HP today expanded its portfolio of sign and display printing
solutions to accelerate the industry’s conversion from solvent-based to
UV-curable and latex-based large format printing.
The company is refreshing its product line to help customers pursue
profitable growth opportunities and capture a larger share of the
growing digital printing market.(1)
At FESPA 2010, the major large-format printing and imaging tradeshow
of the year, HP announced:
* The new HP Scitex FB700 Printer, a
versatile 2.5-metre flatbed printing solution that can load, print and
collect up to six sheets of media simultaneously and offers an optional
White Ink Upgrade Kit for specialty applications
* The first public demonstration of its
expanded HP Latex Printing Technologies portfolio, an innovative HP
technology that is only offered by HP, which will take place at the show
* Plans to spearhead a group of industry
leaders to define open Job Definition Format (JDF) specification
features for large format printing, making it easier for print service
providers (PSPs) to automate printing jobs and accelerate the
web-to-print process
* The expansion of the HP Large-format
Media take-back programme to include six new compatible media and seven
additional participating European countries
HP Scitex FB700 Printer
“Since we began shipping latex and UV-curable printing systems,
demand has increased steadily as our customers recognise the superb
image quality, ability to pursue new applications and the significant
environmental advantages over traditional solvent technologies,” said
Yariv Avisar, vice president and general manager, Scitex Large format
Solutions, HP. “In just two months, we have made significant
advancements to our portfolio, including the addition of five new UV and
Latex printers and new workflow solutions and services offerings, that
will help the entire industry to transform.”
Expanded portfolio helps accelerate the conversion from
solvent to UV and latex
The HP Scitex FB700 Printer helps PSPs increase their capacity to
fulfill customer requests and grow their businesses with high-quality
prints on virtually any rigid or flexible media.(2) The printer features
efficient media loading and the ability to print on materials up to
6.4cm thick and up to 2.5m wide by 3.05m long(3) for the production of
durable outdoor and indoor applications, including point-of-purchase
displays, tradeshow graphics, interior decorations, banners and
furniture.
Advanced features such as an onboard camera, an HP Embedded Web
Server and a solid media feed system help ensure consistent results and
worry-free operation. An easy-to-install White Ink Upgrade Kit also is
available for the HP Scitex FB700 Printer for specialty applications,
such as printing on glass or other substrates for retail window
displays, creating two-sided or backlit prints, and printing on
corrugated substrates for packaging applications.
With the addition of the HP Scitex FB700 Printer to its robust
portfolio, HP is leading the market transition from solvent-based
printers to UV-curable technologies, providing profitable new growth
opportunities to customers through increased productivity and new
applications, such as polyethylene billboards and high-quality backlit
displays. According to analyst firm I.T. Strategies,(4) UV inkjet
printer unit sales are forecast to increase 9 percent by 2014, while
also opening high-volume application markets to UV solutions at the
expense of solvent inkjet and screen printing.
HP’s latex solutions also are accelerating the conversion from
solvent and eco-solvent technologies by offering more consistent image
quality while delivering comparable performance in terms of
productivity, size, durability and media choices. By supporting a
broader range of applications, latex-based printers offer PSPs more
versatility and also help reduce the environmental impact of printing.
HP’s latex-based solutions have gained tremendous market acceptance
since their introduction. The company has shipped more than 2,500
printing systems, which customers have used to produce more than 5
million square meters of materials.(5)
“Latex printing technology from HP is coming to be seen as a near
universal chemistry with a favorable environmental impact both for users
and in the print workplace,” said Mark Hanley, president, I.T.
Strategies. “Solvent markets in particular have been placed on the
defensive since early this year by HP’s initiative.”
HP’s solutions showcase at FESPA on the HP stand 120, hall B2, also
features recently announced printers and solutions contributing to the
market shift from solvent-based printers to UV-curable and latex
technologies, including:
- The HP Scitex LX800 Printer, a 3.2m solution that extends the
benefits of HP Latex Printing Technology to the industrial large format
market
- The HP Scitex LX600 Printer, a versatile 2.6m device
- The HP Scitex TJ8600 Printer, which features full and selective
gloss print modes with exceptional quality and new HP TJ210 Scitex Inks
- The HP Designjet Z5200 Printer for copy shops, quick-printing firms
and other small commercial print businesses interested in entering the
large format market
- HP Scitex Print Care, a set of tools and services that anticipates
technical issues, enables remote diagnosis and provides performance
information to help customers maintain uptime and smooth operations(6)
- HP SmartPlanner 3.0, a turnkey job estimation and business planning
tool offered to HP Scitex customers that accurately estimates jobs,
compares digital and conventional output and calculates the complete job
cost
As part of HP’s leadership in driving the solvent to UV and Latex
conversion, the company will discontinue sales of the HP Scitex XL1500
Printer, which uses solvent inks. In its place, HP offers the HP Scitex
XP Series Printers with UV inks and the HP Scitex LX Printer series,
which are ideal replacements for solvent applications. HP plans to
provide support, spare parts and consumables to existing customers for
five years after the printer is discontinued.
HP leads committee to establish new JDF features for
large-format printing
HP has been selected to chair the Wide Format Workgroup of The
International Cooperation for the Integration of Processes in Prepress,
Press, and Postpress Organization (CIP4) with the goal of defining open
JDF standards for wide format printing workflows. The initiative is
designed to resolve interoperability shortfalls between web-to-print
tools, production devices, raster image processors and digital front
ends so that they work together to streamline wide format printing
workflows for increased productivity.
“We are honoured to lead industry-wide efforts to define open JDF
standards for the large format market and address our customers’ needs
for improved operability,” said Avisar. “With the proliferation of
digital printing, we need to look beyond system performance as the key
metric for productivity and work to improve the entire large format
printing workflow for our customers.”
In conjunction with the creation of JDF features and specifications
for wide format applications, HP is rolling out a new certification
programme that allows partner workflow solutions to be “HP Certified for
Wide Format Printing JDF Exchange.” HP certification assures that
workflow solutions exchanging JDF will interoperate properly with each
other, allowing PSPs to easily build an e-storefront to market their
services, take advantage of production automation tools to reduce costs
and differentiate their service offerings through automated customer
relationship management tools.
“At Gardners, we strive to remove as many operational inefficiencies
as possible so our employees can concentrate on high value activities
for our customers and our business,” said Richard Gardner, managing
director at Gardners, a large format digital print shop based in
Cardiff, UK. “The leadership role HP has taken to improve workflow
interoperability for digital wide format printing will provide print
service providers with more opportunities to streamline and automate
their operations.”
Alliance partners collaborating closely with HP in the certification
programme include Caldera, ColorGATE, EFI, EskoArtwork, Four Pees, GMG,
ONYX and Printable Technologies. HP and these partners are working to
improve the wide format printing experience for customers by using
HP-certified definitions in their products.
Continued growth in large format recycling efforts
The HP Large-format Media take-back programme for recyclable printing
materials(7) – which provides free return and recycling of eligible
media – has added six new media compatible with HP Designjet printers:
HP Durable Banner with DuPont Tyvek®, HP Clear Film, HP Matte Film, HP
Premium Vivid Color Backlit Film, HP Matte Polypropylene and HP Everyday
Matte Polypropylene. These media join the five signage materials
compatible with HP Designjet and HP Scitex Latex Ink printers already
included in the take-back programme.
Seven additional European countries – Austria, Czech Republic,
Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Poland and Portugal – have recently joined
the HP Large format Media take-back programme, bringing the total to 17
European countries. In North America, Canada is scheduled to join the
United States in the take-back programme this month.
The HP Large format Media take-back programme is now part of the HP
Planet Partners programme, which has been expanded to support free
consumables return and recycling efforts for HP inkjet printheads
compatible with HP Scitex LX Series printers. The printhead cleaning
cartridge and printhead cleaning container for the HP Designjet L25500
Printer also have been added to the programme.
More information on HP activities at FESPA 2010 is available at
www.hp.com/go/fespa2010 and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/hpgraphicarts.
(1) HP expects the global digital print market to reach $124 billion
(€96 billion) by 2014.
(2) Flexible media printing with an optional HP Scitex FB700
Roll-to-Roll Upgrade Kit.
(3) HP Scitex FB700 Extension Tables are required for long materials.
Two sets are required for printing materials up to 120 inches (3.05 m)
long.
(4) According to a May 2010 report from I.T. Strategies.
(5) Based on HP internal estimates.
(6) HP Scitex Print Care is currently available with the HP Scitex
LX600 Printer, HP Scitex LX800 Printer and HP Scitex FB500 Printer.
(7) HP offers the HP Large-format Media take-back program in the
United States, Europe and Canada, through which most HP recyclable
signage media can be returned; availability varies. Some recyclable
papers can be recycled through commonly available recycling programs.
For details visit www.hp.com/recycle. Aside from this program, recycling
opportunities for these products are currently only available in
limited areas. Customers should consult local recycling resources for
recycling these products
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