New XXL Long Sheet option and Fifth Imaging Unit Solutions produce stand-out results and help cut costs  

EYSINS, SWITZERLAND - Innovative options on the KODAK NEXPRESS Digital Production Color Press are helping printers across Europe increase productivity and stand out from the competition.

Making a significant impact is the new XXL Long Sheet option that allows a sheet length up to 914mm. This reduces waste, increases productivity, and offers new capabilities including six-page brochures, posters, large-sized book jackets, as well as a vast range of labels.

Then there is the KODAK NEXPRESS Fifth Imaging Unit Solutionsthat can deliver high impact print with Dimensional, Red Fluorescing, Light Black, Intelligent Color, Coating, MICR and Glossing solutions. These help drive new, valued-added applications, resulting in higher margins. The latest addition to the ink line up is the KODAK NEXPRESS Gold Dry Ink which is now available globally. It enables printers to add a gold metallic effect as a fifth colour.

Innovative operations adopting the systems include PAG, a Belgian supplier of POS advertising, commercial printing and large formats and French general commercial printers Etoile Imprim, AMI and Vassel.

PAG Reaps Rewards

PAG’s decision to add the Long Sheet option to its KODAK NEXPRESS 2500 Digital Production Color Press immediately began reaping rewards by enabling the company to complete a customer order for a personalised advertising campaign featuring A4-sized triptychs.

At the start of the year, Bruno Vanderschelde, CEO of PAG, received an order from a customer for ad campaign using A4-sized triptychs: “It was an easy decision to install the Long Sheet option. It enabled us to print A4-sized personalised tri-fold brochures, and replace the A5 size. We wouldn’t have been able to fulfil this order without the Long Sheet option. The customer was very satisfied. He can now include far more information in his mailshot and increase the impact of his personalised ad campaign.”

Glittering results

Etoile Imprim is one of the first European printers to produce metallic gold digital effects with its KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press which also features the new XXL Long Sheet option (914mm x 356mm). Founded in 1989, by Nassib Kazma, the family owned operation made the investment, keen to adapt to market demands for faster turnaround times. Kazma says: “With a print speed of 131 ppm, the KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press enables a greater productivity, increases earnings per page and print images with photographic quality.”

As for the impact of the new inks, he adds: “Etoile Imprim was already equipped with dimensional ink - ideal for bringing applications to life such as children's books. But now the gold ink provides a wide range of metallic effects. The printout is stunning! Before, metallic gold was printed in offset as a fifth colour. Today, we have the fifth colour that gives the shine of gold on the digital press.”

Earnings Up for AMI

AMI was the first French operation to install a KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press with Long Sheet option to run alongside a KODAK NEXPRESS SE3600 Press. Tony Patruno, AMI’s head of printing says: “Kodak's digital presses allow us to provide a greater number of prints per team, increase our earnings per page and, especially with the KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press, take advantage of new features with high-added value. We can now print original, high-quality, small series and custom jobs, in record time.”

He continues: “The KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press increases the possible applications. We can print more work for our clients and access new markets. With colours and effects that flatter the eye, marketing professionals can more effectively attract attention and record a higher rate of responses. Production is smoother and more cost effective than using a traditional four-colour process with a special ink.”

Vassel’s venture into large format print

Vassel became the first French print operation in the Rhône-Alpes region to meet the need for large format print when it invested in a KODAK NEXPRESS SX3900 Press with the Long Sheet option. The press is enabling the operation to produce different tactile finishes and manage variable data which has led to increased customer interest particularly for greetings cards and event support.

Olivier Claude, General Manager for Print & Vice President Commercial Business EAMER Kodak comments: “It is clear the options on the KODAK NEXPRESS Digital Production Color Presses, such as the Long Sheet and Fifth Imaging Unit Solutions, are proving to be real business-winners. The fact that so many different operations are finding ways to make savings and win new work underpins how our research and development teams understand the market and economic pressures our customers are facing and transform that knowledge into solutions that provide real answers and tangible results.”