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Grasp the advantages of wide-format printing
Roland believes in supporting its customers from the point of order, to machine installation and then, crucially, offering ongoing support to ensure they can get the best from the products
It is well recognised that the screen, sign and traditional print markets are very adept at embracing new technologies and consistently looking for creative solutions that complement existing product offerings to help enhance their business models.
The rapid development of new innovations in wide-format technology combined with the decreasing cost of hardware has seen increasing numbers of printers integrating and implementing a digital wide-format print strategy into their businesses to enable them to take real advantage of the inherent flexibilities and versatile print capabilities of wide format printing technology.
A touch of the past
In the last five-years especially, wide-format technologies have come a long way. What started off as a sometimes expensive, slow and niche printing technology has matured to become the competitive, sleek, accurate and efficient offering we now see in the market.
Today’s high-performance wide-format digital printers offer much more than just traditional printing such as banner or signs; new, dynamic wide format models such as the Roland Advanced Jet AJ-1000, and the VersaCAMM and SolJet product ranges offer innovative print and ‘print and cut’ solutions that are able to produce an extensive range of durable, professional, quality-led products including POP displays, labels, decals, vehicle/floor graphics and heat transfers for apparel, to name but a few.
Such is the true flexibility of wide-format digital offerings, print houses can take full advantage of this technology by marrying it to existing solutions to offer a greater breadth of printing and associated services to help gain greater traction with new and existing customers, helping to increase revenue streams in the process.
Print and cut
A great example of this is the latest range of Roland VersaCAMM wide-format digital printers, launched in April 2007. The VersaCAMM 30in VP-300 and 54in VP-540 have been designed from the ground-up to enhance the productivity of creative professionals: from marketing departments, copy shops and retailers to sign, screen and digital printers.
This new series, which builds on the success of the VersaCAMM SP-300 (the world’s best selling wide format print and cut machine) incorporates VersaWorks 2.2, the latest version of Roland’s powerful, user-friendly RIP software featuring the Roland Color system and Variable Data Printing (VDP) options. With most leading wide-format digital print machines now offering intelligent, integrated software and RIPs systems for ease of use and efficient ‘one touch’ operations, the print production options open to the print house or high street copy shop to expand their offering to include wide format are considerable.
One-stop print shop
Why is the market seeing an increasing number of printers integrating wide format digital print into their business? A combination of entrepreneurial spirit and market demand. Most print end customers don’t necessarily differentiate between different forms of printing: litho, short-run digital PoD or wide format. What the time-conscious print customer is increasingly looking for from their print supplier is a one-stop-shop. They want to find someone who can produce it all for them, whether that be short run digital, long run litho or POS banners: quickly, easily and cost-effectively.
These customers want the ease of providing all their various printing needs to one specialist who can demonstrate they have the commitment to service, quality and the technology to support this. Responsive and proactive printers know that a strong wide format offering in the current market is an attractive investment and takes them one step closer to being able to offer this one stop service.
By its very nature, wide-format digital printing technology enables fast turnaround times, high-quality output and enhanced productivity. At Roland, substantial and dedicated investment in terms of product research and development has enabled us to dramatically increase the ability of products such as the new VersaCAMM VP series to accommodate an ever-growing range of compatible media, including self-adhesive vinyl, banner, paper, film and heat transfer paper, ensuring greater diversity in terms of applications and product offerings for the market.
More than just technology
At Roland, we understand it’s critical for customers to continually expand their services, grow their client portfolios and increase revenue streams. We also know how important an investment in a wide format printer can be. We believe in truly supporting our customers from the point of order, to machine installation and then, crucially, offering ongoing support to ensure they can get the best from our products through a greater understanding of our technology.
It is for this reason, we as an organisation have invested so heavily in customer support initiatives such as our RolandCare programme, which combines a range of customer support options such as telephone and web based support, parts and labour service agreement, to ensure the whole process of purchasing a machine and during its on-going production life-cycle is as smooth and hassle-free as possible.
In addition, Our Roland Academy, launched in 2006 in partnership with Walsall College, is now the largest accredited sign, engraving and large-format graphics educational facility in Europe. To get the most from printing technology, we feel it’s important to offer our customers a range of tailored courses that provide an environment for dedicated learning, the cross fertilisation of ideas and practical experience using the very latest equipment.
The Roland Academy offers first-class training to help businesses improve their productivity and commercial performance when using wide format technology. It uses a combination of market-leading technology and innovative, hands-on teaching methods to ensure participants are provided with the most up-to-date skill sets and advice available to produce premium quality wide-format applications.
There is an exciting future ahead for wide-format digital technology. In a print landscape that’s ever changing, we at Roland are constantly striving to both anticipate the market and respond to it by developing world-class machines that serve the needs of today, but with the technology to take their owners into the future with confidence.
