Sunday, August 22, 2010

Weekend Print Production Notes 8/22/10


- Fuji announced it sold a Color 1000 Press (made by Fuji but also sold by Xerox in U.S.) to Dashing Print of Sydney, Australia. It also sold a Color 1000 Press to Western Mailing of New Zealand.

- Xerox announced following production print system sales:
o Xerox Color 1000 Press and two Nuvera 144 b/w systems to Conlin’s Digital Print & Copy Center in Pennsylvania
o Xerox Color 800 Press to Alphagraphics of Cherry Creek, Denver, Colorado.
o Xerox Nuvera 288 to CMP of Dorsett, England
o All made by Fuji

- A survey conducted by WhatTheyThink of printshop owners, when asked “What’s Your Next Big Equipment Investment?”
o 16% = bindery
o 35% = digital press
o 10% = mailing
o 29% = production inkjet
o 10% = wide format
o 0% = offset press

- XMPie, maker of variable data software, announced it will have its annual Users Group Conference on 9/12-15/2010 in Orlando, Florida.

- According to Howie Fenton of the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (GATF), paper for digital color presses:
o when made have moisture content of 4-6% of its total weight
o in best conditions, paper is designed to be stable in a 45-55% relative humidity at 72 degrees Farenheit
o moisture content affects toner adhesion, paper jams and fuser roller temperature
o if paper is left unwrapped, it absorbs more moisture


-=Greetings from Sandy Hook=-

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Average selling price for offset press prints is 6-10 cents per page


- According to a study conducted by Kodak about the print for pay industry:
o Total print revenues grew from 2006 to 2007 by 1.7%
o Offset press revenue grew from 2006 to 2007 by 1.7%
o From 2007 to 2008, offset press shipments declined by 1.5%
o Total print shipments were down 13% in 2009, and 5% down in 2010
o Profit from digital print averages 20-40%
o Profit from offset press is 1-4%
o Average run length is less than 10,000 pieces per job
o Run lengths have decreased by 30% in last 5 years
o Average time to run a 1,000 piece job on offset press is 30 minutes for makeready plus 15 minutes for actual printing for a total average of 45 minutes
o Average selling price for offset press prints is 6-10 cents per page with profit of 1-4%
o Average cost per page for high speed digital is 10-14 cents per page
o Average cost per page for offset press job for 500-1000 run length is 35-45 cents per page

-=Greetingd from Sandy Hook=-

Monday, April 26, 2010

Xerox 800 Digital Color Press and 1000 Digital Color Press "Spec Review"


- Xerox, at the OnDemand show in Philadelphia, allowed the public to see their new color production print models, the 800 Digital Color Press and 1000 Digital Color Press featuring:

o Actually made by Fuji of Japan
o Base MSRPs of $350,000 and $395,000 respectively
o Xerox hired Frank Romano (famous RIT professor) to create video endorsing this product
o In same size frame as the huge Xerox iGen4 (74” high) and weighs 3,197lbs.
o Unlike the iGen units, these new models use polymerized toner (called EA for polymerized “emulsion aggregate” technology)
o Unlike iGen units, does NOT use fuser oil that can drip inside engine, so this unit has paper drawers underneath the engine for smaller footprint than iGen
o 80ppm and 100ppm top speeds respectively
o Advertised as offering “2400dpi” (not true 8 bits per pixel as Xerox takes a pixel from a 600dpi data stream and divides it into 4 quadrants to get 2400dpi effect)
o 4 tandem OPC drum design with expected life of 800,000 impressions per drum
o Uses dual corotron grids that are self-cleaning
o Uses 5 toner cartridges, as the fifth is clear toner, for optional flood gloss or spot gloss applications (this is first color toner unit with in-line gloss coating, as the Kodak NexPress’s NexGlosser is an off-line device)
o Uses a mylar film transfer belt called a “Intermediate Belt Transfer System” or “IBT Technology”
o Uses fuser belt system instead of traditional fuser rollers, using a dual fuser to run thick stocks at same speed as plain paper
o “In-line Belt Cooling” along with paper decurl mechanism to reduce paper curl
o Requires a 240v/50amp outlet
o Recommended monthly volume of 300,000 pages per month
 Maximum duty cycle of 1.75 million pages per month
o Comes standard with two 2,000 sheet paper drawers
 Optional LCT adds two more 2,000 sheet paper drawers
 Maximum paper capacity of 8,000 sheets
 Auto tray switching with on-the fly paper add feature
 Maximum paper size of 13”x19.2” out of any paper source
 Heavy or coated paper out of any drawer
 Optional tray insert to handle 4”x 6” postcard media
 Maximum paper weight handling up to 350gsm
o Xerox promises back to front registration of 0.5 millimeters for auto duplex output
o Has “Customer Replaceable Unit System” called SMART technology, meaning the customer is responsible for replacing 40 different cartridges, even though they must have a service contract from Xerox.(this includes 5 different toner cartridges, 5 different drums, mylar IBT transfer belt, fuser belts, paper feed tires, etc.)(even though the customer will be responsible for performing most of the service, Xerox apparently has no plans for discounting the click charge)
 Customer is provided with a special screwdriver that allows them to open up the doors of the machine
o Xerox plans on submitting the units for certification (Pantone, FOGRA, etc.)
o Customers have choice of EFI Fiery, Kodak Creo, or Xerox branded FreeFlow print controllers
o Optional “Profit Accelerator” programs to teach customer how to market & sell output, includes DVD, templates, VDP samples and more
o Finishing options include:
 Interface Module (required purchase to attach any finishers)
 GBC hole punching system
 GBC punch and bind (up to 100 sheets with plastic bind)
 5000 sheet stackers (can have two maximum)
 Fold unit (C and Z folding)
 200 sheet post process cover inserter
 Booklet maker (25 sheet booklets maximum) with optional face trimmer
 Tape binding up to 125 sheets
 Plockmatic Pro booklet maker (30 sheet booklets) with face trim

-=Cheers from Sandy Hook"

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Xerox now shipping the iGen4 220 Perfecting Press


Xerox now shipping the iGen4 220 Perfecting Press selling for $1,212,550.00. This is two iGen4 production color systems bolted together, so that it can produce two-sided color documents at 110 per minute.

- Xerox launched a new eCommerce site for their customers called “Xerox MySupport” offering:
o provided at no charge
o password accessed personal website
o security updates
o newsletters
o support updates
o meter submission
o usage patterns
o meter reads between billings
o export data to create usage reports
o apparently you can NOT place a service call or order supplies using this free portal

-=Cheers from Sandy Hook=-

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

New Estimator Wide-Format Work-Flow solution featured at Orlando ISA show April 8-10


Estimator Corp News Release

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

New Estimator Wide-Format Work-Flow solution featured at Orlando ISA show April 8-10

Estimator, Estimating, Job Entry & Work-Flow with unique solutions for Sheetfed, Web, Wide-Format, Digital and Flexo, announces the release of its new generation Windows 7 compatible software.

Estimator also provides Full-Metric configuration with a simple click... converts Estimator’s Unique Single-Screen Estimating & Management Software from inches and pounds to Metric with GSM input Millimeter scale and Kilogram weight...Ideal for Multi-National companies. Overseas representation inquiries welcome.

Estimator’s Creative features make it the Fastest, Easiest Single-Screen, Mistake Proof, Intelligent, High-Speed... Print-Estimating & Job-Entry Management System available.

Estimator’s easy-to-use low-cost solutions delivers 19 unique reports all in an error-free, single screen environment and include analysis of sales and productivity and department production load schedules. New Custom Freight and Services section allows a variety of options with the ability to have different pricing sources and mark-ups from different suppliers, as well as complete Buy-Out option for Printers and Brokers.

All programs include Set-up and installation in 2 weeks or less with regular updates and full live maintenance.

Interested parties may contact Estimator to arrange a short Webinar and have the unrestricted 60-day trial program installed in their plant.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Ricoh Pro c720 "Price Review"

- Ricoh announced pricing for the PRO C720, which is 72ppm version of the C900 production color system. Details:
- Base MSRP of $104,099 for print only version
- Base MSRP of $121,098 for MFP version
- Optional $140 kit for embedded applications
- Optional embedded EFI Fiery, but does NOT offer a CREO option or external Fiery
- Does NOT offer optional perfect binder or ring binder
- 320K/month max duty cycle

-=Cheers=-

Saturday, January 30, 2010