Online printing has been enjoying a lot of growth in recent years (when excluding a dip during the pandemic). While many companies in all sizes play in this market, especially many of the large players keep investing into the latest technology to constantly improve on efficiency. The more surprising was that only a comparably small portion of inkjet technology was being used in online print so far. This is about to change.
Canon announced at the begin of September that it has reached an agreement with Cimpress to supply its businesses in multiple locations with inkjet printers. According to Cimpress’ founder and CEO Robert Keane this reflects the strategic decision by Cimpress to continue to invest in technology, including inkjet printing, to retain its position at the forefront of the online printing industry. He also remarks, “we believe inkjet technology has an important role to play, bringing flexibility, efficiency and a positive step to reduce waste, contributing to the achievement of our sustainability goals."
Main focus of the deal is on two product lines: the Canon ProStream Series and the VarioPrint iX. The ProStream is Canon’s continuous feed printer targeted at high quality and commercial print. The top speed model, the ProStream 1800, was launched in July 2020. The VarioPrint iX Series was launched in April 2020, replacing the VarioPrint i-series. It is Canon’s sheet-fed offering using the B3 format. Those are complemented by the Colorado 1650 platform wide format printers using UV-gel technology. It extends the reach into applications as posters, soft signage, wallpaper and other large format prints.
Cimpress subsidiaries are already busy using these devices and collecting experience. Pixart in Italy now has three Canon ProStream presses up and running. Cimpress’ Austrian subsidy Druck.at has several VarioPrint cut-sheet inkjet printers in operation. Other Cimpress printing subsidies like Vistaprint, Drukwerkdeal and WIRmachenDRUCK are set to get devices in the future.
The ProStream presses are likely to take on volumes that were produced on offset presses before. There is also the opportunity to move into applications that could not be efficiently produced on the existing offset and toner printers so far. The VarioPrint iX installations are more a cost efficient alternative for volumes printed on A3-based toner printers currently.
With a fleet of existing offset presses and toner printers the Cimpress subsidies are able to shift jobs according to their best fit. Cimpress is still investing in toner-based B2 presses according to a deal made with HP in May this year. Cimpress has announced a multi-year agreement to invest in the next-generation B2-format commercial devices according to which the company is set to install a fleet of HP Indigo 100K presses over the next two years. Cimpress is also HP Indigo’s largest customer globally. However, given the productivity of the ProStream and VarioPrint iX the focus is shifting to inkjet.
The agreement would not have been made public if it would have been solely a straightforward purchase (presumably with a good large customer rebate). Intended is a more in-depth cooperation in which the devices and their eco-systems are tailored towards the requirements of a large online printer like Cimpress. In turn this would allow Canon to learn more about the online printing requirements and how to better serve this market in general. While there is probably little to tweak on the printer hardware itself, some topics stand out as likely areas for a cooperation:
- Software & workflow automation
- Data collection and exchange
- In-line finishing
At the moment Canon cannot share the specifics on what is intended. Probably some details have to be figured out anyway. Software is an obvious target as automating software tasks can automate and speed up processes considerably. It can also avoid errors and mix-ups. A data and efficiency driven company like Cimpress will also require a close integration of production information into their data pool. From tracking jobs to benchmark efficiency of processes, to tracking costs, consumables and work hours this workflow monitoring will allow a printing company to drive up equipment efficacy and selecting the best device for a given job.
A critical element will be in-line finishing as well. Pixart already installed their ProStream with Hunkeler Generation 8 finishing. If tuned to the right application mix inline finishing can be a powerful efficiency driver. Being able to deliver collated sets for example can lift the break-even against offset noticeably. However not fitting to the application, too much downtime or long set-up times can render in-line finishing practically useless. Given the size of Cimpress it can make a lot of sense to have dedicated print lines optimised for certain print applications.
While a few inkjet production printers have been installed at several online printers already, this announcement marks a noticeable step forward. First, because it shows that inkjet has come of age to offer the substrate latitude and quality needed for online print products typically targeted at commercial print markets. And lastly, because the trends towards shorter runs, fast delivery and safeguarding the supply chain are becoming ever more pressing –propelled further by the Covid-19 pandemic. This ensures that inkjet will get a much wider usage in online print than before.
