DIGITAL digest

Inkjet Innovators Offer a Heads-up
CHICAGO—As its title promised, the “Unlocking the Mystery of Inkjet: The Printer’s Perspective” panel discussion offered insights from a trio of firms that are innovators in the inkjet arena, as well industry leaders. The event, held in conjunction with Graph Expo 2010, was hosted by Cabot Corp., a maker of pigment dispersions for inkjet inks.

Sharing their insights were Mary Lee Schneider, RR Donnelley’s chief technology officer (CTO) and president of Digital Solutions; Frank Delfer, executive vice president of technology and CTO at DST Output; and Chris Carosella, vice president of product development and regulatory affairs at IWCO Direct. Marco Boer, vice president of the IT Strategies research firm, added a broader industry perspective to the discussion.

RR Donnelley currently has 20 inkjet web presses installed around the country, Schneider reported, and the plan is to install one press per month for the next 18 months. “Buy when we can, build when we have to” is the approach the printer takes with all technological advancements, she said.

With the addition of its recently announced 60˝ version, Donnelley’s ProteusJet proprietary (and not for sale) digital printing platform now spans 20˝ to 60˝ widths. All models offer a 1,200x600 dpi resolution, and print at 800 fpm (one- or two-color) or 400 fpm (four-color). Initial applications include books, transactional documents and direct mail.

The company is also deploying a modular version of the technology in-line with heatset web presses and finishing lines. Schneider said this implementation represents a significant opportunity given the industry-wide install base of more than 3,000 heatset web presses. Donnelley’s press configuration can operate in offset only, digital only or hybrid mode, with the inkjet units printing a 1,200 dpi resolution at 1,200 fpm.

DST Output has similarly opted to roll its own, so to speak. The company had eight 40˝ wide inkjet web presses built over the course of 2005 and 2006. Delfer said the presses were designed to go from a blank roll of paper to a finished mailing product in keeping with DST’s manufacturing—not printing—paradigm for its operations.

Direct to the Mail Stream

The presses provide one-pass printing at 1,000 fpm, with integrated finishing to reduce costs and errors. According to a Delfer, a key advantage is being able to manufacture personalized pieces in delivery sequence to simplify meeting qualifications for postal discounts.

DST outsourced the manufacturing of its presses, which were built on a web press frame. Delfer said that having presses built was just the first step, since an inkjet machine “is a large chemistry set that requires fine-tuning.” DST employs more than 100 imaging scientists and engineers to support its operations.

At IWCO Direct, the current focus is on running black-only imprinting heads in-line with its traditional offset production platform. The company has installed nearly 60 inkjet units, and also has a Xerox iGen digital color press, Carosella said. Digital is less than five percent of its volume today, but is projected to grow to 20 percent within two years.

Healthcare has been a particularly fruitful target market for IWCO’s digital services, according to Carosella. He agreed with an assertion made by Schneider that ink costs currently are a hindrance to inkjet technology delivering on its promise. “Ink is our largest cost,” noted the company vice president.

For her part, Schneider chided the industry for tolerating the current pricing structure for inkjet inks. “Ninety percent is the profit margin on inks, and not just the percentage of the ink that’s water,” she remarked. Donnelley’s CTO also said that the ability to print on existing offset stocks is a requirement for inkjet printing to reach its full market potential.

IT Strategies’ Boer agreed that the price of inks needs to come down, but he pointed out that inkjet ink is difficult to manufacture because of the purity required, and that the segment hasn’t reached anywhere near the economies of scale that offset ink has at this point. PI