High-quality, high-speed, 5-meter roll-to-roll LED inkjet printing has expanded Prismaflex’s client and trade business, enabling the company to produce more work with the same staffing level

LONDONDERRY, NH – Founded in 2000 and now with about 50 employees operating in a 35,000 square foot factory, greater Toronto area-based Prismaflex Canada, a subsidiary of French company Prismaflex International and one of the largest providers of display graphics printing in Canada, produces a wide range of display graphics products – from point of purchase materials and backlit signs to wall coverings, interior décor, indoor and outdoor signage and more – and produces work for its own clients as well as for the trade. Prismaflex recently acquired an EFI™ VUTEk® 5r+ roll-to-roll LED inkjet printer from Electronics For Imaging, Inc., to update their production fleet and boost their productivity.

“Our production platform consisted of several smaller printers, a latex printer, a flatbed and three 3-meter VUTEks,” says Stéfane Comeau, Prismaflex Vice President. “We also had an aging 5-meter printer that was no longer being supported by the manufacturer that we needed to replace. We couldn’t get parts for it anymore, and in doing our due diligence, we saw that the quality and speed of 5-meter display graphics printers has improved considerably.”

Reliability, productivity, and unmatched service
Comeau notes that Prismaflex has been a long-time EFI customer, both in Canada and worldwide, adding, “We print 16 hours per day, five days a week, and we needed a reliable printer that would print the same quality from the first to the 80th hour of the week. And from our experience, VUTEk [printers] is the leader in both quality and reliability.”

The 5.2-meter (205-inch) wide EFI VUTEk 5r+ roll-to-roll LED inkjet printer was a natural choice for the team. Capable of handling a wide variety of flexible substrates, it offers a better speed/quality ratio than other printers in its class with production speeds up to 5,242 square feet per hour and true resolution up to 1200 dpi. It features EFI UltraDrop™ Technology and native 7-picoliter grayscale printheads that deliver high apparent resolution and high-definition print quality; outstanding smoothness in shadows, gradients, and transitions; and superb text quality. Its advanced LED curing technology significantly reduces the amount of energy consumed compared with traditional UV or latex printers.

“The addition of the new printer has allowed us to keep our existing 5-meter clients happy by increasing our production capacity and lowering our production times, and has enabled us to increase our capacity for future business.”

Comeau says that the installation of the printer was fast, and the system was up and running within a week, adding, “We didn’t need a great deal of training since we already had VUTEks for many years, so that likely sped up the process as well. But we were delighted with the entire implementation process and the follow-on support we have received.”

Comeau says that the team has been pleased with the support it receives from EFI, another key component to Prismaflex’s decision to invest in the VUTEk 5r+ printer. “We’re a busy shop and cannot afford downtime,” he says, “so a robust printer with consistent quality was a must, as was reliable after-sale support. EFI ticked all those boxes.”

Consistency, quality and speed across the globe
Another advantage of acquiring an EFI VUTEk 5r+ printer was the fact that if a sister company at another Prismaflex International location receives an order destined for North America, the team can transfer it directly to Prismaflex Canada. Comeau explains, “The color management has already been done and the print files are ready to go, so we can deliver the exact same quality worldwide.”

Adding the VUTEk 5r+ printer has boosted Prismaflex’s trade business, because it enables high quality product with a faster time to market. “With the extra speed and capacity,” Comeau says, “we are now taking on work that we would have had to pass on before, and with the same number of employees.”

For more information about sign and display graphics solutions from EFI, visit www.efi.com.