Digital Printing-Wide Format - Flatbed

Kodak Users Get the Real Deal LAS VEGAS—More than 300 members of the Graphic Users Association (GUA) of Kodak Solutions recently gathered at the Wynn Las Vegas for the North American group’s annual meeting. “This year’s conference was our biggest and best yet,” said current GUA President Tom Clifford, who is also a prepress technology specialist with RR Donnelley. Having “unfiltered access to executives and product specialists from Kodak” is a key benefit of attending the event, Clifford noted. “Most important, the team from Kodak. . .genuinely listens to our feedback and takes it into consideration when developing new products and features.” He also

FOSTER CITY, CA—May 29, 2008—EFI (Nasdaq: EFII), the world leader in customer-focused digital printing innovation, today announced that it will be previewing the VUTEk® DS Series digital screen printer at Drupa 2008, May 29th through June 11th in Düsseldorf, Germany. EFI can be found in Hall 5, Stand C01 at the show. This high speed, flatbed UV printer provides a digital solution for the production of POP-quality graphics at breakthrough speed with the advantages of UV technology and digital economics. The DS Series is a new category of high-speed digital flatbed printers representing a tipping point in productivity, image quality and flexibility.

Lienz, Austria—05/11/08—The Rho SP 60 (Single Pass) is an industrial ink-jet 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. The printer uses 50 Piezo ink-jet nozzles per color with a combined total of 25,600 nozzles. It prints directly onto and the material, including those with a smooth or profiled surfaces, without the media being touched. The final printed image has brilliant colors featuring a wide color

VALHALLA, NY—March 20, 2008—Fujifilm U.S.A., Inc. today announced that the Wide Format Ink-jet business unit of Fujifilm Hunt Chemicals U.S.A., Inc. will become part of Fujifilm U.S.A.’s Imaging Division as of April 1, 2008. Moving forward, retailers and professional labs will benefit from the convenience of a single point of order for all imaging hardware and supplies, including wide format ink-jet products. “Many of our customers are currently expanding their Frontier solutions to generate revenue from a wide range of products beyond traditional 4”x 6” prints,” said John Placko, senior product manager, Wide Format Inkjet Products, Imaging Division, Fujifilm U.S.A. “Today’s announcement

MORTSEL, BELGIUM—March 18, 2008 —Agfa Graphics announced today its line-up of new products and solutions that will be on display at the Agfa stand (Hall 8a – B63) during the international trade fair in Düsseldorf, Germany, 29 May-11 June. The announcement was made at Agfa’s pre-drupa press conference in Belgium where more than 85 graphic arts journalists from around the world gathered to hear about Agfa’s expanded product line for its four major market segments: commercial printing, packaging printing, newspaper industry, and sign & display market. Agfa’s new, innovative range of products and solutions to be shown at drupa include: :Azura TS, Agfa’s new

PROBABLY THE fastest area of growth in the entire printing spectrum is the sector for wide-format ink-jet production. A decade ago, this type of digital process was still in its infancy but, since that time, it has passed through many formats to become an accepted technology and not, simply, a novelty whose ultimate value was questionable. Today’s machines cover all budgets and a vast range of end applications and ink technologies. Wide-format production has become a relevant part of any printing exhibition that looks at current and future trends across all disciplines. With Drupa 2008 representing a major worldwide platform for new developments,

RIDGEFIELD Park, NJ — August 30, 2007 — Agfa Graphics announced today that the company, a worldwide leader in prepress solutions for the printing, publishing and newspaper industries, will bring a broad spectrum of new and updated products and solutions to its exhibit (booth #3839) at GRAPH EXPO, which is being held September 9-12 at McCormick Place South in Chicago. Some of Agfa’s products and technologies to be shown at GRAPH EXPO include: :Anapurna M – Agfa’s entry-level wide-format industrial ink-jet printer which will be running live at the booth; :ApogeeX 4.0 (worldwide debut) – The newest release of this popular workflow features advances such

SAN ANTONIO, TX—August 24, 2007—Gandinnovations will demonstrate three of the company’s most powerful, top-selling Jeti Printers and accessories on the market today at the Graph Expo, September 9 – 12, McCormick Place South, Chicago, booth # 4474. Gandinnovations’ is selling one UV Jeti Printer every week, which is as fast as they can currently manufacture them. The growing line consistently earns the highest customer satisfaction ratings in the industry. The Jeti 1224, 3148, and 2048 UV Flatbeds have all fared well in industry reviews earning high scores for the printers, tech support and the Gandy company overall. The Jeti 3148 UV

IT MAY be telling that, with a few exceptions, the presses in operation around the show floor of Graph Expo and Converting Expo 2006 were of the digital variety. Offset units were conspicuous in their absence. Digital presses largely have become part of the commercial printing mainstream, rather than being a specialty product segment or market niche. The exhibition’s Wide Format Pavilion showed ongoing interest in that segment, but adding a wide, large, superwide or grand format digital system still is seen as a way to diversify rather than being standard equipment. Hewlett-Packard shared results from an InfoTrends study that surveyed a sampling

“It’s not rocket science.” That same reply was given by two players in the market when asked about the challenges facing a printer looking to diversify into digital wide-format printing services. Adding this service seems like a natural extension of the printing industry’s digital evolution. Large-format ink-jet print engines have all but become the norm for some level of proofing, ranging from digital bluelines up to contract color. Putting aside the finishing requirements, digital color printing presents much the same proposition whether the output be an 8.5x11˝ sheet or large banner. Why, then, have so relatively few commercial printers gotten into the business? “Less