Fujifilm announces faster Jet Press 750S sheet-fed B2 Press
Fujifilm today announces its third generation B2 inkjet press, the Jet Press 750S. With higher productivity of 3,600 B2 sheets per hour, and a range of other changes which further improve the already impressive up-time, versatility, colour capability and quality, the Jet Press 750S is now the fastest, full colour, B2 sheet-fed digital press on the market.
The Jet Press 720S was the first B2 inkjet press to gain a foothold in the market, and was ahead of the game in terms of productivity and quality. With over 150 Jet Press installations worldwide, more and more print buyers have recognised the new standard in digital print that this press delivers. Now with the continued, steady increase in demand for short run work, the introduction of the Jet Press 750S means that more and more jobs are going to fit the sweet spot of this new industry-leading press.
The target for this press is not the toner-dominated, on demand market where runs of ones and twos predominate. The Jet Press 750S is likely to be highly competitive for print runs up to 5,000, depending on ink coverage, allowing it to compete with, and out-perform, offset presses in the production of high quality, short run print jobs. This makes it an ideal investment for a much larger range of commercial and packaging printers.
Like the Jet Press 720S, the new press is the perfect blend of old and new technologies. Built on an offset chassis, it features superb sheet-to-sheet, front and back registration and up-time on a par with offset, combined with the very latest industry-leading Samba inkjet printheads, to deliver print quality that out-performs offset.
Enhanced productivity and up-time
Customers of the Jet Press 720S have already benefited from the highest up-time for a digital press in the industry, with figures above 90% often quoted. The Jet Press 750S is set to improve on this still further thanks to two new features. The first is a new printhead self-cleaning process called ‘Overflow Cleaning’ which carries out head cleaning at times when the press is between jobs or the printhead assembly is in motion. The second is a new Active Head Retraction (AHR) system which lifts the print bars from the drum when a paper deformation is detected (<3mm), reducing the likelihood of paper jams caused by damaged paper.
The increase in top line press speeds has been achieved by the further development of two major parts of the press. The first is the inclusion of the next generation of Samba printheads. Printing on paper moving at the higher speed of 3,600 sheets per hour requires a corresponding speed upgrade to the number of ink droplets deposited per second. The jetting frequency of the new generation Samba printheads has therefore been increased from 25 kHz to 33 kHz to speed up dot placement and counteract the increased effects of possible turbulence. It also has the additional benefit of reducing dot placement variations, therefore improving quality.
The second new technology contributing to increased efficiency and speed is the introduction of a completely new drying system, in which a printed sheet is passed onto a transfer belt heated via rollers, with a vacuum applied as the sheet passes through the drying section to keep it dimensionally stable. Drying is carried out via a combination of the heated belt and hot air applied from above. As well as operating at higher speeds, this new system allows greater control and fine-tuning of temperatures, extending the range of substrates that can be printed.
The combination of a larger sheet size (increased from 750mm x 532mm to 750mm x 585mm), even better up-time, a 33% faster press speed, and quicker finishing mean the overall ability of this new press to print longer runs and improve job turnaround times still further is significant.
Exceptional quality and colour capability
The Jet Press 720S has already built a formidable reputation for exceptional print quality, and here the Jet Press 750S is no different. It features the same Rapid Coagulation Primer technology, allowing it to be used with standard coated and uncoated offset paper stock, benefits from the same superb sheet-to-sheet registration, and the addition of the latest generation of Samba printheads improves dot placement accuracy even further. The Jet Press 750S also features the same extended colour gamut called ‘MaxGamut’ which, depending on the media used, allows up to 90% of the Pantone library of 1,872 colours to be printed within a Delta E of 3 or less, providing an exceptional colour match on a four colour press.
To improve the press’s capability with regards to spot and Pantone colours even further, Fujifilm has added a new module to its XMF ColorPath tool, called XMF ColorPath Brand Color Optimizer. This new module enables users to profile the entire Pantone library for any chosen media type, and will ensure that each and every Pantone colour is printed as accurately as physically possible. What is unique to Brand Color Optimizer, however, is the ability to predict how accurately a Pantone colour will be printed before actually printing. This means decisions about printing a specific job can be made up front, and no time is wasted trying to achieve what is not possible.
Finally, in addition to the In-Line Scanning (ILS) system also found in the Jet Press 720S, the Jet Press 750S incorporates a new optional ImageConfidence scanning system as further reassurance. This uses a proprietary AI algorithm to evaluate the full print area of a B2 sheet on-the-fly, ensuring every sheet matches a pre-approved image.
Perfect for packaging
Currently, around a third of all current European Jet Press customers already produce some form of packaging on the press. With its 33% speed boost and variable data printing at full speed, the new Jet Press 750S is ideally suited to printing versioned and short run packaging to coincide with specific events, localities or store promotions.
The introduction of the Jet Press 750S is likely to accelerate this trend. It can be modified to accommodate heavier weight folding carton stock (up to 0.6mm in thickness), and printed sheets from the press have been tested and found to be compatible with a wide range of analogue and digital coating, foiling, lamination and cutting solutions. An automatic bridge is also available to connect to online coating solutions.
Fujifilm is now also able to offer a food safe ink, making the Jet Press 750S the first B2 digital press approved to print primary food packaging. This new, low migration, aqueous food safe ink complies with stringent regulations, including Swiss Ordinance 817.023.21 and European Commission Regulation 1935/2004, and has been specially formulated for coatings to be applied inline (via a bridge) or near line.
Other features
Remote usability has also been improved on the Jet Press 750S, with users able to carry out job management tasks, including allocating new jobs and certain press functions, remotely via an iPad (additional option).
Finally, the new press, like the Jet Press 720S, features excellent de-inkability of printed sheets, while the new drying system, which requires 23% less power, offers an additional environmental benefit.
Says Taro Aoki, Head of Digital Press Solutions, Fujifilm Graphic Systems EMEA: “In the Jet Press 750S, we have retained and enhanced all of the features that gave the Jet Press 720S such a formidable reputation, to create a new industry benchmark for the production of short run print. With its increased speed and up-time, the press is likely to be competitive for a much larger range of offset jobs, and gain a much larger share of the B2 market. We look forward to helping printers take advantage of all the opportunities that this will present.”
