Brother purchases Mutoh in £170m deal
Brother Industries has officially acquired machine manufacturer, Mutoh, which is now a consolidated subsidiary of the wider Brother portfolio
HP has announced the launch of the new HP Latex FS70 W printer, a productivity kit for FS series customers, and enhancements to its PrintOS Production Hub
HP announced the launch of three major new releases for wide-format print service providers (PSPs), including the release of the new HP Latex FS70 W printer, the new HP Latex Productivity Kit for FS series customers, and enhancements to the HP PrintOS Production Hub.
HP’s latest wide-format solutions are being displayed in person at Booth 4249 of the PRINTING United Expo, which is taking place this week in Orlando, Florida.
In a video presentation aired last week (October 15th) to commemorate the new releases, Oscar Vidal, global director of product portfolio and strategy, Large Format, at HP, said: “Our next step on our scalability journey is here.”
Speaking of what inspired the new releases during the video presentation, Vidal said: “It is innovation, powered by passion, driven by you.”
Succeeding the HP Latex 3X00 series, the HP Latex FS70 W has been billed as HP’s most productive Latex printer to date, designed to provide robust productivity and sustainable design that scales seamlessly as businesses grow.
The press offers vibrant colour prints at 117sq m/h for outdoor prints and 91sq m/h for indoors, with a max speed up to 162sq m/h.
The addition of a 6L white ink cartridge has been added to allow PSPs to grow into higher-margin applications while providing confidence in unattended overnight printing.
The HP Latex FS70 W Printer also features a number of enhancements designed to aid unattended printing, alongside a range of optimised print modes.
Key features include a ‘jumbo’ dual-roll kit, a high-capacity ink kit supporting cartridges up to 10L, and an optimised cleaning system engineered to provide confidence in unattended long runs.
Additionally, an optional removable overcoat printhead will be available for specialised laminated production, designed to minimise waste.
HP also unveiled a new HP Latex Productivity Kit, designed for HP Latex FS series customers and aiming to provide customers with what the company describes as “a direct path to HP Latex FS70-level performance without needing to replace their existing printers.”
The kit upgrades key subsystems on existing HP Latex FS50s and 60s and is calculated to speed up productivity by up to 30%.
The upgrade aims to provide faster turnaround times, lower operating costs, and the ability to take on higher-margin, more demanding jobs, extending the lifecycle of the FS50s and 60s while ensuring they remain competitive.
The HP PrintOS Production Hub software, which was first announced earlier this year, has been developed to digitise workflows, centralise order and production management, and enable real-time collaboration.
The software introduces new functionality every few weeks, with the aim of helping PSPs to drive efficiency and revenue growth.
The latest updates to HP PrintOS Production Hub include the integration of orders from HP’s Design & eCommerce web-to-print software solution, enabling centralised order intake with an order dashboard that includes incoming ecommerce orders.
The updates also offer consolidated analytics and monitoring, designed for easier access to production data, as well as enhanced collaboration tools such as roles, permissions, comments, tags, and activity feeds, which will be available later in the year.
Additionally, PSPs can now automatically preflight file checks, assign jobs to printers, and directly connect to send their orders to RIP.
These features are compatible with any printing device and collectively enhance the value of HP’s Premium PrintOS Suite and Plus plans (PPSP).
The HP Latex FS70 W printer, Productivity Kit, and enhanced HP PrintOS Production Hub will release with selected availability on November 7th, with general availability beginning in February 2026.
Round-up articles from Print Monthly and sister publication SignLink were released ahead of the trade show, which included over 800 exhibitors in a 1,000,000sq ft exhibition space.
