Océ Australia has announced the local release of the new Océ Arizona 318 GL printer, an entry level version of its award-winning Océ Arizona UV flatbed series
According to Océ, the Arizona 318 GL printer delivers quality printing on the same robust platform as the Océ Arizona 360 GT printer, but at a price positioned for low volume production environments, while delivering the same application versatility
It is aimed at sign makers, smaller print providers, reprographers and other graphics producers who need flatbed quality and capability, but cannot afford a large capital investment.
Steven Badger, Océ Australia’s product manager, Display Graphics Systems, says, “The Océ Arizona 318 GL printer is a welcome market entry for low-volume print providers who have been waiting for a true flatbed UV printer, without the investment this usually requires.
“With the Océ Arizona 318 GL printer, print providers can produce highly sellable output, with print speeds of up to 18 square meters per hour in express mode, printing more than twenty 70 x 100 cm boards per hour.”
In 2010, printing consulting group IT Strategies calculated that Océ Arizona Series platform printers captured 43 per cent of new installations in the mid-range UV flatbed market. Since the first shipment of an Océ Arizona Series printer in 2007, nearly 3,000 systems built on this platform have been shipped. Badger says the new 318 model offers smaller shops the same application versatility as other Océ Arizona models.
Badger says, “Buyers will find the Océ Arizona 318 GL printer can print on rigid media up to 1.25 by 2.5 meters and up to 48mm thick. It is designed to handle the most challenging display graphics applications.”
In addition to the lower price-point, value-priced Onyx PosterShop X10.1 software is available to drive the printer. Onyx PosterShop software increases productivity by giving users flexible control over their workflow. It includes advanced and custom nesting tools for maximum media savings, as well as a white ink tool for fast job preparation.
The flatbed design holds media stationary on a flatbed vacuum table, with Badger claiming this assures perfect registration. The flatbed architecture allows for easy edge-to-edge printing (full bleed), the printing of multiple boards simultaneously, double-sided prints in perfect register, and the printing of large displays tiled over several boards – all applications that are difficult to produce on printers that move the media through stationary printing heads.
This true flatbed architecture enables printing on irregularly-shaped or non-square items, heavy substrates, unusually smooth media such as glass, or materials that have an uneven surface such as plywood or framed canvas.
An available factory-installed white ink option enables under-printing for nonwhite media or objects, over-printing for backlit applications on transparent media and/or printing white as a spot color. Since 2008, more than 90 per cent of Océ Arizona printer purchasers have selected this important option for their printer, for the high-value, high-margin application opportunities it provides.
A roll media option is also available, giving print providers the ability to print onto flexible media including vinyl, self-adhesive vinyl, scrim banner, paper and blue backed paper without compromising the rigid printing workflow. Entire campaigns – including rigid signs, banners and posters – can be created on one printer, ensuring quality and consistency across all printed items.
The Océ Arizona 318 GL model includes Océ VariaDot imaging technology for award-winning, high-quality output. Océ says its VariaDot technology does not require light colours to achieve high image quality, and claims that as a result it uses significantly less ink – less than half that of most competitive systems.
It includes a UV curing system designed by Océ that the company says provides more UV energy to support difficult-to-cure media, while reducing heat at the media surface by 50 per cent. It also features a new-style tabletop that allows very thin media to be printed directly on the table without mechanical distortion of the media into the vacuum holes.
Says Steven Badger: “All Océ Arizona Series printers – including the new Océ Arizona 318 GL model – share the same award-winning image quality and robust architecture, offering the Océ values of quality, reliability, productivity and user-friendliness.
“In all, Océ Arizona Series UV flatbed printers have earned 27 industry awards to date from organizations throughout the world, making it one of the most awarded printers in history.”
