Gent (Belgium), March 17, 2006 – Esko, the market leader in packaging pre-production solutions and world leader in digital imaging of flexo plates, will demonstrate its highly successful Kongsberg line of tables for short run packaging production, sample making and for POP display & sign production at Ipex. The new XE10 and i-XE10 tables will make their first appearance at the Esko stand, located in Hall 9, at the HP Indigo stand in hall 4 and in the Packaging Integration Centre of PrintCity (hall 1). The large format i-XL44 will be demonstrated on the Esko stand. "The new XE10 and i-XE10 are a valuable addition to the Kongsberg family and attract a great deal of interest in the market because they are the answer to a growing demand for high quality production of folding carton packaging materials at the fastest speeds possible. Design houses, converters and brand owners can now fulfill short-run sample making needs for product approval and market testing faster, better and more precise," states Armand Gougay, Vice President Emeala, Esko. The XE10 and i-XE10 are based on the successful technology and robust architecture of the Esko Kongsberg cutting and creasing table, scaled down to a new platform and a smaller format. They provide an excellent complement to the range of Kongsberg tables by effectively delivering die-less production of packaging and for digitally finishing the widest range of sign & display material. Since their introduction end 2005, the XE10 and i-XE10 have gained great interest in the market, and the first series of orders are being delivered at customer sites around the world. Kongsberg XE10 The Kongsberg XE10's feature set includes a new and fast servo system and a completely new, faster tooling system, optimized for lightening-fast motion with accelerations up to 1.2G, while maintaining maximum precision. Its 800 x 1100 mm work area can accept material as large as 900 x 1200mm. Expandable tooling options include fixed and oscillating knifes, crease tools, programmable depth and pressure controlled cutting tools. The Esko’s Scope software solution with integrated graphics and structural data guarantees a smooth workflow from design to the finished product. Integration of CAD, graphics and 3D features through Esko’s recently introduced ArtiosCAD 7.0 helps designers and operators to reduce errors and to maximize efficiency. Kongsberg i-XE10 The Kongsberg i-XE10 is a small and high-speed machine for cutting screen or digitally printed materials with the advantage of low production costs. It effectively handles light-duty and flexible sign and display materials such as vinyl, polypropylene, polycarbonate and carton at its rated maximum speed of 80 m/min. The i-XE10 tooling system features the integrated MGE i-cut camera, a key component of the patented i-cut vision system for obtaining perfect cut-to-print alignment—a significant advantage over fixed die-cutting. i-cut adapts the finishing shape to the actual printed graphics by measuring the register marks on each printed piece placed on the i-XE10 table. The i-XE10 will be equipped with a conveyor system for continuous material loading from roll and sheets delivered from a feeding system for non-stop production. Kongsberg i-XL44 Also on show will be the Kongsberg i-XL44 large format cutting, cutting, creasing and milling table. The i-XL44 handles a maximum material size of 2280 x 3420 and comes with the powerful MultiCUT toolhead. Its tooling options include a high-power precision router expanding the range of materials with even more rigid substrates while maintaining highest production throughputs. With i-cut Vision Pro, misalignments between printing and finishing are eliminated and integration with the workflow of most wide format digital printer manufacturers is supported.