Oce showcased its developments in large format colour printing technology at the recently concluded IRgA 2008 Annual Convention and Trade Show. 

 Among the new products premiered at the event were

 ·        Oce ColorWave 600 printer, which uses the company’s CrystalPoint technology combining the best of toner-based printing with the best of inkjet technology. Reprographers can benefit by being able to print more colour applications at very high quality in less time. The Oce CrystalPoint process converts color Oce TonerPearls toner into a gel. This tonergel is then jetted and crystallized onto any type of paper, producing crisp, waterfast, high quality images with extremely accurate dot placement.

·        Oce CS2236 entry-level, very low volume color inkjet plotter designed for users in very low volume environments who demand high quality color output. Suited for CAD line work, technical drawings and business/consumer graphics, the Oce CS2236 provides high quality printing with 2400 x 1200 dpi print resolution.

·        Oce TCS500 color inkjet printer

·        Oce TDS800 Pro Series systems are ideal for integrated printing, copying and scanning and great for technical document production.  

·        Oce Eco Design printers -- the Oce TDS700 and Oce TDS450

·        Oce Arizona 250GT UV curable printer

·        Oce CS9160 and Oce CS9290 eco- and low-solvent printers

·        Oce Repro Desk Professional and ONYX GraphicsPro workflow software solutions.

PrintWeek.com reports that Mutoh has won the 'Best wide-format printer of the year 2008' in the category of printing engines up to 2.5m wide at this year’s European Digital Press Association Awards. The Blizzard series of wide-format piezo inkjet printers was recognized for its high image quality, speed and production capabilities. This series of wide format printers, available in 65in and 90in widths with the ability to print at up to 80 sq. m. per hour, is capable of printing on various substrates.

The DuraCut II vinyl cutter and plotter uses rolls of vinyls up to 24 inches wide to cut attractive graphics and text with up to 23.6 ips cutting speed. Substituting the knife holder with a felt-tip pen, the cutter can be converted to a plotter.

The versatile sign making machine takes very little time in going from cutting vinyl lettering and graphics for a glass door, to printing a large format facility map.

The DuraCut II uses a digitally controlled servo system that provides optimum cutting speed, superior quality and solid reliability. It boasts of a 400 gram cutting force. The DuraCut II uses both 15 inch and 24 inch rolls of vinyl. The vinyl rolls are available in 30 standard colors, all of which are a heavy-duty 3.0 mil thick.

The new HP Scitex TJ8300 printer has helped Gobet Production SA of Switzerland to achieve faster turnarounds and expand its services to include printing of outdoor posters. While the latter is in the business of producing self-adhesive posters and vehicle wraps, the printer’s ability to print at 600dpi (apparent) at 100sqm/hr helped the company to print high quality paper posters and thus tap into new business opportunities.

As a result, the Swiss production house could compete with large offset printing houses for short runs of 200 to 300 outdoor posters.

One of the key features of the HP Scitex TJ8300 printer is its high speed, as it is capable of printing at up to 400sqm per hour. The printer can print both coated and uncoated paper, self-adhesive vinyl, canvas, banner and paper-back flag, by using solvent based HP Scitex TJ100 Supreme inks that are light-fast and UV-durable for up to two years.

Lexmark has introduced optical character recognition (OCR) technology in an all-in-one (AIO) inkjet printer, allowing business enterprises to avoid the tedious task of retyping business documents.

The Lexmark X6570 Wireless AIO comes standard with Lexmark's exclusive Productivity Studio software. Among the many features of this software, users can scan hardcopy documents and convert them to digital formats easily. These documents can then be printed, copied, faxed, edited and stored.

Priced at $149, the Lexmark X6570 Wireless AIO features print speeds up to 28 pages per minute (ppm) in black and 24 ppm in color as well as a robust 25-sheet automatic document feeder. The AIO also includes wireless capabilities standard, two-sided printing, and advanced photo features such as media card slots and a PictBridge port.