The maximum substrate width is 790mm (31 inches) with a productivity of 50 m/min (164 feet per minute), no matter the number of colours. The high machine uptime and ability to change printing jobs and design adjustments within a matter of minutes contribute to the overall improvement of production efficiency of the entire factory.

Critically, the Jet Press FP790 is also able to fit into existing production processes with no other capital investments, along with being a much more sustainable solution than its analogue counterparts.

With the challenging demands of the flexible packaging market, particularly the short turnaround times and regulatory requirements, Fujifilm has carried out extensive testing of printed output from the Jet Press FP790 with various laminating, slitting and finishing processes, to ensure customers of the press are in the best possible position to maximise the production opportunities from day one.

Fujifilm extensively tested Henkel’s renowned portfolio of laminating adhesives to ensure compatibility with the Jet Press FP790 ink as well as verify adhesion properties and lamination performance in post-press production, to guarantee the highest quality output. Given the excellent results and positive outcomes from these rigorous tests, Henkel’s solvent-free laminating adhesives are Fujifilm’s recommended solution for use with the Jet Press FP790.

Fujifilm also successfully tested Nordmeccanica’s Simplex range of two-layer laminating machines for solvent-less adhesives. The environmental benefits of the Jet Press FP790, combined with Henkel’s solvent-free adhesives and Nordmeccanica’s solvent-less lamination technology, delivers a truly sustainable production solution. In addition, it will enable packaging converters to remain compliant with the increasingly stringent environmental regulations that are now commonplace throughout the industry.

By collaborating with renowned and leading manufacturers of pre-press and post-press
technologies, Fujifilm can clearly demonstrate that its new Jet Press FP790 is fully compatible and integrates effortlessly into existing production environments offering a ‘plug and play’ digital solution that delivers the highest quality finished packaging with minimal testing, training or setup.

Fujifilm’s Jet Press FP790 will feature a unique, smart Digital Front End (DFE) and unified workflow solution developed specifically by HYBRID Software to optimise the productivity and output of Fujifilm’s press.

This new XMF Packaging DFE is the first of its kind to be developed by a software company for use in the packaging market, and is a result of a close working partnership between Fujifilm’s R&D team and HYBRID’s specialist software developers.

Based on proven technology, the web-based,open architecture production workflow offers fully automated pre-press functionality to ensure the Jet Press FP790 press offers accelerated turnaround times, maximum productivity and reduced operating costs. In addition, its modular configuration allows for greater workflow expansion and upstream customisation to cater for specific user requirements.

Fujifilm employs environmentally friendly water-based primers and inkjet technologies, which meet or exceed all regulatory requirements for flexible packaging printing. The Jet Press FP790 is also able to minimise waste, reduce the number of consumables associated with traditional analogue production, and totally eliminate all elements of the plate-making process.

In many cases, Jet Press owners end up printing more on the press as their customers love the quality so much, they specify their work to be printed only on the Jet Press.

With a productivity of 3,600 sheets per hour in High Quality mode and 5,400 sheets per hour in High Performance mode, the Jet Press 750S High Speed Model is quite simply the fastest 4 colour, B2 sheetfed inkjet digital press available.

This means the Jet Press allows you to take on more work and get more sheets on the floor than with multiple other digital presses. So if you produce a lot of short or medium run print, the Jet Press will revolutionise your business, improve the service you offer your customers and enhance your competitive edge.

And as the Jet Press is upgradeable, you could start with the Jet Press 750S Standard Model, and upgrade to the High Speed Model as your business evolves, giving you the ultimate flexibility.

Overall productivity is governed by more than just the top-line press speed. Job productivity can be defined as the combined effect of the following:

1. Pre-press preparation

The Jet Press 750S High Speed Model eliminates all the preparation and set-up time of an offset press. There are no plates to produce, no platesetters or processors to maintain, no make readies, no run up to colour, no waste sheets and virtually no pressroom consumables. It operates in the most efficient way possible – just send the PDF to the press and print.

2. Press up-time

The second element critical in determining overall press productivity is the up-time or time the press is available to print. The up-time of the Jet Press 750S High Speed Model is unprecedented for a digital press, with reliability figures comparable to an offset press, as it is built on an offset chassis with ultra-reliable paper handling technologies, combined with next generation Samba printheads. Up-time figures above 90% are typically quoted by current Jet Press customers.

3. Press print speed

The Jet Press 750S High Speed Model is able to transition between 3,600 sph High Quality mode at 1,200 x1,200 dpi and 5,400 sph High Performance mode at 1,200 x 600 dpi incredibly quickly. It is the first digital press to offer a practical digital alternative that challenges the capabilities of offset to produce a broad range of print affordably and at comparable speeds.

4. On the floor productivity

The final element that determines productivity is the time required to take the printed sheets and finish them. The Jet Press 750S High Speed Model has a number of features that help optimise this process.

Collated printing: Whatever the application, the Jet Press can print all sheets in collated order, removing the need to handle stacks of different sections.

Optimised sheet dryness: Due to the new drying mechanism, more print jobs emerge from the press dry. With the wide variety of paper types and thicknesses that can be printed using the Jet Press, the new drying system means more types of paper and more print jobs are dry when they emerge from the press.

The press reads the barcode on every sheet as it leaves the stacker and downloads the correct page information before it prints the second side (in less than two seconds), guaranteeing front and back page matching.

The benefits of this capability extend beyond the obvious application of variable data personalisation. Jobs can also be printed ‘collated’ in page order to simplify and speed up the finishing process or improve the logistics for job distribution, making the production of versioned print jobs simple and straightforward.

There are a number of significant environmental benefits with the Jet Press 750S High Speed Model. These include a reduction in raw materials, hazardous pressroom consumables and paper waste, along with the complete elimination of the plate production process. All these benefits mean that the Jet Press has a much lower carbon footprint than an equivalent offset press.

Reduction in raw materials and paper waste: The advantage of digital print in terms of optimising the number of printed copies produced and minimising the over-runs is a key benefit of the Jet Press. In addition, the number of make readies is also considerably reduced. On some short-run jobs on older traditional sheet-fed presses, the number of make ready sheets can represent a significant percentage of the total run, up to 25% in some cases. This problem is eliminated with the Jet Press as the make ready waste is virtually zero.

Elimination of plate production, water and waste: The Jet Press eliminates all the elements involved in the production of plates. This includes the plates, platesetters, processors and associated chemistry, water and waste. Each one of these elements of a plate production system has a significant carbon footprint in terms of its life cycle, from design, manufacture, transport and use to eventual disposal.

Reduction of hazardous pressroom consumables: The Jet Press also removes the need for a number of the pressroom consumables used on a typical offset press, for example founts, sprays and potentially harmful VOC washes, and of course significantly reduces the requirement for water. The Jet Press requires only two consumables in addition to the water-based ink: a wash for the inkjet printheads and the Rapid Coagulation Primer solution applied to the paper prior to printing.

Lower carbon footprint: Fujifilm carries out a life cycle carbon footprint analysis for all the products it manufactures, a process which takes into account product design, manufacture, transport, use and eventual disposal. As a result, the company estimates that the carbon footprint of the Jet Press 750S High Speed Model compared to an equivalent B2 sheet-fed press (internal estimate) is approximately 25% less.

Sheets can be easily recycled: The environmental performance of the Jet Press 750S High Speed Model is further enhanced by the ability of sheets printed by the press to be easily recycled. With normal water-based inks, ink pigments can sink into the structure of the paper, making them much more difficult to deink. The VIVIDIA HS ink pigments used on the Jet Press do not sink into the structure of the paper, making them much easier to remove during the deinking and recycling process. The use of the Rapid Coagulation Primer in High Quality mode enhances deinkability even further.

Print on standard coated & uncoated offset paper: The Jet Press 750S High Speed Model is unlike many other digital presses in that it can use an assortment of standard offset paper, removing the need to use specialised coated digital paper on many occasions. This means, for example, that a printer can take advantage of current paper stocks, simplifying inventory and reducing costs. But it also means that jobs printed on the Jet Press are potentially more cost-effective than those printed on other digital presses, as the paper is less expensive.

Finishing solutions: Jet Press printed sheets have been tested and found to be compatible with a wide range of analogue and digital coating, foiling, lamination and cutting solutions. An automatic bridge is also available to connect to online coating solutions.

Support for heavier weight folding carton stock: The Jet Press can be modified to accommodate heavier weight folding carton stock from 0.2 – 0.6mm in thickness. This makes it ideal to print short run packaging applications.

The LuXtreme LED UV system improves substrate stability, resulting in a more controlled ramp up to production speeds, and it is often possible to achieve the required colours much faster with Fujifilm’s high performance CuremaX flexo ink system. Add to that improvements to the system reliability with much lower press down time, productivity gains can be significant.

Quality also becomes more consistent as the impact of the heat from the UV lamps is reduced, resulting in better registration and less substrate distortion.

Due to the reductions in power required for the LED UV lamps, cost savings can be made across the production process. The energy savings are significant, but material usage and waste are also reduced, and the lower maintenance required to support the LED UV curing system results in a much lower number of replacement parts, with lower associated labour costs.

The LuXtreme LED UV curing system has significant benefits to both the working environment and the environment as a whole. Energy use is reduced, VOCs are eliminated when running at full LED capabilities and the lower amounts of materials used and waste produced all benefit the environment. The working environment for operators is also improved, with many undesirable factors eliminated or reduced, including heat from the conventional UV lamps, ambient noise and odour.

Fujifilm’s CuremaX ink ranges include dual cure products designed to work alongside the LuXtreme LED lamp systems with the added benefit of curing under conventional UV lamps. Each CuremaX ink range incorporates a range of colours, process inks, metallic shades and specialist products, and are all formulated to meet the changing demands of the flexo industry. The manufacturing of these products ensure a consistent, high quality result time after time with vibrant strong colours.

Key benefits that CuremaX inks offer include:

•  Low viscosity press ready colours
• High colour density – Similar colour characteristics to the Sericol Flexo JD UV curing ink range
• Adhesion to a wide range of synthetic substrates Including top coated PE & PP, PVC, PET, some thermal papers, metallised foils and most commonly available papers
• Suitable for a wide range of applications including self-adhesive labels and unsupported films for sachets and pouches
• Over printable with thermal transfer ribbons and cold foil adhesives – Good hot foiling properties
• Dedicated Pantone®* formulation matching system – Flexo sleeve white for shrink sleeve applications

Fujifilm water-wash processors deliver optimum performance with Flenex FW. The C-Touch MK2 and SB938 plate processing systems offer high performance all-in-one processing for your Flenex water-washable plates, and both feature an extended bath life and efficient plate handling. Available for businesses of all sizes and easy to install, why not bring the whole production process in-house, with the reassurance that Fujifilm is there to help should you need it.

• The latest edition to the Fujifilm portfolio is the Water Filtration System, designed specifically to extend the bath life of SB938 and C-Touch MK2 processors, and reduce the amount of water required. Using this system results in a cleaner processor, extending the time between cleaning, allowing maintenance costs to be reduced, and improving environmental performance.

Flenex FW water-washable plates reduce platemaking processing times to less than 40 minutes, 300% faster than leading solvent systems and 1.5 times faster than current thermal and water-wash technologies. Faster platemaking means more time on press and a dramatic increase in output per shift, freeing you to redeploy labour to more value added activities. Typical benefits include:

 

• Increase in number of plates produced
• Increase in quality
• Faster job turnaround
• Maximise press time
• Lower labour costs or opportunity to redeploy
• More environmentally friendly plate making

The Flenex FW water-washable plate system does far more than simply eliminate the need for solvents and wicking cloths. It delivers longer runs while producing a consistent 200lpi at 4,400 dpi, 1% process dot structure for superb high quality print, depending on the conditions.

Flat top dot structure
The rubber-based compound means a 1% flat top dot can be achieved without complex systems to eliminate oxygen, and results in lower dot gain. In addition, better ink transfer produces noticeably cleaner and brighter print results.

Flenex FW photopolymer plates contain a special rubber-based compound that offers a number of inherent advantages over other elastomeric materials from which most other flexo plates are made. In particular, rubber is not oxygen sensitive, which minimises the effect oxygen in the air has on the dot shape and the complexity of the system to eliminate oxygen from the plate production process. The other advantages of a rubber-based plate material include:

• Reduced dot gain
• Better ink transfer for cleaner, brighter print results
• Faster exposure and washout times
• Much more durable
• Mild washout with water and dishwasher soap
• Reduced plate swell