Phil McMullin, Sales Manager, ProGraphics, Epson (UK) says resin ink is putting its stamp on the print production sector thanks to its ability to meet demand for quality, productivity, reliability, stable colour performance and environmentally friendly output.
It is these abilities and the fact resin ink delivers outstandingly vibrant, consistent colour, even on the new breed of heat sensitive media that is driving it’s expected CAGR of 4.78% to US$ 4.4bn by 2025.
There are other performance benefits print service providers can enjoy too. They include:
Productivity
Quick-drying, with impressive levels of scratch resistance, resin ink enables users to laminate instantly for fast turnaround and same-day delivery on high priority jobs such as vehicle graphics. Uptime is kept to a maximum and running costs reduced with a bulk ink solution and a hot swap function.
Sustainability
Completely water based and with a significantly lower curing temperatures, the ink offers sustainable solutions to customers and brands. Their eco-friendly and odourless prints can be used in sensitive environments such as schools and hospitals. In addition, printed output on non-PVC media can be fully recycled.
Image Quality
The ink supports high image quality and repeatable colour. Both are achieved by Epson’s unique three-stage curing process, long-life printhead, repeat accuracy of dot placements and consistent droplet size, job after job. Reduced graininess and banding is made possible by halftoning, fully optimized look up table and Micro Weave - known collectively as Precision Dot Technology, which has been developed over many years.
Application Variety
It is suitable for printing traditional signage applications including vinyl and banner, decor medias, as well as a broader range of substrates like uncoated papers, wallpapers and textiles. The wide substrate possibilities support signage and pro-graphics printers, design agencies and wallpaper, canvas, and photo production plants. Instant lamination and high scratch resistance, for example, lends itself to both the vehicle livery market for fast turnaround and application, and the POS market where users may want to avoid laminating to reduce costs.
Epson’s UltraChrome RS resin ink, works with the SureColor SC-R Series of wide format printers. It was developed in tandem with Epson’s renowned print head expertise to deliver elevated levels of print performance, colour reliability and an expanded choice of applications, all from a water based ink.
The 6-colour ink set comprises of CMYK plus light cyan and light magenta to reduce graininess. In addition, an ink optimiser provides enhancement to the already vibrant inks, delivering image quality well beyond that seen in other brands of resin ink.