The UV flatbed Inca OnsetX1 from Fujifilm with white ink transforms operations at Identity Group, a Brunswick, Maine-based manufacturer of visual décor, signs and office products.
“With the OnsetX1 we are able to quickly increase our wide format capacity,” said Josh Wolfgram, vice president of operations, visual décor division, Identity Group. “We now have many more output options, including a variety of substrates we can print on, such as styrene, plastics, corrugated, foam core, expanded PVCs, acrylics, and also wood. The OnsetX1 allows us to stand out from the crowd with its burst capacity; allowing us increased capabilities to meet the ever-evolving needs of our clients.”
Featuring a maximum throughput of 4,300 square feet per hour equating to 80 5-by-10-foot beds per hour, the OnsetX1 is ideal for companies like Identity Group producing a mix of fast-turnaround retail graphics and both short-term and long-term visual décor.
“We can support our client base of national retailers and grocery store chains more efficiently and on a much larger scale,” says Brett Wolfgram, vice president, visual décor division, Identity Group. “Prior to the OnsetX1, production was taking us weeks, and now we are completing high-end jobs in a matter of days. Our previous wide format capacity was around 175 bed loads a day, and now with the OnsetX1 we are upwards of 1,000 bed loads per day.”
“The OnsetX1 has dramatically changed our business,” said Matt Thornton, vice president, sales, visual décor division, Identity Group. “Our organization is committed to providing innovative technology to our clients, and the OnsetX1 has enhanced the sales process. Our ability to create dynamic, colorful, and vibrant signage and décor elements is critical to sustaining a successful business.”
Fujifilm’s Uvijet inks offer excellent adhesion and flexibility and are developed for a wide range of substrates specifically for use in the Onset Series of printers.
“We tested Fujifilm’s Uvijet OX ink very thoroughly, on a number of substrates,” said Paul Glynn, operations manager, visual décor division, Identity Group. “It had to be bendable and flexible too, as many of the items we output will be heat bent or folded, or in some way significantly flexed through their use. The OX ink performs impressively and consistently in all aspects.”
“The OX ink offers great adhesion,” says Josh. “With its good finishing ability, we find it resistant to the solvent weld we use in the fabrication process; it does not smudge or smear.”
“Coverage with Fujifilm’s white ink is amazing, as we do not see any banding, or any overlaps,” adds Dallas Reed, OnsetX1 press operator, Identity Group.
“The white ink on our OnsetX1 is critical for our operation,” said Glynn. “We output on a lot of clear substrates, and high quality solid areas and various transparencies of white ink, with excellent adhesion to plastic film, are imperative.”
In addition to the OnsetX1, Identity Group’s line-up of wide format equipment includes an Acuity Select HSX2, as well as an Acuity Select HS. Prior to installing the OnsetX1 it was common for these two “workhorse” flatbed presses to run up to twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. “The output ability of the OnsetX1 has increased capacity by four times in a single shift,” says Josh. “The two Acuity presses currently provide additional capacity for shorter run projects.” Furthermore, Identity Group’s RIP software is the Fujifilm edition of the ColorGATE Production Server; and the organization also achieved G7 Certification with support from Fujifilm.
The Inca OnsetX1 http://www.fujifilminkjet.com is distributed exclusively in North America by Fujifilm.
—Press Release
