Having been the subject of beta-testing at undisclosed sites around the world, Punch Graphix’s latest, unanticipated offering is a natural progression from the Xeikon 5000, which runs at 130ppm. By upping the speed to an “unparalleled” 9,600 A4 full-colour pages an hour (pushing 4m pages per month), the manufacturer claims to have set a new standard in enabling customers to achieve higher production volumes, and, therefore, increased profits.
According to Punch Graphix chief sales officer Siegfried Trinker, the machine caters for the rise in the amount of colour material being printed digitally: “Our customers are asking for higher productivity and flexibility in response to a fast-growing market. The 6000 provides opportunities in on-demand, direct marketing and transactional printing.”
Increased productivity, however, is not the only improvement on the Xeikon 5000. An updated version of the X-800 Digital Front End (DFE) and new Form Adapted (FA) toners are the other noteworthy developments. Punch Graphix chief executive Ben Van Assche declares the press to be part of a new generation of digital printing: “We have made significant investments in the Xeikon 6000, and in our proprietary toner research, production and software development.”
Counting the cost
Of course, all new technology comes at a cost. The UK list price for a 6000 stands at £449,000 – around £60,000-£70,000 more than a 5000, which will continue to be available for the foreseeable future. However, against the price hike of less than 20%, Punch Graphics claims customers will experience a 30% increase in productivity – and that’s before considering the other improvements that have been made.
Despite this, Punch Graphix UK managing director David Mooney says the 5000 still appeals to firms that do not require the output levels of the newer models: “It’s slightly slower and has a different build, but we believe the 5000 still has a position in the marketplace.”
The 600dpi Xeikon 6000 can handle scalable paper widths of 320-508mm with almost no restriction in sheet length. The machine is integrated with Xeikon’s Jumbo Unwinder, wherein the paper supply unit is mounted in a fixed position to keep the web in a perfect line. The machine not only accommodates standard formats up to A2 full-bleed, or B2 – it can accept non-standard formats as well.
Handling a wide range of paper stock from 40-350gsm, the 6000 can print on a large number of substrates, such as polyester film, transfer material and label stock, opening the doors to an assortment of value-generating applications.
Potato-shaped toner
The ability to handle such a variety of materials is in part down to the new Pantone-licensed FA toner. The product of five years’ research by Punch Graphix, the toner’s “potato-shaped” polyester-based composition is claimed to be the first of its kind in digital printing and it gives the benefit of a larger colour space, more vivid colours and smoother tones. It can be applied on the fly without any reduction in print-speed, and as well as the standard CMYK, a fifth colour, either red, blue, green, orange, white or clear spot toner, is also available, “off the shelf”.
Based in Cramlington, Northumberland, Ravensworth Digital has been extensively testing the FA toner on its 5000 digital presses, with “exceptional” results. “FA toner fuses at a lower temperature than our previous toner, allowing you to print on substrates such as plastic,” says Mooney. “It covers a greater surface area than before. Our tests have indicated there is, on average, 10% greater coverage, which obviously saves on price.”
The X-800 front end, on the other hand, isn’t new – it’s been around for almost two years. There are, however, important improvements to this latest 1.7 version. Embedded with powerful streamer technology for high-end variable work, the X-800 allows for simultaneous set-up, ripping and printing, and can process PostScript, PDF, PPML and PPML/VDX files at high speed. The engine is also designed to support future JDF-based digital printing job tickets. “It allows you to make corrections right up to the point of printing without having to re-RIP the file. The way it copes with high-speed data handling is phenomenal,” says Mooney.
The Xeikon 6000 comes equipped with an inline densitometer and a second decoder, offering essential front-to-back and automatic colour registration. The densitometer, as you would expect, ensures that colour remains consistently vibrant on both sides of a page throughout a print run.
The manufacturer takes the view that providing customers with an output device is only the first step – customers need a finished product. Punch Graphix says it will assist users in finding the right third-party finishing equipment, whether it’s inline, near-line or offline. According to Mooney, various perforating, trimming and batching options are available – much of it provided by Kern, but not exclusively so.
Remote access
Every Xeikon 6000 comes equipped with the Axeda Device Relationship Management (DRM) tool, and Punch Graphix takes its role as a service provider seriously. Running on the front end, the DRM software allows its base in Lier, Belgium, to remotely monitor press runs and intervene in the event of a problem. “In many cases, we can know about a problem before the customer does,” says Mooney.
The machine’s European launch was held at the end of September in Lier. “More than 150 customers attended and orders were taken from a number of countries,” says Mooney. “There were 18 UK customers, and every one of them displayed an interest in buying one later this year or early next.”
Mooney says that rather than pitching the machine against rivals such as the iGen3 or HP’s Indigo 5000, he is focused on emphasising its importance in the changing attitudes towards colour, in both the direct mail and transactional marketplaces. “I believe there is enough space in the market for sheetfed and web systems,” he says. Judging by how swiftly the 6000 appears to be making a name for itself, its space in the market already looks assured.
SPECIFICATIONS
Web width 320-508mm
Stock range 40-350gsm
Speed 160 A4 duplex ppm (up to 200gsm)
Front end X-800 DFE
Price £449,000
Contact Punch Graphix UK 01904 520555 www. punchgraphix.com
THE ALTERNATIVES
Xerox DocuColor iGen3
It may be a sheetfed press, but the iGen occupies the same high-volume area of the digital marketplace as the Xeikon. Available in two speeds – 90ppm and 110ppm – there are a host of features designed to keep productivity high, mixing stocks in a single run, for example. Inline finishing, including UV varnishing, is available as an option.
Max sheet size 571x346mm
Stock range 60-350gsm
Speed 110 four-colour A4 ppm
Front end DocuSP, Fiery, Spire
Price Around £500,000
Contact Xerox UK 01895 251133 www.xerox.com
HP Indigo Press 5000
With the capability to print up to seven colours, HP claims its flagship cut-sheet machine offers the “best in class” price per page around. A big departure from previous Indigos, paper is handled either side of the print engine, while modular tray-based units allow multiple feeds and deliveries, as well as inline finishing kit.
Max sheet size 320x475mm
Stock range 80-350gsm
Speed 68 four-colour A4 ppm
Front end Adobe RIP or HP Production Flow
Price From £279,000
Contact HP 01344 360000 www.hp.com
Agfa Dotrix Modular
As the name suggests, Agfa’s high-speed inkjet press is a variable beast. Duplex and hybrid flexo versions were announced at Ipex, however, it can be completely configured to customer specifications. Around the Spice printing unit, traditional UV flexo printing stations can serve equally well as coating or varnishing alleys. There are also slitting, die-cutting and sheeter options.
Web width up to 650mm
Stock range 25-600 micron
Speed five to 24m per minute
Front end ApogeeX
Price Around £600,000
Contact Agfa Graphics UK 020 8560 2131 www.agfa.com
