News

Josero and Triangle inks will use Sign and Digital UK later this month to launch the EcoJet 180E - a 1.8m eco solvent printer featuring Epson DX5 technology - as well as various new ink technologies.

The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has teamed up with management consultancy Steuer Gregsson to provide discounted succession planning support for family owned businesses.

Dublin’s Horizon Innovative Digital and Print Solutions, which installed the country’s first M-Press Leopard flatbed printer last autumn, has bought a second to satisfy demand generated by the first machine.

March will see MicroGraphics Colour Imaging take delivery of a 3m x 2m VHF ActivePro digital cutting table, the first in the UK with VHF's new-generation multi cutting head. Working alongside MicroGraphics’ Arizona 350GT flatbed printer, Mimaki JV33 and Canon roll-feed printers, the ActivePro will enable the company to radically diversify its services.

You can now enter for a cash grant to help with print training. Unite the Union, The Printing Charity and the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF) are calling for entries to the Print Futures Awards 2012, which has a closing date of 31 May.

TG Print and Design, a multi-service company based in Woolwich, south east London, has  bought an Anapurna Mw to develop its wide-format display business and MD David Duhig said the next step is to develop a Web-to-print operation.

With still a day and a bit of the of the show to go, Fespa Digital 2012 hit its overall event visitor target of 10,000 by yesterday lunchtime. At the close of business on Thursday 23 February, 10606 individual visitors had attended the show, which closes this afternoon. Full figures will be available on Monday.

Mimaki has used Fespa Digital to launch a latex printer, the first non-HP printer to incorporate the technology. The Mimaki newcomer, part of a new JV400 series of printers, is also the first latex machine to incorporate a white ink. It comes in two formats: as the JV400-130LX (1,361mm width) and JV400-160LX (1,610mm width). The other two new JV400 series machines are the JV400-130SUV and JV400-160SUV, which combine solvent and UV inks. All the above should be available this spring.

Epson is realigning its business to target the large-format commercial print and signage markets for which it recently launched the £11,995 SureColor SC-S30600. “This can be seen as a mark of intent and an indication that our new strategy is to move more into the commercial wide-format print sector,” said Richard Barrow, who holds the newly created position of senior product manager for signage/LFP.

Xante has confirmed that the first UK shipment of its Excelagraphix 4200 printer will be in June but as yet there are no UK orders for the 42in machine, which is based on Memjet’s Waterfall printhead technology to deliver “screaming fast speeds at a price point that’s affordable for a fast ROI” and which was hailed by industry guru Frank Romano as “a glimpse of printing’s viable future” when launched at the SGIA show in the US last autumn.

Ilford has introduced its BioMedia range of recyclable and biodegradable vinyl alternatives in Europe. It includes display films which employ Ilford’s coating technologies to create a universally compatible layer, as well paper-based products, boards and laminates for use on a range of aqueous, eco-solvent, solvent and latex printers.

The Vinyl Cut has been named UK Regional Award winner of the Roland Creative Awards international design competition for its highly innovative van wrap entry. The Vinyl Cut will now travel to Japan for a sight-seeing trip of a lifetime and attend a special 30th anniversary event where it will compete for the worldwide grand prize - a Roland machine of its choice.

New to the market is the Océ Arizona 318 GL printer, an introductory UV flatbed model being shown at Fespa Digital 2012. The new printer, aimed at low-volume environments, is based on the same platform as the mid-volume Océ Arizona 360 GT but is about 35% cheaper.

Oasis Graphic Company, Berkshire, has bought a 3.2m Vutek GS 3250 printer to take it to the forefront of exhibition and event graphic production.