Sector: Wide Format

Sustainability in manufacturing

Fujifilm’s award-winning UV ink factory in the UK has implemented a wide range of initiatives to accelerate change towards a more sustainable operation

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Reading time: 6 minutes

Fujifilm’s award-winning factory in Broadstairs, UK, manufactures high performance inks for a range of markets, including Uvijet wide format UV inkjet inks, and Sericol screen and flexo inks. The company has implemented a number of sustainability initiatives over the last ten years, and more recently the recruitment of Antonina Realmuto as Group Sustainability Director, and Craig Milsted as Sustainability Advisor for the site, has brought about a much greater focus to accelerate change towards more sustainable operations.

When it comes to sustainability and protecting the earth, it’s important for us all to do more. Whether it’s consuming fewer products, opting for products with less packaging, or reducing waste – we must all play our part.

Fujifilm’s ink R&D and manufacturing facility in Broadstairs, Kent, has regularly made the news as a three-time winner of the UK’s Best Factory Award in 2011, 2013 and 2015, but it is for its sustainability initiatives that it is now rapidly creating waves.

Craig Milsted outlines the initiatives that have been implemented so far: “With the recent changes in personnel, including my own role, there is now a renewed focus on sustainability, and therefore a tremendous amount of work going on behind the scenes to help us operate more sustainably. This work is ongoing, but we have made a number of notable recent changes to our equipment and processes which are enabling us to operate in a more environmentally friendly way.

Big energy savings

“Firstly, we have massively cut back on our conventional energy use and have instead turned to alternative energy sources to help power our site. Back in 2016, we started to buy renewable electricity to power our factory, and in the same year installed many solar panels on the grassy grounds of our site. But in March this year, we expanded our solar power generation with the addition of panels on our site roof.

“We have an ongoing objective to generate more solar power over time and steps towards achieving this goal include reviewing our current processes and equipment. Through these checks, we have found that the solar panels on the roof are more effective than the ones on the ground, so we have repaired and improved those on the grass, while also scoping out new areas on our site where panels can be installed to effectively generate more solar power in the future.

“Our efforts so far have been successful – this year in June alone, our solar panels produced 82,240 kW of power. This is enough to power a typical  UK household for 26 years and is also 181% more power than the 29,185 kW produced in June 2021.

Since 2013, we’ve significantly cut back on the waste produced at our ink factory, and last year (2021), 689.7 tonnes of waste produced on site went for recycling.

Craig Milsted | Sustainability Advisor, Fujifilm Speciality Ink Systems

“Another way that we have saved on conventional energy is by turning our factory HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems off overnight, which achieved savings of £183,000 – and 1 million kW – per year. We have also upgraded our factory’s gas boilers – some of which were more than 50 years old – with condensing boilers, and replaced gas heaters in the International Logistics Centre with infrared heaters.

“Meanwhile, in our R&D facility, we operate our air conditioning on a timer system to save energy, as well as turning off equipment overnight, where possible, when it is not being used. Additionally, we have installed multiple free-to-use electric car charging points across the site for our team members to use.

Impressive waste reduction

“But it’s not only energy consumption that we have been targeting.  Since 2013, we’ve significantly cut back on the waste produced at our ink factory, and last year (2021), 689.7 tonnes of waste produced on site went for recycling.

“Other initiatives include: 100% of our raw materials packaging is reused and recycled; we return 1000 litre IBCs for cleaning and reuse, rather than disposing of them; and a number of moulded components used as part of our ink pouches are made from recycled materials. Additionally, we now secure our pallets with straps rather than using shrink wrap, which reduces our waste by around 8 tonnes annually. We are also in the process of swapping plastic tape for paper tape.

“In R&D we have also achieved a 50% reduction in glass jar testing; a 38% reduction in end container testing for one litre bottles; a 74% reduction in end testing for five litre cubitainers; and we have cut back on the use of one, two and three litre pouches by 29%, 33% and 20% respectively. We are literally looking at every single part of our operation and making changes to reduce our environmental impact.

Smart cutbacks on solvents

“Overall, thanks to the printers we sell becoming more technologically advanced over the years, less ink is required during the printing process.  This is obviously a better and more sustainable situation in itself. However, you can’t print without ink – it’s the most crucial element of printing. So for the inks that we produce at our factory, previously we would typically use around 140,000 litres of oil-based solvents to clean the vessels used in our ink-making and mixing equipment.

“However, very recently we replaced our oil-based solvent cleaner with an 80% water-based (aqueous) cleaning solution, manufactured by a company called Safe Solvents. Coinciding with this, a first-of-its-kind pot washing machine, also supplied by Safe Solvents, was installed at the factory.

“Suitable for use with the new aqueous cleaning solution, the machine offers a significantly more efficient pot washing solution on our site. The aqueous cleaner and pot wash machine combo makes it possible for us to separate solvent and aqueous waste, and in the future, it could enable us to reuse the pots after they have been cleaned, and then when they are beyond reuse, have the clean plastic shredded and sent for further recycling.

Measuring and analysing is key

“The recently installed pot washing machine at Broadstairs is a world-first, so we look forward to reviewing our credentials in the future and seeing the difference it has made. The most important thing is that we continue to measure and analyse everything, as only by measuring can you improve.

“It really is a painstaking, but ultimately very rewarding process – we have achieved a great deal in the last 12 months with our renewed focus, but we are confident we can continue to make iterative improvements all over the site, across all areas of energy, waste and material reductions, to make this award-winning factory a world-class, sustainable one too.”

Case Study: Acuity Prime Flatbed Printer

Tech:art

Case Study

Tech:art reaps productivity benefits with Fujifilm’s Acuity Prime 30 Flatbed Printer

Tech:art

Trofarello, Italy

Acuity Prime

The productivity of the machine is far beyond what we had expected and exceeds any other machine we have seen before within a similar price bracket.

Davide Salvo | Tech:art

Highlights

  • Tech:art was on the lookout for a machine that could handle its growing customer demand for quality, speed and the use of special inks and varnish
  • Ease of use, outstanding print quality, productivity and confidence in Fujifilm were cited as key reasons for investment
  • The Acuity Prime 30 Flatbed Printer exceeded all of Tech:art’s expectations and requirements to meet customer demands
  • Customers have provided positive feedback since the installation and the investment has even led to Tech:art aquiring new customers
  • Aside from the technical benefits, Tech:art was impressed with the sleek design of the Acuity Prime 30
  • Tech:art was very happy with the service and support provided by Fujfifilm and feel confident that they have found a long-term partner

In the few months since the installation, Tech:art has been thoroughly impressed. Davide Salvo, General Manager, Tech:art says “When the machine was first installed, there were some final calibrations to sort, but we just couldn’t wait to use it so we started running production jobs anyway. We were instantly impressed. The productivity of the machine is far beyond what we had expected and exceeds any other machine we have seen before within a similar price bracket.

“We first heard about the Acuity Prime in the summer of 2021 from a Fujifilm sales contact.” Mr. Salvo continues. “We were very impressed by how easy it is to use and the outstanding print quality and productivity it offers. This, along with our confidence in Fujifilm as a brand, ultimately led to the investment decision.”

 

We were very impressed by how easy it is to use and the outstanding print quality and productivity it offers. This, along with our confidence in Fujifilm ultimately led to the investment decision.

Davide Salvo | Tech:art

“We are typically using the machine for interior design applications such as wood, plexiglass, glass and metal as well as signage. We were previously using a competitor’s machine, but it was proving impossible to print with the quality and speed that we now can achieve with the Acuity Prime 30.

“Our customers place very specific high demands on us. They require high quality and fast turnaround times, and more recently, they request work that requires the use of special primers, varnishes and white inks. With the Acuity Prime 30, we have been able to meet such demands and many of our customers have already provided positive feedback on the print quality and the wide colour gamut it offers. They have also been impressed by the strong ink adhesion and the wide range of materials that can be used. In fact, with the addition of this machine, we have been able to acquire new customers. Looking ahead, I see customisation as a major trend within the market this year and I am confident the Acuity Prime will enable us to meet such demands.”

Acuity Prime

Find out more about why the Acuity Prime can achieve industry leading productivity and quality

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“Aside from the technical benefits, we were also very impressed with the sleek, attractive, user-friendly design. I would not hesitate to recommend the Acuity Prime 30 – it has made our business significantly more profitable due to its speed, and reduced ink consumption levels.”

Mr. Salvo also acknowledges his appreciation of Fujifilm. “We can’t fault the service and support we received from Fujifilm throughout the sales and installation process. We feel confident that we have found a great long-term partner in Fujifilm.”

Discover more…

Learn more about the Acuity Prime by downloading the product brochure

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Case Study: Acuity Prime UV Flatbed Printer

Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions

Case Study

UK signmaker says the performance level of the Acuity Prime is far beyond any other flatbed printer at a similar price point.

Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions

Gravesend, Kent

Acuity Prime

I don’t believe there is any better way we could have spent this amount of money in terms of the overall quality, print capability and production capacity we’ve just added to our business than with the Acuity Prime

Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions | Sam Cherry

Highlights

  • Kent-based digital print company with over 20 years of experience in sign making
  • Became aware of the Acuity Prime Flatbed Inkjet Printer and booked a video demonstration, where they were immediately impressed and couldn’t believe how well the printer performed
  • The company was formed in 1999 and has built a reputation for service and quality
  • Supplies Local Government Authorities as well as major supermarkets
  • In late 2021, the company was on the lookout for a highly efficient flatbed printer
  • Invested in the new machine in January 2022 through RA Smart – one of Fujifilm UK’s distribution partners

Kent-based digital print company, Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions, has over 20 years of experience in sign making, servicing Gravesend and the surrounding areas of Kent. Formed in 1999, the company has built a reputation for service and quality which has seen it supply major Local Government Authorities as well as leading supermarkets. Late last year, the company was looking for a highly efficient flatbed printer, and upon discovering the Acuity Prime from Fujifilm, they were so impressed that they invested in the new machine in January 2022 through RA Smart – one of Fujifilm UK’s distribution partners.

Ebbsfleet Print Solutions initially booked a video demonstration of the Acuity Prime Flatbed Inkjet Printer, and after being sufficiently impressed by the printer’s capabilities, the company immediately booked in for a live demonstration at Fujifilm’s facility in Broadstairs in late 2021.

It’s our belief that the Acuity Prime flatbed performs at a level above any other printer at this price point

Sam Cherry | Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions

“We almost didn’t believe what we were seeing during the video demo,” says Sam Cherry, Director of Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions. “The printer performed beyond our expectations, but as it’s a new printer to the market we felt it was necessary to go and take a closer look. We went to Fujifilm’s facility in Broadstairs and liked what we saw so much, we placed our order there and then.”

Cherry believes such was the quality of print produced during both the video and live demos, that he is more than comfortable saying that the Acuity Prime is by far the best printer of its kind. “It’s our belief that the Acuity Prime flatbed performs at a level above any other printer at this price point,” he says. “In fact, the other machines we considered that did offer this level of print productivity were typically double the price.”

The printer was installed at Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions in the middle of January, with Cherry saying that the machine has already made a big impact on operations. “The Acuity Prime enables us to provide a better service to our customers, meeting their deadlines in a world where time is of the essence. We can provide a more streamlined approach along with a great end product. We’ve only been using the printer for a very short time on Acrylic, Foamex and Dibond so far, and are already really impressed with the output.

“I don’t believe there is any better way we could have spent this amount of money in terms of the overall quality, print capability an production capacity we’ve just added to our business than with the Acuity Prime.”

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Acuity Prime UV Flatbed Printer

Find out more about why the Acuity Prime can achieve industry leading productivity and quality

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Discover more…

Learn more about the Acuity Prime by downloading the product brochure

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LED UV is the curing technology of the future, but so is conventional UV

Kevin Rhodes, Marketing Manager, Fujifilm WFIJ Systems, argues that conventional UV still has an important role to play in the future of wide format print.

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Reading time: 6 minutes

LED UV curing technology is energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and extremely well suited to the production of a huge range of applications. It’s a massive area of R&D focus for Fujifilm and it is, quite rightly, seen as a key “technology of the future.” So far, so uncontroversial.

And yet, none of that means to say that conventional UV curing has – or will – become a “thing of the past”. Despite the obvious cost and environmental advantages of LED technology, there is no reason to believe that it will replace conventional UV altogether. It won’t. In fact, both technologies will continue to play valuable roles in the future of wide format print long into the future, and where conventional UV is the more appropriate solution, we at Fujifilm will continue to offer customers that option. This is something we’ve clearly demonstrated with the launch of the new Acuity Ultra R2 – which is available in either LED UV or conventional UV curing formats.

Pros and cons

LED UV does, of course, use far less energy than its conventional alternative. As LED UV lamps have a significantly lower level of applied voltage, LEDs have a lower radiance than conventional UV lamps. LEDs emit light in the visible part of the spectrum from 400 nm to 700 nm or in the near infrared (700 nm and 2000 nm), so only part of the spectral energy they emit is UV light. Because they use a fraction of the energy of conventional UV lamps, they don’t need to warm up or cool down, so they are immediately ready for use and don’t use energy unless they are operating.

Furthermore, LED UV lamp lifetimes are much longer than those of conventional UV lamps (approximately 10,000 working hours compared to 1000+ working hours). As a result, one of the main selling points of LED UV for customers is the fact that it is more environmentally friendly and that costs are lower. There is only one real downside: the lack of safe cure and adhesion of high ink deposits at speed, which for some printers is a substantial issue.

Understanding the relevant regulation

Another common reason cited for the inevitable decline of conventional UV is government regulation. But here, many of the regulations concerning conventional UV are widely misunderstood. The European Union’s Restriction on Hazardous Substances II (RoHS II) regulation bans the use of heavy metals, including lead, mercury and cadmium. As a result, domestic light bulbs that use conventional UV can no longer be purchased, having been replaced by LED UV. For this reason, many assume that conventional UV for business use is on a similar path to regulatory oblivion.

However, this regulation does not apply to larger printing equipment, which is typically classified as ‘large-scale stationary industrial tools” (LSSITs), so the UV dryer modules manufactured for them are exempt from the RoHs II directive. Through the development of UV technology and compliance with the manufacturer’s information on safe disposal, the use of medium-pressure UV lamps containing mercury within the printing industry is deemed safe. As a result, mercury is still widely used throughout the industry and there is no indication that this is likely to change.

Counting costs

The operating costs of LED UV are certainly lower than the costs involved with a conventional UV machine, where increased energy and consumables usage needs to be factored in. But if the extra speed and increased adhesion and block resistance of conventional UV allows a print business to produce more work, the additional business can more than cover all these costs, as well as funding responsible waste management systems to minimise environmental impact.

Heat and speed

Another common belief is that conventional UV cannot be used on heat-sensitive materials, but Fujifilm’s Acuity Ultra R2, for example, features a unique water-cooled vacuum table that allows rapid UV curing on a huge range of thin, heat-sensitive materials. The main benefit of conventional UV that cannot be matched by LED UV is the speed at which it is able to print. Depending on the user, this one benefit can outweigh many of the negatives, meaning that it’s often the option that makes the most sense for many businesses. As conventional UV undoubtedly dominates the market in terms of productivity, it remains the obvious option for printers producing high volumes with rapid turnaround times.

Conventional UV is best for high production, fast-turnaround print. LED UV offers environmental, cost, and energy saving benefits when speed is not as crucial.

Kevin Rhodes | Marketing Manager, Fujifilm WFIJ Systems

The choice is yours

LED UV, of course, has an extremely valuable role to play in the future of wide format print– and we’re very proud at Fujifilm of our extensive range of LED UV curing printers. But it is not a complete replacement for conventional UV. There is still very much a need for both types of technology, depending on the customer’s requirements. The two exist in tandem and will continue to do so. Conventional UV is best for high production, fast-turnaround print, while LED UV offers a multitude of environmental, cost, and energy saving benefits when speed is not as crucial. Until LED can match conventional UV’s performance, specifically its speed and depth of cure, it is unlikely to be a wholesale replacement for conventional UV.

Ultimately, it’s up to the customer to decide on the most appropriate solution for their business, and we will continue to offer them that choice.

Not just a pretty face

What does good product design really mean?

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Reading time: 5 minutes

Following the announcement that Fujifilm’s new wide format printers, the Acuity Prime and Acuity Ultra R2, have won Red Dot Awards for product design, Fujifilm’s Kevin Jenner asks: What does good product design really mean? Beyond a stylish exterior, he argues, it’s about usability, reliability and value. Why would a tradesman buy a Mercedes Sprinter van and fill it with Makita tools? There are cheaper vans and there are cheaper tools, but in those brands he’s buying into a perception of quality and reliability that is going to enhance the work that he does and boost his business.

The cynic might say that brand perception is down to good marketing – and they may well be partly right – but brands that stand the test of time, brands that people have confidence in and keep returning to, time and again, have a lot more than clever marketing behind them. They have outstanding product design.

In our own industry, businesses make important, and often very capital-intensive, buying decisions all the time. Machines reach end of life and need to be replaced, and business owners weigh up what their customers want against what is needed to deliver it, and then they make a choice. Cost is a major consideration in these decisions, of course, but more than that, people are asking “what can it do, how well can it do it, and how easy is it to work with?”

If a CapEx investment can expand the customer offering, boost productivity, cut waste, save time and reduce hassle – that’s good design on the part of the manufacturer, and a solid investment for the customer. But how do we get there? How do we create extraordinary design that can transform a business by making work more efficient, more enjoyable, more productive and ultimately boost ROI?

“The broader one’s understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.” That’s Steve Jobs again. Good design starts with understanding. By seeking to understand everything, from the long-term business goals, to the day-to-day frustrations of the customers we serve – we give ourselves the best starting point for good product design.

So for this project we needed a deep understanding of our customers’ needs and time to have meaningful conversations with them. This wasn’t a box-ticking survey sent out by email, this was our designers (a specialist industrial design agency, Realise Design, appointed to support the Tokyo Design Team) shadowing our customers as they worked, looking for a thousand small ways to optimise their experiences and their businesses.

We looked at how improved product design could lead to improved usability, to enhanced performance and to better ROI. I’m going to quote Steve Jobs once more (last time, I promise!) as I begin to wrap this up.

Simple can be harder than complex. You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple.

Steve Jobs | Formerly Apple

Products which are developments to a design first conceived a decade ago sometimes need a complete rethink, in effect going ‘back to the drawing board’. But not at all in the sense that the old is completely discarded, more in the sense that everything is scrutinised and nothing stays as it is simply because ‘that’s the way it’s always been’.

With this project, we gave ourselves the freedom to go right back to first principles, and that led us to create something quite different to anything either we – or anyone else – had created before. This is the reason that when we first revealed the new machines in June 2021, we called them ‘the new blueprint for wide format’.

 

As with any product, the default is always to adapt what is there already, and products which have been tinkered with, tweaked and adapted over the years can often develop layers of complexity which are detrimental to performance, but we’re so used to them being there, it can be difficult to comprehend it being any other way.

Clever marketing? We’d like to think so, yes! But it’s a lot more than that. These products are designed to be a joy to work with; products designed for maximum productivity and versatility; products designed to be affordable. And that last point is important, the sleekest look and the highest level of performance is of no real value if it’s unaffordable to the people it’s designed for. A crucial part of good design in any commercial context is stripping out unnecessary costs while ensuring no compromise on what it needs to do well.

That was another critical part of the process we went through – we sought out the best component parts and the most suitable manufacturing partners to deliver on quality, performance and value. The end result, in our case, is a new range designed to redefine the price/performance ratio, deliver unrivalled levels of versatility and value and to boost ROI.

And we made sure they looked great too!

Learn more about the Acuity range

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Case Study: Acuity Ultra Roll-fed Printer

Fokina GmbH

Case Study

Leading German PSP highlights the Acuity Ultra’s speed and versatility as being essential to operations, while providing a future-proof solution for the ever-changing market.

Fokina GmbH

Eppingen, Germany

Acuity Ultra

The Acuity Ultra fits in perfectly with our other print equipment here, and has become the heartbeat of our business.

Sven Breiter | Fokina GmbH

Highlights

  • Products include large format photographic, as well as screen, digital and textile printing
  • Introduced to the Acuity Ultra Roll-fed printer in 2019 and was impressed with the print quality and speed
  • The Acuity Ultra was installed in March 2020, following increased customer demand
  • The investment has provided Fokina with new business opportunities
  • The roll-fed printer enables Fokina to offer the best quality products at the fairest prices
  • Delighted with the support provided by Fujifilm throughout the sales and installation process

One of Germany’s leading providers of large format photographic printing, as well as screen, digital and textile printing, Fokina GmbH is a full service provider for a range of sectors, including point of sale, retail, public facilities and exhibition stands. Based in the town of Eppingen, just north of Stuttgart, the company has a proud history dating back more than 30 years. Over this time, Fokina has built up a diverse portfolio of print and production machinery to produce the high quality products it is renowned for. And one installation in particular is helping to drive quality standards even higher – Fujifilm’s superwide 5m Acuity Ultra, which was installed in March 2020.

“Our investments in high-tech machinery, qualified employees and intelligent management systems are paramount to our success as a business,” says Sven Breiter, CEO of Fokina. “Companies from all over Germany, the EU and around the world are supplied with our products, so being highly efficient and putting the customer at the top of our priorities is our motto.”

It’s incredibly versatile, ink consumption is low and its 5m width has provided us with new business opportunities that we would otherwise not have been able to secure.

Sven Breiter, CEO | Fokina GmbH

Fokina’s high quality banners, textiles and wallpapers are some of the company’s most popular products. When management noticed demand increasing in 2019, they knew that adding more printing equipment would be necessary to meet these requirements. It was then that they were introduced to Fujifilm’s Acuity Ultra, and they never looked back. “We first noticed the Acuity Ultra at a trade fair in 2019,” says Saskia Friederich, also a CEO at Fokina. “We were immediately impressed by the print quality and the speed, so we kept in contact with Fujifilm after the event, visiting their Advanced Print Technology Centre in Brussels where we saw the Acuity Ultra first hand. Witnessing its print quality for ourselves reaffirmed our initial view that it was the right machine to add to our already impressive production portfolio.”

For Sven, Saskia and their staff, the Acuity Ultra is fitting in very well at Fokina. “The team working with the Acuity Ultra are very impressed by the quality it produces as well as its high speed,” says Sven. “It’s also incredibly versatile, ink consumption is low and its 5m width has provided us with new business opportunities that we would otherwise not have been able to secure. The combination of the high quality and productivity that it offers is exceptional.”

Acuity Ultra

Find out more about the Acuity Ultra’s ultra-high quality and versatility, and how its low ink consumption can improve ROI

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“We are a family-run business always looking to future-proof ourselves. The print market is highly competitive, and at Fokina we always want to provide the best products at the fairest prices; the Acuity Ultra allows us to do that. It fits in perfectly with our other print equipment here, and has become the heartbeat of our business.”

Sven also has high praise for the Fujifilm team: “The sales and support staff at Fujifilm have been excellent from day one. We’ve always felt in good hands, which is essential when you’re purchasing new equipment. The Acuity Ultra was our first ever purchase from Fujifilm, and we envisage it won’t be the last.”

Discover more…

Learn more about the Acuity Ultra R2 by downloading the product brochure

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Acuity Ultra R2

A super-wide printer delivering a phenomenal return on investment

The new blueprint for wide format printing

Combines ultra-high quality, superb productivity and a groundbreaking return on investment in one platform.

The Acuity Ultra R2 wide format printer is a high quality, high productivity super wide platform, available in UV and LED configurations, designed with specialist inks to support the printing of exceptional near-photographic interior graphics and the high speed printing of banners and PVC signage.

Available as

3.2 m and 5 m

options
Up to 8 channels

CMYK+LcLmWW

or double CMYK
Up to

400 m²/hr

productivity

Why Acuity Ultra R2?

Ultra-low ink consumption for low cost-in-use and exceptional ROI

Capable of producing ultra-high quality print at the highest production speeds

Incorporates advanced operator features for ultra-reliable, profitable printing

Media crash detectors to prevent printhead damage
Water-cooled vacuum table
Ink spitting to minimise machine downtime
High quality, high performance printheads
High-performance Uvijet GS and AU inks
Mechanical substrate detector
Auto media thickness and position measurement

The new blueprint for wide format printing

Find out more about why the new Acuity range represents the new blueprint for wide format printing

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To request a print sample, click below

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Discover the benefits for yourself

A secure investment in proven LED UV technology

The Acuity platform has been the industry benchmark since 2007 with thousands of machines installed worldwide. The Acuity Ultra R2 features the very latest LED and UV technologies to deliver unbeatable performance, along with the quality and reliability you would expect from Fujifilm.

Exceptional quality in superwide format

With the Acuity Ultra R2, you get the excellent high quality, productivity and reliability our Acuity range is known for, on a massive industrial scale – up to 5 metres wide.

High quality, high performance printheads
3-level greyscale printheads deliver 3.5 pl native drop sizes up to 1200 x 1200 dpi resolution, making use of 2,656 nozzles arranged across a width of 108 mm.

Excellent build quality using industrial-quality components
 The chassis is a substantial construction made from welded steel box tubing and solid steel bars, contributing to the 7.7 t and 4.7 t weights of both models. This helps to ensure the printer displays very little vibration and very accurate drop placement.

Linear-driven printhead carriage delivers superb registration
 Linear motors ensure smooth edge-to-edge printing with no vibrations at the end of the run to deliver accurate ink drop placements. This means no loss in print quality at the print edge.

Water-cooled vacuum table
A unique chilled vacuum table maintains the substrate temperature while printing and allows the use of thin heat-sensitive substrates, reducing media shrinkage and wrinkling.

Solid media transport system ensures accuracy
Two pairs of rubberised rollers both front and back deliver a consistently accurate media feed and provide consistency over long print runs or when accuracy is needed for tiled applications.

Advanced features to maximise productivity

The Acuity Ultra R2 is equipped with a range of advanced features to maximise uptime and ensure flexible and highly productive printing.

Ink spitting to minimise machine downtime
The Acuity Ultra R2 is fitted with a spit function designed to reduce machine downtime. This maintains the print quality and helps to increase the overall consistency of the printed results

Media crash detectors to prevent printhead damage
The carriage is equipped with media crash detectors on either side. These react to obstructions on the vacuum table to stop the carriage and prevent damage to the printheads.

Auto media thickness and position measurement
The Acuity Ultra R2 is equipped with a media detector mounted on the carriage. This is used to determine the position and thickness of the media.

Mechanical substrate detector
The Acuity Ultra R2 is equipped with media sensors positioned under the rear media tension rollers. The Acuity Ultra R2 5000 is equipped with 3 sensors. The Acuity Ultra R2 3200 is equipped with 2 sensors. The media sensors detect when media is loaded onto the machine, and alert the operator if there is a fault with the media loading, for example if a roll of media has run out, or the media is not tight. The sensors use ultrasonic detection technology, and will work for all media, including clear media.

Long printhead life minimises costs of consumables
With an impressively long life, you won’t have to worry about replacing printheads as often. Combined with low ink consumption, the long printhead life reduces the hassle and costs associated with replacing consumables.

Multi-roll capability maximises productivity for smaller jobs
With a throughput of up to 400 m² per hour, the machine has the potential to produce huge volumes of work when printing on three rolls simultaneously, as well as printing superwide format graphics up to five metres in width.

Designed with the operator in mind
As well as technical enhancements to the Acuity Ultra R2, there is a strong focus to reduce maintenance and improve serviceability for the operator. A new intuitive GUI, smoked Perspex panels allowing the user to view print safely during production, and the integration of clean and dirty working areas to avoid contamination, are all examples of the developments that ultimately save time and money and improve overall price/performance.

High performance Uvijet GS and AU inks from award-winning factory

New, high-density inks deliver superb colour vibrancy and a wide colour gamut. Excellent inter-coat laydown produces solid backlit colours and prints. The inks also do not exhibit cracking when folded due to the low ink build.

Ultra-low ink consumption
The new high-density inks are delivered using 3.5 pl printheads, resulting in a very low film thickness and ultra-low ink consumption, resulting in very low cost-in-use and higher profit per print.

As we branch out from being a wide format materials supplier into hardware, we felt that the ‘superwide’ 5m Acuity Ultra R2 printer would be a perfect fit for our portfolio.

Mark Mashiter | Soyang

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Now, with an Acuity Ultra R2 included in our fleet of printers, we can offer our customers an even faster and more reliable service, particularly when delivering ‘superwide’ 5m prints.

Miguel Ángel Gómez Cano | Oedim

Read case study

The combination of the high quality and productivity that the Acuity Ultra offers is exceptional. It’s also incredibly versatile, with low ink consumption.

Sven Breiter | CEO, Fokina GmbH

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Applications

Versatility on a massive scale

With its massive format size, 2- or 3-up multi-roll potential, and ability to print on a broad range of materials, the Acuity Ultra R2 gives you the ability to profitably create exhibition graphics, POS displays, high-value graphic art, backlit displays, outdoor displays, outdoor signage and more.

Ideal for high-end indoor displays

The Acuity Ultra R2 is not only ideal for out of home applications such as single billboards and signage, it’s also perfect for high-end indoor displays where close viewing requires images to be exceptionally clear and vibrant. With quality comparable to leading water-based inkjet systems, the Acuity Ultra R2 can propel your business into the luxury brand market.

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Learn more about Acuity Ultra R2 by downloading our product overview.

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The new blueprint for wide format

From the place where it all began, comes a new blueprint for wide format

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Reading time: 8 minutes

The Fujifilm name has been closely associated with UV inkjet technology since 2005 – the year in which Fujifilm acquired the pioneering UV inks and inkjet company, Sericol, based in the seaside town of Broadstairs in Kent. Founded in 1950, Sericol had long been a screen inks pioneer and market leader. Then, in the 1970s, it launched the world’s first instant curing UV screen inks and built on this experience to commercialise the first UV digital inkjet systems and inks in the world in 1999. The immediate and rapid growth in this new sector resulted in Sericol being presented with a Queens Award for Enterprise in 2004 for its role in developing and commercialising these new UV inkjet systems.

With the Fujifilm acquisition in 2005, forming what is now known as Fujifilm Speciality Ink Systems, the company has gone on to produce some of the most highly regarded UV cured inkjet inks and systems on the market, including the popular Acuity range of wide format printers launched in 2007, and now with more than 1,800 global installations. This 20 years of experience means Fujifilm has developed a keen sense of what the market really needs, and perhaps more importantly, how it is likely to change in the future.

Market maturity

The early years of wide format UV inkjet development were largely defined by advances in technology that delivered rapid and continual increases in print speed and quality. In 2018, however, Fujifilm recognised that the market had reached an advanced degree of maturity, and a point at which a very high level of quality and productivity was assumed. New product launches were tending to offer only very marginal improvements in print speed and quality. In addition, Fujifilm also became aware that there was an opportunity to use these evolving technologies to drive improvements in wide format print ROI.

The market had reached a tipping point – a point at which more of the same, with minor improvements, was no longer enough. The market needed something fundamentally new. So, three years ago, Fujifilm made a strategic decision to start the process of rethinking its Acuity wide format offering; focusing on new  ways to deliver improved value, versatility and ease of use and in particular on defining a new level of print ROI. Fujifilm set out to do what it had first done back in 2000: to create a new blueprint for wide format.

Back to first principles

In terms of printing hardware and systems, Fujifilm has always been a technology company first and foremost, rather than a manufacturer, working with a range of OEM partners and other specialists to provide the best possible platforms for its inkjet technology. The Acuity range already has a deserved reputation for quality and reliability, but for this next chapter in the Acuity story, Fujifilm wanted a new level of design influence and control in order to take full advantage of what was possible, to create something that offered far more than mere marginal improvements.

To do this, the Fujifilm team returned to first principles, starting with an almost blank canvas and a challenge to strip everything back and create a completely new and improved range of machines. To help with this process, they brought in an award-winning industrial design company and tasked them not simply with making changes to what had gone before, but with completely rethinking the press design to maximise the value, productivity, ease of use and – most importantly – the ROI.

Fujifilm’s vision was to combine stunning aesthetics with exceptional functionality. In order to achieve this, the first step was to carry out wide ranging research, so the two companies embarked on an extensive and intensive listening exercise, meeting not only with business owners and directors, but also with press operators who had experience of working not only with Fujifilm machines, but others too.

This exercise produced an understanding of what worked, what didn’t, and what changes (whether simple or radical) would improve the value, versatility, usability, productivity and ROI, while retaining an eye for the environment in terms of reducing waste an making for a safer and more contented workplace.

It was clear from this exercise that the owners and directors of these companies want equipment that’s reliable, fast and able to give them a rapid return on investment, but being in a creative industry, they also want machines that look stylish and that are easy to work with. For press operators, it was also clear that good machine design – aside from the obvious benefits to productivity – can be the difference between job satisfaction and great frustration, and the listening exercise uncovered many aspects of machine design that could be improved upon.

Fujifilm combined the findings from this extensive research exercise with its own knowledge and inkjet expertise to provide a structure for the design process. In parallel, the team also carried out comprehensive research into the best components and technologies on the market, and the best routes to assembly and manufacture. The output from all this research and creative thinking was effectively a completely new blueprint for what a UV inkjet system of the future should look like, how it should perform, and how it could be brought to life.

Bringing it all together

Four design criteria emerged from the blueprint that informed all design choices and helped to identify the right manufacturers and suppliers to work with, as well as the OEM partners to help to bring it all together. These were: quality, value, performance and ease of use. In addition, every component part selected was chosen with these four criteria in mind, from the printheads to the user interface, lamps, static control and vacuum solutions. In all cases, Fujifilm made choices based on answering questions like: “does it do what it needs to do?” or “could it be done better?” Nothing was left unchanged that could be improved.

Three years on, the result of this blueprint is the all new Acuity range, designed and developed by Fujifilm. First and foremost, this new Acuity range has been designed to redefine the price / performance and ROI that can be expected from a UV inkjet system. This has been achieved through careful design choices, stripping back features that don’t add value, and maximising quality, value and performance where it matters most. The result is a high performance range available at a competitive price with low cost in use, a combination that radically changes print ROI.

The new Acuity range is also built for printers from the ground up, resetting expectations around operational ease of use. The ‘question everything’ approach to the whole process has allowed Fujifilm to put the operator experience front and centre. “We’ve taken on board the frustrations and inconveniences identified in our extensive market research, and addressed those concerns to create a range that is a real joy to work with and operate, with the additional benefit of maximising uptime and productivity,” says Kevin Jenner, European Marketing Manager, Fujifilm Wide format Inkjet Systems.

We’ve taken on board the frustrations and inconveniences identified in our extensive market research, and addressed those concerns to create a range that is a real joy to work with and operate, with the additional benefit of maximising uptime and productivity.

Kevin Jenner | European Marketing Manager

The first two printers made to this new blueprint are the Acuity Ultra R2 and the Acuity Prime. The Acuity Ultra R2 is a completely redesigned version of the Acuity Ultra, which itself had set a new standard for superwide print when it was launched in 2018. The Acuity Prime is an entirely new, mid-range flatbed which offers ease of use and print ROI unmatched by anything else on the market.

For more than 10 years since its initial launch, the Acuity range has built a reputation for quality, versatility and value and this new range will enhance the Acuity brand on all those fronts, while maintaining the reliability standards that have always been the hallmark of Fujifilm’s inkjet systems. And of course, the new printers take advantage of Fujifilm’s renowned UV inkjet ink.

Learn more about the Acuity range

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Acuity Prime

The most economical and versatile wide format flatbed printer ever

The new blueprint for wide format printing

Produces the best-in-class quality at the highest productivity on a wide range of rigid and flexible media

A true flatbed printer with an award-winning design, the Acuity Prime offers high quality printing on a range of rigid and flexible media, supported by its five dedicated vacuum zones and jettable primer. It is available at a cost effective price point and offers an excellent return on investment.

Up to

3.2m x 2m

bed size
Up to

150 m²/hr

productivity
Up to 7 channels

CMYK+W+Cl

plus primer

Why Acuity Prime?

Lower ink use and excellent cost of ownership ensure unbeatable ROI

Produce the best flatbed quality at the highest production speeds

Operators benefit from an award-winning design that improves usability

Automatic Printhead Maintenance System (APMS)
Five dedicated vacuum zones reduce bed masking
A new and user-friendly GUI
Visible status indicators
Pneumatic registration pins for quick, repeatable loading in perfect registration
Status lights for the ink tanks

I hate limits and I like to print on the widest possible substrates. The Acuity Prime L, with its 3200mm x 2000mm flatbed, enables us to do this.

Jan Carel Schepenaar | A1 Signs

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The Acuity Prime 30 investment is transforming our business. With its unmatched print quality and the ability to work with diverse materials, we have exceeded our clients’ expectations.

Alessandro Conte | Byblos

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I don’t believe there is any better way we could have spent this amount of money in terms of the overall quality, print capability and production capacity we’ve just added to our business than with the Acuity Prime.

Sam Cherry | Ebbsfleet Printing Solutions

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We can’t fault the service and support we received from Fujifilm throughout the sales and installation process. We feel confident that we have found a great long-term partner in Fujifilm.

Davide Salvo | Tech:art

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Discover the benefits in person with a product demonstration.

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See the quality you could achieve with the Acuity Prime range

A secure investment in proven LED UV wide format printing technology

The Acuity flatbed platform has been the industry benchmark since 2007 with thousands of machines installed wordlwide. The Acuity Prime features the very latest LED UV technologies to deliver unbeatable performance, along with the quality and reliability you would expect from Fujifilm.

Large size LED UV flatbed

The Acuity Prime L is a large size LED UV flatbed benefiting from all of the features of the standard Acuity Prime, being designed with the user in mind whilst offering a competitive ROI. It is very easy to operate, and produces high quality results at high speeds. The Acuity Prime L provides a larger size table for printers that need to combine high productivity and high quality printing on larger sheet sizes. It features 6 vacuum zones and 16 media location pins, as well as the ability to print side by side jobs with its dual zone function

Expand your creative options

The option to print with white and clear inks, and to print directly to almost any material in perfect registration, enables the Acuity Prime to produce high value, creative work that could offer opportunities for new revenue. With the jettable primer option, the Acuity Prime can adhere to a wide variety of industrial media.

  • Produce point of sale graphics, indoor signage, industrial graphics and product decoration, printing direct to rigid or flexible sheets, objects or pre-cut media
  • Print on PVC, polycarbonate, acrylic, paper, board, wood, aluminium composite and many other materials – Produce borderless prints with little effort

  • Create proofs for a customer that are identical to the production run
  • Use clear ink to add impact using a spot or flood clear with uniform finish
  • Use white ink to produce images on transparent or coloured materials
  • Print colour-white-colour layers in one pass for two-sided images on transparent materials
  • Print stunning backlit images direct to transparent media
  • Print with a double strike white for extra-high opacity
  • Using the jettable primer option adhesion to industrial media such as glass, metal and wood is made possible

The all-in-one, versatile flatbed printer

Dedicated flatbed design

The dedicated flatbed design with media registration pins ensures accurate registration for edge-to-edge printing and tiling of large layouts over multiple boards, even with multiple print passes.

High quality

Greyscale printheads in a staggered configuration deliver near-photographic image quality that is consistent over the whole bed.

Colour channel options

The Acuity Prime can be configured with either 4,5,6 or 7 colour channels. The channels are populated with ink sets that best suit your application needs, including CMYK, white, clear and a jettable primer for excellent adhesion to more industrial media types.

Print mode

A range of print modes are available to provide different levels of quality and speed, depending on the specific job requirements.

Designed for high speed production

Vacuum zones

Five dedicated vacuum zones tailored to common media sizes reduce the amount of bed masking required and enable quick media changeover. Adjustable vacuum strength provides optimum handling for different media.

Registration pins

Pneumatic registration pins enable quick, repeatable, easy loading of rigid media in perfect registration.

Static bars

The ionising bars reduce the effects of static on some synthetic materials.

Hands-free cleaning

An optional Automatic Printhead Maintenance System reduces the amount of manual cleaning required. The automatic process is clean and consistent.

Registration pins

Pneumatic registration pins enable quick, repeatable, easy loading of rigid media in perfect registration.

Static bars

The ionising bars reduce the effects of static on some synthetic materials.

Hands-free cleaning

An optional Automatic Printhead Maintenance System reduces the amount of manual cleaning required. The automatic process is clean and consistent.

Compact footprint

Acuity Prime printers are built to fit into compact spaces and the accessible design gives you flexibility in the way you work around the machine.

Utilises Uvijet HM inks from an award-winning factory

Uvijet LED UV ink technology

Fujifilm’s Uvijet ink delivers strong, vibrant, lightfast colours with superior colour gamut.

The new blueprint for wide format printing

Find out more about why the Acuity range represents the new blueprint for wide format

Read the article

Applications

A highly versatile production workhorse

With outstanding image quality and excellent adhesion to a broad range of rigid and flexible media, materials and objects, the Acuity Prime can produce an amazing variety of printed products for distance and close viewing.

Typical applications

Produce point of sale graphics, indoor signage, industrial graphics and product decoration, printing direct to rigid or flexible sheets, objects or pre-cut media.

Materials

Print on PVC, polycarbonate, acrylic, paper, board, aluminium composite and many other materials. Using the jettable primer option adhesion to more difficult industrial media such as glass, metal and wood is made possible.

Ink capability

Use clear ink to add impact using a spot or flood clear, and white ink to produce images on transparent or coloured materials. Print colour-white-colour layers in one pass for two-sided images on transparent materials. Print stunning backlit images direct to transparent media and a double strike white for extra-high opacity.

Discover more

Learn more about Acuity Prime by downloading our product overview

Download product overview

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