Screen Holdings has underlined its commitment to a long term future in inkjet printing, opening a spacious inkjet innovation centre near Amsterdam.
The premises in Aalsmeer include a European parts centre and four floors of offices for Screen Europe, but it is the vast showroom that demonstrates the company’s commitment to the graphic systems business.
In recent years this has been dwarfed by the semiconductor division where chip makers like Intel and Nvidia are the customers. Profits from this are being funnelled into supporting growth for the graphic arts, group chairman Eiji Kakiuchi told guests at the opening of the new premises. “Today our main business is in semiconductors, but graphic arts is still the second largest in the group. It will continue to grow steadily in the future and we are using funds from semiconductors to help the growth of the printing equipment business.”
That has evolved from studio cameras and imagesetters to scanners, platesetters and now digital presses. The showroom has examples of the current range: TruepressJet 520HD continuous press for publications, mono and packaging versions of this machine and the latest L350UV SAI label presses, one incorporating flexo and embellishment possibilities from Nilpeter.
There is space for Screen to install a 830F, its 22-metre long inkjet press for printing flexible packaging and also for new generations of commercial printing presses. “It’s a little too early to talk about the next generation of commercial presses,” says Rob Kramer. Customers can expect improvements to speed, connectivity, colour gamut and workflow he says. Extraction equipment is in place for a twin-engine press line. “When we started the TruepressJet 520, it was all about the press itself. Now people want to know about the full solution with finishing inline and offline,” says Kramer.
The showroom will surely include finishing lines for books and commercial print products. Currently a Tecnau cutting line is the only finishing of this type with both Tecnau and Hunkeler supplying unwind and rewind units.
While Screen is not putting a figure on the investment, the commitment is enough to have attracted Screen Group chairman Eiji Kakiuchi and Graphic Systems chairman Yukiyoshi Tanaka to join newly appointed Screen Europe president Osamu Yamagata, mayor of Aalsmeer Gido Oude Kotte and senior vice president sales for Screen Europe Bui Burke at the ribbon cutting ceremony.
Yamagata has only recently taken over as Screen Europe president and has not yet had chance to complete the decoration of his top floor office.
