I have seen,” explained Mark Turner, Director, SMP Group.

Even in these difficult times, SMP has managed to grow and develop its business by making significant investment in the very latest technology. Due to the fine quality of reproduction of small text, the company prints a great deal of A4 and A3 POS jobs on both its :M-Press machines.    
Another key factor is SMP’s ability to provide consistent results, whether the jobs are printed litho or inkjet, and this is largely due to the fact that all their CtP and digital inkjet printers are managed by Agfa’s :Apogee workflow.

“Both the :M-Press LEOPARD and :M-Press TIGER machines use the same :Anuvia UV ink from Agfa. The machines put down only a thin layer of ink to achieve the desired result. These are major benefits which enable us to deliver the best value digital print per square metre as well as absolute colour consistency,” Turner concludes.

About the :M-Press LEOPARD

The manual loaded :M-Press LEOPARD flatbed inkjet press has been co-developed by Agfa and Thieme to offer high-quality printing on a wide variety of substrates.

The :M-Press LEOPARD is built on a Thieme screen printing press base. It is a robust industrial digital printing press of the highest build quality. The LEOPARD holds a print-shuttle with 64 new variable dot-size Agfa UPH2 grayscale print-heads, using pagewide print array technology and utilising Agfa's own :Anuvia UV ink.

:M-Press TIGER and LEOPARD deliver top quality prints for all indoor and outdoor applications and handle a wide variety of substrates including backlit material, paper, self adhesive vinyl, fluted display board, metal plates, corrugated board, PVC and much more.

[photo shows SMP's Mark Turner alongside the Agfa :M-Press LEOPARD]