Following the huge success of its recent large format event in Melbourne, on March 8 and 9 Epson presented its first-ever Large Format Product Expo at Brisbane’s WareHouse Studios. The Expo featured the company’s complete range of solutions in signage, photography, proofing, production, dye sublimation, direct-to-garment and technical printing.
Kicking off proceedings was a demonstration area dedicated to the Epson SureColor Signage range. Epson’s latest generation eco-solvent printers have drawn acclaim for their outstanding print quality and ultra-low running costs. The new range features Epson PrecisionCore head technology and a new UltraChrome ink set that delivers prints with unparalleled quality, brightness and colour gamut. The printers produce output that dries extraordinarily quickly to enable same-day job turnaround even when lamination is required.
At the Expo Epson demonstrated the flagship 64” SureColor SC-S80600 that uses a nine- or ten-colour ink set to produce the widest colour gamut in its class and achieve between 96% and 98% Pantone coverage. It can be used with a wide range of media and is suitable for many applications including durable signage and POS displays, wall finishes, vehicle wraps, labels and decals.
Alongside the Signage range was a second demo area highlighting the acclaimed SureColor Fabric range with demonstrations of the SC-F2000 direct-to-garment printer and the ultra-high speed SC-F9200 64” dual head roll to roll dye sublimation printer that delivers exceptional productivity at 57 m²/hr, sellable production modes and 12 litre continuous ink supply system for long production runs.
The other offerings in the SureColor Fabric range are the SC-F6200 44” cut-sheet dye sublimation printer and the SC-F7200 64” single head roll to roll dye sublimation printer. Both printers boast high speed 30 m²/hr production with the 44” variant most suited for low to high volume work, and the 64” model offering reduced running costs and a 6 litre continuous ink supply system for cost-effective production printing.
The third demo area highlighted Epson solutions for premium photo, fine art, poster and graphics production, as well as proofing and packaging design applications.
The SureColor SC-P9070 supports a wide range of standard and specialist media in roll and sheet formats. It features a PrecisionCore Thin Film printhead (TFP) with Variable Sized Droplet Technology (VSDT) that enables the output of images in high resolution with superior fidelity and tonal gradation. It uses Epson’s latest UltraChrome HDX all-pigment aqueous ink for accurate colour with an enhanced gamut, Dmax and image durability. The printer has a ten-colour ink configuration with two levels of black. It can be configured with a third black for premium photo imaging or violet for proofing and packaging with outstanding colour at 99% Pantone coverage.
In the photographic and fine art space are the all-new 17” Epson SureColor P5070 and the Epson SureColor SC-P800. Just released, the SureColor P5070 represents a pinnacle in colour printing technology with an ultra-high resolution and an incredible colour gamut. It provides outstanding output in a platform that is flexible, reliable and easy to maintain. Designed for premium photo and fine art, production, as well as proofing and packaging design, the SureColor P5070 uses cost-effective 200ml ink cartridges and supports a wide range of standard and specialist media in roll and sheet formats. It uses the same UltraChrome HDX all-pigment aqueous ink as the SureColor P9070 and ships with accounting software that enables easy job costing.
Sitting just below the SureColor P5070 in the range is the Epson SureColor SC-P800, which delivers professional quality photographic and fine art images in sizes up to A2 and larger using compact 80 ml ink cartridges. The SC-P800 combines advanced UltraChrome HD pigment ink with Epson's innovative MicroPiezo print head to enable gallery-quality black-and-white output as well as exhibition quality colour prints complete with breathtaking blues and violets. It sets a very high benchmark in terms of quality and flexibility with an outstanding colour gamut, the highest D-max to date and super-high resolution prints on a wide variety of media types.
Designed for professional photographers, graphic artists and designers, it features enhanced networking, easy media loading and optional roll media support. It ships complete with a set of starter inks and an advanced software package.
Still in the photo space are the SureLab SL-D700 and SureLab SL-D3000 commercial photo and photo merchandise printers, the former of which was on display at the Expo. The SL-D700 is designed for low-medium volume photo and photo merchandise production with simple and flexible operation. It produces bright, eye catching photo images at up to 545 prints per hour with a high D-max and gloss level in sizes from 3.5” x 5” to A4 and will even produce panoramic prints up to 1 m in length. It not only outputs on gloss and lustre media but also on matte media for producing menus, invitations and brochures.
The Epson SureColor Production range covers the production poster and graphics segment and was well represented by the new SureColor SC-P10070, which delivers a high speed, cost effective and flexible solution for printing high quality colour and premium black-and-white images in a wide format. With a nine-colour ink set including four levels of black, integrated high-speed auto cutter and options including automatic take-up unit (ATU), 320GB HDD and high-speed Postscript module, the SureColor SC-P10070 produces durable, ultra-high resolution output with a platform that has proven dependability and is easy to maintain. The Production range is ideal for users who need to produce impactful POS/POP or low cost poster material.
The final demo area belonged to the new Epson SureColor Technical range. This series is designed to address the needs of retail and business graphic printing. It uses a low cost five-colour aqueous UltraChrome ink set to produce extremely cost-effective output on coated and uncoated stocks. Prints dry instantly and provide exceptional durability against abrasion and moisture damage. Available in 24”, 36” and 44”, Epson SureColor Technical printers can be ordered with optional large format scanner with print/copy/scan functionality, an ATU, and also the same 320GB HDD/Postscript module offered with the Production range.