The machine, which cost £22,000, was installed three weeks ago and replaced an outgoing Latex 260 in the “all Latex group”, as described by managing director Ben Gregory. It was supplied by London-headquartered HP reseller Perfect Colours.
Gregory said: “This is an upgrade on our existing offer of Latex; I think we’ve had every single one. It is just to increase the productivity and the speed. It’s a decent machine and Perfect Colours were very helpful in aiding with the purchase.
“We’ve continuously invested over the last 10 years and seen growth all the way through so the more cost-effective the machinery is, the more products we can push through it.”
Gregory first saw the Drupa-launched machine in March at the Sign & Digital UK expo, Birmingham, and said he could immediately see the benefits over previous models.
“It was really easy to load; I thought this was a good innovation and the optimiser cartridges on there as well make the output really scratch resistant.
"It’s a much more robust machine all round and the upgrades that it has had mean it’s probably where the original machine should have been.”
The Latex, which was launched alongside the 570 and 1500 models, runs at maximum speeds of up to 91sqm/hr in single-pass mode. The seven-colour (CMYK plus light magenta, light cyan and a Latex Optimiser) machine uses Latex inks and can print at a maximum resolution of up to 1,200dpi.
It has a spindle-less pivot table and automatic skew adjustment, which HP said enables a minder to load the roll in one minute or less.
The machine will mainly be used for soft signage jobs and will be able to take on the textile work that 14-staff DigiPrint, which has a second site in Bath, has recently taken on since becoming a Nettl partner last year. It runs a number of other Latex machines along with Konica Minolta digital equipment.
Formed in 1987, the £700,000-turnover business, with Nettl’s backing, has recently expanded into website design and now also has access to a greater set of materials from Nettl, including fabrics. It is soon set to become one of 10 Nettl Now regional test hubs as Nettl’s fast-turnaround service is rolled out beyond its pilot city of Manchester.
