Xaar to ‘Unleash the Power of Inkjet’

CAMBRIDGE, UK—April 25, 2008—A large number of Xaar printhead-enabled printers is due to be demonstrated at Drupa by key industry suppliers, including at least six new products making their worldwide debut. This sets a new record for Xaar, an independent supplier of industrial inkjet printheads, inks and peripheral equipment, and is the driving the force behind Xaar’s ‘Unleash the power of inkjet’ theme for the show.

Designed for high-speed, single-pass and scanning applications, the latest Xaar 1001 printhead is based on Xaar’s innovative Hybrid Side-Shooter(tm) and TF Technology(tm) which ensure accurate drop control, outstanding quality, productivity, and reliability. All the new products to be launched at Drupa rely on either the Xaar 1001 or the Xaar 760 and XaarDOT (Xaar Drop Optimisation Technology) for their high-end performance.

Xaar 1001-enabled

A significant number of new products powered by the latest Xaar 1001 printhead will be launched at the show. At this stage we can reveal the following highlights: (*products making their worldwide debut at Drupa)

- UV wide format printing: the ONE SOLUTION Meital 3000-10* wide format UV flatbed printer (Stand 9E03) has the ability to vary the drop size from 6 pl to 42 pl. It delivers photo-realistic quality and production speeds of up to 410 sqm/h The Meital 3000-10 is setting new standards in terms of quality, speed and ease of use.

- UV single-pass web printing: the FFEI/Nipleter Caslon label printer (Xaar Stand 4E10); the Beijing Founder Web Printer* (Stand 5B24) the JF Machines Narrow Web Press (Xaar Stand 4E10); and the EFI Jetrion 4000 (Stand 5C01) - all printing high quality labels and narrow web packaging at speeds that match that of conventional print.

- Industrial printing: Xennia (Stand 7AC09) will be showcasing a number of machines which incorporate the Xaar 1001 head into printers designed for manufacturing applications.

- Plus...several more innovative printers will be launched at the show. However, details are embargoed until the 29th May.

Other Xaar printheads

- UV wide format hybrid printing: the Agfa Anapurna XLS* (Stand 8B63) and the Mutoh Zephyr (Stand 9B43) - both producing stunning graphics

- Industrial printing: The Impika C9000 (Stand 10B24-1) card and security printing

- Xaar licensees: Numerous Xaar licensees will also be exhibiting at the show, such as Konica Minolta, Seiko and Toshiba-Tec

There will be numerous other Xaar-enabled wide format, narrow web, label, textile and ceramics inkjet products at Drupa demonstrating the considerable flexibility and potential of its printhead range.

Xaar’s innovative ‘single-pass’ technology

Xaar’s on-stand technology demonstrations illustrate the impressive performance and added-value potential of its latest printheads for commercial applications. Three single-pass inkjet products show the industrial-strength Xaar 1001 producing high quality, high-speed, single-pass printing producing fine detail and readable small text, as well as smooth tones.

High-speed, real time, variable data label printing is demonstrated with the Xaar 1001 greyscale inkjet printhead on a continuous narrow web using the new ixPressia colour label software. ixPressia’s new label product is optimised for real world label printing applications, and includes advanced technology to maximise speed and throughput. A unique feature is the ability to generate label images in real time in full colour with variable data. Its greyscale screening technology is the perfect partner for the innovative Xaar 1001 greyscale printhead.

Xaar spotlights the flexibility and benefits of XaarDOT and its range of drop formation options and its ability to fine tune them to specific applications. XaarDOT is incredibly versatile in giving printers the choice of what drop size or resolution to use for a specific job both in terms of image quality and substrate flexibility. By tuning the options, printer manufacturers can produce anything between high quality photographic results for close-up indoor viewing, and high productivity larger drop work for outdoor viewing on billboards or other signage.

“With competition ever-increasing in the print world it is essential you consider how best to add value to your printed output,” says Ian Dinwoodie, Xaar CEO. “Digital print provides flexibility and choice and the potential of new market opportunity through variable data, customisation and short run capabilities. Understanding how digital print can be achieved with leading-edge inkjet technology and how you can choose the right product for your business to maximise profit is critical, but not always easy. Inkjet is on the rise and more than ever inkjet is a mainstream technology that can be applied alongside traditional technologies or as a direct replacement for conventional print technologies. Recent developments in inkjet technology have overturned the issues of poor quality, reliability and productivity and Drupa will be a significant showcase for many of these.”

Mid-Drupa Conference

Finally, for those looking to investigate inkjet in more depth then the 1-day ‘Frontiers in Digital Imaging’ conference hosted by the Society for Imaging Science and Technology in conjunction with Drupa is a key event (Saturday, 31st May). Here, Werner Zapka, Xaar Advanced Applications Manager, looks at ‘Improved Reliability in Industrial Inkjet Printing’ alongside other experts analysing the latest and future developments, and challenges for digital imaging technology. More details: www.imaging.org/conferences/frontiers-munster/

About Xaar
Xaar is the world’s leading supplier of industrial inkjet printheads, inks and peripheral equipment to commercial printing and industrial manufacturing markets. Xaar’s innovative technology offers OEM customers and licensees commercial advantage through product differentiation, productivity, and faster time-to-market. Additional information about Xaar is available at www.xaar.com