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Vivid signage solutions converge at drupa 08
Vivid signage solutions converge at drupa 08”
drupa 2008, surely lived upto its
expectations, further developing its global
significance and attracting around 3,91,000
visitors from 138 countries. The expo was
truly digital for both narrow as well as large
format, with a host of new offerings from the
established players in the field.
The world’s largest and most important
fair for the printing and media industrydrupa
(May 29-June 11, 2008) – far
exceeded the expectations of the visitors as
well as exhibitors. At the end of the 14-day
fair, the 1,971 exhibitors from 52 countries
were unanimous in reporting an extremely
high number of promising contacts and
successful deals. “drupa 2008 has sent out a
clear signal: thanks to numerous innovations
and new fields of business the print media
sector is as agile as ever,” summarised Albrecht
Bolza-Schünemann, drupa president and CEO
at Koenig & Bauer AG. “This is clearly
reflected in the numerous deals concluded
with virtually all key business regions.” Overall,
drupa exhibitors announced deals worth
more than Euro 10 b. Sectoral insiders
suspect the actual investment sum to be
considerably higher.
Around 391,000 visitors from 138 countries
and 3,000 journalists from 84 countries
travelled to Düsseldorf to gather information
on innovations, further developments and new
fields of business. Accounting for 59 % of
visitors the proportion of international visitors
rose by four percent, over the last event four
years ago.
A clearly positive response was also recorded
on the specialist supporting programme. With
its over 130 exhibitors as hub for innovations
in the digital supplies sector, the drupa
innovation parc reported an extremely
successful initiative. New in 2008 drupacube
at the exhibition centre provided a symposium
centre for print buyers at the fair. Payable at
an extra charge, these nine focal days
prompted more than 830 print buyers to
attend drupa. The exhibition “Outstanding
Print Products from throughout the World”
went down very well with drupa visitors and
different firms and used the drupacube as a
party location for their staff parties. Another
highlight was the Xing party where different
Xing groups celebrated deep into the night of
June 7, 2008 under the motto “print sells”.
Here are the highlights of the major exhibitors
from the signage industry:
Agfa: The company’s stylish stand caught the
eye of the crowd and their innovative
solutions met with general approval from
numerous print professionals.
The first generation of Agfa Graphics’ inkjet
systems met with great success at drupa. The
company sold Anapurna wide format printers,
Dotrix single-pass inkjet presses and high-end
M-Press industrial inkjet presses for a total
value of approximately 15 million Euro. In the
wide format UV arena, Agfa Graphics took
orders from all over the world for over 100
systems, with the new Anapurna XLS,
launched at the show, as a star performer.
Anapurna XLS, a new wide format UV inkjet
is a 2.5 m wide printer, available with choice
of speeds. It uses Agfa’s Universal Print Head
technology with 1,440 dpi maximum
resolution. Also launched at drupa were
Anapurna My and M4f, new variants of 1.6 m
wide M model, which can print on both rigid
and roll-fed media. My is an entry-level UV
inkjet, whereas M4f is for industrial use as it
is designed for heavy workload.
While speaking to journalists, Richard Berhan,
VP, inkjet said, “We want to double the
turnover in India. We are already very successful
in newspaper and pressroom supply as well.”
Croma: The Croma Digipress, a high speed
wide format digital press is a perfect fit for
urban advertising system, it opens the new
market of the short runs by allowing one to
print paper posters at high speed in the
shortest time.
The Croma Digipress joined the very selective
club of the high speed wide format digital
printing with the maximum speed of
350 sqmts/hr in 4-colour and resolution of
upto 600 dpi at drupa.
Canon: The company demonstrated new XPS
solutions at drupa 2008, using Software
Imaging’s PrintMagicXPS raster image
processor (RIP) and XPSDrv driver, specifically
designed for Canon’s large format printers
(LFPs), to print CAD and general office
documents on the new LP17. The accurate,
high-speed XPS rendering results in high line
fidelity for CAD applications and an exact
rendition of colour, making Canon’s LFPs
perfectly suited for the output of technical
drawings and office printing where colour
accuracy is key. According to Jon Williams,
group product manager for Software Imaging,
“We are very pleased to have the opportunity
to demonstrate XPS printing with
Canon at drupa. Since PrintMagicXPS supports
accurate colours through to 16-bit/channel
colour rendering, Canon’s large format printers
can take full advantage of these XPS solutions,
ensuring that colour fidelity is maintained
throughout the printing process – which results
in stunning output.”
Durst: Durst launched the Rho SP 60 inkjet
with a printing speed of 1050 m²/h at drupa
and demonstrated a new quality standard for
industrial roll-to-roll. The Rho SP 60 (Single
Pass) is an industrial inkjet printer capable of
printing at speeds up to 35 m/min in CMYK
on a range of different materials including,
cork, MDF, ceramic tiles, cardboard for
packaging, plaster ceiling panels, plastics, and
many more, up to a thickness of 3 mm and a
width of 63 cm.
It is the world’s first industrial scale high speed
direct digital printer for the decoration of
wood panels. It offers significant economic
benefits as well as exciting design advantages
over traditional methods. With this
technology, one can create an unlimited range
of panels with different designs and by using
several designs at the same time each panel
can become unique.
Also launched was the new Rho 320R UV
inkjet printer that established a new quality
standard for industrial roll-to-roll printing.
Precision components developed and
perfected by Durst, such as the innovative
Quadro Array printhead technology and the
new print carriage concept, which includes a
magnetic linear drive system, are important
features of the Rho 320R. The unique and
reliable high quality ‘white’ printing option,
the light colour option and the enhanced user
software with an integrated maintenance
programme further support this new
quality standard.
Eckart: With JETFLUID, ECKART offers the
world’s first metallic digital ink for industrial
digital printing. This digital ink offers
completely new perspectives for print
production, as the use of metallic colours in
digital printing to date was unavailable. Starting
with a solvent based silver inkjet ink the
product portfolio will soon be expanded to
UV and water borne systems.
Over the last two years, Eckart has put
considerable resources into developing
decorative metallic digital drop-on-demand
inks. The first of these is a solvant based ink
developed for Epson print engines
demonstrated on a Mimaki JV 3160. As the
products will need to be tailored to specific
print engines and printing machines a whole
line of products will emerge under the
JETFLUID brand name. The company is
currently working with most important
printhead manufacturers, printing machinery
producers and system integrators to qualify
products for the individual systems.
EFI VUTEk: The company previewed the VUTEk DS series digital high speed, flatbed
UV printer, which provides a digital solution
for the production of POP-quality graphics at
breakthrough speed with the advantages of
UV technology and digital economics. The
models displayed during the show were nonworking
models, so visitors missed the chance
to witness the actual action. This series is a
new category of high speed digital flatbed
printers, representing a tipping point in
productivity, image quality and flexibility. It
signifies a call to action for both analog screen
printers and leading edge digital printers in
terms of new economics and capabilities now
available with digital print. The innovative DS
Series design and architecture enables the
cost-effective production of higher volume
jobs than ever before possible using a digital
press. The incredible speed and resolution
made possible by the DS Series’ innovative
high density print array sets this VUTEk printer
apart from all other competitive offerings
available in the market today.
VUTEk’s super high-speed digital flatbed DS
Series produces sellable output at up to 557
square meters (6,000 square feet) per hour
and uses a unique high productivity UV curing
system, newly engineered from the ground
up, to provide full curing at the fastest speeds.
The DS Series accommodates a wide range of
rigid and cut-sheet materials with a maximum
media size of 1.6 meters by 2.4 meters (63
inches by 96 inches), up to 5.08 cm (two
inches) thick.
Epson: The company displayed Stylus Pro
7900 and 9900, which boast high resolutions
and advanced ink and colour, especially
conceived for art prints and proofs. With their
11 new UltraChrome HDR pigment inks,
including orange and green, one gets a large
palette of colours as well as soft colour
gradation. The smaller of the two printers,
the Stylus Pro 7900 has a printing width of 24
inches, while the larger 9900 offers 44 inches.
Both printers use the new TFP technology,
which gives a resolution of 2,880 by 1,440dpi
and produces droplet sizes starting from 3.5
picoliters. The system uses Epson variable ink
droplet technology and operates at speeds of
up to 40 m² per hour. The prints produced
are said to have a durability of up to 200 years.
At the Epson booth, the first solvent printer
from Epson, the Stylus Pro GS6000, was also
displayed. This model, with a printing width
of 1.626 metres, is equipped with the capacity
to produce water and UV resistant,
scratchproof and quick drying prints for indoor
and outdoor. When printing with special solvent
inks, no VOCs are said to be set free, since
the inks are based on ecological solvents where
no additional ventilation is needed.
Esko: The company displayed a new line of
high-performance Kongsberg XP tables
specifically targeted at short-run digital
converting. SignUp, a powerful but easy-touse
layout program for digital sign and display
applications, made the i-XE and i-XL tables
even more productive and cost efficient.
Fujifilm: At drupa 08, Fujifilm Corporation
unveiled their wide format printers line up,
with ‘something for everyone’ from the highest
performance UV flatbeds to an entry-level rollto-
roll printer – all featuring Fujifilm
Sericol inks.
The recently launched high-end printer Onset
from Inca Digital at drupa had represented a
breakthrough in digital printing technology,
allowing Fujifilm to offer the world’s highest
productivity of 500sqm/hr. Also launched a
mid-range printer, the Fujifilm Acuity, capable
of near-photographic image reproduction, has
been highly successful since its introduction
as a flatbed printer for PoP applications.
Additionally, the latest variant of the
bestselling Inca Spyder 320 had also
demonstrated live and features the Ultratone
system to give extended colour gamut plus white.
While entry-level printer at drupa, Fujifilm
made a product technology announcement
with a new XP200 printer, featuring the latest
technology Fujifilm Dimatix printheads,
designed for a range of applications from high
resolution close up prints to PoP printing. This
unique printer also features on-board colour
measurement giving improved colour profiling
and increased efficiency. In addition to the
products featured, there were also the
demonstrations of finishing equipment, 3D
image reproduction.
Gandinnovations: The company, a world
leader in grand format digital printer
innovations showcased its top-of-the-range
products at this drupa. Key highlights included
the introduction of the new NanoJet UV True
flatbed digital printer, the new Jeti 3348
Jetstream UV RTR digital printer and the
award-winning Jeti 3324 Aquajet direct-tofabric
digital printer as well as its full Jeti range
of grand format digital printers.
Specifically designed to print photo-realistic
quality outputs, the NanoJet uses 24 Spectra
high performance printheads. Equipped with
a silicone nozzle plate, this 15 pico liter head
is specifically designed to deliver high
resolution droplets. Printing at speeds of 220
sqft/hr (20.4 sqm/hr) in high quality mode with
superb results, the NanoJet has a print area
of 4’ x 8’ and prints in 6 colors at 1200 dpi,
using Gandinnovations UV-curable branded
inks. The NanoJet may become a true winner
for any printshop needing to output a high
quality product. With capability to print on
glass, acrylics, dibond, aluminum, wood, steel,
coroplast, formboard, styrene and much more.
Gandinnovations also presented the Jeti 3348
Jetstream UV RTR, their brand new 3-meter
UV RTR digital printer, which prints at
lightning speeds of 2500 sqft/hr (230 sqm/
hr) in a 4-colour configuration; Jeti 3324
Aquajet direct-to-fabric digital printer;
and Jeti 2030 X-2 UV True flatbed
digital printer.
HP: HP announced theri latest digital printing
products and technologies, which are
designed to enable graphic arts customers
to build their competitive advantage
and successfully pursue profitable growth
opportunities. These included the HP
104-inch Designjet L65500 Printer – the first
of a new category of large-format signage
printers with HP Latex Inks that reduce the
impact of printing on the environment and
offer broad outdoor and indoor application
versatility, while delivering quality and
durability at high print speeds. Print service
providers can expand their offerings with this
single, versatile printer that can produce a
variety of outdoor and indoor applications –
from point-of-purchase displays, transit
signage, wall murals and exhibition graphics
to vehicle graphics and fleet marking – while
delivering quality and durability at high print
speeds. Prints produced with HP Latex Inks
are odourless and emit extremely low levels
of volatile organic compounds. No special
ventilation is required to meet occupational
exposure limits.
According to Santi Morera, vice president and
general manager, large-format printing
commercial solutions, Imaging and Printing
Group, HP, “We want to make sure that we
are providing the best solutions for our
customers and the environment. The HP
Designjet L65500 printer with HP Latex Inks
offers print service providers a compelling new
alternative that allows them to expand the
variety of environmentally-conscious outdoor
and indoor applications they can offer while
also improving their overall printing
atmosphere.”
The company also launched new large-format
media – including five recyclable substrates
that are compatible with HP Latex Printing
Technologies. Using a new, proprietary HP media
surface-treatment technology, HP Tyvek
Banner and HP High Density Polyethylene
Reinforced Banner provide high image quality
and durability when printing with HP Latex
Inks or HP low-solvent inks.
Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president of
HP’s Imaging and Printing Group, during his
presentation in the jam-packed hall on the
opening day of drupa’08, said, “Driving a Print
2.0 revolution, focusing the internet and
printing, in a new era to transform and move
the industry forward, HP is growing apace,
making printing relevant, with new digitallybased
technologies, powered by the internet,
driving real-time collaboration, fueling
dynamic content creation and poised for
unprecedented growth. Key enabler internet
is driving parity to accelerate adoption, with
tipping points, including speed, cost and
quality in regard of organization,
personalization and customisation.”
Vyomesh further revealed, “As analog screen
printing limits efficiency, productivity, causing
low margins, it is opportunity to capture bigger
share of growing digital market in the world
of signage. As per our estimate, there is $21
billion market opportunity for signage segment
globally. With “turn-key” solutions enabling
higher margins and ensuring brand consistency
across applications, HP digital publishing
ecosystem is the best option for that. Britten,
under their landmark project for Daytona
Motor Speedway, printed a series of 18m x
15m outdoor banners for the 50th Daytona
500 and over 14,000 square metres were
printed under two weeks, achieving colour
gamut and consistency across large and small
banners.”
Konica: The company displayed a new piezo
on-demand printhead with 1024 nozzles. The
new KM1024 inkjet printhead features 1024
nozzles, twice the number of the nozzles of
the KM512 series, which has been favourably
accepted in the industrial market. The
printhead width of the KM1024 measures
72mm, double that of the KM512 series
currently available in the market, greatly
enhances the productivity. Technologically, the
newly developed actuator structure, coupled
with the increased head width, contributes
to the enhancement of piezoelectric efficiency
and allows the printhead to be driven at a
lower voltage, resulting in lower power
consumption. In addition, the new IC
incorporated in the product allows images to
be printed with eight tone levels, ensuring
higher quality printed images. A slim design
of KM1024 allows users to design compact
print unit with multiple printhead units. It is
also compatible with various types of inks,
including solvent, oil, UV and aqueous inks to
better serve industrial needs, and respective
models are scheduled to be added to its
product line.
Full-colour inkjet printer, KMIJ-X Printer
(reference exhibit), incorporating high
performance KM512 printhead suitable for
printing colour-proof sheets, packages, and
graphic posters, was also demonstrated at the
booth for the first time. It enables to print at
maximum width of 44 inches with 720dpi/
1440dpi resolution on various media –
coated paper, uncoated paper, PVC,
synthetic paper, etc.
Matan: Matan, the original innovator of the
Super-wide Format (SWF) digital printing
industry, presented the next generation of
their Barak5 - now offering production speed
of over 300 m²/hr, while maintaining its
versatility and high print quality. Live
demonstrations of the Barak line were given
during the show.
According to Hanan Yosefi, president and
CEO, “Matan is constantly seeking new ways
of improving their products and meet the
most demanding customers’ requirements.
The new Barak5 allows users to improve
productivity and the overall performance of
their print shop, while enhancing quality for
their customers.”
The Barak is a SWF line of digital printers,
using UV-curable inks, available in 5m & 3.5m
widths, easy to operate and said to be
guaranteeing a low total cost of ownership. It
incorporates leading print-head technology,
featuring 32 print-heads with drop sizes
starting at 30 picoliter for high-quality output.
Its extended colour gamut and flexible inks
(Barak UV 300) enable it to target a wide
range of demanding applications.
Barak is the only 5m wide UV, hybrid printer
in the market that handles both flexible and
rigid materials, either coated or uncoated. Its
optional multi-roll feature enables the Barak
to easily print on up to three rolls
simultaneously, making it the perfect solution
for printing in demanding production
environments. In addition, the printer can run
at various printing modes from POP quality
to billboards beyond 300 m²/hr – no ink
switching needed – which saves precious
production time as well as significantly
improving ink consumption.
In addition, Matan exhibited the flagship of
its Thermal Transfer product line – the Matan
SprinG, an industrial 12 inch (30 cm), roll-toroll
digital printer, designed for fast, durable,
short runs with vivid colours for labels, decals,
membranes, traffic and other signs.
Matan’s Thermal Transfer product line also
features the Matan Spot4 - A unique, industrial
36'’ wide (91.5 cm) digital printer, perfect for
short-run productions of window decoration
and traffic applications. The Spot4 enables
printing up to 4 colours in one pass using
special “etching” ink for imitating traditional
sandblasting and creating permanent and
customized images on glass.
Meital: At the recently concluded drupa,
One Solution unveiled SA Meital-3000 10 UV
flatbed printer for advertising POP POS with
Xaar HSS 1001 grayscale printheads. This
flatbed printer is the first printer to harness
the Xaar HSS 1001 printhead.
Based in Belgium, One Solution is a new
company established by experienced people
from wide-format inkjet printing industry and
other fields. And Meital is a company formed
by the engineers coming out from NUR.
Mimaki: The company unveiled the hybrid
UJV-160, a 60" roll-to-roll large format UV
curable inkjet printer. Since the printer utilises
UV LED curing technology, the curing heat
emitted by the UV lamps is very low.
Therefore, this printer can accommodate heat
sensitive media, such as PVC, which could not
be printed upon before. Also for printing on
rigid materials, an optional table is available.
UV LED curing technology cuts the power
consumption of the printer by about one forth
in comparison to conventional UV curing
methods. Through elimination of ozone
generation during the curing process, the
technology is far more environment-friendly
and results in far less harmful working
environments for operators.
The company also displayed JF (JF-1610 and
JF-1631) UV curable inkjet printer series,
which offers users the possibility of direct
digital printing on large uncoated substrates,
such as corrugated plastics, polyacrylics and
uneven or irregular materials with resolutions
of up to 1200 dpi at affordable prices. Both,
JF-1631 and JF-1610, can be used for ondemand
production of smaller items for various
industries or jobs for larger applications, such
as PoS displays. The effective maximum print
area is 160 x 310 cm (JF-1631) and 160 x 100
cm on the JF-1610.
Besides the UV curable roll-to-roll inkjet
printer, Mimaki also showcased their
productive JV5-160 solvent printer for the sign
market, which can print up to 1.6 m in width,
with a top speed of 58 m2/h at 540 x 720 dpi
in 4-colour mode.
Another innovation exhibited, IPH-300-L
achieves a standard resolution of 600 x 600
dpi and can also be operated at a resolution of
600 x 1200 dpi for highest quality label
production. Available with and without variable
dot printing capabilities (four different sizes),
the machine is equipped with a high speed
RIP and processing features.
Mutoh Europe: The company showcased
their latest innovations in the field of digital
inkjet printing technology for commercial print
applications, including their proprietary i²
Intelligent Interweaving technology, drastically
improving overall print quality and operator
convenience. Apart from the latest Mutoh
printer equipment, drupa visitors discovered
Mutoh’s new wide-format UV inkjet printer,
called Zephyr, engineered and developed at
Mutoh’s European R&D centre.
Zephyr is a CMYK 64" (165 cm) professional
UV inkjet printer for roll-to-roll printing (vinyl,
flex, mesh, PVC, soft sign, etc). The printer
also handles rigid boards up to a thickness of
20 mm. It incorporates 4 high-end Xaar
variable drop heads, offering high image quality
combined with high productivity. The heads
produce droplets as small as 8 picoliter
resulting in pin sharp text and line art, whilst
larger drops (16, 24, 32 & 40 pl) ensure
excellent image saturation. Enabling 6 levels
of greyscale, which is equivalent to 6 densities
of CMYK, the printheads eliminate the need
for extra process colours.
The company also showcased thier awardwinning
Blizzard series printer, available in 165
cm (65") and 224 cm (90") widths.
Visitors also witnessed Mutoh’s ValueJet family
of Eco-Solvent Ultra printers, i.e. the new
ValueJet 1614 eco ultra printer. ValueJet 1614
is a 165 cm (64") wide printer, which
incorporates a newly designed vertical cassette
slot system, enhancing printer ergonomics and
increasing ink capacity (440 ml), leading to
lower production costs / m².
Océ: The company announced that they are
set to transform the wide format printing
industry with the launch of the new printing
technology called Océ CrystalPoint.
Customers can now enjoy consistent high
quality toner prints in wide format colour, and
the first system to utilise this new technology
is the new Océ ColorWave 600.
The Océ ColorWave 600 delivers CrystalPoint
quality prints on plain paper with world-class
productivity for a wide range of applications.
The 1-metre wide printer holds up to six media
rolls and prints at speeds of up to 31 seconds
per A0 sheet. This, said Océ, offers the best
of both toner and inkjet technologies using
patented Océ TonerPearls.
Océ claims their CrystalPoint technology is
ideal for a wide range of applications including
CAD plots, GIS documents and business
graphs. Mass-market retailers can rapidly
produce high quality colour signage with
attractive prices to localise promotions and
optimise sales opportunities.
The company also demonstrated the Océ
Arizona 250 GT digital flatbed printing system,
with a roll-to-roll option. This add-on enables
users to print rolls and simultaneously prepare
the next print job on the fixed-installation
suction table. With one and the same system,
customers can print signage, displays and
banners, posters and backlit signs in superlative
quality and at ultra-fast speed.
Roland DG: Visitors to the company’s booth
saw the Roland Gallery – a showcase of
inspirational products that stretches far
beyond traditional signs, posters and banners.
The Roland Gallery featured snowboards,
sports wear, serving trays, roller-blinds and
even shoes, lampshades, a fridge and a grand
piano, all adorned with prints produced with
Roland DG machines.
A trip to Roland DG’s 111m² booth got the
opportunity for everyone to see the company’s
SolJet PRO III XC-540W with CMYK plus
white ink, which can be used to print an
extensive variety of applications or used
as an undercoat to create stunning effects
on a broad range of substrates. Along with
this new technology, Roland DG’s stand
also featured the latest in the world’s
best-selling series of printer/cutters, the
VersaCAMM VP-300/540 and the SolJet Pro
III XC-540 and XJ-640, as well as the
AdvancedJet AJ-740.
Seiko Infotech: The company previewed a
new 104-inch solvent inkjet printer, the
“ColorPainter H-104S,” which achieves the
class-fastest printing speed of 55 sqm/h with
8 colours while maintaining extremely
high image quality and density. This printer
achieves this speed by utilizing eight superwide,
piezo inkjet heads. The speed is
revolutionary because it is approximately 1.5
– 2 times faster than competing models in the
same price/width class.
The new inkjet heads offer true 720 dpi
resolution and bigger droplet sizes by firing
multiple drops to maximize ink density levels
– even at high print speeds. The printer offers
new “mild solvent” ink set that has excellent
colour and adhesion. The printer comes with
8 heads and can be configured two unique
ways: eight colours with one head per colour
(Y, M, C, K, Lc, Lm, Grey and Light Grey) for
maximum image quality, or four colours with
2 heads per colour (Y. M, C, K) and thus can
almost double the speed for maximum
productivity.
The new ColorPainter H-104S incorporates
new features, “Smart Pass Technology” to
optimize pass-to-pass dot placement for
smooth spot colours and gradients and
“Automatic head height adjustment” to ensure
the best image quality. In combination with
these features as well as high speed and high
ink density, this printer meets requirements
for professional quality outdoor graphics and
high volume users.
Shinko MechatroTech: The Company was
established in 1937 and is headquartered in
Tokyo Japan. Their principal areas of operation
are manufacture, sales and maintenance
service of communication equipment,
peripherals and terminals. They launched DigiCube printer at the show.
Sun Chemical: This ink giant partnered up
with German company IMG Digipack to beta
test their FastJet press, which is said to be the
world’s fastest inkjet printing machine for
corrugated packaging. The press uses UV inkjets
which have been designed specifically for
FastJet and are produced by SunJet, a division
of Sun Chemical. It is based on fixed colour
arrays, with nearly 500 printheads that allow
full-colour printing at speeds of less than
one second per square meter.
Elsewhere at drupa, Sun Chemical announced
details of new partnerships with
environmental and health sciences
consultancy Environ, Radius Solutions and
Sigma Breakthrough Technologies. SunJet,
the inkjet ink division of Sun Chemical,
also announced about development of new
and novel ink chemistry specifically designed
for curing under exposure to UV light from
LED sources. In laboratory tests line speeds
in single pass applications have exceeded
100m or 300ft per minute.
Another introduction from them was UV
cured inks for printing on thermo-formable
media designed specifically for use with
Durst digital presses. Durst is a leader in
digital printing technology and with the
creation of the new ink allows their
customers to access new markets for
advertising, displays and decoration of
functional items. New opportunities
include coordination of traditional
advertising and point of sales displays with
molded and formed displays. Durst and
SunJet also see huge opportunities in the
customization of sports and protective
equipment such as cycle helmets.
Technically, the new ink and printer
system allows full forming on styrene,
acrylic and many other plastic materials
commonly used in displays and functional
equipment. Highly challenging molds with
90 degree edges and more than 10cm
(4 in) depth showed exceptionally good
results on a wide variety of thermoplastics in
customer trials.
Screen: Screen set out their stall to become
a major player in the print-on-demand
(PoD) arena by putting key focus on digital
print at drupa. The company showcased
new upgrades to the Screen Truepress
Jet520, among other innovations.
According to Tim Taylor, marketing
manager, Screen, “This has been the best
ever drupa for Screen. It’s been a fantastic
opportunity to demonstrate our vision for
a digital future in print. We have shown
the broadest range of digital print
technologies for the wide range of
applications, spanning labels, transactional,
newspapers, commercial and large
format.”
Triangle Inks: Triangle Digital Inx Co, a
member of INX Digital, has stepped up
the pace in global ink leadership,
partnering with LED curing specialist
Summit UV in developing EVOLVE UV —
the first UV LED-curing ink to deliver eyepopping
4-colour with single-pass throughcure
at speeds of 80’ per minute or higher,
running with Xaar 1001 piezoelectric
printheads. All with no inert curing
atmosphere.
“Compared to conventional high-intensity
LED lights,” explained Mario Carluccio of
Summit UV, “our Black Diamond 365 Series
has a shorter (365nm) UV-light wavelength
and much higher focused outputs — in excess
of 6.0 watts per cm2.”
Xaar: A large number of Xaar printheadenabled
printers were demonstrated at drupa
by key industry suppliers, including at least
six new products, making their worldwide
debut. This sets a new record for Xaar, an
independent supplier of industrial inkjet
printheads, inks and peripheral equipment,
and was the driving force behind Xaar’s
‘Unleash the power of inkjet’ theme for
the show.
Designed for high-speed, single-pass and
scanning applications, the latest Xaar 1001
printhead is based on Xaar’s innovative
Hybrid Side-Shooter and TF Technology,
which ensure accurate drop control,
outstanding quality, productivity, and
reliability. Most of the new products
launched at drupa rely on either the Xaar
1001 or the Xaar 760 and XaarDOT (Xaar
Drop Optimisation technology) for their highend
performance.
Xaar’s on-stand technology demonstrations
illustrated the impressive performance and
‘added-value’ potential of its latest
printheads for commercial applications.
Three ‘single-pass’ inkjet products show
the industrial-strength Xaar 1001
producing high quality, high-speed
single-pass printing producing fine
detail and readable small text, as well as
smooth tones.
Xaar also potlighted the flexibility and
benefits of XaarDOT (Xaar Drop
Optimisation Technology) and range of drop
formation options and ability to fine tune
them to specific applications. XaarDOT is
incredibly versatile in giving printers the
choice of what drop size or resolution to
use for a specific job both in terms of
image quality and substrate flexibility. By
tuning the options, printer manufacturers
can produce anything between high quality
photographic results for close-up indoor
viewing, and high productivity larger drop
work for outdoor viewing on billboards or
other signages.
Xennia: Xennia outshined at drupa, showing
successful reliable industrial single pass
printing. The heart of this reliable
industrial inkjet system based on the Xaar
1001 head is the unique ink delivery system
that recirculates the ink through the
printheads. In a joint development programme
with their Croatian partner; Hijet, Xennia has
created an unrivalled industrial inkjet print
platform. When combined with Xennia’s ink
expertise this can be applied to a range of
industrial applications where production
reliability is a pre-qualifier to success.Xennia
demonstrated two systems based on these
developments for contrasting applications.
Zünd: The company, a worldwide leader
engaged in the development,
manufacturing, and distribution of
multifunctional flatbed cutters demonstrated
a digital cutting systems configured specifically
for automatically trim-cutting any rolled
materials used in digital printing, including
textiles at drupa. Having decided to withdraw
from digital printer market, Zund wished to
take full advantage of the opportunities
coming out of synergies of digital printing
and finishing. Besides, showing a cutting
system configured for contour cutting of
lighter- weight materials, such as foam-core
and corrugated cardboard, as well as for heavyduty
routing of MDF, acrylic, and ACM
materials like Dibond and Alubond, Zund also
created its new logo, making it dynamic and
international look.
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