Another breakthrough from HP breaks the size barrier

-introduces world’s first 42-inch high-speed digital colour press ‘HP T400’

Since its inception digital technology continues to revolutionize very concept of printing by making it increasingly smarter process. Over the years, advancements have been witnessed in digital arena to develop rather sophisticated presses which can be used to execute wider range of applications. And now HP has marked yet another breakthrough introducing world’s first 42-inch high-speed digital colour press ‘HP T400’ which can print on virtually any standard uncoated or newsprint paper, as well as on a range of coated papers, offering extensive format flexibility and robust variable data processing capabilities ideal for the high-speed, high-volume production of customized campaigns. Sonal Khurana of P&P, who joined T400’s world premiere event in Los Angeles (USA), briefs. Another breakthrough from HP breaks the size barrier Bringing the concept of mass customization to printing by combining the personalization features of digital printing with the efficiencies of high-volumae production, HP introduced the graphic arts industry’s largest, most productive commercial digital colour press HP T400. With its unmatched width and its 600-foot/minute (183-meter/minute) speed, T400 colour inkjet web press prints up to 5,200 full-colour, letter-size pages per minute – 44 percent more than the closest solution from competing vendors.

HP unveiled the press at the offices of O’Neil Data Systems, a Los Angeles-based data-driven marketing communication firm that now uses all four systems in the HP inkjet web press portfolio – the HP T200, T300, T350 and the new T400. They are using HP Exstream and the HP T400 press to produce MarketSmith, a personalized financial research publication delivered weekly.

The HP T400 offers high-quality imaging by reproducing sharp text and images, as well as uniform area fills. New HP A50 process-colour inks work with new HP A10 printheads, which use HP Scalable Printing Technology in a compact, 1,200-nozzles-per-inch printhead design. New, advanced web tension controls and dryer systems provide reliable, fast and consistent productivity. Users of standard-size (20.5-inch) digital web press finishing equipment can produce two jobs simultaneously on the HP T400, using an optional slitter at the end of the press to convert the roll into side-by-side webs. Scalable job impositioning tools for high-level prepress efficiency from Ultimate Technographics – a member of the HP Graphics Solutions Partner programme – allow operators to impose separate variable-data jobs side by side on the web.

Scheduled to be available later this year, the HP T400 is part of a broader production printing portfolio that includes HP Indigo liquid electrophotographic imaging presses. With a global install base in excess of 5,000 presses, HP Indigo is a market leader in high-value, offset and photo-quality digital printing. Since introducing the first HP inkjet web press in 2008, the company has continued to gain momentum in publishing, direct mail and transactional and transpromotional markets, with more than 1.46 billion pages produced on HP inkjet web presses in 2010. HP is presently installing its first HP inkjet web press in Asia at book exporter CTPS’ plant in Dongguan, China.

HP also introduced several additional solutions, including an HP magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) system and third-party coated media, as well as workflow and finishing solutions from members of the HP Graphic Solutions Partner programme. HP additionally is offering customers an option to upgrade HP T300 presses to the faster T350 platform. The company also announced the immediate availability of new 115 and 130 gsm Jaz coated papers from Sappi for use with HP inkjet web presses.

MICR is a technology commonly used in checkbook printing. Available for order now with new HP T300 and T350 purchases, and scheduled to be available with T200 and T400 models sold later this year, the solution consists of new black MICR ink with a print bar that inserts into expansion slots on all HP inkjet web presses. The HP inkjet web press MICR solution enables direct and transactional mail printers to use only one pass to produce balance transfer check mailers, rebate check mailers and other popular direct mail products. This method avoids the significant document security and inventory storage demands with existing workflows, which require valuable MICR documents to be preprinted and then locked away, with additional finishing, inserting or full-colour printing steps completed in subsequent steps just prior to mailing.