Itasca, IL - Xeikon, a division of Punch Graphix, today announced that a leading book printer based in the northeast USA has purchased a Xeikon 8000. This is yet another addition to the growing tally of book printing companies that have chosen the Xeikon 8000 over other alternative offerings based on its unique features, such as incredible print capacity and overall productivity.

Unlike competitive digital color presses, the Xeikon 8000 does not have any frame or sheet size restrictions. It has a web width of 20.2 in. and virtually no restrictions on the length of the printed page. This format flexibility allows the Xeikon 8000 to produce a higher number book blocks during a specific print run compared to the competitive offerings. Depending upon the page size, these book blocks can be produced 1-up, 2-up or even 3-up on the Xeikon 8000, enabling users to achieve higher production volumes and economies of scale while reducing production costs. The format flexibility also enables its users to produce oversized book covers on the press.

"Leading book printing and publishing companies are constantly on the look out for technologies that enable them to expand their services and value proposition to customers. The Xeikon 8000 is a great solution for such companies to produce color books digitally and on demand, thereby allowing them to be more economical, minimize book returns and reduce risk. We will continue to push the digital technology envelope with our solutions to help customers grow their business," said Michael V. Ring, VP of Sales and Chief Marketing Officer of Xeikon's North American operations.

Apart from its format flexibility, the Xeikon 8000 has an unparalleled speed of 244 letter-size pages per minute and duty cycle of up to 8.5 million pages per month. It handles paper stocks from 27 lb text (40 gsm) to122 lb cover (16-pt. board), providing a range of substrate options to its users. The Xeikon 8000 is also the only digital color press that prints on both sides of the substrate in a single pass (One-Pass-DuplexTM Technology). Xeikon's X-800 Digital Front-End and Pantone-certified Productivity Adapted (PA) toner technology deliver outstanding quality and cutting-edge workflow management tools for a streamlined book production workflow. In addition, the inline finishing capabilities of the press go a long way in the automated production of book blocks.