Handling system boosts superwide print efficiency

EFI has claimed that demand for its digital printing systems at Fespa in Munich, Germany, made the show the most successful European wide-format exhibition the company has attended.

Visitor numbers were up and attendance for product demonstrations peaked at more than 200 people each day.

During Fespa 2010 EFI sold the 80th Vutek GS printer since the product's European introduction at Fespa 2009.

Products on display also included the Vutek GS3200 with the new Mediamaster fully-automated media handling system.

Seen for the first time in Europe, Mediamaster is a fully-automated material handling system for the GS3200 that is said to increase productivity and the economics of digital superwide printing.

Equipped to handle full-size 1.5 metre x 3 metre boards at a claimed speed of up to 50 beds per hour, and also master as many as three-up smaller boards across the width of the printer, for over 150 boards per hour with precision.

This enables the material handling system's hands-free productivity: a single person can operate two GS3200 printers with Mediamasters, reducing cost and optimising production time.

EFI's new Rastek T1000 wide-format printer was also shown for the first time in Europe during Fespa 2010.

This new flatbed printer is claimed to feature white running the same speed as CMYK with eight-level greyscale, up to 1,200 dots per inch (dpi) print quality.

With a stationary vacuum table and retractable media registration pins, it is also said to have the versatility to handle a range of rigid media.

The new Jetrion 4830 UV inkjet printing system from EFI, is claimed to provide wide web widths and fast linear speeds to increase label printing throughput more than twofold over the company's Jetrion 4000.

The Jetrion 4830 prints 21cm wide, enabling two-up 10cm labels.

Its print zone lets label converters efficiently take on more print jobs.

With its higher speed print mode of greater than 36.6 metres per minute, the system increases productivity, claimed EFI.

The Jetrion 4830 also has an optional white printing station with what is claimed buy EFI to be the most opaque digital white print available.

The Vutek GS3200 flatbed and roll-to-roll hybrid UV printer, which was on show, provides claimed photorealistic quality, superwide speed, and applications that expand the reach of superwide pritning into new markets, claimed EFI.

Now commercially available, the Vutek GS5000r is said by EFI to provide a roll-to-roll speed that allow users to tap into premium-margin markets that demand point-of-purchase (POP) quality graphics.

EFI also exhibited the Pace print management system, Digital Storefront web-to-print systems and Web Control Centre for remote proofing completed the portfolio.

EFI added that together, those systems provided a practical demonstration of the company's integrated workflow from order taking to printing and shipping.

EFI's EMEA managing director, Paul Cripps, commented: 'We not only exceeded digital inkjet targets for Vutekk and Rastek that we had set for this show, we also surpassed goals set for our software products.

Fespa provided proof that our customers in Europe are doing well and continue to require cost saving systems to optimise, automate and streamline printing operations.

David Hocquet, the chief executive officer of Deltenre, a Belgian printing company, said: 'Fespa Munich was a fantastic show.

It was energetic and busy and the EFI stand was the busiest of them all as everyone wanted to see the latest Vutek machines.

We have two of them installed already and certainly for future investments in superwide format, we'll look to EFI Vutekk and no one else.

Attendance up from North and South America, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific.

EFI said that it tracked a significant increase in visitors from high-growth markets, such as Asia Pacific, the Americas and the Middle East, adding to visitors from western, central and eastern Europe.

Back to top