The HP Scitex FB7500 and EFI VUTEk DS

A growing trend is to bring high-speed, industrial-strength, digital-print machines to market that challenge screenprinting head-on, and, in many areas, these machines may make the screenprint process redundant. Of course, some unique screenprint applications use special inks, finishes and other time/cost consequences, and these require screenprinting’s analog methods, but, for the majority of work – POP, interior- and exterior-advertising applications and many display jobs – digital printing is becoming more enticing because of recent technological changes that will affect many new print machines’ speed, productivity and cost outcomes.

Wide-format inkjet users have benefited from such new, super-fast, flatbed machines as the Inca Onset and the Agfa M-Press, whose stunning production rate is married to a hefty pricetag and an ROI that requires long-term planning. Conversely, many businesses have reached a crossroads: They need the throughput speed of screenprint presses, but want the convenience of digital output.

The EFI VUTEk DS printer
The June 2008 Drupa tradeshow suggested future possibilities. There, many displays hinted of a fast, throughput alternative to screenprint methods (see “Narrow-gauge MEMs-based Printers Precede Broad-use Future,” ST, October 2008, page 108). One example was EFI VUTEk’s DS Series printer, shown in prototype form.

Vutek and other print-machine manufacturers know print producers want faster and tougher print solutions. They also want the capacity to produce a range of displays. So far, UV-curable ink has provided the ideal partner for such applications. Vutek's UV-cure, DS printer was designed to print approximately 100 boards an hour.

In August, I visited Vutek’s plant in Meredith, NH, to see the DS machine. This time, it was complete, with printheads (although EFI Vutek wouldn’t reveal any information about them). Interestingly, Vutek boasts a price position comfortably below the Inca Onset; it also says the DS Series offers a true alternative to screenprinting. Time will tell if that prediction is accurate.

Industry analysts, myself included, knew that EFI Vutek wouldn’t monopolize production of an alternative to a top-end, screen press. However, by promoting its new technology well in advance of shipping, it revealed a machine-engineering trend that’s now viable, in terms of high-speed throughput at a realistic price.

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The HP Scitex FB7500
By observing its growth patterns through acquisition, research and development, I’d have wagered that HP would pursue printmakers who want to jump from high-end screenprinting to digital imaging.

I wasn’t surprised, then, at HP’s latest addition – the HP Scitex FB7500 – a high-speed, flatbed printer that takes UV-curable technology to the next level.

As you read this, remember that HP benefits from a portfolio that comprises many existing technologies; thus, the FB7500 isn’t an overnight, dream machine. It has undergone development over the past three years, and, while many of its component parts have been tried and tested in existing units, the development process has brought HP Scitex to the perfect time and place to introduce its X2 MEMS-based printheads into a true production environment.

Initially offered as a six-color printer, the $1.4 million FB7500 will be upgradable to accommodate white ink and varnish finish. The price includes automated loading and off-loading systems typically found on three-quarter, automatic screenprint presses, which has proved the most popular option for the sensible handling of different stock sizes and weights, along with various run lengths.

HP Scitex has configured the printer to produce 105, 4 x 8-ft. sheets/hr. Further, it can generate respectable speeds for prints that require the finer dots needed for intimate viewing.

The FB7500’s static gantry features a wide array of X2 heads, whose concept evolved from the company’s proven TJ series. A solid, vacuum bed holds the media in place. HP has opted, like Inca Digital, to print along the short side, rather than the long side, as with EFI Vutek’s DS.

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The HP Scitex FB7500 is a new concept in high-speed production. It’s founded on strong technology taken from all sides, including, of course, HP’s acquisitions of Scitex Vision and NUR. The printer forms a quartet of new options that feature the HP Scitex XP2300, a 3.2m, UV-curable, roll-fed system that carries the ink-saving benefits and low-cost operation of its 5m counterpart.

And, for entry-level and mid-range users, the HP Scitex FB950 is a hybrid UV-curable option. Finally, one mustn’t forget HP’s offering of aqueous-based systems nor, of course, its latex-printing technology, which is now available in the Designjet L65500.

U.K.-based writer, photographer, editor and consultant Sophie Matthews-Paul is an acknowledged authority on digital printing, worldwide. You may contact her at sophie@rockstro.net.