Hardware - Wide Format Print

FUJIFILM North America Corporation today announced the sale of an Inca Onset S20 UV flatbed printer to Total Graphic Solutions (TGS), a 100% digital printer based in Atlanta, GA. While many print shops have just begun their transition to digital inkjet, TGS has leveraged its digital expertise since its inception in October 2003. Far ahead of the digital curve, TGS’s clientele includes advertising agencies, print brokers, retail clients and major brands who require anything from small format counter cards to large format graphic displays including window clings, floor graphics, standees, POP graphics and banners.

“When we first began investigating the equipment that would get our business started, we were very impressed with the capabilities of the Inca Columbia as well its speed and all around technology,” said Charlie Rezac, president, Total Graphic Solutions. “At the time, we had zero sales dollars and even though the Columbia was the most expensive digital printer on the market and was not a well known name, we felt it was the best solution available for the type of work we planned to produce. Since then, we have built our business with Inca. As Inca enhances their equipment, we’re able to enhance our business and productivity.”

After the installation of the Inca Columbia in 2003, TGS installed an Inca Turbo 4-color. Then in 2008, TGS invested in an Inca Turbo 6-color which would replace the resident Inca Columbia device. In November, when the Inca S20 is installed it will replace the 4-color Turbo and is expected to increase their business revenue by 50% with its added capacity. Five times faster than the current equipment, the S20 is expected to launch TGS into new markets and will position them to compete with screen printers. For example, a run of 100 4'x8' pieces that would have taken a full shift to produce before will now only take approximately two hours on the Onset S20.

“Our staff isn’t afraid of rolling up our sleeves to get the job done,” said Rezac. “As it is, we rarely turn down a job, and now with the increased capacity that the Inca S20 is going to provide we should never have to say no.”

In addition to increasing capacity to keep up with the growth of their business, TGS wanted a device that could help them accommodate the growing demand for faster turnaround times and last minute changes without compromising deadlines or quality. TGS was impressed with the far superior quality of the S20 as it prints with a full bed array that eliminates banding commonly associated with other inkjet printers. The S20 also offers the option of gloss or satin mode, offering print buyers more flexibility without the extra step to overprint or laminate.

“We began our relationship with the Sericol Unit of FUJIFILM and have steadily grown our business with their products, services and support; it’s a three way partnership,” continues Rezac. “Inca is the best printing equipment on the market and the Sericol Unit of FUJIFILM has provided excellent training and applications support. We built our business with Inca digital printing equipment from day one when we first opened our doors and we look forward to carrying on the legacy as our business grows.”

Today TGS is a 15 person, multi-million dollar business still operating without an offset or screen printing capability.

“TGS is a true testament to the quality of Inca printing equipment and to the possibilities of UV digital inkjet printing,” said Mitch Bode, general manager, Graphic Systems Division – Sericol Unit, FUJIFILM North America Corporation. “We look forward to helping TGS take their business into the future.”

Agfa Graphics has announced that the new :Jeti 3020 Titan was well-received by SGIA 2010 attendees including Ardent Displays & Packaging who purchased the system on the show floor.

Ardent Displays & Packaging has produced point-of-purchase displays and packaging for national retailers and consumer-goods manufacturers since 1987. Today, Ardent offers end-to-end services including design, manufacturing, assembly and logistics. Ardent's team of seasoned professionals is skilled at producing output on a wide range of materials, including corrugated cardboard, plastics, sheet metal and wood.

According to Donald Budnick, Ardent President, "We are very excited about the :Jeti 3020 Titan. This system has what we we are looking for today and it will allow us to expand in the future. The Titan has a true full-vacuum table with holding capacity for corrugated cardboard as well as other materials, and the auto head height adjustments allow switching between substrates with no loss in time or missed manual reads. These are key features that sealed it for us."

Agfa's :Jeti 3020 Titan is a game-changer within the industry. The base-level system demonstrated at SGIA incorporates 20 robust Ricoh Gen 4 greyscale print-headsresulting in fast, high-quality output and delivers 1200 dpi for photorealistic image quality. The machine has a maximum print area of 124x79.5 inches and prints up to 1,216 sqft/hr. The :Jeti 3020 Titan can be extended to incorporate additional colours and higher speeds. The modular concept and new electronics' platform simplifies upgrades guaranteeing a healthy ROI for progressive companies like Ardent.

Designed as a completely new concept in wide-format printers from the ground up, the :Jeti 3020 Titan can be extended up to a maximum of 48 greyscale heads and maximum print speed of 2,432 sqft/hr.

Budnickalso offered, "We saw the end product of the Jeti :3020 Titan's multi-drop technology at SGIA. Because the Titan can deliver grey scale printing by varying the drop size from 8 on up to 24 picoliter, this allows the system to print fine text without banding. This is the quality our customers want."

DX4 and DX5 Printheads for Roland / Mimaki / Mutoh

The Epson DX4 printhead is the printing technology that underpins a huge number of printers in the large format print industry.

Whilst Epson themselves are not currently a prominent player in the sign and display print sector, if you take a look under the  hood of your Mimaki, Mutoh or Roland wide format printer, you will find that it is Epson printhead technology provides the underlying print performance and quality.

Advanced Epson DX4, DX5 and TFP printheads

Having made its global debut in 1993, Micro Piezo technology has not only been at the forefront of Epson inkjet print head advancement, but has laid down the gauntlet to all the other big names in the print industry. Unique to Epson, Micro Piezo provides superb print quality and is a technology that our competitors still find hard to match.

So what is the magic of Epson printheads?

The Epson  Micro Piezo print head is at the heart of every Epson inkjet printer. It produces superb colour and clarity at high speeds and is central to the changing world of professional and amateur photo printing and print-on-demand business. The print head also helps to minimise impact on the environment because it uses ink very efficiently, places ink droplets with amazing accuracy to prevent wasted paper and lasts the lifetime of the printer.

• Extraordinary photographic quality
• The new cutting-edge Micro Piezo TFP print head is quite possibly the most advanced ever manufactured, achieving a level of ink placement accuracy that delivers extraordinary photographic quality.
• The technical highlights of Micro Piezo TFP:
• The world’s highest resolution 1-inch wide high performance inkjet print head with 360 nozzles per channel
• Capable of using up to 10 separate ink channels simultaneously
• Low vibration meniscus control for highly accurate dot shape
• High precision impact-point control for extreme dot placement accuracy
• New ink repelling coating dramatically reduces nozzle clogging
• Produces variable-sized droplets as small as 3.5 picoliters to greatly decrease print times while optimizing photographic quality
• Exotic Thin Film Piezo (TFP) along with Low Vibration Meniscus Control technology precisely controls the curvature of every ink droplet within each nozzle before releasing it onto the media.

How do Epson Micro Piezo Printheads work?

The print head fires ink droplets onto a surface by applying an electric charge to piezo-electric elements. This deformates the piezo-electric elements which propels the ink droplets instead of heating the ink like other printer manufacturers. This technology can also be used to eject heat-sensitive liquid materials.

Useful for much more than paper

Epson's innovative Micro Piezo technology has the flexibility to work in a wide range of fields. In additon to printing in superb colour and black and white on various papers, it is also being used in industrial applications. These include fabric printing, colour filter fabrication and applying patterns to electronic circuit boards, among others.

Get your replacement DX4 and DX5 printheads from Tech8

DX4 Printhead - Roland / Mimaki / Mutoh

Product Code: 1000002201

Description: Epson DX4 original, solvent print head suitable for Roland Soljet and Versacamm, Mimaki JV3 and Mutoh Rockhopper II/III, Spitfire and Blizzard.

Compatibility

• Roland CJ, FJ, SC, SJ, SP, VP, XC, XJ
• Mutoh Rockhopper II, Rockhopper III, Spitfire, Blizzard
• Mimaki JV3

CET Color has released its new 4x8-foot UV true flatbed printer—the FK512-X. As this company expands further into the wide- and grand-format imaging segment, the FK512-X has been developed as not just another flatbed but one of several digital wide- and grand-format printers designed by CET Color to meet the high standards of wide-format clients in terms of image quality, creativity, turnaround time and affordable price.

Built in Atlanta, GA from the best manufactured parts around the world, the FK512-X has been field tested for more than three years and is ready for immediate release through its network of value-added resellers nationwide. The FK512-X offers a 14pl drop size, white ink and varnish capabilities, a scalable platform from 6 head to 16 head configurations, an ink tank capacity of three litres, plus, unlike any other printer in its class, it is field upgradeable. This printer is capable of printing on an endless variety of substrates up to three inches thick at a maximum speed of 800 sqft/hr with resolutions up to 720x1440 dpi.

With many users continuing to rely on the low throughput costs and vibrant colours available on solvent-based wide-format digital platforms, Agfa Graphics introduces the :Jeti 3348 HSS which integrates the company's revolutionary new TurbTech drying technology. The :Jeti 3348 HSS is unquestionably the fastest 3.25 m roll-to-roll printer in its class. Its 300 dpi resolution and four colour output makes it a highly productive solution for billboards, banners and posters, complemented by low running costs.

Agfa Graphics' :Jeti 3348 HSS, produces vibrant colours and durable results for interior and exterior applications. It has been refined with the addition of a special back-lit option. The true back-lit option enables printing on both sides of the media, delivering brilliant backlit signage.  Using specialised custom software and a camera, the true back-lit option tracks your print and compensates on the fly to provide perfect registration. The inclusion of mesh capability with a collector trough now means that porous materials, such as meshes and digital textiles, can be printed on the :Jeti 3348 HSS. This means that the printer is ideal for producing scaffold and building wraps as well as applications such as perimeter fencing and stadium graphics that need to be permeable to wind conditions.

By incorporating the TurbTech drying technology, the :Jeti 3348 HSS marries conventional mesh back-heaters with a front drying system. This utilises non-laminar flow warm air drying technology, which lowers vapour pressures and delivers high speed drying, vital when working at high speeds with low cost materials.

The Agfa Graphics :Jeti 3348 HSS benefits from the latest linear motor drives which deliver digitally accurate high-speed motion at up to 2 m/second. Formerly only used on :Jeti UV-curable printers, this feature provides the speed and accuracy essential when outputting jobs at production speeds of 232.25 square m/hour (2,500 square feet/hour).

Designed to handle low cost materials, such as woven polyethylene (PE), Agfa Graphics has introduced a vacuum plate under the imaging zone of the :Jeti 3348 HSS. This results in increased stability and, particularly with thinner media, eliminates wrinkles and edge curl, minimising the likelihood of head strikes and ensuring consistency in productivity and high image quality, even at the fastest speeds.

"High-speed, low cost wide-format digital production still retains strong demand for good quality solvent-based printers that offer advanced features and flawless operation," says Richard Barham, Vice President for Inkjet Systems at Agfa Graphics. "The new 3.25 m :Jeti 3348 HSS introduces new drying technology that allows breakthrough speed without any increase in heat, so it can continue to handle the latest low cost PE substrates"