Tuesday, September 25, 2012

GPT's Stuart Cole explains ethos behind upcoming Open Days

In the following article, titled "GPT - The only Open Days you will ever need", Stuart Cole explains what unique offerings will be on show at the upcoming events scheduled to take place between 16th and 18th October 2012...

"Printer manufacturers have been really hard at work this year, with an unprecedented number of new machines already launched and more to come soon.  Mimaki, Epson and Canon stand out and it stands to reason that sign and graphics display companies want to see these new printers to find out for themselves exactly what they are capable of and how they can generate more business and more profits.

In my opinion, the Open Days showing the broadest range of new and unique printers are the ones being held at our offices in Reading from 16th to 18th October.

Representatives from GPT and all its manufactures will be present, including Hybrid (Mimaki), Agfa, Canon, Epson, Velmex (Canon/Epson), Shiraz, Wasatch, Amari and MacTac. This means customers can gain the most detailed advice possible, directly from the people who know their products best.

We have incorporated our extensive experience and expertise to develop unique printer offerings based on Mimaki’s market leading technology. The GPT JV34 180 delivers double the print speed of a Mimaki JV33 and cannot be found anywhere else. It is a 1.8m wide printer and incorporates double print heads to deliver the additional speed.  This is what many of our customers have been asking for. It provides all the benefits of the JV33, but much faster, wider and available at incredibly good value.

We have also developed our own range of dye-sublimation printing solutions for the textile and garment printing market. The GPT TPC60, 130 and 160 machines are based on Mimaki’s award-winning integrated printer/cutter range and give customers greater choice than the Mimaki TPC-1000 that is currently the only size (1mtr) available from Mimaki.  These printer/cutters are a great way to get into the dye sublimation market as they allow customers to expand into soft signage while benefiting from using cost effective Mimaki inks and technology.

The GPT Open Days will be the first chance to see many of the new machines in the market from Mimaki, Epson and Canon under one roof. The big news is that the Mimaki JV-400 LX Latex is ready to go. GPT has recently installed the very first production site in the UK and there are more installations ready to go. We are now full steam ahead with this product and we are one of the only companies in the UK with a machine available to view at our offices. The JV-400 LX is now ready for full production and we are looking forward to people coming in to see what it can really their business and their profit line.

Also new is the Epson range of SureColor eco solvent printers, the Epson SC-S30600, SC-S50600 and SC-S70600. The GPT Open Days will be the first time the entire range will be under one roof, showing the 4, 5, 8 and 10 colour versions. These machines have no solvent smell, great print quality, good production speed, 3 year durable print output, and they are so easy to use.  From basic 4 colour right up to the top end 10 colour machines, which include white and metallic ink, the Epson SureColor range covers many bases.

GPT’s Open Days will also be the first time in the UK that visitors can see the brand new range of aqueous ink based printers from Canon. The Canon iPF8400 and iPF9400s are the fastest 44” and 60” aqueous printers on the market. The range includes 5, 8 and 12 colour versions to deliver the quality levels required. I saw these printers at the Canon launch in Germany recently and they demonstrated all the great quality we expect from the current Canon line up. They now have the exciting addition of the very latest Canon Lucia EX inks for the ultimate colour gamut, and at the fastest print speed of any aqueous printer in market today.

The Agfa Anapurna range is currently available from GPT with some unbeatable special offer discounts. The Open Days are an excellent opportunity for customers to see what these printers can do. With 6 colours, and white ink, the Anapurna Mw at just £49,995 is a real bargain, particularly when it’s best discounted price is normally over £65,000. These exclusive deals will allow some companies that may not have wanted to take on the huge investment in production flatbed machines, to ease into the flat sheet business.

We can’t qualify all the other special offerings we will have at this forthcoming open week, but we can quote some examples from our previous open week in May. At that event, customers benefitted from an extra year’s warranty free on some models, free I-Pad 3 on some models, and in some cases both warranty and I-Pad were given!  We also had a raffle for attendees to the open week and offered prizes that included football tickets, and yet another I-Pad 3, as a thank you for just taking the time in turning up.

We will have supportive pricing from some of the manufacturers, which we pass onto customers at the event. The incentive is there for customers to bring their cheque books.  We will also look at part exchanges on your old systems, so we encourage people to bring along photographs of existing equipment to help us provide the best value on what they have to trade.

To further help customers make investments, GPT has a range of finance packages that it can offer from leading brand financiers for both lease rental, and lease purchase, and GPT has its own in-house 10 month deferred payment plan offering too.

As well as all the new, unique and special offer products on show, we can show visitors an unprecedented range of printers to suit all graphics production requirements.  Our Open Days are also an excellent opportunity to learn more about the recently announced printers that are yet to reach these shores.

With GPT, customers can discuss and plan for the new Mimaki UJF6042.  This is a bigger version of the very popular UJF3042HG.  It has a bigger A2 size bed and higher 1800dpi print quality. With white, clear and pre coat like the existing UJF3042, GPT expects this machine in the next 3-4 months.

GPT can also talk about the new Mimaki JFX500 3121. This is Mimaki’s latest big UV cure flat bed (3.1m x 2.1m).  Having seen the machine at an overseas exhibition recently, and with the full production unit being available very soon, GPT believes this machine will be a real killer product. The JFX500 produces 40-60 Sq. mtr. per hour of truly photographic, and hugely impressive print quality. Smaller versions of this stunning printer will follow soon after this launch.

The Mimaki JV400 SUV, with its unique new ink type (SUV) provides a range of exciting benefits. These include no degassing, so immediate usage, and a near indestructible unlaminated print resilience. This machine is expected in the next few months and we wait with bated breath."

For more information on the upcoming Open Days, please visit www.g-p-t.co.uk

About Stuart Cole/GPT: Stuart is the general manager of Graphic Printing Technologies (GPT).  GPT is part of the Amari Plastics Plc.  Based in state-of-the-art showroom and office facilities in Reading, Berkshire, GPT is a leading provider of large format digital printing solutions. GPT provides complete solutions based on the industry’s leading printers, media, software and services for graphic display production companies. GPT also provides comprehensive consultancy and after-sales support to ensure customers get the most from their investment in large format solutions.

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