The Hunkeler Innovation Days is shaping up to be the showcase for the full suite of continuous feed inkjet presses available and which their developers hope will lead a transformation of offset printing to inkjet in the very near future. Not only must the exhibitors demonstrate presses in production (hooked up to at least piece of technology from Hunkeler) but must also run live jobs on the show floor.
Unsurprisingly many will show book printing, but there is an increasing influx of direct mail and commercial print applications. Exactly what these are will be seen on 24-27 February in Lucerne. Certainly the word from the exhibitors will be that inkjet printing can match litho for quality and with the right level of automation can be reckoned to be cost competitive as well. Relatively few printers have put this to the test with the result that continuous inkjet is well established for transactional and informational printing and in book printing, but is yet to oust Speedmasters.
Canon has enjoyed a strong run recently. Having shown the Prostream 3000 two years ago, it will have shorter Prostream 2133 this time around. This is to print variable format brochures, postcards, calendars and direct mail to be finished offline by Muller Martini including a Weko remoistening unit. As the speed of inkjet increases, it takes on more of the characteristics of heatset web offset.
The cutsheet iX3200 has convinced many commercial printers to invest in inkjet, as much because it is more cost effective than toner printing, especially on longer runs that might otherwise have to be printed offset. It will run jobs that are finished inline by a Horizon StitchLiner MkV. There will also be presentations and samples from the iX1700, the new two page inkjet press and the iV7, the B2 inkjet press that is expected to debut later this year.
Ricoh will have the VC80000 at the head of its presence. This is the flagship machine, demonstrating litho quality at Drupa and advanced since. It is accompanied by the VC40000, the entry level for continuous feed inkjet and with the mono-only version aimed at book and transactional print. The web presses are joined by the version of the Pro C9500 that can print on thicker materials, making it possible for gift cards to switch from plastic to boards.
Screen, once marching in step with Ricoh, went its own way at Drupa with the TruepressJet 560HD. This included new inks and what is a unique way to dry the web. This too will have moved on since last summer and will be put through its paces with an inline finishing system producing books and via a rewind unit, to feeding a Horizon StitchLiner for brochures and magazine products.
Kodak brought the Ultra 520, its highest quality press to Hunkeler two years ago. This year it is bringing the Prosper 70000 Turbo, the fastest inkjet press on the market. To cope with the full speed of 410m/min, Kodak has designed its own unwind and rewinds. During the event the reels will be processed through a Hunkeler and Horizon combination for a saddle stitched catalogue and a complex direct mail application.
Another that made its debut in 2023 will return. This is the HP Advantage 2200, a high speed inkjet press that can be configured with one, two or three dryer sections depending on the demands of the applications that users plan to produce.
This is an indication that opportunities for inkjet are opening up, that the technology is primed to break free from its established user base – provided the applications to enable print to open new doors are poised for the mainstream.
