The Next Generation Wisconsin

Water-based inkjet printers started the wide-format revolution in the early 1990s, but nearly 20 years later, they're still going strong.

According to Tim Greene, director, Wide Format, InfoTrends, there is still growth in the aqueous inkjet market. "I think the biggest reason we had seen it flattening out was that there was a serious lull between the times that the market leaders—HP and Epson—updated/refreshed/improved their printers. While there is certainly a lot of interest in lower production cost technologies we think there is a 'Quality Market' that will maintain demand for aqueous inkjet printers that feature very low selling prices." And the manufacturers agree.

"While the market for wide-format aqueous inkjet printers remains relatively flat, research indicates that there are segments ripe for growth in the coming years," said Rick Scrimger, vice president and general manager, Roland DGA Corp., Color Products Division. "It is this projected growth that has many manufacturers updating their aqueous inkjet printers—some for the first time in years. The largest growth segment comes from the large-format photographic and fine art market, a segment that requires the wider gamut and enhanced color contrast of aqueous inks. These professionals remain committed to the technology and are looking to purchase faster, more advanced printers to keep pace with their business demands."

But what has been driving this growth? According to Rich Reamer, senior manager, Large Format Printer Division, Canon USA, Inc., "the driving factor behind the new printer introductions in 2007, simply put, has come from healthy competition in the marketplace. With many people viewing three serious players now, technology is on the fast track for advancement and all three fighting to gain marketshare through superior image quality."

"Aqueous printers are still the best solution for a wide variety of large-format applications, in technical, creative, and display applications," said Sandy Gramley, technical segment manager, Designjet, HP. "Output in all fields is becoming more graphics intensive, file sizes are getting larger, and color is becoming increasingly important."

And this is seen in the new models that have been released in 2007. "The new aqueous models introduced into the market offer eight and even 12 color inks that have enabled expanded color gamut and better black and white photographic quality," said Scrimger. "These new pigment ink printers have also dramatically reduced the metamerism associated with earlier generations of pigment inks."

"The proliferation of digital photography is also a major driving force behind aqueous printing," said Reamer. "Often referred to as 'digital darkrooms' these printers are being called upon to print all manner of digital work, from amateur photography to professional signage."

Going Green

Environmental-friendliness and concerns about sustainability have also made water-based printers a much more favorable choice among many wide-format print providers.

According to Scrimger, "Growth is coming from ecologically-conscious professionals throughout the durable graphics industry who are committed to limiting their solvent ink usage due to environmental, and health and safety concerns," said Scrimger. "These professionals are turning to aqueous inkjets to produce short-term point-of-purchase retail signage and other indoor graphics that do not require the extended outdoor durability of solvent inks."

And according to Tom Reilly, vice president of marketing and advertising for Gandinnovations, shops have been asking for more environmentally friendly inks. "Our customers wanted a water base digital printer that could print at fast speeds and high quality and eliminate the need for a second process of transferring to fabrics or textiles," said Reilly.

Stacking Up

But with the large variety of printer types available—solvent, mild-solvent, UV, cationic, reactive dye—how do aqueous printers stand up? According to manufacturers, they are still the best choice in some applications.

"Aqueous inkjet printers still deliver the ultimate in image quality, making them the optimal choice for quality-driven applications such as fine art and photographic reproductions," said Scrimger. "In the retail market, however, the landscape is mixed. While some print providers are opting to produce short-term indoor graphics on aqueous inkjet printers for ecological reasons, we are also seeing an increasing number of durable graphics print providers entering the indoor retail segment. These providers typically have eco-solvent, solvent or UV inkjet printers in their production environment already and can inexpensively use them to produce retail and POP signage. Low ink costs and the ability to print on inexpensive uncoated media are driving this trend. These savings become significant for higher-volume applications."

Canon's Reamer has seen more demand for a variety of sizes within the photography and fine art applications—anywhere from 17 inches all the way up to 60 inches. "With competing ink technologies, aqueous printers are giving print service providers an efficient and easy way to expand their business. With 'work-throughs' similar to most desktop inkjet printers, minimal training is required to have staff printing beautifully from these units," said Reamer.

Additionally, Reamer reported that some of Canon's 24-inch models have also begun to make their way into production and engineering environments—some of which are only now turning to color.

According to Matt Warren, product manager for Océ Wide Format Printing Systems, color plotting systems are also seeing an increased demand. They need faster turnaround times and some of the legacy technologies lack the processing power and speed needed to accommodate the file sizes of today.

However, according to Warren and Reamer there hadn't been a true "shift" in the marketplace as of yet—when it comes to GIS applications.

"New models have not shifted the market due to inherent trade-off's with the new technology," explained Warren. "For example, the majority of new color plotters are still only 1-roll plotters, which means frequent roll changes and trimming of prints. New color offerings deliver high quality (2400 x 1200 dpi) but with the trade-off of having to wait for prints and having to select multiple settings to optimize area fills and lines and text to ensure best quality. Ink capacity has decreased from 380ml to 130ml per ink tank, requiring frequent ink replacement and increasing the risk of ruined output if the ink depletes mid-print. Finishing remains a challenge as most of the newer technologies continue to use the traditional media bin that results in unorganized prints and the tendency to overflow (prints spill onto the floor), which may result in the need for re-printing. Sufficient processing power continues to present limitations in reliably processing large, complex color files while printing, copying, and scanning."

While aqueous inkjet printers have seen a very positive reception—especially within the graphic arts segment—there are still issues that will affect the market, specifically in regards to production costs and workflow issues.

"In the future, our research suggests that increasingly professionals across the digital printing industry will demand both the exceptional image quality of aqueous inks and the ability of eco-solvent and solvent inks to print on less expensive uncoated substrates," said Scrimger. "Print providers will also demand ever-increasing print speeds and easier, more efficient workflows that do not require lamination. Manufacturers that can meet these complex market demands effectively will grow and succeed in the future."