Xaar printhead technology is the leading inkjet choice and is at the heart of a wide range of industrial manufacturing applications because it enables cost and waste reduction as well as process improvements. Many ground-breaking industrial applications have been launched because of Xaar's unique and industrially robust technology. Today, a broad base of manufacturers operating in many sectors such as advanced additive manufacturing, direct-to-shape packaging, label printing, décor laminates, glass and ceramic tile decoration rely upon Xaar's bulk piezo technology.
At InPrint seven OEM companies will showcase a range of new industrial solutions for a variety of applications – all of which use Xaar printheads to ensure best quality, high precision, high performance and industrial reliability.
A choice of printheads
On its booth at InPrint, Xaar will highlight its latest printheads: the Xaar 1003 and Xaar 2001+ family launched earlier this year, alongside the innovative Xaar Print Bar System and the recently-launched Xaar 502 printhead.
The new Xaar 1003 printhead, featuring patented TF Technology®, has an unrivalled reputation for print quality and reliability in high-volume production environments in diverse industrial markets. Manufacturers know that, even under the harshest operating conditions, the Xaar 1003 printhead delivers outstanding performance when decorating, patterning, depositing functional coatings on, or adding structure to a variety of industrial and consumer products.
Xaar will also highlight exciting new applications which are made possible by TF Technology®. This patented recirculation technique ensures the Xaar 1003 printhead has an outstanding ability to handle difficult fluids ‒ particularly valuable for high-tech advanced manufacturing applications.
The new Xaar 2001+ family of printheads delivers ultimate versatility in digital ceramic tile and glass decoration which means that tile manufacturers can easily manage a very wide range of designs. Featuring 2000 nozzles, the Xaar 2001+ printhead jets one colour at 720 dpi or two colours at 360 dpi each, and is available in three drop sizes. This means manufacturers can select the printhead combination that meets their exact needs.
The Xaar Print Bar System is a highly flexible and complete inkjet system that can be integrated with a wide variety of equipment to add single-pass digital printing capability. It is highly versatile and easy-to-configure and allows users to take advantage of the benefits of digital printing easily and economically to deliver more printing possibilities to their customers. It is available in print widths of 140 mm up to 560 mm and prints at speeds of up to 75 m/min (depending on the application) and can handle a wide range of inks and fluids, including spot colours, protective lacquers, high-build spot and tactile varnish, heavily pigmented high-opacity over- and under- whites and cold foil adhesives.
A variety of industrial samples – all produced using Xaar printheads – will be displayed on the Xaar booth. These include: high-quality labels produced on the Graphium press using the Xaar Print Bar System to add special effects; 3D products produced by the Factum Consortium; LCD screens manufactured by a Nakan GEN5.5 polyimide printing system; laminate samples produced on the Jupiter Digital Printing Line from Hymmen; containers printed direct-to-shape by Till, Direct Print Powered by KHS™ and INX Digital; and glass printed at high-volume for automotive and home appliance applications on the new Tecglass Vitro-Jet F Type /SP printer.
Visitors wishing to learn more about inkjet and 3D printing should attend the presentation '3D Printing – Opening new markets for materials' given by Xaar's 3D specialist, Andrew Morse, in the InPrint Showcase Theatre at 11.30 on Tuesday 15th November.
First choice for industrial print innovators
Several companies will be showing their latest Xaar-enabled systems at InPrint, demonstrating the power of Xaar printheads to drive industrial innovation for a wide range of applications. These include:
Bergstein (C35)presents thesingle-pass DIGI 5 and DIGI 7 print systems designed to print flat and shaped industrial products and components at high speed. These modular machines can be tailored to suit specific applications in terms of print stations (opaque white / CMYK / spot colours), transport systems, choice of pre-treatment systems, and a choice of drying systems. They use Xaar 1003 printheads with TF Technology® to ensure peak performance. The company is also developing a Xaar-enabled high-speed flat-bed printer.
Edale (E34) is highlighting its Design & Consultancy Service with particular focus on the integration of OEM inkjet engines into custom single-pass web transportation systems for a variety of applications within the packaging sector. The company has extensive experience: it manufactures the Graphium Hybrid which combines a single-pass digital engine that uses Xaar printheads, with the Edale FL3 flexo press platform; supplies the Xaar Print Bar System; and has recently produced a 1600mm wide web transportation system for single-pass inkjet running at up to speeds of 300m/min.
Electronics For Imaging, Inc. (C01) is a major supplier of a constantly developing range of high-end production inkjet printers for a variety of industrial applications. The company relies on Xaar printheads to ensure that its high speed EFI™ Jetrion® digital label and narrow web printing systems and advanced EFI Cretaprint® digital ceramic tile printers deliver the highest levels of quality, productivity and reliability.
Engineered Printing Solutions (D30) recently acquired by Xaarexcels at creating complete solutions for state-of-the-art automated pad printing and industrial digital inkjet. It will demonstrate its single-pass Xaar-enabled XD54 high-speed direct-to-shape printer and the fJETXL UV-LED flat-bed printer ideal for printing onto products such as medical devices, electronics, appliances, personalised gifts and promotional items.
Global Inkjet Systems (D34) is a leading developer of software, machine control and sub-systems for industrial inkjet. Optimised for the Xaar 5601 printhead family, the GIS Head Management Card (HMC) and ink supply system unlock the full capabilities of the printhead and are a value-add for OEMs, freeing them up from time-consuming in-house developments and enabling a quicker time-to-market.
Hymmen (F21): visitors will be able to see films of the impressive Jupiter Digital Printing Line and examine a variety of roll and board flooring and furniture décor samples produced by the 32 industrial lines installed around the world today. The single-pass Jupiter is available in a choice of 7 models up to 2100 mm wide and features up to 320 Xaar printheads jetting UV inks (CMYKW+ more colours if required) at up 50 m/min production speeds. Today Hymmen printers are used to produce a wide variety of products such as laminate flooring, skirting boards, doors/gates, furniture, facades, decorative paper and finishing foils.
INX Digital (D24) has a formidable track record and extensive experience collaborating and developing custom inks and coatings for some of the most respected companies in the world, many of which use Xaar printheads. At InPrint, it will present a home décor showcase and three compact printers.
TecnoFerrari (B50) iswell known for its Xaar-enabled ceramic tile printers; however, at InPrint the company is showing two new digital printers for other applications - single-pass and multi-pass - and both featuring Xaar printheads on up to eight colour bars. These are highly flexible industrial printers that can be specified to use UV, organic or inorganic inks, depending on the application, to print on a range of substrates such as plastic, glass, metal, wood, laminates, ceramic and building materials (concrete, fibre-cement, gypsum).
"InPrint is the ideal opportunity to showcase the impact our technology is having on many industrial sectors by enabling new applications and transforming traditional manufacturing processes," says Gillian Ewers, Director of Marketing, Xaar. "Not only are we showing our latest printhead innovations on our booth, but our innovative OEM partners around the show will display the impressive solutions they have developed as a result."