What does it do?
The PrintMaster Cezanne is a compact A2-format UV flatbed decorative and industrial printer that can print directly on to objects up to 150mm deep. An alternative floor-standing model handles items up to 300mm deep and includes a rotator for cylindrical items. Cezanne competes with analogue screen and pad printers, offering the usual digital advantages of reduced pre-press and makeready plus one-off and personalisation possibilities. The UV ink adheres to almost any solid surface, including glass, metal, plastics, wood and ceramics and slightly curved and uneven shapes.
When was it launched and what markets is it aimed at?
Launch was in September 2013 and it is aimed at the specialist packaging, promotion and engineering markets, as well as gift retailers, photo labs and museums. It will make its first public appearance in the UK at Ipex in March, stand S2 F171.
How does it work?
The support table (or bed) moves underneath the left-right scanning inkjet printhead carriage. Feeding is manual. Objects to be printed can be positioned in jigs made of wood, plastic or metal. The jigs are keyed to templates in the layout and/or RIP.
Copytrax will supply jigs with matching software templates at about £300 for metal or £125 for acrylic, but it’s perfectly feasible to make your own.
The top unit is a modified Stylus Pro 4900, a 17in-wide inkjet that’s normally supplied with roll or sheet feeding, with water-based inks. The cube-shaped unit below is all new, and contains the moving print bed, together with its front-back and up-down transport motors and associated electronics and UV lamp controls. The bed is slightly larger than the print area to accommodate jigs and is raised or lowered automatically depending on the thickness of the items being printed.
The top panel looks like Epson’s but is new, with additional control buttons. Cezanne uses Epson’s print mechanism and electronics, but with its own UV-cured inks. A low temperature LED UV lamp is fixed to the carriage.
Eight ink channels can be configured as CMYK plus four white, or CMYK plus two white and two clear. White and clear can be printed in separate passes as under- or overcoats, acting as a primer on porous surfaces if needed. There’s no recirculation for the white ink cartridges, so it’s recommended that you remove them and agitate them periodically. The cured ink is very flexible, says Copytrax business development manager Steve Woods: “We’ve used it on all sorts of surfaces without cracking.”
A software RIP front-end is supplied as standard, running on Windows, as is a starter pack including a set of full 220ml ink cartridges and a couple of jigs.
How does it differ from previous models?
This is Copytrax’s first UV-curing flatbed printer, and first in an A2 format. Copytrax made its name with direct-to-CD/DVD printers but mostly concentrates on other industrial applications now. It also sells a smaller A3 flatbed, the Rubens, and a pair of A4 models, the Dali and Monet, that use eco-solvent inks.
The Cezanne is actually built by Azon, a Croatian flatbed printer manufacturer, which calls it the UV QL. Copytrax has exclusive sales and support rights in the UK and some other countries.
How fast/productive is it?
It can print an area of 600x420mm with a ‘photographic’ resolution of 720x1,440dpi in 12 minutes. Lower resolutions and higher speeds are possible.
What is its USP?
According to Woods, this is an “affordable professional UV cure multipurpose printer, backed by knowledgeable support.” It’s also the cheapest A2 UV flatbed on the market by a long chalk.
What are the delivery, installation and support offerings?
Delivery, installation and training are extra. All printers have lifetime online and telephone support. Extended on-site maintenance is available. Copytrax also offers a colour profiling service.
How many are installed in the UK?
None so far, but Woods says orders have been taken for the first three printers in
the UK.
SPECIFICATIONS
Max print area 420x600mm
Max substrate thickness 150mm/300mm
Colours CMYK plus four white channels or CMYK plus two white and two clear channels
Printhead Epson Micropiezo, 3.5-picolitre drops
Speed Full bed area at 720x1,440dpi: 12 mins
Resolutions 720x1,440dpi, 1,440dpi, 2,880dpi
Ink cartridges 8 x 220ml, £80 each
Footprint 830x810mm (150mm version)
Price £18,750 (150mm version), £22,000 (300mm version)
Contact Copytrax 0844 815 6225 www.copytrax.com
ALTERNATIVES
Mimaki UJF3042/UJF-6042
Mimaki’s UJF-3042FX is for 50mm and the UJF-3042HG for 150mm objects. The A2 UJF-6042 was launched three years later in 2012. All have vacuum beds and can print a primer just in image areas. The primer also acts as adhesive for manually applied foil.
Max print area UJF-3042FX/HG: 300x420mm; UJF-6042: 610x420mm
Max substrate thickness UJF-3042FX: 50mm; UJF-3042HG/UJF-6042: 150mm
Colours CMYK, light cyan, light magenta plus white/clear/primer
Speed UJF-6042: Complete A2 bed at 1,400x1,200dpi, eight-pass: 7.5mins
Resolution Up to 1,800dpi, variable drop sizes
Ink packs 600ml foil packs, £135 each
Footprint 1,510x966mm
Prices UJF-3042FX: £16,995; UJF-3042HG: £29,995; UJF-6042: £39,995
Contact Hybrid Services 01270 501900 www.hybridservices.co.uk
Roland DG VersaUV LEF-20
This SRA3+ UV flatbed was introduced last year, joining the established A4-format LEF-12, which is now sold at a reduced price of £12,995. It’s a compact machine, twice as fast as the LEF-12. CMYK plus white and clear inks are standard in 220ml cartridges. Clear ink can have gloss or matt LED curing.
Max print area 508x330mm
Max substrate thickness 100mm
Colours CMYK plus white and clear
Speeds Complete SRA3 bed in CMYK plus white and clear: 17mins
Resolution 1,440dpi
Ink cartridges 220ml, £70 each
Footprint 1,202x962mm
Price £19,999
Contact Roland DG UK 0845 230 9060 www.rolanddg.co.uk
