Unveiled at Printing United in Las Vegas on 10 September, the TZ-32000 and TX42000/TX32000 five-colour printers have been upgraded from previous models for higher print quality and speed, while making it easier for unskilled operators to use them.
The TZ-32000, designed to print large volumes of computer-aided design (CAD) drawings, has become the fastest printer in the series with a speed of four A1 pages per minute.
Its sister models, TX4200 and TX3200, span 1.12m and 910mm respectively, printing at up to 3.3 A1 pages per minute.
Both TZ and TX models have been built with dual-roll loading for automatic media switchovers and longer periods of uninterrupted printing, and feature upgraded colour calibration and line quality.
Both models likewise have a new easy-loading system, which automatically detects paper width and type, and estimates the remaining amount of paper, reducing the time it takes to set a new roll by around 30%.
Brian Coombs, director of product planning at Canon, told Printweek: “All you do is insert the roll in the machine, close the draw, and it does everything for you.”
He explained that Canon’s attention on its ImagePrograf series – which saw new releases to its ImagePrograf Pro line in February – has been spurred by increased demand from traditional print customers taking print in-house.
“In many of the vertical markets where we’re seeing a lot of success, we’re selling to customers who are using [the machines] for the first time.
“Schools are a good example – you’d be surprised how many we’re selling to that market, where you have inexperienced operatives, like teachers or administrators, working these machines: so we’ve designed them to be as easy as possible to use.”
The TZ and TX machines’ automated media loading has been part of Canon’s approach, where it simplified both physical processes and the software used to operate the machines.
“We did a lot of research, and one of the pain points for usability was media handling: not only did you have to feed it manually, but these machines are water-based, so can print on a wide variety of media, but that means you have to be careful to print with the right settings.
“To make the process easier, we’ve made it entirely automated. All you do is insert it in the machine, close the draw, and it does everything for you.”
Both models have also been designed for lower power consumption, with the new TZ using 29% less power, and the TX models using 25% less.
Canon has slated both models for commercial release from 1 October.
