Variable Data Processing and increased B2B Support added to Agfa Graphics' Apogee StoreFront 2.0

Version two of Agfa Graphics’ Apogee StoreFront, the cloud-based web-to-print solution, is now available. Apogee StoreFront 2.0 features support for variable data processing and documents of different sizes, and a more refined support for business-to-business e-commerce. Thanks to the tight integration with both Apogee Prepress and the new Asanti Production workflow, it saves time and avoids double data entry both for commercial printing sites and for wide-format inkjet printers.

“Apogee StoreFront is a prime example of how Agfa Graphics is taking its know-how in workflow automation and web portals to the wide format printing market. It is the most cost-efficient way for Print Service Providers (PSPs) to take advantage of new technologies and market their services to a wider audience online,” said Andy Grant, Head of Software, Agfa Graphics.

Apogee StoreFront, which was recently honored as the “Best web-to-print solution” by the European Digital Press Association, features refined support for B2B e-commerce, including personalized address books and support for custom domain names. Admins can now partially approve or ship orders, an added value that PSPs can offer their business partners.

Variable data processing makes it easier to create batches of personalized documents. By uploading an Excel spreadsheet with contact, pricing or other content data, print buyers can order sets of customized banners, flyers, business cards or other documents.

With this new version, users can define the size of the poster they order, for example, and Apogee StoreFront will calculate its price per square meter or square foot immediately. This offers increased flexibility for online orders in conjunction with Asanti Production for wide-format printers.

As a cloud based service, Apogee StoreFront (www.apogeestorefront.com) offers PSPs a fast and affordable entry into the web-to-print market so they can extend their service offering and/or reach new markets.

Drytac extends distribution deal with Antalis to encompass Baltic region

Drytac has extended its distribution deal with Antalis to encompass the Baltic region, comprising Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.  Effective from 1st December 2013, Antalis will distribute Drytac’s entire range of films and adhesives throughout the Baltics.

On the new distribution deal, Hayden Kelley, managing director of Drytac Europe, comments, “Announced earlier this year, Antalis’ distribution of Drytac products in the UK and Ireland has been a great success and has enabled us to focus on the manufacturing of quality adhesives and over-laminates for our customers worldwide.  Both companies have worked well together and, as such, we are very pleased to extend the distribution deal with Antalis to incorporate the Baltic region.”

Antalis has a range of over 13,000 media products in stock, backed up with a service that is second to none.  All Drytac customers in the Baltic region will now have access to Drytac solutions alongside Antalis’ leading range of signage, display and digital materials.

Egidijus Ramanauskas, viscom director for Antalis Baltics, comments, “We have been operating in the Baltics for more than 20 years.  We are market leaders, with a clear focus on the quality of products we sell and services we provide. In the sign and display business area we execute the same strategy as for other areas where we experience very good success: we put great effort into targeting our customers with innovative, interesting products.”

He concludes, “Drytac and its product portfolio fit neatly into our strategy and we look forward to working with the company in the Baltic region.”

For more information on Antalis, please visit:

• Latvia: www.antalis.lv
• Lithuania: www.antalis.lt
• Estonia: www.antalis.ee

For more information on Drytac, please visit www.drytac.co.uk

RMC Digital takes delivery of third EFI printer in 3 years

Hull, UK-based display specialist RMC Digital has taken delivery of its third printer in three years from EFI with the delivery of an EFI VUTEk GS3250LX 3.2m flatbed and roll-fed machine incorporating 'cool cure' LED curing. This investment follows the original decision by the company to invest in a VUTEk printer when the company was first formed in 2010.

RMC Digital specialises in producing multi-layered graphics as well as general wide-format displays, and the use of white ink plays a key role in the company's applications. Following the purchase of a VUTEk QS3250 for its first production machine, superwide-format, double-sided and multi-roll capabilities were added with the investment in a VUTEk GS5000r 5m printer.

The recent installation at RMC Digital of the VUTEk GS3250LX followed considerable research into the best machine for the company's purposes and, having visited EFI's customer experience centre in Brussels, the decision was made to opt for LED curing. Impressed not only with the greener benefits of moving away from mercury arc lamps, but also the new inks that proved to give greater elasticity and the white offering excellent opacity.

"We were thinking about upgrading and, although we looked at other machines on the market, it was an easy decision to stay with EFI. Not only are we familiar with VUTEk printers and Fiery XF RIP software, we also wanted the benefits of the company's 'cool cure' LED technology," states Nicole Spencer, operations manager at RMC Digital. "We also need to be able match colour across all our devices, and this is simple to achieve with our VUTEk machines. The LED curing also means we can print direct to materials that we haven't been able to consider before because the heat of the conventional lamps could cause buckling and surface damage."

The Hull-based company has a nationwide client base and provides a complete design, manufacturing and installation service for its customers. Specialising in double-sided block-out and 'night and day' graphics, RMC Digital also produces a wide range of general displays, wallpapers, floor graphics, scaffold wraps and canvas prints.

CEWE acquires a fifth swissQprint UV printer

Mid-November is always the time of year when yuletide business starts rolling in at CEWE. Considering that the seasonal trade accounts for a quarter of annual sales, Europe’s largest photo finisher has tooled up accordingly: yet another swissQprint inkjet printer went into operation at the end of October 2013, making a total of five identical Impala large format printers at the company’s two production plants in Germany.

It was only a year ago that a fourth Impala joined existing machinery at the Germering plant and quickly came up to speed. Large format photo products were already fast-selling Christmas gifts last season. CEWE reckons with even higher demand this time around, not least as a result of launching its “CEWE Wandbild” brand of large format photo prints. Acquisition of a fifth machine is the company’s provident response, ensuring there will be no exceptions to meeting customer wishes on time. Customer confidence and satisfaction are cornerstones of CEWE’s success story, which opened a new chapter when large format prints were introduced in 2011. All of that rests on the proper infrastructure, utterly reliable logistics, and unfailing quality.

Reliable Swiss inkjet systems fit the scheme perfectly. They are capable of printing with consistent high quality directly onto acrylic glass, rigid foam panels, aluminium composite boards and similar rigid materials. Canvas is also an option: all of the machines are equipped with a roll to roll option that instantly converts the flatbed printer into a high-precision roll printer. CEWE uses eight of the Impala’s nine colour channels: four standard CMYK process colours plus light Cyan, light Magenta and light Black for natural-looking skin tones. Last but not least is the white channel on every machine. This is used to apply a mask or foundation coat, essential for reproducing vivid colours on acrylic glass.

A quintet of identically configured printers makes for vastly easier order processing. Any job is assignable to any plant, for optimum utilisation of capacity. Against this background and in view of the anticipated volume of business, this fifth printer acquisition, too, can be expected to pay for itself within a very short period of time.

Fastsigns Peterborough relies on Josero's excellent service

Fastsigns in Peterborough says it 'hasn’t looked back' since it started using Triangle inks five years ago.  The company says that it is the 'sheer level of service' it receives from Josero, the master distributor of Triangle inks in the UK and Ireland, that has made them stick with the inks.

Fastsigns in Peterborough operates in an extremely busy and competitive environment, where customer service is paramount to their success. The team in the Peterborough office provide everything from banners and signage to exhibition graphics and vehicle wraps. They use innovative processes to project manage each of their jobs, whether that be delivering one simple sign or a complex bespoke exhibition stand.

Richard Towers, Owner of Fastsigns comments, “We need any equipment we invest in to consistently perform at its optimum level. Our Mimaki JV3 is extremely trustworthy and it works very hard for us. We decided to switch to Triangle inks from the OEM ink in the Mimaki JV3 following a trade show five years ago, where we met Loic and his team from Josero. We were impressed with what they had to say about the robustness of Triangle inks and looked into this further. We realised just how good the credentials of Triangle inks are with their extensive R&D facilities in the USA. They carry out rigorous tests to deliver the perfect colour match and print quality of all the inks they produce.  The cost savings were also significant over the OEM inks, which was even better. The whole switchover process was fast, simple and efficient and here we are five years on.”

Richard continues, “We would never compromise our customers by using anything that wasn’t going to deliver the best results. What has made us stick with Josero for so many years, on top of the excellent inks, is the service they provide - it can only be described as “exceptional”. The team has such a strong grasp of market and their technical knowledge and expertise is very impressive. We love the fact that we are saving money over the OEM ink, but believe me, this market is all about quality and delivery and this over-rides any cost savings.” 

Loic Delor, Managing Director of Josero adds, “We pride ourselves on the relationships we build with our customers and believe it is all about teamwork to make sure everyone gets the best from each other. The working relationship we have with Richard and the Fastsigns Peterborough team is very strong and built on trust and respect. This is what makes Josero and Triangle inks stand out from other ink and equipment suppliers in the UK market.”

XG Group adds two more MTEX 5032 printers to its line-up

UK-based Xtreme Graphics, known as XG Group, has installed two new MTEX direct to textile 3.2m wide digital printers, bringing its total fleet of MTEX printers to four.

Two years ago, the company bought the first MTEX 3200 3.2m wide direct to textile printer. A year later, due to high demand for their superb quality textile printing on flags and lightweight banners, XG Group purchased another. Both machines were soon printing in three shifts so this year, following the launch of the new MTEX 5032 at FESPA Digital London, the company purchased two further MTEX printers.

The fourth MTEX 5032 printer was installed by manufacturer POD Iberia and its UK distributor Digital Print Innovations in less than four hours.

Earlier this year, XG was hailed for printing one of the largest ‘crowd surf’ banner ever seen in Britain. It was produced to mark the 55th anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster and measured 30m wide by 20m high. The banner featured the final line up of the ‘Busby Babes’ from the game against Red Star Belgrade in 1958, with the words “We’ll never die.” The giant surf banner was dye sublimation printed using their MTEX print fleet at 3m wide onto 115 gsm FR knitted polyester. These drops were subsequently sewn together to form the finished banner.

Warren Verwey comments, “Our drive and determination to be the best in the market drove the introduction of the first MTEX 3200 over two years ago. Now we have seen demand for high value, lightweight and durable flags, banners and displays shoot through the roof and both our original machines were working non-stop. The installation of the new MTEX 5032 earlier this week is testament to the quality and importance we place on the growth of this market place. I can tell you I was very pleased that the technicians were able to unpack and install the 3.2m machine with in-line sublimation in less than four hours because it meant minimal disruption and we were up and running by the end of the day. Amazing service.”

Eloi Ferriera, CEO of POD Iberia adds, “Warren was a keen supporter of the MTEX brand and product from the very beginning. It is important to us as a company to work closely with all our distributors like DPI in the UK and MTEX customers such as XG to ensure that they have the best service and experiences possible. We know that our products excel in the industry and the fact that XG have just installed their fourth, reinforces this position. We look forward to continuing to push the boundaries of digital textile printing with customers like this around the world.”

Fujifilm announces 'Business Discovery Open Days'

Fujifilm is inviting print service providers, creative agencies and print specifiers throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) to visit its Advanced Print Technology Centre (APTC) in Brussels, to see what can be achieved with inkjet print technologies. Two ‘Business Discovery Open Days’ are being held on November 26th and 27th 2013 where visitors can see all Fujifilm’s wide format, commercial and packaging inkjet production systems, printing applications from a number of major brands, alongside its XMF print production workflow solutions.

Highlights of the Open Days will include the first showing since drupa 2012 of the new Jet Press 720F B2 inkjet press for folding carton applications, with the company demonstrating how this press, which is now very close to commercial launch, is set to transform short run folding carton print production. Alongside this new press will be the Jet Press 720 B2 sheet-fed inkjet press for commercial applications, and the Jet Press 540W inkjet web press, both of which are commercially available. Fujifilm will be demonstrating how these two presses can transform high quality short-run sheet and web-fed print applications, with the company showcasing examples from the growing number of customers who have installed these presses in EMEA.

In addition, Fujifilm will also be showcasing its range of wide format inkjet printing systems, including the highly versatile Acuity LED 1600 roll-fed wide format printer, two high-end Onset flatbed systems in the Onset S20i and S40i, and the Uvistar Pro8 superwide format printer. All these inkjet systems will be printing a diverse range of applications, highlighting their versatility and what sets them apart from similar machines on the market.

Fujifilm will also be demonstrating how its suite of XMF print production tools can enhance inkjet printing. This will include a demonstration of XMF v5.5 and its ability to handle high speed variable data applications on both the Jet Press 720F and Jet Press 540W, how XMF ColorPath is able to manage the colour output across multiple printing systems and technologies, and how a print company can maximise print revenues generated online by using XMF PrintCentre for both commercial and wide format applications.

“We are very much looking forward to welcoming printers from across EMEA to these digital inkjet Open Days at our APTC,” comments Yasufumi Morimoto, Senior Vice President of the Graphic Systems Division, FUJIFILM Europe GmbH. “There are many misconceptions in the industry that prevent people understanding the power of inkjet technologies and what they can do for their business. We want to dispel these myths and show how Fujifilm inkjet systems, with guaranteed quality and reliability and supported by our market-leading XMF workflow solution, are helping to transform print businesses all over the EMEA region.”

Companies interested in attending these ‘Business Discovery Open Days’ can register their interest at www.powerofinkjet.com.