Drupa Foretells Digital Future

DIGITAL PRINTING technology had its strongest showing yet at Drupa 2008, the world’s largest graphic arts trade show. The two-week event, which took place in Düsseldorf, Germany, last month, lived up to its billing as “The Ink-jet Drupa,” with “green printing” being the only challenger as a show theme, since virtually every exhibitor touched on it.

About 391,000 visitors prowled the 19 halls of Drupa this year, (see sidebar about in-plants that attended), checking out the 1,971 exhibitors from 52 countries. Most of the attention, though, centered on the new digital printing devices, particularly those in the ink-jet category—though with prices ranging from $1 million to $5 million, most of the looking was of the gawking variety. And in truth, after listening to the vendors’ predictions about their ink-jet presses, it was hard not to stare in wonder at their products.

“We believe this technology’s going to change this industry forever,” proclaimed Antonio Perez, Kodak’s chairman and chief executive officer, during a press conference. “Many jobs that are done today with an offset press will be done in time with this technology.”

A Coming Out Party for Ink-jet

In keeping with its stated intent to introduce a web-fed, thermal drop-on-demand product line, HP showed a 36˝ version of its Inkjet Web Press. The machine prints on uncoated paper, with a bonding agent applied, at 600 dpi and at 400 feet per minute (fpm) or 3,200 A4 pages per minute (ppm). When HP releases the first model in the fall of 2009, it will be a 30˝ configuration.

Building on its current JetStream ink-jet platform, Océ introduced three new models—the JetStream 750, which prints 675 ipm (A4) at 600x600 dpi; Jetstream 1500, producing 1,300 ipm (A4) in two-up, duplex format at 600x600 dpi; and JetStream 3000, which boosts output to 2,700 ipm at 480x600 dpi in two-up, duplex mode. The press series uses a piezo DOD technology with variable dot size that the company has branded DigiDot.

Kodak delivered on its promise to show the Stream Concept Printhead and Concept Press, based on continuous ink-jet technology, but didn’t reveal much more about the product specs or commercialization plans. It was reportedly able to produce more than 500 fpm.

There were a couple of surprises on the ink-jet front in the form of sheetfed machines from Dainippon Screen and Fujifilm capable of printing on coated stocks. Both companies restricted viewing of these machines and said the product names were provisional, which raised some doubt about when and in what final form these technologies will be commercialized. To be fair, HP and Kodak also had their web-fed ink-jet presses behind stanchions, and Kodak at times would lower a set of curtains that completely blocked its Stream Concept Press from view.

Screen did allow people to get up close to its Truepress Jet SX, except at the roped-off delivery end where operators held up select samples “hot off the press” for viewing from a few feet away. A sample sheet was displayed under glass for closer inspection. The press uses water-based pigment inks to print a maximum 20.8x29.1˝ sheet at up to 1,440x720 dpi with a rated speed of 1,600 sph.

Fujifilm went a step farther by having the Jet Press 720 entirely roped off and the glass-encased print samples also located behind the barrier so no one could see either from closer than a few feet away. The press is said to use piezo DOD heads and water-based inks to print a maximum 28.3x20.5˝ sheet at 1,200 dpi and a 180 ppm (A4) rated speed.

Though it had no ink-jet press to show, Xerox filled in some details about how it plans to compete in the production level ink-jet printing segment. Building on the phase-change, solid-ink technology used in its Phaser printer line, the company provided a technology demonstration of “cured gel ink.” It converts into a liquid in the print head, is the consistency of peanut butter when it hits the substrate and is then hardened by a pulse of UV light. This is said to enable printing on standard papers without bleed-through or the need for dryers.

Xerox did have some big announcements, though, including the new Xerox iGen4, scheduled to launch in September. Unfortunately, it was walled off and viewable by appointment only. According to the company, this machine is 25 to 35 percent more productive than the iGen3 and features an Auto Density Control sensor, in-line spectrophotometer and use of a dry ink “carrier” in place of developer for more consistent color and printing.

One interesting technology demo featured a pair of iGen3 presses merged into a single tandem press, the ConceptColor 220, printing 220 ppm.

Among Xerox’s product introductions was the entry-level Xerox 700 digital color press, which uses low-melt EA toner to print 70 ppm at 2,400 dpi on a variety of stocks.

Though its Stream Concept Press took center stage, Kodak also introduced the 120-ppm NexPress 3600 toner-based color press, as well as two down-market additions to the Versamark ink-jet press line—the 500-fpm VT3000 continuous ink-jet system and 250-fpm VL2000 DOD ink-jet printer. The 300-ppm Digimaster EX3000 monochrome system was previewed in advance of its mid-2009 launch.

Also addressing the monochrome printing segment was Konica Minolta, with the world premiere of its bizhub PRO 1200 (120 ppm) monochrome solution and a mid-production line developed in partnership with Océ that’s due to launch this fall. The bizhub PRO 1600P (160 ppm), 2000P (200 ppm) and 2500P (250 ppm) are single-pass systems that will be offered in a range of configurations.

Presstek announced an alliance with Konica Minolta that enables it to bundle the bizhub PRO C6500 color printer with Presstek DI presses. UV capabilities for the Presstek 52DI and 34DI digital offset machines were previewed, including a dedicated UV waterless printing option, available in the third quarter, and an option to switch between standard and UV waterless, to be introduced in the fourth quarter.

Located across from one another at Drupa, Ricoh and InfoPrint Solutions marked the first anniversary of the latter’s formation in a joint venture with IBM. Transpromo applications were highlighted on the InfoPrint 5000 color ink-jet (piezo DOD) press with the addition of support for the new AFP Color Management Architecture and SAS Customer Intelligence marketing tools. The company also introduced the InfoPrint 75 (115 ppm) and 100 (154 ppm) monochrome, toner-based continuous forms printers that output PostScript and PCL data at 600 dpi.

Across the aisle, the Ricoh Pro C900 and C900s (90 ppm) color production printers had their first European showing. New at the show were the Ricoh Pro 906EX (90 ppm), 1106EX (110 ppm) and 1356EX (135 ppm) multifunction, black-and-white devices that print at 1,200 dpi. Both series are toner based.

Xeikon, a division of Punch Graphix, believes the 230 ppm (A4) top speed of its previously announced Xeikon 8000 web-fed press makes it an alternative to ink-jet while offering a 1,200-dpi resolution (1,200x3,600 addressability) and toner quality.

The company unveiled the 19.7˝ Xeikon 3300 five-color label press version of its platform that also has a 1,200-dpi resolution and handles substrates from 40 to 350 gsm. The 1,200-dpi resolution capability is to become available as a field upgrade for the Xeikon 6000 and 5000plus.

Posters and Labels

EFI previewed the VUTEk DS (digital screen) series flatbed UV ink-jet printer. This eight-color device prints 557 square meters per hour at 1,200 dpi with a maximum material format of 63x96˝ and 2˝ thickness. Epson also announced commercial availability of the Jetrion 4000 UV ink-jet label printing system and demonstrated the next generation of its Fiery front-end that integrates the Adobe PDF Print Engine.

Agfa Graphics demonstrated its Dotrix ink-jet press family and debuted the high-end Anapurna XLS (up to 98˝ at 1,440 dpi) and the Anapurna Mv/M4f (63˝) entry-level models. The Mv model adds UV varnish capabilities, while the M4f has CMYK print heads and can handle rigid materials.

The new Epson Stylus Pro 7900 (24˝) and 9900 (44˝) ink-jet printers use an 11-color UltraChrome HDR ink set to support proofing applications at up to 2,880 dpi. Epson also introduced the Stylus Pro GS6000 printer, a 64˝, 1,440 dpi device using the eight-color UltraChrome GS ink set.

Xanté introduced the Ilumina 3D press for printing directly on lenticular sheets in sizes up to 12.9x19˝. It can create printed effects such as 3D, 3D flip, 3D motion and 3D zoom. IPG

Universal Workflows

There are still a number of dedicated digital printing workflow solutions being offered, but the systems originally designed for offset/CTP production increasingly are being extended to feed digital presses. This trend toward universal workflows is also leading to more agreements between vendors, especially in terms of Web-to-print solutions tying into production.

HP SmartStream Director and Presstek PathWay are two new implementations of the Press-sense iWay Web-to-print technology. It is also part of workflow solutions offered by Océ, Xeikon and Xerox. The new iWay 5.0 upgrade features an improved user interface and infrastructure that provides added flexibility.

Presstek also introduced the Latitude workflow, powered by EskoArtwork’s Odystar (now to be called Pro) system. EskoArtwork’s PitStop Professional and Server have both been upgraded to 08 versions that offer interface enhancements and performance improvements.

Agfa is now offering Apogee Portal (Delano) and Prepress (ApogeeX) as part of the Apogee Suite, which includes the new Apogee Media module for content integration and management.

Equiosnet is Screen’s new workflow concept to drive digital printing and CTP production, powered by Trueflow SE with support for the OutlinePDF data format and more versioning in the version 6.0 upgrade.

“Cross media” is starting to find its way into the product sector now that it is getting more established as a service offering among printers/marketing services providers. XMPie says it is adding cross-media capabilities to its uStore Web-to-print solution with support for customizable e-mail campaigns. Eastman Kodak introduced Insite Print Campaign Manager, which provides analysis and management of all elements of a marketing campaign, including printed pieces, personalized URLs and e-mail blasts. It also launched the Kodak ColorFlow solution for managing and aligning colors across devices.

X-Rite is addressing color control, as well, by unveiling an update to the Color Exchange Format (CxF). It is said to enable consistent, accurate communication of spectral color and appearance data across industries, devices and applications. The company also introduced an optical brightness correction (OBC) solution that is designed to compensate for the color shifts in custom ICC profiles caused by this characteristic of substrates.

Heidelberg demonstrated the ability of Prinect to link with Pageflex solutions from Bitstream to provide a Internet storefront solution.

In-plants At Drupa

Though the expense of flying to Germany makes Drupa a little out of reach for most in-plants, a handful of managers made the trek to Düsseldorf last month.

Craig Sedgwick, director of the LDS Church Printing Division, traveled there with Operations Manager John Bernstein, to get ideas for future purchases.

“Since Drupa is the event where most major manufacturers introduce new products, we feel it is very important to attend to see what is on the horizon,” he says. “We will look at everything in general to get an idea of what to consider as we purchase equipment in the future.”

Another Salt Lake City in-plant manager who made the trip was Doug Maxwell, managing director of Brigham Young University Print and Mail.

“We have found these shows to be of great benefit to us,” he says. “In addition to keeping up with technology and knowing what new things are in the works, we have made some significant purchases at the shows.”

Hoping to make such a significant purchase after touring Drupa is Wes Friesen, manager of Revenue Collection and Community Offices at Portland General Electric.

“I have started the process to get approval to replace, in 2009, our existing IBM production printing system,” he says. “I am hoping to be able to purchase two color digital printers. We use these printers to print our customer billing statements, late notices and letters. So at Drupa, Eric Houger and I will be examining about six different potential digital printers that might be good fits for our needs.”

CTP Not So Hot

Compared to previous Drupas, computer-to-plate solutions were given less prominence this year. Among the new products, larger formats was one of two trends evident at Drupa, with the other being green solutions.

Heidelberg introduced the Suprasetter 145/162/190 larger-format thermal platesetter line. These models can image up to a 74.8˝ wide plate with speeds to 35 plates/hour. Agfa (Avalon N), Screen (PlateRite Ultima 48000) and Kodak (Magnus XLF 80 Quantum) were among the other vendors introducing large-format CTP devices.

Presstek stressed environmentally friendly platemaking with its launch of the Compass 4000 (four-up) and 8000 (eight-up) series thermal platesetters and the Vector FL52 platesetter and Freedom Pro plate combo.

On the thermal plate side, Agfa rolled out the Azura TS, which is said to increase throughput by up to 50 percent compared to previous versions, and China-based Xingraphics previewed Fit eco, a processless product that supports run lengths up to 50,000 impressions with no pre-heat required. Fujifilm’s Brillia High Definition PRO-V chemistry-free violet plate also, figuratively, saw the light of day at Drupa.