The new Kodak NexPress VII Front End with System 15.1 software, which drives all Kodak NexPress Digital Production Colour Platform presses, was released earlier this month. It is the first in the industry to have achieved Adobe PDF Print Engine 3.2 Certification.
“For customers that have invested in the existing NexPress, this is really the continuity of that. The upgrade is quite modular overall and the new software features that have been made available are the most important thing,” said marketing programme manager Marie-Luce Delaune.
“The inclusion of the Adobe PDF Print Engine is important because it’s the most up-to-date in terms of printing standards. This provides improved variable data printing capabilities and increased performance.”
NexPress VII Front End comes in two configurations: High Performance and Ultra Performance. The High Performance model is fitted with 32GB RAM and is suitable for standard commercial digital print applications. Ultra Performance comes with 64GB RAM for high quality and productivity, and is suitable for photo-rich and high variable data content applications. The 64GB option can process twice as many jobs at a time as the High performance configuration.
“We are offering two options because of the changes that we are seeing in the marketplace. There are a lot of new requests for variable images. The RIP performance a printer will require will depend on the degree of variability they require,” said Delaune.
“The High Performance configuration provides twice the performance of the current hardware platform and the Ultra Performance configuration provides four times that of the current hardware.”
System 15.1, developed in-house by Kodak, offers three new print modes; two targeted towards high-volume applications including direct mail and transactional and one at the photographic market.
Economy mode has a halftone screen designed to use less ink while SmartRGB mode, aimed at photo-rich applications, improves skin tones by removing grain.
Ink Optimisation mode provides greater stability and colour consistency between press runs for repeatable jobs over time or from press to press.
The company has also announced its new Long Sheet Delivery Unit, an accessory that delivers sheet sizes of up to 356x914mm (14x36in) when attached to any Kodak NexPress Digital Production Colour Platform Press.
“We saw a lot of demand for these additional capabilities. It’s an opportunity for commercial printers to do jobs like six- or eight-page letter brochures or panoramic posters on the NexPress effectively and in very short runs,” said Delaune.
