Widening Options

Vendors offer an increasing variety of media for wide-format ink-jet printers. Find out which factors you should consider before buying.

Picking the right paper for a wide-format ink-jet job can be a daunting prospect. Your choices include economy papers, water-resistant stock, self-adhesives, matte, glossy and satin finishes, canvas, silky polyester and vinyl. Films come in clear, white, reverse-print backlit or front-print backlit, erasable media, double-coated, Mylar and more.

You have to consider the printer and ink combination, whether the application is indoor or outdoor, how color-saturated the print will be, the quality you want, how long the print needs to last, and if it will be laminated, hung or put on a floor.

About 70 percent of wide-format ink-jet applications will use bond papers, either coated or uncoated, according to Doug Von Dollen, large format product manager at Rittenhouse, which recently conducted a market survey. Another 15 to 20 percent of the market is for photo-based papers, a rapidly expanding category with the advent of more accurate ink-jet color, says Von Dollen, who markets both bond and photo-based papers for Champion. Specialty media—canvas, Tyvek, films, adhesives—are usually the most expensive and comprise 10-15 percent of the market.

Once you've evaluated your application and budget to narrow media choices, remember to inquire about product availability, vendor support, training and guarantees—especially if the job requires color management expertise beyond current in-plant capabilities. Make sure the pricing allows for some margin and, if it's a trial run or a low-volume use of expensive media, ask if short rolls are available.

Ten Percent Bonus

Especially on more standard grades, look for value-added features. Rittenhouse supplies its rolls with plastic color-coded cores, which allow easy media identification and don't get out of round. The company also generally supplies a 10 percent bonus on the roll so customers don't have to change it as often.

Standard bond paper is the same whether it's for wide-format or desktop printers, Von Dollen notes, and users should be able to obtain the same quality from various sources.

"You shouldn't have to feel like you're paying a premium for large format," he says.

Such media is the workhorse for line drawings, schematics and designs for architectural, engineering and manufacturing applications, he says, while photo-based papers are used in graphics or photographic applications.

"As color has become more sophisticated, there's more and more little niche applications," Von Dollen notes—short-run posters, point-of-sale displays, trade show booths, courtroom graphics, corporate presentations, billboards and bus wraps, to name a few.

"The problem is, there's a fair amount of variation even within products from the same brand," he says. This can lead to issues with dot control, smearing and dry time. "It's been a frustration in the past, but manufacturers have made big strides to get standardization and repeatability," Von Dollen says.

For instance, Hewlett-Packard's Premium printing materials were developed and tested as part of a printing system with DesignJet printers and inks to be consistent from roll to roll and "extremely reliable," says Lisa McPherron, of H-P's large-format ink-jet media division.

"It is a more time-consuming, rigorous and expensive process than normal paper manufacturing, but our premium customers have told us it is critical to have this degree of performance and reliability," McPherron says.

The goal is standard grades of photo-based papers that can be used in different printers with the same results, as with bond paper. Currently, manufacturers publish compatibility charts of specific media in combination with specific inks and printers for optimum quality.

"It can be very confusing," admits Susan Seeler, Kodak product manager for wide-format ink-jet products. Her company alone offers 27 photo-based substrates from 24˝ to 60˝ wide.

The printer and ink combination is critical to determining the best paper, Seeler says; follow manufacturer guidelines for appropriate matches. Piezo printers can't handle the resin-coated media thermal printers can.

Environmental conditions such as sun, wind and rain will affect print life, so manufacturers use both outdoor tests and lab simulations to measure longevity. Vendors provide statistics on expected life of a print under various conditions.

Rexam Image Products, for instance, offers a photobase media with an indoor life span up to 25 years when used with light-stable dye-based inks. The company's banner materials, when used with pigmented inks, can last outdoors six months or more, according to Dan Halkyard, Rexam display market manager.

"We find the demand is for media that have life spans in the range of six months to two years," Halkyard says.

"It's really the ink that determines the life of the print," Seeler notes, although prints can be treated with sprays and laminates to extend life.

Roland spokeswoman Julie Korneychuk says pigment inks have a longer outdoor life than dye-based inks: "Roland's pigment inks will last six to 12 months outdoors without a laminate. Use of a UV laminate will double that," Korneychuk says. Roland is developing a longer-lasting solution with Avery-Dennison.

If costly laminates are applied, Rittenhouse's Von Dollen suggests using a less expensive matte coated paper instead of a photo-based medium.

"A lot of heavy matte paper is very good, very durable and looks photographic once it's laminated," he says. Laminate over photo-based papers may produce a reaction with the resin and an undesirable change of color, he cautions.

Encad offers a Tyvek product with a special coating that cures immediately.

"It doesn't need lamination," notes John Dorn, Encad director, channel marketing. The company has three inks and 15 media. Encad's Photogloss Plus paper has a special receptor for coating to allow fast curing and drying; the coating is also available on canvas and reverse print backlit media, Dorn says.

Halkyard notes that the system of media coatings and inks has improved significantly. "The new UV-resistant dye-based inks represent a very important breakthrough," he says, "as do the state-of-the-art coating formulations developed to work with these inks." Coatings are specifically formulated to ensure maximum resolution, color gamut, consistency and durability for each application.

Niche Applications

Desired quality is a determining factor in choosing wide-format paper. Kodak's Seeler suggests that you ask yourself "Is it art reproduction or down and dirty signage?" The more high-end, the more specialized the media will be. If it's color-critical, ask for ICC profiles for accurate color management with specific RIPs.

For instance, last fall, DuPont Color Proofing introduced a system that included its new Color Station RIP in conjunction with Epson Stylus Pro 5000 and 9000 printers. The co-branded media used in that system are different than those used for signage, displays or imposition proofing for publications, says John Malloy, product manager for drop-on-demand color proofing products.

"We provide the highest quality possible," Malloy says. "There's a big difference between a pretty picture and a proof. In the proofing market, with color as critical as it is, you have to develop the ink and media together to be as accurate as possible."

On the imposition side, DuPont offers a digital version of its Dylux proofing paper, (commonly known as "blue line" paper) optimized for Encad and HP wide-format ink-jet printers in 36˝ and 42˝ widths on double-sided rolls.

Vendors are continually creating new specialty media. Rexam distributes a 3M restickable adhesive, pressure-sensitive product compatible with both thermal ink-jet and water-based piezo printers using pigment or dye-based inks. Adhesive strips are applied to the back 12˝ apart. The product can be repositioned for up to 30 days.

Backlit media typically require reverse printing, but new offerings from Hewlett-Packard and Kodak feature front printing, which eliminates the need for daytime illumination. H-P also offers a 6-mil repositionable flexible adhesive vinyl that can bend around corners and withstand rain, as well as a 20-mil canvas for fine art and photos, maps and heavy-duty signs.

Rexam, Roland and Hunt Digital Imaging include silk-like synthetic media in their textile media for use in designing flags, banners, tapestries, trade show table skirts and clothing.

The latest additions to Océ Imaging Supplies' line of wide-format ink-jet media—Océ Cotton (OTC320) and Océ Smooth Cotton (OTC230)—feature an ink-jet-receptive topcoat for both indoor and outdoor inks. These products work with standard ink systems (both dye and pigmented). The fabrics require no special inks or post treatments, making them ideal for producing indoor banners, flags and other signage. Océ also recently expanded its line of photobase products for 60˝ wide ink-jet printers.

AgfaJet media includes an 18-mil canvas, clear and backlit films and a double-sided Photograde paper with one side coated satin and the other glossy for very high-resolution imaging. The Photograde paper is available for both thermal and piezo printers.

"The high-quality coating allows the dots to remain in the coating instead of spreading out into the paper," explains wide-format product manager Frances Cicogna. "This results in sharper, clearer images."

Roland offers a coated fine art paper, Concorde Rag, which delivers sharp, clear images and a print life of 120 to 130 years in gallery lighting when used with Roland pigment inks. Kodak is introducing a flame-retardant banner.

In short, although much wide-format output can be accommodated with basic bond media, recent advances in hardware, media and inks have widened the horizon of print possibilities while vendors introduce ever-more specialized media to bring creative ideas to fruition.