Printing Industry Commentary & Analysis

Inkjet Disrupters: Five Ways Transaction Printers Can Survive New Competitors

Published May 5, 2020

Lower barriers to entry and entry-level inkjet presses have created opportunities for new competitors for transaction printers. Inkjet Insight’s Elizabeth Gooding offers strategies for how transactional printers can competition-proof themselves.

Putting the Pieces Together

Published April 22, 2020

Roger Serrette the Customer Experience Center Director for Ricoh USA shares with us how he is managing in quaratine.

Global Strategy from my Living Room – Kevin Shimamoto

Published April 20, 2020

Inkjet Tip: Head Capping is Worth More than a Spit

Published April 11, 2020

If you intend to do a significant amount of mono printing on your inkjet device, check to see if the device caps the C,M,Y print heads when not in use. If head capping is not available, compare devices for the amount of ink wastage from CMYK spitting. Run test jobs and also check how this information is reported on estimating systems since they will be different.

Pete Basiliere: a Beacon in New England

Published April 5, 2020

We continue our Profiles in Quarantine series this week with Pete Basiliere. Pete knows that even little things can make a difference when trying to keep your community together.

Canon Doubles Down on Commercial Print with VarioPRINT iX

Published April 1, 2020

With the introduction of two new VarioPPRINT iX models, Canon is focused squarely on the needs of general commercial printers for high image quality on a wide media range and flexibility to run mixed media jobs at full speed. Canon will continue to market and support the current VarioPrint+ iSeries in the appropriate markets along with the new VarioPRINT iX Series. The new devices will be ready to ship in July 2020. See overview and supporting white paper.

Connecting in Quarantine - Pat McGrew

Published March 31, 2020

We continue our profiles in quarantine series with intrepid traveler, Pat McGrew. It seems to me that Pat is almost always on the road, but she too is doing her part by staying home and staying safe. Pat is sharing her home time with the fuzzy beneficiaries of Pat being grounded - her dogs. She has some thoughts about taking care of yourself and taking care of your business.

Quarantine ala Ritarossi

Published March 29, 2020

Next up in our profiles in quarantine is Lois Ritarossi who has been staying safe in Washington D.C. and showing off her cooking skills. She wants to make sure that printers are communicating continuously with their employees and customers.

Ralf Schlozer: Far From Home

Published March 27, 2020

Community Building in the COVID Economy

Published March 27, 2020

MindFire established the COVID-19 Print Group on LinkedIn to provide a forum for printers to help each other share volumes, information and advice as more states issue Stay at Home policies and organizations are forced to close leaving clients without service. In three days membership has grown from zero to nearly 800 members.

Community Building in the COVID Economy

Published March 27, 2020

MindFire established the COVID-19 Print Group on LinkedIn to provide a forum for printers to help each other share volumes, information, and advice as more states issue Stay at Home policies and organizations are forced to close, leaving clients without service. In three days, membership has grown from zero to nearly 800 members.

Learning from Living in Lockdown - Mark Bale

Published March 25, 2020

As we continue our series on Profiles in Quarantine, we visit Mark Bale who covers the most super-techy topics on Inkjet Insight that use math above my pay grade. Mark is based in UK which this week announced necessary, but very restrictive, measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. UK is under lockdown with residents instructed to stay indoors except for essential services and subject to fines for violating guidelines.

What Drives Catalog Marketing Success - Free eBook

Published March 25, 2020

What drives catalog marketing success in the 2020s? Download this free 15-page eBook commissioned by Ricoh in cooperation with The American Catalog Mailers Association to find out what catalog brands and their suppliers need to succeed in this challenging market.

Eye See See Profile - Mary Schilling

Published March 24, 2020

A Different Kind of Profile - Amy Hahn

Published March 23, 2020

Usually when we talk about profiles here, we're talking about paper and color profiles. Today, we're going for a different kind of colorful by profiling the people behind the scenes here at Inkjet Insight and how we are managing through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since we're all in this together, let's get to know who we're in it with, starting with Amy Hahn our editor and social media coordinator who is based in Minnesota, USA.

Ripping it UP with Global Inkjet Systems

Published March 13, 2020

HP Brilliant Pre-drupa Announcement

Published March 10, 2020

This week HP provided a pre-drupa peek at the HP PageWide Web Press T250 HD and new Brilliant InkTM that will be added to its inkjet portfolio this year. Learn about the new capabilities of the device, available before the end of 2020, and how they compare to other devices already in the market from Canon, Ricoh and Screen.

RIPs for Industrial Inkjet - Part 2

Published March 3, 2020

In the Industrial Inkjet segment, requirements to make ink and print heads compatible with industrial surfaces also leads to special requirements for the related Raster Image Processors or RIPs solutions. Let's drill down on the special requirements for industrial RIPs.

What’s in the Industrial Inkjet Bucket?

Published February 25, 2020

Let's look at what's in the industrial inkjet bucket, some estimates on the size of the market and the technical requirements that drive specialization of solutions to serve this highly varied segment.

Industrial Inkjet Gets RIPPED

Published February 18, 2020

In an industrial inkjet environment, a lot of pieces go into creating a specialized solution, but it’s the raster image processor (RIP) that does the heavy lifting. Elizabeth Gooding takes a detailed look at all the criteria to keep in mind when selecting RIP software for an industrial printing workflow.

Kao Innovation Day

Published January 18, 2020

Kao Chimigraf hosted the first Kao Innovation Day, in Barcelona, that attracted representatives from 22 companies based in 6 countries. The event showcased the Kao Collins X-BAR, and two multi-printhead systems manufactured by Colordyne Technologies. Inkjet inks from Kao Collins were also shown by Kao Chimigraf, the European partner for both companies.

Designers and the Direct Mail Supply Chain

Published January 16, 2020

Designers drive decision making on print versus e-budgets, print processes, paper choices. For direct mail they impact response rates, production efficiency and overall industry health. Let’s get designers excited about direct mail and amplify those inkjet pages in 2020 and beyond.

Drive Your Business at the Mailbox: Learn How to Design Better Direct Mail

Published December 17, 2019

Everyone loses when poorly designed pieces make it into the mail, so making direct mail better should be a priority for every print organization that even remotely touches the direct marketing segment. In this article, Elizabeth Gooding offers some best design practices for effective direct mail.

Five Things to Do (Better) When Evaluating Inkjet

Published December 5, 2019

According to research published in the Harvard Business Review, 97% of senior leaders said that “being strategic” was the leadership behavior most important to their organization’s success. However, a lot of executives don't feel that they have time to be strategic. Inkjet purchases are a case excample where strategic intent is often marred by tactical execution. We can do better!

Xerox Reported to Close French Subsidiary - Impika

Published November 25, 2019

Xerox is closing its "global centre of excellence" in France. Xerox has announced the closing of the Impika subsidiary privately to French employees but made no public announcement

Production Inkjet Tradeshow Shopping Guide Part 3 – Inkjet Trends

Published October 16, 2019

When shopping for inkjet, take a look at the many ways OEMs are handling compatibility with offset gloss coated stocks. Also consider hybrid and DIY inkjet and, as always, don't forget the software. Here's what you need to know.

Production Inkjet Tradeshow Shopping Guide Part 2 – Big Rigs

Published October 3, 2019

For the second in our series on Tradeshow Shopping, we are focusing on the biggest of the big – in terms of productivity. To be considered at “maximum productivity” in production inkjet today, a roll-fed device must deliver at least 2,000 US letter images per minute. While you may not see all of these devices “in person” at the shows, we have included OEMs who are exhibiting and bringing a segment of their inkjet portfolio for your tire-kicking pleasure.

Production Inkjet Tradeshow Shopping Guide - Part 1

Published October 2, 2019

Trade shows can be overwhelming, so we want to help you use your time wisely by providing an overview of trends and options in various aspects of the production inkjet market.In the first installment of the series, we’re talking about the trend toward making inkjet financially accessible to more companies.

Personalization at Scale

Published September 26, 2019

Customization and personalization is now happening throughout the supply chain. Data on customer buying preferences – what, where and how they buy – is driving change in inventory management, distribution, product design and marketing.

Measuring Paper Against Expectations

Published July 30, 2019

Companies evaluating paper for suitability for their inkjet environment have different expectations. What is most important to you and your customers: gamut, show-through, small text clarity, mottle, coalescence, edge clarity, or are they all important? Do you get the data you need to see how a paper performs in these areas on your press?

Designing Workflow to Do More

Published July 23, 2019

While every workflow should be unique to the service provider, thinking of the workflow solution as unique to a particular application segment can limit a company in terms of their workflow design and potential for page growth on their inkjet device(s). Designing reusable components within your workflow, and “stubbing in” steps for other types of work you may do in the future, will make your workflow system more flexible, extensible and auditable.

Xerox Baltoro Makes Brenva Obsolete

Published July 10, 2019

Elizabeth Gooding spoke to John Hume, President of Hume Media, about their decision to be the first customer for the Xerox Baltoro HF Inkjet press and their expectation for ramping up production and transitioning volume from other devices.

Xerox Baltoro Inkjet Platform Overview

Published June 28, 2019

Xerox has announced the availability of the Baltoro High Fusion Inkjet Press. Xerox has positioned the Baltoro as a “platform” in the model of the Trivor, iGen and DocuTech series of devices.

Xerox Baltoro Inkjet Platform Overview

Published June 27, 2019

Xerox has announced the availability of the Baltoro High Fusion Inkjet Press. This is a press announcement, but Xerox was consistent in positioning the Baltoro as a “platform” in the model of the Trivor, iGen and DocuTech series of devices.

Inkjet, Toner and Being Marco Boer

Published June 12, 2019

Is inkjet eating toner's lunch? In some areas, yes. But, as long as there are many types of print organizations, there will be a need for many types of printing devices. One size does not fit all. Your mileage may vary. Definitely see the dealer for details.

Ricoh Interact 2019: A Metaphor for Workflow

Published June 11, 2019

The Ricoh Interact 2019 event followed the best practices for business development, customer education and ongoing measurement recommended to attendees.

High Speed Inkjet Devices Take on Commercial Print Quality

Published June 5, 2019

Many buyers in 2019 are looking to complement or replace their offset production capabilities. High speed inkjet is gaining acceptance in a market with high print quality and color expectations. We are talking about high end, high value printing such as marketing collateral, magazines and catalogs. Read on for a round up of factors in evaluating presses for this market and top OEMs making the cut.

Online Ad Blockers and Inkjet Printing

Published April 30, 2019

The current challenges with online advertising underscore the need for print including direct mail, on-statement marketing and point-of-purchase advertising to drive marketing return on investment. Inkjet is a key player in this mix.

Inkjet Printing Volumes Overtake Commercial

Published April 1, 2019

Production inkjet printing page volumes outstripped both traditional and toner-based page volumes in the first quarter of 2019 for the first time in the history of printing.

Used Inkjet and the Golden Ticket

Published March 21, 2019

Are OEMs buying up all the used inkjet printers to keep them off the market? Why is it so hard to find a used device? If you actually find one, here are some things to know.

Accept Your Workflow Limits

Published March 12, 2019

Few companies have embraced the concept that production workflow in a competitive organization is something that needs to be continuously improved. Only when we understand and accept the limits of our workflow can we be cognizant of ways to improve it.

Not-So-Simple Discussion of Inkjet Economics - Part 3

Published February 23, 2019

Part Three in the Inkjet Economics series by Elizabeth Gooding. This time discussing how simple assumptions about timing can have a big impact on evaluation and profitability.

One Slice of One Canon

Published February 14, 2019

Coverage of the One Canon event focused on the Production Print Solutions (PPS) division and specifically the inkjet portfolio within PPS, in the context of the whole Canon pie.

The Year Ahead for Catalogs and Magalogs

Published January 28, 2019

The catalog market looks unexpectedly bright for 2019, both due to retail brands embracing direct mail and advances in inkjet technology to meet the needs of this challenging application segment.

IoT, Print and Inkjet Security

Published January 23, 2019

With the complexity of Internet of Things (IoT) networks expanding and the cost and frequency of breaches climbing, printers must take advantage of every resource to protect their security and their reputations. We discuss 2018 trends in security and print environments including links to research from Ponemon, Aberdeen and Inkjet Insight.

Learning from the Experts in 2018

Published January 8, 2019

One of the great things about being a partner at Inkjet Insight is that I get to talk to really interesting people and, in many cases, capture them on video. Over the course of 2018 we recorded some great advice from industry strategists, OEM execs and companies that have acquired inkjet for a wide range of application types. Here are some highlights.

Inkjet Economics – Operating Costs - Part 2 of 3

Published November 13, 2018

When looking at a big ticket item like a production inkjet device, the one with the lowest price may seem like the best choice. The cost of the machine is the big number (the race car) that will play the smallest role in total cost of ownership. It’s the operating costs that can make or break your return on investment.

Not-So-Simple Discussion of Inkjet Economics – Part 1 of 3

Published November 9, 2018

Part 1 of a 3 part series on inkjet economics. Part 1 begins with guidance on creating good assumptions for the basis of your inkjet evaluation.

RISO T2 Twin-Engine Cut Sheet Overview

Published October 10, 2018

Overview and analysis of the RISO T2 Twin-Engine Cut Sheet printer scheduled for controlled release later this year with 10 units currently available in the U.S. and general availability in January 2019. Comparison to VarioStream i300 and Delphax elan 500 sheet fed devices.

Five Things to Do (Better) When Buying Inkjet

Published October 1, 2018

It’s not that an inkjet buyer shouldn’t do these things; it’s that they should do them better. Here are five things to do better so that you know that you made a truly strategic, long-term decision.

Inkjet Insight at PRINT 18

Published September 28, 2018

Your Guide to Inkjet Innovation at PRINT 18

Published September 13, 2018

At Print 2018 in Chicago, Mary Schilling of Inkjet Insight will be the moderator and tour guide for the High Speed Inkjet Print Advancements Tour. Sign up now.

Growing Inkjet Pages with Designers

Published August 29, 2018

The growth markets for production inkjet lie in the segments where creatives hold sway. If you want to grow pages in these markets, you will need to get designers on your side.

Crayon Space and Three Attributes of Color

Published August 8, 2018

Last week in Color Management as Crayon Space, I posed an impossible task: to arrange crayons in a line according to their color. Color can’t be arranged in a line because it’s three-dimensional. This post will discuss the three dimensions of color: hue angle, lightness value, and chroma/saturation. Again, we’ll play with crayons and some real-life experiments.

Managing Color in Crayon Space

Published July 31, 2018

John Seymour joins Inkjet Insight for part one of a series discussing color management using crayons as a guide. Part one poses the challenging of creating a linear organization of a non-linear concept.

Zanders Optimistic During Restructuring

Published July 2, 2018

Last week Zanders GmbH issued a press release regarding the continued restructuring process for the company. The release included a sentiment that we don’t often hear in these types of announcements: optimism.

Ricoh Pro VC 70000 Overview

Published June 26, 2018

I had the opportunity to see the Ricoh Pro VC70000 in action at Ricoh’s Boulder Colorado Customer Experience Center last week and to learn about some of the innovations that differentiate it from the rest of the Pro VC lineup. While visually similar to the VC 60000, the VC7000 offers three key innovations: new ink chemistry, advanced drying technology and finely controlled drop sizes.

Haberbeck: Offset and, not or Production Inkjet

Published June 20, 2018

Christian Heneke of Service & Print Group Haberbeck gave a presentation today at the Ricoh Interact 2018 event on offset and inkjet working together. Like many companies, Haberbeck looked at the volumes of current work that could be transferred to inkjet, but he had a broader message.

Mitigating Risk in the Paper Supply Chain

Published May 30, 2018

There are a number of issues with the inkjet paper supply chain that are going to test your paper qualification and sourcing policies. You will need to test more papers, track them carefully and ensure that your receiving dock runs like a NASCAR pit stop. Here are a few survival tips.

"What’s your Why - Your Road to Production Inkjet" Event Explored Production Inkjet Opportunities

Published May 24, 2018

This week Elizabeth Gooding was the keynote speaker and panel moderator at a thought leadership workshop hosted by Xerox at its Gil Hatch Center for Customer Innovation. Xerox assembled a group of print operation executives from transactional, book, inplant, and commercial printing to explore production inkjet opportunities.

Pulp Fiction - Challenges Within the Paper Supply Chain

Published May 22, 2018

The demand for paper and pulp is growing and the supply chain is having a hard time keeping up. We lost a couple of other mills over the past year, West Lynn and Appleton, contributing to a 16% overall loss in inventory.

EFI Inkjet Innovation in New Hampshire

Published May 10, 2018

This week I had the opportunity to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony at the new 225,000 square foot EFI innovation center in Londonderry New Hampshire. In his opening remarks Guy Gecht, CEO of EFI said "the future of packaging is inkjet printing" and based on EFI's massive investment in this very impressive facility, they are ready to meet demand.

What is Value Anyway? An Objective Approach to Understanding Inkjet Value

Published May 1, 2018

People are always trying to figure out how to get more value for less money. Designing an inkjet solution is no exception. But, here’s the thing, you need to be able to define what “value” is, and with inkjet it’s often about more than one thing. In this post, as always, we try to make it objective.

Essential Software for Inkjet Success

Published April 30, 2018

Elizabeth Gooding shares her insights on key software investments to deliver end-to-end workflows that meet customer needs, are scalable, and achieve production efficiency goals.

King Printing's Approach to Book Manufacturing with Production Inkjet

Published April 18, 2018

Elizabeth Gooding talks with Martin Aalsma, VP at King Printing. King Printing was an early adopter of production inkjet for book manufacturing. Aalsma talks about building efficiency in book manufacturing with smart workflow driving production inkjet.

Inkjet Fun Crossword Puzzle Answer Key

Published April 13, 2018

There were so many great inkjet conferences this week and we felt bad for the people who couldn't attend so we made a crossword puzzle to keep you busy. As promised - here is the answer key.

Business Case Calculator for Software

Published April 11, 2018

A very simple tool to allow you do do some "what if" analysis on how improvements in uptime, minimizing paper changes and other seemingly minimal improvements can impact your revenue over the course of the year. It adds up!

Inkjet Fun - Crossword

Published April 9, 2018

We've put together something to keep you thinking about inkjet - an inkjet crossword puzzle. If you've been reading our posts you should find this pretty easy. Post a comment to brag if you finish in less than 10 minutes.

How to Make the Business Case for Essential Software

Published March 26, 2018

As faster and more productive inkjet devices reach the market, maximizing productive uptime is truly essential. Unfortunately, many companies skimp on building the costs for essential software into their inkjet justification. Find out how costly this mistake can be.

Inkjet Print Head Pop Quiz

Published March 21, 2018

OEM executives and analysts offer balanced overviews of the pros and cons of the different print head technologies, but to understand which is best buyers need to look beyond the head technology itself and consider specific characteristics of each implementation of the technology. Here are the questions to ask.

Screening Software Drives Inkjet Quality

Published March 20, 2018

David Zwang joins us for an initial look at an interesting new screening software development that significantly improves the quality of inkjet imaging. The software referenced is only available as an option from an OEM as part of their RIP, or as a component in a custom-developed (bespoke) hybrid inkjet printing solution.

Inkjet Growth Should be Faster

Published March 8, 2018

Despite what can be seen as very healthy growth rates, the production inkjet market could be growing considerably faster. Let's look at the barriers to inkjet growth and how we as an industry can work together to tear them down.

Hide Your Data. The Hackers are Coming.

Published January 23, 2018

Three weeks into 2018 and it’s already been a bad year on the information security front. On January 3^rd Google’s Project Zero team reported a security flaw affecting any devices that use chips from Intel, AMD or ARM – which pretty much covers most personal computers, tablets and servers. There are two main vulnerabilities, “Meltdown” and “Spectre” that sound like they were named after Bond villains.

Peanut Butter and Workflow

Published January 18, 2018

A workflow is a workflow whether or not it is automated. Your process for making a peanut butter sandwich can be a workflow. There are lots of different kinds of software that can be used to automate different processes, and those processes can be considered workflows, but that doesn’t make the software “a workflow solution.” Many excellent software vendors throw a wide array of their software solutions into a big bucket called “print workflow automation” and that makes it a very messy fishing expedition for buyers to find a solution for the particular aspect of a print process that they are trying to automate.

Welcome to 2018 - Time Flies as Inkjet Accelerates

Published January 2, 2018

Skew the Gamut

Published December 8, 2017

West Linn Inkjet Papers – Going Not Gone

Published November 30, 2017

Careful Consideration of Anilox Pre-Coating Systems for Inkjet

Published October 30, 2017

Inkjet for Direct Marketing Print– What Matters?

Published October 20, 2017

What Inkjet Specifications Can Tell You

Published October 10, 2017

Transaction, Transpromo, Transitional Printing - What Matters?

Published August 10, 2017

Inkjet Book Printing – What Matters?

Published August 1, 2017

Discussion of the key performance indicators (KPIs) and segment definitions that matter when evaluating equipment for inkjet book printing.

Understanding the Gray Areas of Inkjet - Grayscale

Published July 17, 2017

Often people discuss inkjet print quality in terms of dots per inch and the number of colors available, but this is just a small slice of what goes into the discussion of print quality. To get at the heart of quality in the age of ever smaller print heads with more densely packed nozzles, we need to look at the gray areas. Join us for a discussion of grayscale.

Setting Paper Evaluation Requirements

Published May 1, 2017

Before you start any paper trials, know what you’re finished product goals will be and design your trial around them. Paper evaluation needs to consider a broad array of issues beyond compatibility with a specific device. If you don't consider the big picture, you can waste a lot of time testing papers or miss out on opportunities to save money and improve quality.

RFPs, RFIs, RFQs and Cutting to the Chase

Published May 1, 2017

An in-house print operation at a large insurance organization may have very different requirements for soliciting bids for large equipment purchases than a privately-held, mid-sized printing firm.

RFP Checklist: Production Inkjet Requirements

Published March 20, 2017

Before you can effectively research your production inkjet options, you need to consider the features that are most important. That, of course, is dependent on the volumes you need to support, the types of applications those volumes represent and whether those volumes are existing business that needs to be transitioned or new business for your organization.

Setting Customer Expectations with a Fingerprint

Published March 2, 2017

One challenge that companies new to inkjet face is to move customers from a model where they control paper buying to one where they are expected to choose from a list of approved papers. Another challenge is to get customers to send files that are designed appropriately for the paper selected and the device it will be produced on. One tool that can help with both of these challenges is what is known as a fingerprint file.

Materials Matter at Graph Expo and Beyond

Published October 3, 2016

At Graph Expo 2016 paper suppliers were clustered in the Materials Matter section of the show floor, described as the “hub that celebrates the essential role materials play in the print ecosystem.”

The Inkjet Paper Chase

Published January 28, 2014

Paper has always been critical to the printing process. After all, paper is both the raw material and the end product. Nowhere is that more apparent than when transitioning to production inkjet printing. Paper selection will have a tremendous impact on the production quality and profitability of your inkjet solution.