IPG Visits HP Facilities in Israel

Last Friday, IPG Editor Bob Neubauer flew back from Israel, where he had joined more than 100 other graphic arts journalists from all over the world to attend HP's pre-drupa event. The company brought the visitors to its Indigo and Scitex manufacturing and testing facilities for closeup looks at the technology and chats with the product managers. (HP also led attendees on a fascinating tour of Jerusalem's ancient sites, culminating with dinner in a cave underneath the city.)

Though the timing of the event, in the midst of a tense standoff between Israel and Iran, was less than ideal, the tours and press conferences went off smoothly—despite Palestinian rocket attacks on Gaza that forced the postponement of a tour of the Kiryat Gat HP Indigo manufacturing facility.

At the kickoff press conference in Tel Aviv, Chris Morgan, senior vice president of HP's Graphics Solutions Business, announced 10 new digital systems, including the first offset-quality digital press in a B2 size format (29.5x20.9˝). The seven-color HP Indigo 10000 digital press will print 3,450 sheets per hour—4,600 sph in Enhanced Productivity Mode (EPM), a new HP process that uses only cyan, magenta and yellow to produce results that look like four-color printing.

Please watch the short video below for a few highlights from the HP pre-drupa event:

Another highlight was the HP Indigo 5600 (an enhanced version of the 5500), which has a 90-ppm speed in EPM, uses invisible ink for security applications, and features an optional "one-shot" mode for printing on synthetic substrates. A white ink option and upgraded media sensors allow full-color printing on black and transparent substrates. The new features on the 5600 will be field upgradable for 5500 presses starting this summer.

HP also showed off the HP Indigo 7600, which prints 160 ppm in EPM and allows on-press effects like digital watermarking for document security, raised print and a textured effect that simulates embossing.

Watch for a full report of the Israel event in the April issue of IPG. A more detailed video will soon be available on InPlantGraphics.com.