Hardware

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.

SEAL has announced the availability of the SEAL 54 EL laminator.  This entry level product is priced at under £4000 and is targeted at the sign and display market.

With a 1400mm working width - and the ability to handle materials up to 25mm thick - it offers high quality professional finishing results.  It can apply finishing and protective films as well as double-sided adhesive films.

The SEAL 54 EL has simple controls and requires minimal maintenance.  With a small footprint, it can fit into some of the smallest work areas.

Agfa Graphics today announced that Signs By Tomorrow (SBT) of Royal Oak, Michigan, recently purchased Agfa's :Anapurna M4f . With the installation of the system, SBT Royal Oak is now able to offer new products and services to its customers thanks to the large variety of substrates that the :Anapurna M4f can handle. The company specialises in producing props, signage, period pieces and banners for various TV and film projects. So far this year, SBT Royal Oak has produced props for 26 films and has more than 50 films overall to its credit.

The :Anapurna M4f is an industrial UV inkjet printer that provides photorealistic quality and can produce POP, displays, posters, exhibition panels, stage graphics, ad panels and more. It features a print resolution of 720 x 1440 dpi and a maximum printing width of 62 inches.

":Anapurna's excellent quality and outstanding output drew us to the system at the 2009 SGIA Expo. I looked at a lot of competitive systems, but the :Anapurna M4f is a solid machine. It's like the Mercedes of flatbeds!" said Jack Hemp, Owner, Signs By Tomorrow, Royal Oak. "Because the :Anapurna can handle a variety of substrates, we can offer our customers extended flexibility. For movie and TV projects, film set designers and art directors don't have to build walls. Now I print a prop that looks like a wall with the :Anapurna. This helps my customers reduce costs and provides more flexibility for their creativity."

In the Detroit area, SBT Royal Oak are the "go-to-guys" for the film industry. When it's 3AM and the props need to be on set at 8AM, SBT Royal Oak gets the job done.

"We went with the :Anapurna because we wanted to expand our offerings. We aren't focusing solely on the film/TV work. We want to get into more markets, including POP and wholesale work. Resale work is a key area for us and because of the :Anapurna we have booked jobs with a local design school and high-end automotive dealers. We are swamped and it's great!" Hemp added.

The :Anapurna M4f as well as Agfa's full line of inkjet systems were on hand and running live at SGIA 2010, which was held at the Las Vegas Convention Center from October 13th through the 15th.

Large format finishing manufacturer Matic has today appointed Atech Ltd of Welwyn Garden City, sole UK distributor of their range of large format finishing equipment for the soft signage and digital textiles sector.

Atech will stock and have available for demonstration the widest range of finishing equipment for the digital textile industry in the UK including industrial sewing machines/ stitchers, industrial impulse welders and pneumatic eyeleting machines.

The Cronos-L is an ergonomic sewing workstation to create professional seams on items such as flags and banners. It has a table with transport belts that are synchronized with the sewing speed, enabling the machine operator to make long seams without stopping and with constant tension on the thread.

The Rollmatic is a device for rolling up your fabric in a fast and accurate way. It can either be standalone or added to your existing cutting table. With just one operator required for heavy or large products and suitable for all fabrics, the Rollmatic allows you to roll your cut fabric directly onto a cardboard roll.

The Flexicut from Matic is designed especially for the fast and accurate straight cutting of textiles and PVC. With three types of cutting methods available; Ultrasonic Cut for textile fabrics, cutting ad sealing the edge at the same time to avoid fraying; Crush Cut, for glass  fibre coated with PVC and; Rotating Knife Cut for polyester coated PVC. Fully modular, the Flexicut can come with a table with adjustable lateral rule for measuring, a Sensor to detect the end of a fabric, a laser to line up printed fabric and a roll-up device to roll up as fast as possible I order to clear your cutting area for the next operation.

In addition, Atech will be distributing the entire Talos range of eyeleting machines. With two manual, two pneumatic and two automatic versions taking either 40mm or 150mm diameter grommits they are useful tools for automating the punching and inserting of eyelet grommit and washers in one action. In addition there is the Talos HF (High Frequency) eyeletter, used to punch and weld eyelets with high frequency technology. The Talos HF will punch and weld eyelets through 4-6 layers of PVC and yet it is a relatively quiet machine that is easy to use and maintain.

Atech are widely regarded as experts in the UK on large format printing and finishing and focus heavily on only supplying robust and quality-engineered products such as Zund, ATP Textile printers, Roland printers and Seal film & liquid laminators.  They are also specialists in the photographic market and they are exclusive distributors for Chromira Digital PhotoLabs and Unibind Professional PhotoBook Makers.

SGIA 2010 Expo attendees will be the first to see the new :Jeti 3020 Titan. The latest from the :Jeti family of products, the :Jeti 3020 Titan range starts with a 16 head unit delivering an impressive 1,216 ft²/hr(113 m²/hr) and up to a massive 48 heads, at 2,430 ft²/hr(226 m²/hr). In total, the :Jeti 3020 Titan offers ten different levels of speed and capability can be utilized to fit exact business needs.

"Agfa is aggressively developing inkjet systems that will help printers be more competitive. And now with the addition of the Pitman Company's product offerings, we have the inkjet media, finishing solutions and additional printers to offer customers. Print is evolving and we are working collectively to help printers stay ahead of market constraints. New high margin printed and high demand applications like retail signage, tradeshow graphics, fleet graphics are the future," said Deborah Hutcheson, Director of Marketing, Agfa Graphics, North America.

In addition to the new :Jeti 3020 Titan, SGIA attendees will see:

New! :Anapurna 2050 - UV-curable inkjet printer designed to give users a cost-effective solution for speed and 1440 dpi display printing

:Anapurna Mw - produces single-pass pre-white and multi-pass post-white for printing on transparent material, backlit applications, or printing white as a spot color

:Anapurna M4f -- a four-color, flatbed, wide format industrial inkjet printer designed for printing high quality POP, displays, posters, exhibition panels, stage graphics, ad panels and more. With a print resolution of 720x1440 dpi, the M4f prints on a large variety of media up to 63 inches wide. The optional roll-to-roll unit adds additional versatility

New! :Jeti 1224 HDC FTR (flat to roll), a high-productivity UV inkjet printer featuring High Definition Color capabilities will also be running live during the show. This system offers the best true flatbed combined with true roll to roll capability on the market. The 96" wide flatbed architecture of the :Jeti 1224 HDC allows for printing on virtually anything that is reasonably flat up to five cm thick. It is ideally suited for high resolution trade show graphics, POS (Point-of-Sale) displays, real estate signs, backlit signs, lenticular displays, high resolution banners, ceramic tiles, wood and many more flatbed applications

:Jeti 3324 Aquajet -- the #1 fabric printer on the market, prints up to 10.5 feet wide with production speeds of more than 400 ft²/hr. It's a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly alternative to solvent-based fabric technologies

Applications produced on Agfa's :M-Press TIGER a high-speed UV flatbed inkjet press, and :Dotrix high-speed UV web inkjet printing press will also be on hand during the SGIA Expo.

Agfa Graphics and Pitman have also invited several vendor partners into their SGIA booth. The goal of this effort is to provide SGIA 2010 attendees with a complete array of solutions to fit their total business needs. These include inkjet media products from Neschen, Duratex, Avery, 3M, InteliCoat Technologies and 3PTextiles. Agfa Graphics and Pitman vendor partners also include Inkjet Hardware providers, showing products ideal for entry level market:

Epson GS 6000 Low Solvent Printer - 64" Roll-to-Roll printer that delivers unparalleled color gamut, image quality, reliability and print speeds with new safer solvent-based ink technology.

HP L25500 Printer - Users can produce outdoor signage with durability comparable to eco-solvent inks and achieve high-quality results-that meet clients' branding requirements-for all your indoor signage applications, from exhibition graphics to interior decorations. Print on a wide range of media, including coated media or polyester fabric and low-cost papers without treatments.