New HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press delivers enhanced productivity and versatility.
They say that timing is everything, so one might be forgiven for asking why the new HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press was launched with other presses and printers amid continuing market uncertainty. However, the commercial and technical cases for investing in the new are very strong.
As always, brand managers and company marketing directors are working very hard to gain sales and maintain brand presence. Contrary to some perceptions, leading brands and companies still have money to spend, though they may be more careful about how they do so. Unquestionably, they want more for their money, and one way of achieving that goal is to use as few suppliers as possible to meet their needs.
For wide-format print service providers (PSPs), recognising this situation as an opportunity could mark a turning point. Leading PSPs are increasingly positioning themselves as one-stop shops offering more and more services to their customers. Ranging from design, digital asset and management to printing and now, full finishing, installation and removal of graphics and signage. Moreover, PSPs are investing in technologies that extend their printing capabilities to encompass new products, sizes, materials, and inks as well as seeking out printers with greater productivity.
From end-to-end
The HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press is more than just a new version of its predecessor, the HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press, though an Upgrade Kit is available to users of the earlier press.
New front-end software features include hot folders for print files, job queuing, and automated file preparation. Minimal operator intervention is required for material handling, too, where an optional multi-sheet loading table enables the simultaneous printing of up to four sheets, allowing PSPs to turnaround large volumes of work faster.
A higher running speed in optimum production mode further accelerates throughput. At 55 beds per hour, the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press is 15% faster than the HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press (optimum speed, 48 beds per hour). Both machines offer a POP70 mode (70 beds per hour) which is suitable for certain types of graphics, but POP55 offers quality with speed which can be leveraged as a business-building opportunity by PSPs.
Complementing the faster printing time is the new edge-to-edge printing feature. The HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press can print sheets up to 3200 x 1650mm (126 x65in) with full bleeds up to 6.35mm (0.25in). The feature means that PSPs can order exact sheet sizes and eliminate trimming, saving both time and substrate waste.
By removing the trimming stage, the chance of damaging printed graphics through the additional handling is eliminated, improving efficiencies by saving time and money on remakes.
Increased substrate versatility and added value for customers
In addition to standard POP/POS corrugated board substrates and back-lit papers, the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press can now print on popular plastic and coated materials including PVC, Styrene, PP, PC, PE, PETG, Yupo, and Alu-Dibond. New HP FB225 Scitex Inks achieve high-quality results on these materials, enabling PSPs to add them to their standard production offering.
Other benefits of the FB225 inks are increased flexibility that greatly reduces chipping and cracking on applications during cutting and folding. Again, this means fewer remakes and faster times to job completion.
Thinner substrates are also now easier to handle thanks to a new ‘Slow Loading’ feature and a Press Roller that helps to flatten media during loading. A ‘Flattening Flexible Media’ feature finally helps to eliminate wrinkles on soft media on the bed, further increasing output quality.
The ability to handle a wide range of media is part of the competitive edge that wide-format PSPs can have with the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press. Other new features that enable PSPS to offer added value services to their customers - and attract new ones - include double-sided printing, a new saturation control for back-lit displays and the ‘Image-2’ facility.
Double-sided printing on the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press is made simple by the ability to align media either left or right using alignment rulers on both sides of the multi-sheet loading table.
Back-lit applications requiring additional saturation will no longer take additional time to print as a simple adjustment on the press’ user interface to change the saturation percentage will increase ink coverage without any reduction in speed. Up to 200% saturation is possible with this control.
The ability to print two different images in the same job has previously required a second pass through the press. With the Image-2 feature on the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press, two different images using different printing parameter can be printed in a single pass. This could be the addition of a double strike, a 3D effect, application of spot gloss, or other value-adding enhancements. Once again, time is saved, faster turnarounds achieved, and customers are offered more options.
HP Scitex Print Care
Owners of the HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press have the option of three levels of support that comprise customer resolution tools that enable operators to diagnose issues and resolve them using the Print Care interface. On the second level, remote tools supply customers with immediate technical assistance to help them resolve problems they cannot solve themselves. This includes live video diagnostics so that remote technicians can visually troubleshoot and direct operators in remedial work. The third level of care comprises the on-site resolution tools used by HP service technicians. Work undertaken at the previous level will ensure an understanding by the technician of the work to be done before arrival and the assurance that any necessary new parts are brought to the site.
The bottom line
Enhanced productivity features and the improved HP FB225 Scitex Ink deliver a powerful combination of genuine benefits to wide-format print businesses that will help them increase productivity and profitability. The HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press (and the Upgrade Kit for the HP Scitex FB7500 Industrial Press) can be a game-changer for PSPs by not only facilitating the shift from analogue to digital production for mid-to-high volumes but by improving flexibility and cost-effective value-added enhancements.
Along with the extra productivity and value adding capabilities, this new press is a business-enabler. PSPs with an HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press are in a position to open new revenue streams, develop new niche services and, quite literally, go knocking on the doors of national and international brands and pitch for their business. For owners of smaller flatbed printers, moving up to an HP Scitex FB7600 Industrial Press instead of investing in a second manual printer could change the course of their company’s development.
Ownership needn’t be just a dream: HP offers flexible financing solutions for customers deploying the latest HP digital printing technologies through HP Financial Services, the company’s leasing and life cycle asset management services division.