Ricoh Continuous-Feed Press Targets Offset Transition

MALVERN, PA—Ricoh Americas announced its newest continuous-feed platform, the Ricoh Pro VC60000, marking a milestone in the evolution of its production inkjet printing portfolio. The new system, coupled with Ricoh’s software offerings, enables a more rapid shift from offset to digital as commercial printers focus on data-driven applications and workflows requiring high-performance color inkjet presses with vibrant print quality and increased media flexibility.

The Ricoh Pro VC60000, capable of producing more than 100,000 letter images per hour, provides a function-rich total solution for customers new to digital color, and for those already using digital print but wanting to consolidate and streamline their operations. This model joins several other offerings being announced in the lead-up to GRAPH EXPO 14 in Chicago this Sunday, where many of Ricoh’s offerings will be on display in booth #1931.

The 2014 Must See 'Ems award-winning Ricoh Pro VC60000—expected to begin shipping in early 2015—uses Ricoh’s next generation drop-on-demand print heads and high-density pigment inks, resulting from its 25 years of experience in developing core inkjet technologies. These new print heads are capable of physical resolutions up to 1,200x1,200 dots per inch. Utilizing the Ricoh Pro VC60000’s variable drop technology, customers can produce near-offset quality documents. With the optional undercoat unit, commercial printers can run a variety of offset coated gloss stocks with output quality comparable to what they expect from offset devices. An optional inline protector coating unit provides scratch and scuff resistance to protect critical documents.

“The Ricoh Pro VC60000 is important for the industry because it’s going to help the offset printing community transition to becoming more efficient. Its print quality will provide customers with the ability to shift jobs to digital that frankly haven’t been profitable on offset,” said Marco Boer, vice president at IT Strategies. “It will help commercial printers, in-plants and service bureaus to compress run lengths and operate more cost-effectively, while maintaining high quality at a throughput that wasn’t viable until today. This will change many printers’ perceptions of inkjet quality for the better.”