Inkjet & Digital Printing
Kodak Showcases Enhancements to Inkjet Printing Portfolio at Graph Expo
Monday 27. October 2008 - VERSAMARK VL2000 and Stream Inkjet Technology make North American debut
Kodak will show new features and enhancements for several of its powerful and versatile inkjet solutions at Graph Expo (booth #600), giving visitors an opportunity to see firsthand the advantages of inkjet technology. Kodaks broad portfolio of continuous inkjet (CIJ) and drop on demand (DOD) technology enables print service providers to choose the system that best meets their unique requirements.
The KODAK VERSAMARK VL2000 Printing System, which utilizes DOD print technology for commercial, transaction and publishing applications from a “white paper in” configuration, will be shown to the public for the first time in North America at Graph Expo. Designed for the growing color roll fed market, the system prints up to 1,072 two-up duplex letter size images per minute in full color.
Driving the KODAK VERSAMARK VL2000 Printing System is the new KODAK VERSAMARK 700 Print Manager, which includes an advanced digital front end and press controller. The VERSAMARK 700 Print Manager accepts and processes a variety of data streams including PDF, PostScript, PPML-GA, PPML-VDX, VPS, and AFP/IPDS. The VERSAMARK 700 Print Manager leverages Kodaks Unified Workflow Solutions to simplify job submission and reporting, color management, and workflow connectivity. This versatile solution also is designed to drive future KODAK Stream Inkjet Technology products.
KODAK Stream Inkjet Technology, previewed earlier this year at drupa, is a continuous inkjet system that enables offset class reliability, productivity, cost, and quality with the full benefits of digital printing for high volume commercial applications. Offering the benefits of variable data, short run, personalization or versioning on jobs traditionally produced using offset presses, Stream Inkjet Technology supports both commercial coated and uncoated papers for applications such as catalogs, direct mail, and inserts.
“Stream Inkjet Technology is a very adaptable architecture that will serve as the foundation for a variety of inkjet products in the near future,” said Isidre Rosello, General Manager, Inkjet Printing Solutions, Kodaks Graphic Communications Group, and Vice President, Eastman Kodak Company. “In todays highly competitive market, commercial printers are searching for ways to integrate digital printing capabilities within their existing offset environments. By delivering offset class output with Stream Inkjet Technology, we are making it easier for them to expand into new markets without having to outsource, thereby keeping the revenue in house.”
The Stream Concept Printhead from Kodak will be shown at Graph Expo in a roll to roll configuration on a Web Transport Unit from GSS Printing Systems, but can also be installed inline on a web press. In the offline configuration, the paper travels from the unwind unit, under the Stream Concept Printhead, in front of the dryers, and finally into the rewind unit. In the demonstration, Adphos provides Near Infrared (NIR) drying capabilities inline, and Hunkeler provides the unwind and rewind capabilities.
Capable of delivering monochrome offset class VDP applications at up to 1,000 fpm to commercial offset printers, the Stream Concept Printhead from Kodak shows Stream Inkjet Technologys potential for hybrid printing. The 4.16 inch Stream Concept Printhead from Kodak is designed to produce a deep, rich black at 600 dpi on glossy substrates, and is easy to operate and service.
To help ensure data integrity and print quality with high speed verification, Kodak also is showing the VIDEK PVS 8600 with Data Recon Manager, a full page color scanning camera system that works with the Stream Concept Printhead from Kodak. The solutions available from Videk can be used to monitor the print or inserting process. This verification system feeds information into PITNEY BOWES Emtex DFWorks for distributed production management and control. DFWorks is an integrated portfolio of solutions for the document factory that monitors and measures workflow, resource, job, and mail piece status in real time.
A program designed to help new and current owners of the KODAK VERSAMARK DS6240 Printing System step up to the Stream Concept Printhead from Kodak is now in place, and customers can get more information from a Kodak sales professional.
Video demonstrations of the upcoming Stream Concept Press will be available by appointment in the Kodak booth throughout the show. With resolution that exceeds 600 dpi at fast production speeds, the Stream Concept Press incorporates Kodaks 10 years of roll fed color inkjet experience coupled with technical expertise in print technology development, workflow, color management, and ink and media interaction.
For KODAK VERSAMARK V-Series Printing Systems, Kodak offers print quality verification with several BOWE BELL + HOWELL Solutions on display at the show: JETVision for Print is a high speed vision system that collects, analyzes, and monitors print production quality and integrity; JETVision for Inserting is a high speed vision system that collects, analyzes, and monitors inserting production quality and integrity; BOWE ONE is a modular ADF solution that enables companies to lower costs and increase productivity, integrity and quality control; and Inserter is a high speed inserting system that assembles and finishes mail pieces with full integrity.
Kodak also will demonstrate the PITNEY BOWES Emtex VIP Server, a production server that manages input jobs from varied page description languages and prepares data into the highly optimized IJPDS format for output on KODAK VERSAMARK V-Series Printing Systems. The product supports integrated solutions with many third party printers. For existing jobs, users will see PITNEY BOWES Emtex VDE Software, which allows changes such as barcode additions and image or color changes to be made at the production facility, saving time, as jobs do not have to go back to the job composition team that may be remote.
Finally, for reprinting damaged documents to ensure 100 percent accurate mail output, the RISO HC5500 Reprint Printer is a 120 page per minute color printer that delivers offline reprint jobs with an output quality matched to complement the KODAK VERSAMARK V-Series Printing Systems.
“By integrating our products with some of the best third party solutions on the market, we make it easy for our customers to achieve the results they demand,” said Ronen Cohen, Vice President Marketing, InkJet Printing Solutions, Kodaks Graphic Communications Group. “Videk, GSS, Adphos, Hunkeler, BOWE BELL + HOWELL, Emtex, and others have years of experience in areas that complement our products and enable us to deliver a complete solution. We take the time to understand our customers needs, and our portfolio of inkjet products directly reflects our goal of making customers more successful.”
Kodak will show its products and integrated solutions for graphic communications professionals in booth #600 at Graph Expo. To receive regular updates from Kodaks Graphic Communications Group, go to Twitter.com/KodakIDigPrint and register for the companys new Twitter feed. For more information on Kodaks Graphic Communications Group at Graph Expo, please visit www.kodak.com/go/graphexpo.
KODAK Products are backed by KODAK Service and Support. KODAK Service and Support is made up of more than 3,000 professionals reaching more than 120 countries. It is a leading multi-vendor integrated services provider, delivering consulting, installation, maintenance and support services for the commercial printing, graphic communications, document imaging and data storage industries. KODAK Service and Support professionals are uniquely qualified to provide services that control costs, maximize productivity, and minimize business risk.