Canon has already received its first orders for the new varioPRINT iX-series advanced sheetfed inkjet press since its introduction on April 1st 2020.
The printer is being installed at customer sites throughout Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) in the coming months to support growth in the commercial printing markets across a wide range of applications.
Commercial print customers as well as online printers have highlighted that its high quality, productivity and vast media range – which will enable them to produce a wider range of applications and expand their offering – are their main reasons for investment. And the cost-efficiency benefits of the varioPRINT iX-series compared with liquid toner machines have also been a deciding factor. Some customers are already considering adding multiple devices.
Migration to inkjet
Many of these customers are transitioning to digital inkjet printing and have commented that there is no other device in the market that achieves such high quality on a single device at high production volumes of 1 to 10 million A4 images per month. For a leading online printer, looking to migrate production from another brand of devices onto the varioPRINT iX3200 at one of its European locations, quality was a key consideration and the printing house was impressed by the offset-like standards that the varioPRINT iX3200 could produce.
Another customer, a South African commercial printer with multiple branches, made its first investment in high quality sheetfed inkjet with the varioPRINT iX3200 and is anticipating that its ability to effectively produce short runs will help to significantly improve turnaround times and reduce paper waste. With a focus on productivity, the varioPRINT iX3200’s ease of use and flexibility were also appealing attributes.
One UK-based customer, a commercial print business, has already seen the benefits of Canon’s inkjet solutions, with a production line-up that includes a ColorStream 3900 continuous feed printer and a VarioPrint i300 sheetfed printer. Producing a host of applications including books, journals and mailings, with the addition of the varioPRINT iX2100, the company is looking to increase its volumes further to meet its customers’ evolving demands for a more varied mix of applications.
First installation leads to more growth opportunities
General commercial and online printer, Kampert-Nauta, in Oss, the Netherlands, is at the forefront of innovation in the Dutch printing market and was the first customer worldwide to install a varioPRINT iX3200. Producing a wide range of applications, the company serves a broad customer base in the Netherlands and Belgium, including large print web shops and retail chains.
With its online web business, the company has ambitious plans to expand across Europe, and with the new printer, it is looking to consolidate digital production and migrate all volume of applications such as brochures, folders, flyers and specialised greeting cards, onto the new inkjet platform.
And for this business, investment goes beyond the technology benefits. The company highlighted that its relationship with Canon was a contributing factor in its decision, as the team took the time to understand the business and offer consultancy and training to support its growth.
Richard Kampert, Managing Director, comments: “We were immediately excited by the possibilities that the varioPRINT iX-series could offer our business. The printer combines high quality on thick media, with no impact on productivity. We want to produce short runs without the need to pass on higher costs to our customers. With the varioPRINT iX3200, we’ll be able to manage smaller, more diverse jobs profitably. We look forward to impressing our customers with the printer’s high-quality output.”
Peter Wolff, Vice President, Production Printing Products (PPP), EMEA Commercial Printing, Canon Europe, comments, “We’re excited to see that there has already been an excellent uptake of the varioPRINT iX-series in the general commercial printing market since its launch just over a month ago. At Canon, our priority is to ensure our solutions evolve to meet market demand, offering customers the highest image quality, productivity and reliability while ensuring that they don’t have to compromise on cost-efficiency and application diversity. From initial customer feedback to date, we anticipate that many more customers will realise the value that this printer can add to their business and the growth opportunities it will open up as a result. For this market, digital inkjet solutions are the technology of today and the future.”
