Inkjet Wholesale News aims to provide updates on the latest significant occurrences in the field of printing. Whether it’s the launch of a new technology or volatility of market prices, we’ll be here to give you the lowdown on what happened, when it happened, and what it means!
Epson Introduces the Latest Version of Its SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation Printers
While it has been some time since digital printing came to the home and office printing sector, it is still in the process of penetrating a number of other printing sectors. For instance, the move from analogue printing to digital printing is only now taking place in the world of textile imaging with digital dye sublimation printers only now making an appearance in the industry.
The latest development in this recent trend is the launch of the newest versions of SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printers by Epson. The next generation of Epson’s much lauded SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printers include the F6200, the F7200, and the F9200.
The most critical difference between the older generation of these printers and the latest generation is that the latter make use of Epson’s latest variety of ink. The ink used in the latest SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printers is Epson UltraChrome DS ink.
It is a high density black ink that has a number of advantages over other ink formulations. First and foremost, this new ink provides better efficiency. Furthermore, it is known for producing improved black density and tonal transitions which also result in more refined grayscale.
It is also crucial to add that the ink in the SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printers supports quick drying times as well as improves the overall efficiency of the device. These benefits of Epson UltraChrome DS ink combine to reduce the total cost of ownership of these machines.
These benefits really come to the fore in roll to roll fabric production applications, home décor and fashion markets, cut and sew sports apparel, soft signage, and customisable promotional prints.
Of the three printer models in the SureColor F – Series, the F6200 can print on 44 inch substrates and the other two can handle 64 inch substrates. The flagship model of the whole SureColor F – Series is the F9200 which makes it the most advanced model of the whole series.
The F9200 is blessed with Epson’s renowned PrecisionCore TFP print heads. These high end print heads give the F9200 far-reaching capacities including consistent, precision based performance, advanced dot control enabled industrial level roll to roll capability, and superfast speeds. Typically, the flagship SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printer can produce speeds of up to 1,044 square feet per hour.
In fact, the speed of the F9200 SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printer is almost twice that of previous generation models. Moreover, the F9200 dye sublimation printers are based around a bulk ink storage system that can contain a lot of ink and is easy to refill. The bulk ink system can hold three litres of ink for every colour. This combined with the high efficiency of the printer makes it easier for the printer to continue printing for an extended period of time with minimal interruptions.
The upgrade on the SureColor F – Series Dye Sublimation printers is vital because the whole series was initially launched three years ago in 2013. According to the company, since that launch, it has been working on ensuring that its products are designed in a manner that they cater to the specific demands of manufacturers in various industries.
Epson and C4PA Associated Results in 3 Million Ink Cartridges Being Recycled
One of the primary concerns in the world in general and the print industry specifically relates to the impact of cartridges on the environment. This is something that quite a few printer users have been focusing on. In fact, new technological developments have been taking place in this direction such as the fully recyclable compatible laser toner cartridges being launched.
However, the most important aspect of this focus on the environment is that Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are aware of this fact and are trying to take steps to ensure that their cartridges are recycled responsibly and efficiently. The latest to reach a significant milestone in this regard is Epson in Australia.
In Australia, one of the most prominent cartridge recycling programmes is the Cartridges for Planet Ark (C4PA). C4PA has been coordinating with a number of OEMs operating in the country to ensure that used cartridges don’t get consigned to midden heaps and are instead responsibly recycled.
Epson’s collaboration with C4PA has now resulted in the two achieving a major milestone when it comes to recycling used up cartridges. The two have recently crossed the three million mark with respect to recycled cartridges.
This is a significant achievement for both the C4PA programme and Epson because their collaboration only began around 12 years ago in 2003. It’s not only the total recyclable output that has improved for the two organisations but also the frequency. The two now recycle about 23,000 cartridges every month.
The recycling process is interesting as well because the used up cartridges are not returned to the manufacturing or refurbishing plants of the OEMs.
Instead, they are recycled into a number of different products. As a matter of fact, the used cartridges are actually transformed by the time the whole recycling process is complete.
Some of the products that are produced with recycled cartridges include pens wherein the ink is drawn from old cartridges, plastic rulers, and park benches.
The C4PA programme also involves the aptly named Close the Loop organisation. The logic behind the recycling of these cartridges is that a wide variety of critical resources are used in their production.
If the cartridges are consigned to landfills, then these resources are lost.
On the other hand, if they are recycled responsibly, then these resources are saved and reused constructively.
The idea behind the C4PA programme is noble and quite functional too. They provide an easy way for printer users to recycle their cartridges without paying any extra money.
The C4PA programme is based around cartridge collection boxes located in prime locations such as JB Hi – Fi stores, Office National outlets, The Good Guys outlets, Dick Smith outlets, Harvey Norman outlets, and even Australia Post centres.
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