Erskine Stewart, managing director of swissQprint UK
Worth the extra pinch?
SwissQprint is a manufacturer of high-end large-format UV printing systems and whilst the company is the first to acknowledge that its machines come with a slightly higher price point than some others operating in this field, we take a look at some of the things that could set this technology apart from the rest, from energy savings to long lifespans and modularity.
Last year saw swissQprint celebrate its 15th anniversary with the company starting out as a six-man operation and growing to become an international company with 200 employees over that time.
Founders Reto Eicher, Roland Fetting, and Hansjörg Untersander set out with a crew of six in 2007 and despite a financial crisis, launched the first swissQprint flatbed printer.
Today, the company is headed by the overarching swissQprint Holding which is then broken into swissQprint AG (HQ and manufacturing) and swissQprint subsidiaries of which there are six comprising the UK, Germany, Benelux, Spain, US, and Japan.
The manufacturer’s portfolio features six models of flatbed printers including the Kudu, Nyala 4 and 4S, Impala 4 and 4S, and Oryx 4. The roll-to-roll line-up comprises of the Karibu 2 and S models. First to be launched was Oryx, followed by the Impala and Nyala in 2010.
SwissQprint launched a range of neon inks for UV printing in 2021
Five years later and the company had sold its 500th printer and in 2017 launched its first LED models. In 2018, swissQprint sold its 1,000th printer and shortly went on to launch the Karibu in 2019, and the Karibu S and Neon ink technology in 2021. The most recent machine to launch was the Kudu in May 2022.
Opened in 2019, the company’s UK subsidiary is located in Bracknell and includes a demonstration centre with a Nyala 4 and Karibu, a training centre, and a full stock of ink, consumables, and spare parts for the UK and Ireland.
SwissQprint UK’s site is located in Bracknell and houses the Nyala 4 and Karibu
We paid a visit to the swissQprint UK site where we had the opportunity to experience both the flatbed and roll-to-roll capabilities from the manufacturer.
Erskine Stewart, managing director of swissQprint UK told us: “swissQprint’s design philosophy around flatbeds is the belief that a true flatbed is the best way to achieve precise accurate printing because you’re controlling the substrate on the flatbed. We see that as a real advantage in delivering the quality that’s in our name effectively.
“One of the great benefits of UV and flatbed printing in particular is that you’re able to print on a very wide range of substrates and media. You can print on acrylic, foam board, paper, and glass, we’ve got companies printing on steel and saw blades, so quite a wide range of substrates which is a real benefit.”
Most recently in 2022, the Nyala was voted a favourite in Europe thanks to research by Geneva-based market research company Infosource. The study found that for seven consecutive years the model has been the leader in the category ‘UV flatbed/hybrid printers 152.4cm wide in the €130,000 – €500,000 (£111,000 – £427,000) price segment compared to the other brands and models surveyed.
Modular and versatile
Less than two decades after the company first launched and over 1,600 swissQprint machines are currently in operation worldwide with sales and service all handled by six subsidiaries and over 30 distribution partners. Despite being installed globally, the development and production of the machines remain in Switzerland where the company is headquartered.
Whilst the company’s technology does come with a slightly higher price point than other options, the focus is very much on reliability and durability alongside quality and this can be seen in the finished products.
The machines offer versatility due to upgradable components and modular options and have a service life of up to 12 years with low maintenance; which minimises service calls and consumable parts that need replacing.
“One of the key benefits of swissQprint is that all the machines are very modular. You’re able to configure them to your needs and the machine can grow with your business,” Stewart says, adding: “You can start out with an Impala and a single row of printheads and in three years’ time, decide you want to double your productivity on that machine and add a second row of printheads. It’s a huge amount of configurability available which is a huge benefit.”
Statistics
- 2007 – swissQprint founded
- 2019 – swissQprint UK opened
- 90% – of parts made in Switzerland
- 8 – machines in portfolio
- 200 – suppliers are Swiss enterprises
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Outlining some of the company’s recent updates to its kit, Stewart describes the launch of Karibu 2 as an exciting development in swissQprint’s roll-to-roll range which was first launched in 2019.
Stewart explains that this addition to the line-up was to meet the demand from existing customers who wanted to have all the benefits that they’ve experienced from swissQprint flatbeds such as the reliability, precision, and service element.
Another addition is the launch of the new Q1280i printhead which can achieve fine text of 2 points both in white and colour, smoother tones, and also increased productivity in some quality modes.
“The Kudu is another big step for us and it’s an exciting development because we’ve taken a completely different view of the design, engineering and technology within our flatbed range,” Stewart says.
“We’ve introduced a tenth channel now, so we have ten configurable channels in that system, and three rows of heads which allows us to print up to 300sq m per hour. So, you get all the great benefits of a flatbed system with extra configurability and productivity.”
That being said, Stewart also notes the importance of having a strong and knowledgeable team with one member of the UK service team having worked on swissQprint systems from Gen 1 all the way up to Gen 4.
“I think one of the great strengths that we have here in the UK is our team led by Simon from a service perspective who has had ten years of experience in running swissQprint systems and looking after them for our distribution partners down in Australia. He brings a huge amount of experience and the same for Andrew from the service team, both are extremely experienced.
“Because we have an opportunity to focus as a team on one product, the depth of knowledge that we have is right the way from generation 1 to generation 4. That’s the same for Marcin, our application specialist and our sales team, and everybody else who brings a huge amount of value to us and the services we can offer.”
Green credentials
Good for the environment too? The machines use LED lamps which consume little electricity and have low emissions with the printers’ energy efficiency achieving ISO 20690:2018 accreditation. SwissQprint inks are also VOC-free and Greenguard Gold certified meaning the company’s claims of being green are very much backed up with facts.
In the UK, the current energy crisis is posing a real threat to businesses and individuals alike and is causing people to reassess their usage and consumption.
For a busy sign or print house, the machines used are the workhorses of the business and simply switching off these machines isn’t an option. The low energy consumption and usage of swissQprint machines is a selling point for this reason at present.
Erskine explains: “Energy consumption is a key area where we see a huge benefit of our systems. The latest flatbed system that we have is running at about 2.7kWH which is significantly lower than many of the systems out there in the market and that’s an ISO-certified energy efficiency that we can point to.
“The current energy crisis has really created a sharp focus for our customers to seek ways to reduce costs and become more energy efficient. That’s a great benefit for us because our equipment with its free low energy usage is a great opportunity for them to replace older equipment or other technology which has got far higher energy consumption.”
The current energy crisis has really created a sharp focus for our customers to seek ways to reduce costs and become more energy efficient”
The past few years have been a busy period of launches for SwissQprint and looking forward Stewart says this isn’t set to stop. “I personally don’t know exactly what they are but there are certainly going to be some exciting innovations coming up,” he concludes.
