Canon USA
Canon USA made a huge impression at Graph Expo with award-winning Canon and Océ technologies designed to help printers increase productivity, decrease costs and generate more revenue. Demonstrations covered collateral creation, book publishing, proofing, direct mail, display graphics and transactional printing. From image capture and design tools to high-volume production market solutions, their solutions were comprehensive and included:
- Canon imagePROGRAF iPF6450/iPF6400. These 12-colour, 24″ large-format printers are designed for photographers, artists and the proofing industry. The imagePROGRAF iPF6450 printer was shown with an optional SU-21 spectrophotometer that provides advanced colour management, including the ability to obtain colour consistency across multiple iPFX400 series printers.
- Canon imagePROGRAF iPF9400S. This 60″ large-format printer utilizing Canon’s 8-colour LUCIA EX pigment ink set features borderless printing up to 60″. An excellent solution for tradeshow graphics, production printing and commercial photography, this printer produces fine details and bold colour at high speeds while reducing operation costs.
- Canon imagePROGRAF iPF8400. The 44″, large-format printer utilizes Canon’s 12-colour LUCIA EX ink set and includes a new Multi-sensor that provides improved colour density detection and allows for a full calibration to be completed within 15 minutes, as well as the ability to use non-Canon-branded media.
- Océ Arizona 550GT. This standard-size table, high-volume production UV flatbed printer is able to print on almost any rigid media or object.
- Océ ColorWave 650. This poster printer is designed for high speed, cost-effective printing of short-term, short-run posters and signage. It can accommodate up to six online media rolls and offers media flexibility from inexpensive 20-lb. bond through high-quality polypropylene.
Fujifilm Inca Onset S40i
For the first time in the U.S., Fujifilm N.A.’s Graphic Systems Division featured the Inca Onset S40i flatbed UV inkjet printer with many new features that raised the bar for what was already the fastest flatbed series in the world. Onset meets the high-volume, fast-turnaround production needs of commercial offset as well as display graphics printers, using 168 user-replaceable Fujifilm Dimatix printheads (28 per colour) on a full-width print array. Key new features include: reduced bed masking (for substrates thinner than 3mm), innovative UV sensor system (constantly monitors the machine condition and informs the operator when automatic cleaning is required), and sophisticated substrate height detector for enhanced substrate and printhead protection. The Inca Onset S40i produces superb POP-quality display graphics at 5,059 ft2, the equivalent to 94 full beds per hour (123″ x 63″) and onto substrates up to 2″ thick. The S40i is ideal for single and double-sided display POP, exhibition graphics, backlit/frontlit displays, outdoor signage printing and cosmetic/fashion graphics, etc. It can also be operated manually or with semi or three-quarter automation from the same configuration. For variable data printing, it also supports Inca’s Print Run Controller (PRC) software.
Mimaki JV400LX
This series of new wide-format latex printers – JV400 130LX (53″) and the JV400 160LX (63″) – boasts lower drying temperatures, a greener working environment and reduced operating costs. Lower drying temperatures provide more substrate versatility, while reduced VOCs require no special ventilation and provide for a cleaner working environment. The JV400LX is also the first latex printer to use white ink for printing on a wider range of media, including transparent PET, window decoration, and shatterproof film. The printer also utilizes Mimaki Circulation Technology (MCT), a newly developed white ink circulation system that prevents pigment sedimentation and reduces ink waste. The technology also includes two newly developed piezo printheads with four rows of 320 nozzles per head for top quality, high speed variable dot printing.
EFI VUTEk GS3250LX
The fully-loaded EFI VUTEk GS3250LX is a production-level LED UV-curing printer designed to lower total cost of ownership over the printer’s lifetime. It produces more jobs, extends application offerings and lowers operating costs with cool-cure technology and high productivity features. It is an ideal flatbed and roll-to-roll printer if you want to satisfy customers’ requests for greener printing. The VUTEk GS3250LX contains no VOCs, uses less consumables, produces less waste, uses less energy and has the ability to print on recycled and other materials without warping or head strikes. It delivers high-definition POP graphics with true 1,000 dpi and advanced three-layer white ink printing, produces more jobs and turns them faster with continuous board productivity up to fifty-five 4′ x 8′ (1.2m x 2.4m) boards per hour.
Roland SolJet Pro 4 XR-640 Printer/Cutter
At 64″ wide, the XR-640 combines accelerated print speeds with Roland’s renowned integrated print/cut technology, an innovative new printhead design, 7-colour and 8-colour configurations and new Eco-Sol Max2 inks in nine colours – CMYK plus light cyan (Lc), light magenta (Lm), white (Wh), metallic silver (Mt) and new light black (Lk). The XR-640 has a dual inline printhead configuration that yields outstanding image quality at a maximum speed of 49.1 m2/h (528.1 sq. ft./hr). It fires droplets of 7 different sizes for exceptionally smooth gradations and flawless solid colours. Integrated contour cutting produces graphics of any shape in one seamless workflow. Popular applications include banners, signage, POP, decals, labels, vehicle graphics, backlit displays, building wraps, package prototypes and photographic reproductions. It prints and then automatically contour cuts images into any shape.
Ricoh Pro L4000
The Ricoh Pro L400 series features the next-generation of Ricoh’s piezo-electric printheads with durable latex ink in five colours: CMYK and white. It offers extensive media support on a range of substrates and is ideal for the environmentally conscious buyer of printed signage, POP and indoor and outdoor display. It will be available in North America and Europe in the first quarter of 2013. The aqueous nature of the latex ink means that is has a low environmental impact, while the introduction of a white ink means optimized colour vividness on transparent or coloured materials. The L4000 multiple jetting printhead technology produces three different drop sizes at once, as small as four picolitres in size. The result is smooth, lifelike images every time. The printer’s extensive media support enables clients to order print on a wide range of substrates such as PVC, tarpaulin, synthetic paper, coated-paper, non-coated paper, textiles and more.
Epson America SureColor Series
Joining the SureColor S30670, these new printers use the Epson MicroPiezo TFP printhead to bring previously unseen levels of quality, performance and value to the signage, vehicle graphics and fine art markets. Under development for over 20 years, this is the first time this revolutionary dual-array printhead is being used with a solvent ink technology. Featured on the SureColor S50670 is Epson UltraChrome GS2 ink that delivers up to five colours with a radical new high-density white ink to accommodate a broad range of indoor and outdoor signage. The all-new Epson UltraChrome GSX ink featured on the SureColor S70670 delivers up to ten colours (a technology first for solvent printers), including an optional white and silver metallic, as well as a first-ever standard light black for improved grayscale and reduced metamerism to deliver a level of image quality and colour gamut previously unattainable in a solvent printer.
Hewlett-Packard Designjet Series
Of the two new HP Designjet latex printers introduced recently, I’m opting for a closer look at the smaller of these two units because it’s available now. The second, larger L28500 model will be ready to ship in the new year, but the Designjet L26500 is joining the European latex tour in this country Nov.15. One of the small additions that marks HP’s acknowledgment that soft signage is a market for which this technology is well suited, is the extra inch of width. The move to a maximum width of 1.55m (61″) is significant because it means that people wanting to print to digital textiles can now do so as this is a common size. There are few differences in appearance between the old and new Designjet L machines, but some hard work has been going on behind the scenes in terms of enhancements. One of the most noticeable is a neat loading accessory which, combined with the edge holder, makes it easier to keep materials stable during production. There’s also a double-sided option that works best with HP’s matched media, plus the latest version of the ink, designated HP 792, which has been Eco-Mark-Certified by the Japan Environment Association. What is of particular relevance in both machines is their ability to work with materials suitable for soft-sign production. This can be extended into interior décor and other lightweight graphics applications such as exhibition stands and banners.
Xanté Excelagraphix 4200
The Xanté Excelagraphix 4200 Inkjet Print System features the revolutionary Memjet Waterfall Printhead Technology that delivers more than 3 billion drops of ink per second, for print speeds up to 8 times faster than traditional inkjet technology. It is ideal for over-sized architectural/engineering documents, maps, indoor signage, POP displays, packaging, folding cartons, corrugated boxes, newspapers, and more – all on-demand. The adjustable media path can print on a wide variety of media (including extremely thick foam board and corrugated cardboard) and sheet sizes (from 8.27″ x 8.27″ up to 42″ x 50′). You can also personalize individual pieces as you print, running variable data at full speed.