LFP - Large-Format-Printing
Roland printers shape the Alstare look
Friday 12. November 2010 - The Alstare-Suzuki racing team has the wind in its sails: Pepephone.com became their new main sponsor and the world championship Superbike lays within reach. But the team is also successful next to the track. The team and its entourage always look excellent thanks to Roland DG's SOLJET technology.
The graphical department of Alstare produces about 800 meters prints per year. These are used, on the one hand, for vehicle letterings and decals. The eight racing motors and seven trucks are fully covered with these decals. On the other hand, the prints are used for posters, banners and displays that brighten up the hospitality unit and booth. Werner Speeckaert, creative director at Alstare, explains: “I’m already working at Alstare for 12 years and a lot has changed in this period. In the beginning, motors were painted and we decorated them with stickers we made with our cutting plotter. We tried to create texture by using multiple layers of stickers on top of each other. A couple of years ago, we discovered the possibilities of digital printing for our business. We outsourced everything at first, but soon that became too expensive. We then decided to buy our own digital printer. We tested several brands, but Roland was for us by far the best solution. We were convinced by the price, quality and user-friendliness of the machine.”
At the moment, Alstare has two Roland machines: an SJ-1045 which is used mainly for poster and banner printing and an XC-540 with which stickers are printed and cut. The combination of printing and cutting with one machine is ideal for Alstare: “We use a huge amount of stickers every year. If we attract a new sponsor or loose one, the decoration of the motors is completely adapted. What’s more: we don’t only need a lot of stickers; we require a fast production as well. The past year, we had to make almost all our prints in one month, but that didn’t influence the quality and that’s very important for us.”
The Alstare look has a good reputation on the track. Pilots like Stefan Everts and Steve Ramon asked Speeckaert and his team to make a design for their helmet. So, Speeckaert designed the helmet Everts wore when he became world champion for the 10th time. “It’s the first helmet ever that’s fully decorated with stickers and not with paint. Today, replicas of this helmet are for sale all over the world”, adds Speeckaert.
It’s Alstare’s goal to outsource as little as possible. “We want to do everything ourselves. That’s why we follow up which novelties Roland releases. Roland DG is the ideal partner for us: the quality is superb, the machines are very easy to operate and they require little maintenance. To conclude, I can’t imagine working without them.”