EFI is helping customers redefine the market opportunity enabled by high-volume, roll-to-roll signage and graphics printing with two new UV LED inkjet printers offering the fastest throughput available in their product class.
The EFI VUTEk 5r and VUTEk 3r printers are two of the new technologies that EFI is discussing with customers at tradeshows, including the Shanghai AD & Sign Expo in March, the ISA International Sign Expo in Las Vegas in April and FESPA 2017 in May in Hamburg, Germany.
The new printers are the most technically advanced LED roll-to-roll printers on the market, designed to offer the highest image quality at the highest rated throughput speeds, with a range of options to drive efficiencies in the production process and expand the capabilities customers can offer. The printers feature:
- Powerful LED curing technology that delivers both cost savings and environmental benefits
- Resolutions up to 1200 dpi and native EFI UItraDrop Technology 7-picolitre printheads with true multi-drop addressability for smoothness in shadows, gradients, and transitions
- A unique colour distribution algorithm that provides superior economic advantages with ink usage, with a single litre of ink covering up to 149m², on average, across all print modes
- Superior productivity that helps customers do more work in less time, with the 3-metre-wide 3r model offering speeds up to 315m² per hour, and the 5-metre 5r model offering speeds up to 455m² per hour.
The printers' large selection of optional features gives users the ability to drive greater efficiency for faster, turnkey production in high-volume environments. Inline roll-to-sheet cutting, slitters and a sheet collector kit are key additions that help users improve throughput by reducing or eliminating altogether the need to handle printed jobs on separate finishing tables. The VUTEk 3r and 5r also offer optional features for automated double-sided backlit and blockout printing; a mobile app for remote printer monitoring; multi-layer white ink imaging; additional light colours for extended-gamut imaging and more.
"We have listened to our customers," said Scott Schinlever, senior vice president and general manager, EFI Inkjet. "They are pushing the envelope in terms of the applications they are producing and the speed and quality with which they can do so. Our response is continued innovation, and the VUTEk 3r and VUTEk 5r are an example of the results."