The invitational event, spread over four days, will feature a workshop on the FP970 led by the mystery beta test company, whose name will be disclosed at another event, Peak Performance Print in Ratingen, Germany, at the end of January.
The FP790 was installed at the firm’s Northamptonshire site in July 2023, with Fujifilm hailing it as a “new era for digital mainstream flexible packaging production.”
The press is Fujifilm’s first digital press for flexible packaging. It uses water-based inks and has a maximum web width of 790mm. Top speed is 50m/min, and it prints in five colours – CMYK plus white – at 1,200x1,200dpi onto PET and BOPP substrates.
The white has two ink channels for “high white opacity”, while Fujifilm claimed the wide colour gamut means the press can match more than 90% of Pantone colours without the need for additional spot or special colours.
Raynalt Barillot, category manager, digital packaging EMEA at Fujifilm, told Printweek: “We are very excited to showcase the first worldwide FP790 installation.
“It’s not a demo press. This press is in full production over three shifts a day, in a real industrial environment with standard flexible packaging converting - lamination, slitting and bag making.
“The open house gives us an opportunity to demonstrate how the FP790 fits existing production workflow with no additional specific capital cost. We are now offering a real proven solution to the market with many success stories from our customer.”
Fujifilm said the press was targeted at mainstream flexo volumes, and the company was confident in the machine’s ability to convert significant volumes from analogue to digital production.
The Japanese manufacturer will also showcase its flexo product range at the event, including live demonstrations of its Flenex water-wash plates, plus first hand feedback from the plate production team. Those attending will also benefit from the opportunity to visit a local UV-LED label printer, who will demonstrate Fujifilm’s LuXtreme LED curing system and CuremaX inks.
The event has around 35 customers confirmed in attendance so far. While invitational, it is also open to select members of the public on application, available online.
