Itasca, IL, May 29, 2008 - Xeikon, a division of Punch Graphix, legendary for pioneering the first digital color presses, today introduces the Xeikon 8000 to the public. The first day of drupa 2008, Europe’s most prestigious print media trade fair, marks the official market launch of Xeikon’s newest flagship. The Xeikon 8000 plays in a league of its own: boasting true 1200 dpi at 4 bits per spot and more than twice as fast as its nearest competitor, the new Xeikon 8000 has set a new reference for speed and quality in digital printing. Its state-of-the-art technology has been developed to optimize print productivity and to provide fast, cost-effective, and eco-friendly printing without compromising on quality. As of today, the new Xeikon 8000 is available for shipment to customers worldwide.

The Xeikon 8000 has been designed with speed and productivity in mind. Web-fed, it prints full color multi-page documents at a top speed of 230 A4 (244 letter-size) pages per minute, or 13,800 A4 (14,640 letter-size) pages per hour. Its exceptional uptime of 90% enables duty cycles of 8.5 million A4 pages per month.

The Xeikon 8000’s high-precision LED-based imaging head features true 1200 dpi resolution and 1200 x 3600 dpi addressability with variable dot density, generating extraordinary image quality with sharp and crisp details, high definition, and smooth tone transitions. The new imaging technology makes use of the powerful Pericles screening library, allowing screen rulings up to 240 lpi, further optimizing overall image quality. Two in-line densitometers and high-performance process algorithms provide uniform and accurate colors and perfect color registration, guaranteeing color consistency from job to job and from press to press. Specially developed Xeikon Productivity Adapted (PA) toner supports cost-effective impeccable print quality at high speeds.

Capable of handling scalable print media widths up to 512 mm (20.15 inches), the Xeikon 8000 offers a 504 mm (19.84 inches) imaging width, allowing 2-up A4 and 3-up A5 printing on an unbeaten range of print media with weights ranging from 40 to 350 gsm (27 lb text to 122 lb cover), opening the door to a whole new range of applications. Xeikon’s patented One-Pass-Duplex™ technology allows simultaneous double-sided printing, ensuring perfect front-to-back registration and data integrity.

The Xeikon 8000 comes with the latest generation of Xeikon’s unique X-800 digital front-end. Intuitive, modular and based on open standards, it enables the implementation of fully automated workflows in any production environment. Its scalability makes it the benchmark for high-end variable data production while the optional IPDS controller transforms the Xeikon 8000 into a high-performance solution for transactional and transpromo printing, producing highly personalized, full color documents, at rated engine speed.

The Xeikon 8000 is distributed and supported worldwide by Punch Graphix subsidiaries as well as through a network of distribution partners. The official availability coincides with the opening of this year’s edition of drupa. The Xeikon 8000 was already presented in avant-première at a press conference in March, which was part of a three-week press event in the run-up to drupa 2008.

“The Xeikon 8000 responds to the growing demand for high productivity combined with uncompromising print quality, not only in the established commercial printing and direct marketing segments, but also in the book publishing industry and in the rapidly-growing transpromo market, where color printing is now the norm. In general, its advantages in terms of quality, speed, productivity, and cost, facilitate the increasing conversion from offset to digital, a process that has been ongoing for some time now,” says Paul Willems, Chief Marketing Officer at Punch Graphix. “The initial reactions from the market are very positive and a number of orders have already been placed, both by existing customers and new customers.”

Xeikon 8000 in première at drupa 2008
From May 29 to June 11, the Xeikon 8000 is being showcased at drupa 2008, where it will be printing and finishing a high-quality, complex direct mailing. In addition, Xeikon will be demonstrating a selection of its entire portfolio of products and solutions. For more information and to see the Xeikon 8000 in action, visit Xeikon in Hall 8a, stand D25, Düsseldorf Fairgrounds, Germany.