Print OEMs need to understand that, for the foreseeable future, they will be judged as much on their paper program as the print technology they offer to the market.

Steve Wolffis of i3Logix shares his experience with moving from a toner-based web to an inkjet web that doubled their color capacity, improved color quality and reduced costs.

Chris Lynn explores the reasons why toner and inkjet account for under 10% of the volume of labels printed last year and why the label sector of the packaging market was the first to adopt digital technologies despite the uphill battle.

Steve Welkley discusses opportunities for Inkjet as part of an overall production portfolio that takes advantage of the best that each platform has to offer.

Production inkjet has been limited in its ability to produce customized jobs on a wide range of substrates due to a predominantly roll-fed approach. Canon’s research and development of sheet-fed inkjet presses has addressed customization and substrate flexibility while bringing the benefits of inkjet printing to an expanded application range.

My last post, Paper Supply and Strategic Planning, continued our coverage of paper shortage in the U.S. market. This post offers suggestions to mills and paper merchants on how they can help print providers navigate this difficult time.

If you see banding in continuous solid colors, ask the designer  if “mixing up” that continuous solid is possible. Adding random patterns to large solid colors makes cross process print head density shifts less visible when multiple heads across the web are used to produce the solids.

Robert Clark of IWCO Direct discusses their experience migrating from conventional print to production inkjet. The pros far outweighed the cons, but that doesn’t mean the journey to inkjet came without a learning curve.

Inkjet Insight is closely watching the challenging paper shortage in the U.S. market. Our team  has covered different aspects of this topic from pulp trends to impacts to the supply chain. Most recently, we have been interviewing subject matter experts throughout the paper supply chain to gain a holistic view of the market. It’s clear that the tight paper market is driving frustration and change and it’s incumbent on participants throughout the supply chain to consider how to solve this challenge.

ScreenPro with PrintFlat technology reduces non-uniformity, commonly known as the inkjet smile. Source: Global Graphics Release from Issuing Company Cambridge UK, 10th July 2018: A new version of ScreenPro™, the

Eric Wiesner, General Manager of HP PageWide Industrial Division provides background on HP’s decision to expand the range of media compatibility for HP devices using a pre-coat or primer rather than adding additional solvents, resins and other chemistry to the ink.

The wrong drying configuration on an #inkjet press can torture the paper without properly drying the ink. Learn about the best drying options to match your type of work, ink type and coverage.

Last week Zanders GmbH issued a press release regarding the continued restructuring process for the company. The release included a sentiment that we don’t often hear in these types of announcements: optimism.

Don’t blindly accept the DFE bundled with the press. Ask about color management, variable data and file handling features of the DFE. Consider all of your DFE options and find the best fit for your workflow.

The restructuring process for Zanders GmbH continues. Restructuring Director Igor Ferlan and external consultants manage Zanders in collaboration with lawyer d’Avoine and his team. Everyone involved is optimistic that they will be able to create a stable future for Zanders.

I had the opportunity to see the Ricoh Pro VC70000 in action at Ricoh’s Boulder Colorado Customer Experience Center last week and to learn about some of the innovations that differentiate it from the rest of the Pro VC lineup. While visually similar to the VC 60000, the VC7000 offers three key innovations: new ink chemistry, advanced drying technology and finely controlled drop sizes.

Ricoh USA Inc. today announced the newest addition to its award-winning inkjet portfolio, the RICOH Pro VC70000, built to accelerate the transfer of offset print volumes to digital. The new continuous feed platform empowers commercial printers to produce quality applications, such as high-end catalogs and magazines, traditionally expected from offset presses. Additionally, Ricoh-developed inks enable up to 40 percent savings in paper costs while also expanding media support to offset-coated papers, untreated papers and more.

Christian Heneke of Service & Print Group Haberbeck gave a presentation today at the Ricoh Interact 2018 event on offset and inkjet working together. Like many companies, Haberbeck looked at the volumes of current work that could be transferred to inkjet, but he had a broader message.

Compare Costs of Complete Solutions. Don’t conduct TCO or eliminate press options until you have configured a complete solution. An “expensive” press may look reasonable once you configure the “bargain” press with drying, priming, turn-bar, premium ink, software and finishing. Compare fair!

We caught up with Marco Boer at the unveiling of the Océ LabelStream 4000. Canon is entering the label and packaging market with a high-end, hybrid system targeting adhesive label applications. Marco provides a great overview of what was learned in Germany.