Spoilt for choice

Sign-makers visiting the NEC will be treated to the latest technologies and consumables in the wide-format market. Vivid partners inc-luding Signmaster, Printmax, Colourbyte, and Grafityp will be showing the newest systems from the likes of Roland DG, Mimaki, and Epson.

We will also be debuting our new Easymount Air wide-format laminator for the first time in the UK. It is a revolutionary product in the wide-format lamination and mounting market. The patented technology uses one of the most advanced concepts ever seen in a wide-format laminator.
 
Pneumatic air pressure controls the laminating rollers, allowing you to mount and laminate with incredible accuracy and speed. This allows the roller to adjust to the exact thickness and pressure required, giving faster production times. The pneumatic air allows the roller to float down, ensuring Foamex and fluted boards are not crushed. When the rollers achieve the correct board thickness, the roller can be locked in place to keep the required gap, making board feeding more accurate.


For sign-makers looking to diversify into more commercial print areas, they are spoilt for choice when it comes to print. Konica Minolta, Ricoh, and EFI’s solutions will give sign-makers a fantastic portfolio of digital print systems to choose from. Manroland’s offset presses will also prove that litho is still very much a consideration for those wanting to step into this arena.

Finishing options are also greatly represented at The Print Show. Systems from Renz, Morgana, and Ashgate will offer printers a vast array of products to choose from, inclu-ding binding, creasing, and folding.

The Print Show will also mark the British debut of two new technologies for our award-winning Matrix OPP film laminating systems; our new feeder for the Matrix uses a patented underfed system for prints, speeding up production and finishing times. Secondly, our new finishing effects will also be demonstrated for the first time in the UK. Not only can lamination be brought in-house with the Matrix, the systems can also create beautifully finished prints with foiling, spot UV effects, and holographic film, with no need for expensive dies.

Time to diversify


Whilst competition might be fierce, the fantastic products available from manufacturers such as Roland and Mimaki show how much potential there truly is to diversify and offer something different to sit apart from the competition.

Personally, I think The Print Show offers a fantastic opportunity to see a wide variety of products under one roof. By attending, for free I might add, visitors have a rare opportunity to see a huge selection of new business applications, from personalization, to garment printing and the commercial sector in one convenient show, along with educational seminars and networking opportunities to make that next step even less daunting. I believe that The Print Show also offers a unique opportunity to speak one-on-one with manufacturers to understand the real potential of the hardware available.


The benefit of all of this, is that whilst print machinery might operate in different sectors, in many cases they incorporate systems and operations that already exist within the print room, and even more importantly are relevant, and interesting, to existing customer bases. The Print Show offers visitors the chance to look at adding machinery that will create a ‘one-stop-shop’ for any print buyer, for example, whether they need a banner, brochures, or some new promotional pens, they only need to visit one place.

With such a buzz in the industry, it is a fantastic time to look at diversifying. Mimaki offer many different products which ultimately provide a wide spectrum of products to offer an end customer. We are excited to be presenting these unique print solutions at The Print Show in just a few weeks’ time. Demonstrating that with small levels of investment, competitive businesses can add value and more importantly profit to their growing business.

Get the edge


Sign-makers are always looking for ways of expanding and differentiating themselves from their competitors, and with competition in the sign industry more fierce than ever, it is vital that sign-makers find a way to give them-selves the edge and stand out from the crowd.

The up-coming Print Show in October will be a great opportunity for print companies to explore options that will enable them to expand the products and services they can offer as well as find new ways to reduce their running costs and increase production capabilities. Signmaster Systems will certainly have an impressive fleet of wide-format machines to help business do just this.

We will be showcasing the Colorpainter range of wide-format printers including the W64s with its unique solvent neon ink. Popular among companies with a demand for printing onto t-shirt flex, this machine is perfect for those who want to access niche markets such as nightclubs, casinos, and bowling alleys.


Next in the Colorpainter range is the M64s, a higher production machine that offers quality at impressive speeds. This printer is ideal for companies looking to dramatically reduce ink cost using genuine high capacity inks to seriously ramp-up production.
 
Last from the ColorPainter range is the brand new H3. Integrating many of the advanced features of the M64s in a 2.6m grand format printer, this super wide-format machine uses eco-solvent inks creating high quality prints using an eight colour gamut whilst maintaining high production speeds.

Our stand will also feature a first look at Vivid’s new Pneumtaic laminator. Finishing is a very important process in sign-making and many laminating issues have been solved with this machine such as the bottle neck, improved laminating speed, precision pressure for optimum finish, and also a roller lock for continuous mounting onto rigid.

Promotional products are also a popular avenue for wide-format print companies and sign-makers to embrace as an additional product line. A popular machine to demonstrate the capabilities for this is the Roland LEF20 with its abilities to print onto almost any substrate the opportunities with this machine are almost endless.

Creating ideas


There is a whole world of printing out there and at Colourbyte we are lucky to work with businesses from almost every sector of it: sign-making, fine art, photography, reprographics, proofing, interior graphics, the list goes on. But as technology develops, the boundaries between sectors can blur.

Events such as The Print Show bring together suppliers, manufacturers, and experts to demonstrate how businesses can take advantage of these overlaps to offer more to their customers—who in themselves are demanding more, faster, cheaper—by investing in innovative new solutions, or even exploring what they already have.

Ahead of The Print Show we are busy preparing printed samples of not just a selection of our media range but everything we sell: over 110 materials, all printed on Epson wide-format printers. It is a thick book, designed to create ideas. Most print businesses buy a machine with one or two applications in mind and do not consider what else that kit can do—and how can they, without seeing for themselves? Visitors to our stand (A32) will be able to touch, hold, and take away media that could help them span the boundaries between wide-format and commercial print.


Without seeing the technology developments from other sectors it is also easy to dismiss it as irrelevant, so having a variety of equipment shown together at The Print Show is a valuable opportunity to see how a joined-up portfolio can work.

Together with our partner Epson, we will be demonstrating the Epson SureColor SC-S70600, a high-resolution solvent printer with simultaneous white and metallic ink support, normally used for POS and display graphics, alongside the SureColor SC-T5200. It is a multi-function printer with scanner options commonly used in GIS and CAD production, but could offer sign businesses a route to proofing and fast reprographics services as well. Also on show will be the Epson Stylus Pro 9890 that is ideal for contract proofing, photography, and indoor POS. By exploring innovations in a complementary field, sign-makers may well find new ways to develop their own business.

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