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Exhibitors have given a glimpse at what they will be demonstrating at Hunkeler Innovationdays next week
With only a couple of days to go, exhibitors and visitors alike will be gearing up to make the trip over to Lucerne, Switzerland for the much-anticipated Hunkeler Innovationdays 2023.
Taking place at Messe Luzern, the event will run from Monday February 27th to Thursday March 2nd.
Held every two years, the exhibition hasn’t run since 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and manufacturers, software providers, paper merchants, and more are gearing up for an industry reunion.
This year’s event looks set to be a memorable one with numerous European premieres of digital printer models set to take place. The kit on show will be complemented with various workflow integrations from manufacturer and event organiser Hunkeler itself.
These include the Hunkeler Generation 8 roll-to-stack solution with the Horizon perfect binder, or the Hunkeler Media Changer RX8 for non-stop media roll changes. Hunkeler will also be introducing new Starbook solutions within its Digital Web Finishing Brand, and a new DocuTrim sheet cutter. The latter is able to process sheets up to B2+ and sits within the Digital Sheet Finishing Brand.
Also new to Hunkeler is the Book Sorting Module BSM which is the first in the manufacturer’s Smart Logistics Solutions brand. This is able to sort pre-glued book blocks from various Hunkeler solutions.
Organisers of the event say: “With the presentation of numerous new digital printer models as world or European premieres, the Hunkeler Innovationdays 2023 offers several highlights.”
With over 50 digital print and finishing solutions being exhibited across two halls, there will be plenty for visitors to experience over the four days with the theme of the 2023 event being ‘Next Level Automation’.
One manufacturer set to demonstrate its offerings is Kodak with the company planning to showcase its latest technology for high-speed digital production printing and end-to-end workflow management.
On Booth P5 in Hall 2, Kodak will show its recently launched inkjet web press, the KODAK PROSPER ULTRA 520 press for the first time in Europe.
Using its presence at Hunkeler, Kodak will present a roll-to-roll configuration which integrates the PROSPER ULTRA 520 with a Hunkeler UW8 unwinder and RW8 rewinder, as well as the Hunkeler WI8 web inspection system via an open architecture interface.
Visitors to Kodak’s stand will be able to witness live printing of three versions of a ‘magalog’, a hybrid between a magazine and a catalogue, demonstrating the press’ ability to print heavy ink coverage on standard offset paper at 150mpm.
In addition to the PROSPER ULTRA 520, Kodak will be demonstrating its PROSPER 7000 Turpo Press, the world’s fastest digital press with speeds of up to 410mpm. Workflow solutions will also be showcased in the form of Kodak’s KODAK PRINTERGY On Demand Business Solutions – the first end-to-end workflow solution for the print industry.
At Hunkeler, this solution will manage the digital print workflow and track the entire process of the magalog to the saddle-stitched end product.
“We are excited to use Hunkeler Innovationdays for the European premiere of the KODAK PROSPER ULTRA 520 Press,” says Jim Continenza, executive chairman and chief executive officer of Kodak. “This breakthrough inkjet press eases printers’ transition from offset to digital production with its quality, productivity, and application capabilities.”
Another manufacturer demonstrating its inkjet press capabilities is Ricoh with its global premiere of the Ricoh Pro VC70000e continuous feed inkjet press.
The premiere of the Pro VC70000e, Ricoh says, demonstrates the company’s significant upgrades to its hardware, software, and workflow and the way they simplify production, support productivity, enhanced quality, and migration of production from analogue to digital platforms.
Software advances include production automation tools and business intelligence capabilities such as the Ricoh Pro Scanner and Ricoh Supervisor. Ricoh’s proprietary undercoating technology also broadens the range of applications suitable for inkjet.
The manufacturer says that due to the current limitations on substrate choices due to global shortages, this undercoating ability to create a standardised print surface ensures high-quality results can be produced on a variety of media.
Upgradable and interchangeable with the existing Pro VC70000 models, Ricoh says the Pro VC70000e is focused on helping production print businesses manage the current economic challenges and operational pressures.
Also on show at the manufacturer’s booth will be the Ricoh Pro V20100 mono continuous feed inkjet press, a virtual showcase of the Ricoh Pro Z75 B2 sheet-fed inkjet press, and physical demonstrations of the Ricoh Pro C9200 digital press.
Ricoh will also demonstrate its EDGE business development consultancy which provides printers with essential tools and training to develop business and marketing plans.
Also on hand to demonstrate its hardware solutions will be SCREEN Europe with its Truepress Jet520HD+ with its newest generation SC+ ink, and its brand new Truepress PAC 520P.
The latter is a high-speed, water-based inkjet digital press designed for flexible packaging. Using water-based pigment inks means the press complies with food safety regulations and reduces its impact on the environment.
Partnering with Solimar Systems, SCREEN will also demonstrate how it works with the software provider to streamline production, enable greater automation, and make savings to labour.
Described as the “digital future for commercial printing” by the manufacturer, the Truepress Jet520HD+ will be configured with the Hunkeler CS8 Cut and Stick system.
Taishi Motoshige, marketing director of SCREEN Europe, says: “Our Truepress Jet520HD+ offers high printing quality on standard offset papers at great productivity – with the added power of variable and short-run print-on-demand.
“With more than 100 users, we have already shown that inkjet on gloss, silk, and matte offset-coated stocks is possible without priming.”
Showcasing its inaugural inkjet production printer, the TASKalfa Pro 15000c, Kyocera Document Solutions says its press signals the company’s optimism about the future and its positioning as a key contributor to a more sustainable future.
The company has described Hunkeler Innovationdays as the perfect stage to showcase its production press with live demonstrations and an array of media samples.
Kyocera will showcase its award-winning printheads and detail the numerous benefits of the TASKalfa Pro 15000c and its ability to “do more with less”.
Marcel Ebbenhorst, production print manager of Kyocera Document Solutions Europe, says: “The TASKalfa Pro 15000c excels in areas such as productivity, output quality, media flexibility, and personalisation options, while also keeping energy consumption down to a minimum.
“These are the ingredients for sustainable success for print providers seeking to drive growth and optimise costs.”
Over in the finishing sphere and manufacturer KAMA will be running live demos of its converting and embellishment solutions.
Visitors to KAMA’s booth will be able to see the Servo generation of its flagship finishing machine, the ProCut 76 Foil. The machine has advanced features and high automation covering a range of applications from die-cutting, creasing and perforating to embellishment with hot foil, hologram, and relief.
The ProCut 76 Foil will be presented with the new AutoRegister AR3 which features two cameras and is ideal for finishing digital prints quickly. The machine comes with up to three separately controllable foil feeders and can be equipped with a mobile KAMA heating plate, a heatable honeycomb plate, or an integrated head heating plate.
Now, there’s no printed product without the media it is produced on, and Mondi will be on hand to demonstrate its range of high-speed inkjet papers.
Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper, part of the wider packaging and paper group Mondi, has collaborated closely with original equipment manufacturers to develop a large selection of high-speed inkjet papers.
These papers feature ideal gamut, reels, and sheets in grammages ranging from 60 to 300gsm and various surface treatments.
All the high-speed inkjet papers have optimised drying time, in particular the fully treated and pigmented papers which allows users to achieve rich colours and reduce ink consumption.
Bernhard Cantzler, head of marketing and innovation at Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper, explains that the recent extension of the company’s sheet offering goes hand in hand with the current market development.
Consciousness of environmental impact is another market development noted by Mondi and Cantzler explains how the de-inking process so that paper can be recycled is particularly challenging.
The better printed ink is removed from the fibres, the better the quality of the pulp which in turn means better quality of recycled paper when produced again. To address this challenge, specially treated papers can improve the de-inkability of inks that are tricky to remove, and Mondi has a solution for this – Color Copy jet or NEUJET silk premium papers.
Mondi’s high-speed inkjet team will be on hand in Hall 1 to demonstrate its paper portfolio as well as several of its brands being printed live at the Kyocera booth on the TASKalfa Pro 15000c.
In the world of software, print industry software developer Enfocus is partnering with prepress solutions service Impressed to showcase its solutions at Hunkeler.
In keeping with the theme of the 2023 event, visitors will be able to experience “next-level automation” such as the simple integration of multiple systems into a single seamless workflow.
In-depth technical advice will be provided on the booth from Freddy Pieters, solutions architect at Enfocus; Karsten Scwarze, product manager at Impressed; and Davy Verstaen, switch product manager and Van Rossom.
“The expression ‘time is money’ is truer now than it ever has been,” says Tomas Van Rossom, general manager of Enfocus, adding: “Printers need to go through more jobs more quickly than ever without letting quality standards drop even the smallest amount. The only solution to this problem is automation, which – as we’ll demonstrate on the booth – can save thousands of hours of manual work over the course of the year.”
Van Rossom adds: “We’re proud to be bringing our 25-year-strong suite of software to Lucerne. From digital printers looking to maximise output to label makers and wide-format printers who need to break down the barrier between data and artwork, Enfocus software has something to meet every need.”
The full Hunkeler Innovationdays 2023 exhibitor list can be found here. https://www.innovationdays.com/en/
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