More than 20,000 visitors thronged the PAMEX 2015, a four-day trade fair on printing technologies and allied fields, organised by AIFMP (All India Federation of Master Printers) and Print- Packaging.com (P) Ltd. A total of 278 exhibitors participated in the show, among which were some big names from the digital large-format printing and signage solutions segment, presenting innovative machines, technologies, services and more.

EFI chalks out plans to help Indian customers

EFI H1625 LED Erez Zimerman

Literally a ‘complete printing solution’ was what EFI presented at their stall, ranging from web-to-print software upto super wideformat inkjet printers, namely MATAN 8QW and EFI H1625 LED, which hauled the crowds looking for unparalleled innovations in large-format printing technologies. Samir Gulve, MD & global VP-engineering, EFI, conveyed how they would upgrade their product portfolio, be it Fiery software, superwide format printers, automated processes, to help boost business of their Indian customers.

“India is among the Top 10 growing printing markets in Asia Pacific Region. We are now focusing on this robust position of the country on the growth trajectory with EFI’s new offerings through acquisitions and partnerships.” Following the acquisitions of big international brands like MATAN, Reggiani and Corrugated Technologies Inc (CTI), EFI has expanded its product portfolio as well as the channel partnership route. Shown for the first time in the region, EFI MATAN QW print & cut inkjet printer, with ‘white ink’ feature, impressed the crowds.

Erez Zimerman, director-marketing, EFI Inkjet, Israel said the dual-purpose operation of the printer saves time and cost for PSPs. “If you own an EFI MATAN QW, you don’t require investing extra in cutting; it cuts so precisely,” he added. Stephen Green, vice president, Asia Pacific, EFI, found the expo encouraging as serious visitors showed their interest in EFI’s ecosystem. “I found a very positive reflection from potential trade visitors and also I saw a stimulating economy in the Indian market for which we would be making our investment at the utmost level.”

Ahmedabad-headquartered Arrow Digital has joined hands with EFI as an authorised distributor of MATAN printers in India. “Our co-strength lies in the way we could take the country’s graphic art industry to the next level,” pronounced Samir Patel, MD & CEO, Arrow Digital Pvt Ltd. EFI’s product line, according to him, has already been quite complete; but the inclusion of MATAN into the portfolio has eventually filled a missing gap and they are looking ahead for more in the new year 2016.

FUJIFILM India’s game-changing Acuity LED UV printer

Flocking of visitors to the stall of FUJIFILM India was for many reasons — one was manifested for showing its Acuity LED 1600 UV large-format inkjet printer. The printer is designed to open up new prospects of UV printing in the current Indian signage and graphic art market. As of now, UV printing is not yet picked up fully in the country’s display graphics segment due to the expensiveness of the technology. Keeping this factor in mind, FUJIFILM introduces Acuity LED 1600 UV inkjet printer, which is a hybrid machine with the most sophisticated engineering behind, making it equally suitable for an office, a studio or a workshop.

SM Ramprasad, assistant vice president, Graphic Art Division, FUJIFILM India Private Limited, asserted that FUJIFILM as a consumable company has earnestly scrutinised the UV ink feature of Acuity LED 1600 UV to make it cost-effective, ruling out the old notion of UV technology costly. “Of course, UV technologies may surely be costlier than the conventional ones. However, we must perceive the prowess of the technology to change the landscape of graphics art industry,” he explained. FUJIFILM Acuity LED 1600 UV inkjet printer is equipped with eight Q-Class printheads, manufactured by Dimatix FUJIFILM, which can run in high speed and control jetting, pinning and curing process accurately.

FUJIFILM India’s game-changing Acuity LED UV printer

Flocking of visitors to the stall of FUJIFILM India was for many reasons — one was manifested for showing its Acuity LED 1600 UV large-format inkjet printer. The printer is designed to open up new prospects of UV printing in the current Indian signage and graphic art market. As of now, UV printing is not yet picked up fully in the country’s display graphics segment due to the expensiveness of the technology. Keeping this factor in mind, FUJIFILM introduces Acuity LED 1600 UV inkjet printer, which is a hybrid machine with the most sophisticated engineering behind, making it equally suitable for an office, a studio or a workshop.

SM Ramprasad, assistant vice president, Graphic Art Division, FUJIFILM India Private Limited, asserted that FUJIFILM as a consumable company has earnestly scrutinised the UV ink feature of Acuity LED 1600 UV to make it cost-effective, ruling out the old notion of UV technology costly. “Of course, UV technologies may surely be costlier than the conventional ones. However, we must perceive the prowess of the technology to change the landscape of graphics art industry,” he explained. FUJIFILM Acuity LED 1600 UV inkjet printer is equipped with eight Q-Class printheads, manufactured by Dimatix FUJIFILM, which can run in high speed and control jetting, pinning and curing process accurately.

HP showcases Designjet applications

HP Designjet Application Gallery

Flaunted at the stall of Hewlett Packard (HP) was a long line of its flagship printers, among which a family of HP Designjet models made a special presence under the ‘HP Designjet Application Gallery’ section. As part of the massive stall of 500 sq m, perhaps the largest in the show, the specially designed gallery shelved immense possibilities in Designjet applications. HP Designjet D5800 production printer and HP Latex 360 were showcased and running live at the gallery to demonstrate their competencies. “These days, PSPs are looking forward to expanding their services and adding new capabilities in the competitive market,” said A Appadurai, country manager, Indigo & Inkjet Solutions, GSB, HP Inc India. He said so pointing at the resourceful possibilities of HP latex and inkjet technologies shown at their stall.

Providing easy integration into the existing low-cost printing environments, HP Designjet D5800 allows copy shops and signage firms to produce high-end prints for POP displays, rollup banners, backlit graphics and interior decors. “This year at PAMEX 2015 we are presenting all the possibilities from HP to help our customers who wish to stay ahead in the tough market situations,” asserted A Appadurai, adding that they are now fuelling the industry to transform into fully digitised world that can help everyone garner high-value jobs.

HP Designjet D5800 is a 60-inch dye ink production printer designed for non-stop operation at the speed of 128 sq m/hr in fast mode and 24 sq m/hr in production mode for polypropylene. This printer is quite user friendly as it can be easily maintained in-house with easy-to-replace printhead and automatic (printhead) cleaning. Shown along it was HP Latex 360, which is a workhorse to print on traditional signage medias and beyond. Unique characteristic of this printer is its capability to penetrate into the areas where solvent could hardly do, such as the use of odourless print using latex ink.

Mehta Cad Cam Systems presents revolutionary products

“A new revolution in laser engraving and ecosolvent printing,” was the one liner cheerfully responded by Shailesh Mehta, director, Mehta Cad Cam Systems Pvt Ltd, when asked what all new attractions would be showing at the expo. Certainly, the newly launched ME 3030 Series laser engraver demonstrated at their stall pulled a huge crowd attentively examining the machine’s outstanding competency in moulding and engraving. “This engraving machine is compatible with brass, aluminium and mild steel; we have indigenously engineered it for suitable applications like fancy wedding cards, table top displays, gift items and such things,” narrated Shailesh Mehta. Included in the range of products being displayed at their stall, Thunderjet A1802s eco-solvent, Gongzheng 3202SG solvent, Spirit LS laser engraver and Jaguar-II plotter were the main crowd pullers and some of the highly demanded printers/ machines from Mehta Cad Cam Systems in the signage market of Indian subcontinent. “Gongzheng 3202SG is one of the versatile printers in our portfolio. It’s equipped with Spectra Starfire printhead and capable to run as fast as 248 sq m/hr,” explained Shailesh, adding that the added features of the printer include its enhanced drying system and multiple rolls feeding, which conventional models seldom possess. Defined as new competence in eco-solvent technology, Thunderjet A1802s is a solution to speed printing as this six-feet model is now upgraded to 30 percent faster than the others in the class; it runs at the speed of 20.1 sq m/h (3 pass) to produce 360x1080 dpi resolution.

RICOH Pro L4160 demonstrated

Since the introduction of the large-format production printers, RICOH Pro L4160/ L4130, RICOH has been leveraging to make its prominent presence in the signage segment, by presenting the versatile printers at printing expos across the globe. At the stall of RICOH India in the recent PAMEX 2015, RICOH Pro L4160 was attractively presented, showing the visitors a new avenue to enhance their existing signage printing business or branch it out to a new direction. “Featured with patented technologies, our Pro large-format graphic printers are designed for high-quality prints, in smoother colour gradation,” mentioned Umang Singhal, national business & marketing manager, production printing, RICOH India Limited.

Hugely versatile, RICOH Pro L4160 is featured with orange, green inks with ‘white ink’ option, which make this printer capable to deliver brighter images and greater colour gamut—upto 93 percent of the pantone range, allowing the reproduction of corporate colours accurately. “The ‘white ink’ option available in the printer allows PSPs to enjoy the freedom of choices from a wider range of applications to choose from; for example, transparent stickers and clear backlit films,” narrated Umang. The printer comes with RICOH Software RIP, an easy-to-use driver, making the printer even easier in operation.

RICOH Pro L4160/L4130 printers use latex inks suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications. These eco-friendly inks produce minimal volatile organic compounds and hazardous air particles, making the printers safe even in the facility where there is no special ventilation. Low curing temperature of the printers allow them to print on wide varieties of heat sensitive medias, such as films, textiles, papers and vinyl sheets at the speed of 18.2 sq m/hr, considerably the best productivity in its class.

Canon optimises technology for in-shop graphics

Alongside the big launches and showcases of its range of colour digital presses, Canon India presented a select set of imagePROGRAF series large-format printers—44” iPF8410SE and 24” iPF6410SE. Puneet Datta, director, PPP Group, Canon India, said that their inclusive showcase of products at the show had been an update on machines and technologies evolving at a fast pace and technological innovations as key driving force to run parallel with the market demands and trends surfacing in the current graphics art segment. “We continuously innovate and bring in versatility to our product offerings,” he added, referring to the complete universe of printing technologies shown.

Certainly, presentation of imagePROGRAF series at their stall revealed fresh optimization in in-shop graphics or interior branding prints. The models are designed for instant poster printing as the systems are equipped with new 6-ink system that includes red ink for incredibly vibrant colour in POPs, POSs and such applications. Also showcased at their stall were a set of Oce PlotWave series, among which Oce PlotWave 500 was a fresh launch at the show. The newly unpacked Oce PlotWave series offers faster printing with the speed of 10 A1- size prints per minute. Sold during the show, Oce PlotWave 500 is meant for architectural, engineering, construction and manufacturing prints.

EPSON launches new SureColor SC-P Series

PAMEX 2015 was used as ‘launch pad’ for EPSON to unveil its latest SureColor SC-P Series. Introduced during the show was SC-P9000, designed for the most exacting colour proofing applications and many others like in-shop branding or interior graphics. “This newly introduced next-generation SC-P Series is equipped with PrecisionCore Thin Film Piezo (TFP) printhead, which produces images accurate in details and superior in fidelity,” explained Milind Chavan, manager-sales and marketing, EPSON India Pvt Ltd. He added that the UltraChrome all-pigments ink sets of the printer deliver outstanding colour accuracy and image durability in ultra-high resolutions.

EPSON SureColor SCP9000 boasts of its wide colour gamut that in turn helps print/signage shops get the most dynamic images. The printer also seamlessly integrates with most of the industry-leading software solutions. Apart from SC Series, EPSON showcased its line of popular printers including Stylus PRO series and others at their stall during the expo. Milind said the newly introduced SC-P9000 received tremendous enquiries from the visitors right from the first day of the expo and it was sold on the second day.

Resounding success of the PAMEX 2015 as well as the growing interest of trade visitors in digital large-format/signage printing subsequently showed a rocketed growth curve in the industry, with expansions in all parameters.

Next edition of the show will return to the same city at the same venue from December 18-21, 2017.

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