Canon South Africa hosted an open day at its head office in Centurion on 21 February, where the company showcased its cutting-edge commercial printing solutions and more. Visitors could gain valuable insights from the company’s experts, discover innovative features and network with industry aficionados.
Product manager Gary Stockenstroom expanded on the imagePRESS V1350, the newest in the V-series, which can print at a speed of 135 pages per minutes. He mentioned its affordability compared to other models, and it how it taps into the packaging market due to its ability to handle stronger grammages of paper, from 60-500gsm.
Some of the trends in commercial printing which he commented on include the need for agility, as well as improved automation (i.e. running print jobs unattended to a better degree, with less paper jams).
He said the imagePRESS V1350 has been designed to accommodate these key trends, in that it is robust, ensuring thick stock does not slow down the machine, ‘We are now finding that paper jams are something of the past,’ he said.
Another feature of the machine he touched on is its double feeding sensors, ‘When you have a double feed, the paper tends to stick together. Now the machine picks it up and puts it into a dump tray, but production continues, whereas traditionally production stopped because of a paper jam, as someone would need to unjam the machine, close up the covers, start the print job again etc.’
Alex Ryan, product manager wide format, said that a big focus at the event was the imagePRESS V1350. It is a fast, durable, high-quality and high-volume digital colour press with innovative technology for high levels of automation.
In terms of large format solutions, the newest innovations include the Canon imagePROGRAF TM-350, ‘We also have the imagePROGRAF TM-355 in the range, as well as the imagePROGRAF TM-255. The imagePROGRAF TM-355 and imagePROGRAF TM-255 indicate there is a hard drive onboard, whereas the imagePROGRAF TM-350 does not.’
Security features on hard drive models include a pin code, which enables a limit in the amount of usage, as machines can be open to over-use (family photos, personal documents etc.)
Ryan also emphasised the vibrancy of the magenta ink and the EPEAT eco-labels in the imagePROGRAF TM-series, and added that the imagePRGRAF TM-350 model is 30% faster than its predecessor, the imagePROGRAF TM-300.
Speaking about trends, Ryan mentioned sustainability, ‘South Africa is moving far quicker into that realm than it used to. People are starting to become more conscious about the environment.’
Another trend is segment orientation, namely the popularity of the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing (AECM) segment, as well as the need for in-house printing, which allows users independence and more control over their budgets. Canon also has a service pack, known as e-Service, which includes a plan for per millimetre usage, spare parts and labour.
Canon South Africa’s senior marketing manager, Tunca Rodoplu, said, ‘We are one of the few OEMs that are present directly in South Africa. We want to be a one-stop shop for print service providers, be it for finishing, media or hardware.’
He said that they have the widest range of machinery, and wanted to showcase it in the showroom, or at least what could fit in the showroom, adding that Canon South Africa are in a good space to becoming market leaders in cut sheet and large format production devices.
CANON SOUTH AFRICA
CZA-Marketing@canon.co.za
http://www.canon.co.za
