WHSmith is a leading global retailer with a presence in over 25 countries, serving its customers from over 1,300 stores across the globe. The company opened their...
January 27 2022
WHSmith is a leading global retailer with a presence in over 25 countries, serving its customers from over 1,300 stores across the globe. The company opened their first Australian store in Melbourne then added new stores in Sydney, Adelaide and Perth shortly thereafter. Recently WHSmith had a requirement to completely revamp their in-house printing operations and for that they turned to Epson reseller Orion Print and Epson’s Heat-Free WorkForce Pro WF-C579R, WF-C879RTC and WorkForce Enterprise WF-C17590 printing solutions.
WHSmith Australia, Head of IT Support, Saurav Chand, explained, “WHSmith had two major challenges when it came to our printing requirements – our multiple locations and where they were placed, along with a busy customer-facing environment where uptime was of prime importance. The challenge for every WHSmith store was that their printer was either in a regional or difficult-to-get-to location such as a hospital or airport, so we decided to change this and make the entire operation far more efficient. We initially had multiple technology partners, including Orion Print, who supported multiple printers across our business. Orion have good customer service and offered an excellent Epson solution that met our requirements perfectly so that’s what we purchased and installed.”
WorkForce Pro WF-C579R
Orion Print Management is one of Epson Australia's Premier Partners. They
improve organisational effectiveness by providing comprehensive content
management, accelerating shared business processes by facilitating information-sharing across boundaries for better business insight.
Chand continued, “We had over 40 printers in multiple stores each of whom used to spend tens of thousands of dollars in signage printing. When we did the cost evaluation, we found it was far more. It was cost effective to replace all of our printers with Epson’s Heat-Free WorkForce Pro WF-C579R, WF-C879RTC and WorkForce Enterprise WF-C17590 printing solutions. Epson's Heat-Free print technology means fewer moving parts, so they are more reliable and have increased up time. The high-yield inks of up to 8 times longer than comparative lasers give our staff fewer disruptions and thus more time to attend to their customer’s needs.”
WorkForce WF-C879RTC
With minimal interventions in both service and consumables replacement as one of their key criteria, along with price-performance, WHSmith was able to clearly see and understand the benefits the Epson solution would bring to the table.
Chand added, “Epson excelled on both counts, the reliability of their Heat-Free Technology not only improved staff morale but also customer service capability. The Epson high-yield ink consumables for both the A4 up to 50,000 pages and
A3 up to 100,000 pages provide us with the minimal disruptions we were looking for. It also enabled us to dramatically reduce our overall running costs.
In short, switching to Epson’s Heat-Free Technology printing solutions gave us a cost and time-effective solution for our business so we can easily print, scan and manage with efficient reporting and easy troubleshooting.”
WorkForce Enterprise WF-C17590
As much as WHSmith appreciated the cost savings of the Epson devices, the
real return-on-investment here was the extra time staff could spend with their
customers. As a result, with Epson’s low cost and efficient printing solutions and Orion Print Management proactively and professionally managing their fleet, the WHSmith IT Management team were able to focus more of their time on key IT projects.
Saurav Chand concluded, “Epson products, services and solutions stand head and shoulders above their competition as they are far easier to manage and troubleshoot. Using Epson Heat-Free Technology and solutions also gives WHSmith a number of key benefits as, critically, we now save tens of thousands of dollars every year, have made our stores more efficient and given every head office team member the ability to organise and print signage for any store across Australia at the simple click of a button.”
Epson has been placed on the prestigious A List for both climate change and water security for the second consecutive year by international environmental non-profit CDP, which evaluates companies' environmental activities.
Epson was recognised for steadily reducing greenhouse gases by proactively transitioning to renewable electricity, and for having expanded and improved the comprehensiveness of its information disclosure in line with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Information Disclosure (TCFD), which quantifies management risks associated with climate change as required by CDP.
CDP evaluates companies' environmental activities on behalf of more than 590 institutional investors worldwide with a combined $110 trillion in assets. The results of the questionnaires are also used to assess companies in terms of environmental performance for the world's leading socially responsible investment (SRI) indexes used by ESG investors.
Out of the more than 12,000 companies that were evaluated, Epson was one of a small number to receive a double A, an acknowledgment that Epson is a leader in sustainability. In addition to being an important statement to institutional investors making ESG investment decisions, Epson believes that this prestigious listing sends a powerful message to customers looking for environmentally conscious products and services, as well as to business partners and other stakeholders.
As stated in Epson's Environmental Vision 2050, which was revised in March 2021, Epson seeks over the next 10 years, we will invest approximately 100 billion yen on decarbonisation, closing the resource loop, and environmental technology development to reduce GHG emissions1 in the supply chain by more than 2 million tonnes.
A key milestone will be to switch to renewable energy for all of Epson's electricity needs by 20232. In addition to this investment, the company will concentrate management resources on developing products and services that reduce the environmental impacts of its customers.
More information
For more about CDP go to: https://www.cdp.net/en
For more information about the 2021 A List companies, evaluation methodology, and evaluation criteria go to: https://www.cdp.net/en/companies/companies-scores
For more on Epson's environmental initiatives go to:
https://global.epson.com/SR/
December 14 2021
“Automation is the only way to consistently deliver high volumes of short-run jobs while meeting customers' quality and schedule expectations."
HP has announced the PrintOS Integration Hub @ hp.io, a portal where HP provides technical information on how to integrate with HP Indigo devices and solutions, and achieve automation across vendor solutions. Due to the upswing in e-commerce orders, printers need to increase automation through multiple systems, spanning from submission, printing, finishing and fulfilment solutions, through to shipping and tracking.
“Automation is the only way to consistently deliver high volumes of short run jobs while meeting customer’s quality and schedule expectations” said Gershon Alon, Head of HP Indigo Solutions. “Customers are struggling to hire and maintain skilled personnel. Cross-vendor automation increases employees’ efficiency and enables the production of much more work with existing staff and resources”.
An example of cross-vendor automation is the improved integration between the PrintOS Production Pro DFE for Commercial Print and Heidelberg Prinect, which automates production and avoids human errors. Customers can now maintain a unified automated workflow, for both their analogue jobs and their digital Indigo press jobs, and manage them from their Heidelberg MIS.
"The enhanced connectivity between Heidelberg Prinect and HP Indigo presses enables Heidelberg customers to integrate the Prinect Business Manager (MIS), the offset prepress capabilities, and digital presses into one workflow," says Christopher Berti, Vice President Product Management Prinect. “That brings the benefits of higher efficiency, fully leveraging the original investment (e.g. offset prepress system), and the flexibility of using the same workflow for both worlds: offset and digital printing.It helps close a major gap on the road to printshops achieving end-to-end integration”.
“The Prinect integration with Indigo digital presses enables a single data entry point via JDF, reduces touch points and therefore human errors” said Liesbeth Van Assche, Process Architect at Artoos Group. “We send our jobs from Prinect to the HP Indigo digital press and our press operator does not deal with any job parameter settings, file preparation, imposition, or proofing. Press operators are 100% focused on printing the job and insuring the quality of the job”.
Automating color is also a key focus area for HP Indigo. On top of the already-supported Idealliance G7 color certification, PrintOS Color Beat now also automates Fogra color certification for new-generation HP Indigo commercial and labels-and-packaging presses including the HP indigo 100K, HP Indigo 15K, HP Indigo 12000 VP, HP Indigo 25K and HP Indigo 35K.
The FograCert PSD Colour Data allows print service providers to get a fully automated verification to the most widely used Fogra colour standards requested by print buyers and brands, validating that the press meets the highest color standards. With a touch of a button. The compliance of a given print job is certified against Fogra PSD, ProcessStandard Digital (ISO/TS 15311-2) and can be easily communicated with the print buyer, the brand or the QA team.
Automatic Alert Agent 2.0 for HP Indigo Series 4 digital presses (HP Indigo 12000 and 15K). This inline inspection system scans every printed sheet and compares it to its digital print file, automatically identifying possible print defects. AAA 2.0 now automatically diverts defective sheets to scrap and reprints them, all in real time with no human intervention, and no interruption to production. The system leverages advanced Industry 4.0 Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) algorithms, increasing accuracy and speed, to provide productivity and profitability for PSPs.
December 14 2021
It focuses on the commitment to a robust sustainability strategy comprised of three key pillars: operations, products and services, and collaboration.
The new flatbed cutters Azon Presto and Azon Presto+ are completely focused on any DTF solution.
As the demand of the market is still growing, even with the situation of the Covid-19, customers are constantly searching for new business opportunities. In regards to that, Azonprinter has decided to expand its current portfolio with two new products – Azon Presto and Azon Presto+.
The new flatbed cutters Azon Presto and Azon Presto+ are completely focused on any DTF solution. Even though the cutters are built for use with the current solutions Azon Pronto and Azon Pronto+, they can be used with any other DTF solution.
Both Presto solutions are built with high class technology, giving the way to the new functionalities, such as high cutting precision for small text string (easy to tear of the scraps), advanced algorithm (elimination of distorted, rounded or lifted corners), half/perf cut (perforation cutting), fast registration marks detection by CCD camera.
Presto and Presto+ offer fast speed for volume production – servos bring out smooth acceleration, big torque, precise cutting/plotting and excellent durability.
For more information, please visit our web page www.azonprinter.com
Visual Connections, the association representing suppliers to the print, sign, display and visual communications industries, held its AGM and Member Meet...
December 01 2021
Visual Connections, the association representing suppliers to the print, sign, display and visual communications industries, held its AGM and Member Meeting last Tuesday, appointing new Board Members and outlining a clear strategy for the future.
In something of an understatement, outgoing President Mitch Mulligan described 2021 as ‘another challenging year’, with the cancellation and postponement of expos and events – which normally bring in the majority of the association’s income – having a significant impact.
Overall, however, he said the association is in sound shape, with both the Board and operational team looking towards 2022 with a clear strategy, a renewed sense of purpose, and genuine excitement at the prospect of returning to in-person events.
“Our Events team has been kept busy planning, cancelling, rescheduling and replanning events all year, but we were extremely pleased to be able to deliver a number of successful events recently, including the State PICAs and the National Print Awards presentations, and the ASGA / FESPA Australia HP Awards for Excellence,” he reported.
No event cancellation impacted the organisation more than that of its flagship trade show, PacPrint, and its co-located exhibitions, Visual Impact and the Label & Packaging Expo. The show will now be held from 28 June – 1 July 2022, and Mulligan says the organisation and its co-host the Print & Visual Communications Association are gearing up for a bumper event after a two-year absence of trade shows.
“We are very much looking forward to catching up with as many of our industry colleagues as possible as we are able to gather more often in 2022,” he said.
The meeting also saw a new Board elected to herald in the new year. While many Board members are returning, Peter Wagener, the WA-based Managing Director of Euro Poles and All Flags Signs & Banners, was elected to join the Board.
“Peter is a passionate, long-term supporter of the industry,” Mulligan said. “He believes in a bright future for print, sign and display and wants to see Australian businesses, particularly manufacturing businesses, thriving.Peter’s energy and enthusiasm will be a real asset to the Visual Connections Board, and we are delighted to welcome him onto the team.”
John Wall, Roland DG, was appointed President and thanked Mitch Mulligan for his leadership in the past. “I and the Board are looking forward to working together as we look to the return of some normality, trade shows and events in the future,” he said.
The full list of Board members includes Ben Eaton, Starleaton, who was elected Vice-President; Luke Wooldridge from Fujifilm Australia who is staying on as Treasurer, and general Board Members Jeremy Brew, HP; Russell Cavenagh, Mutoh Australia; Ian Martin, Ferag Australia; Mitch Mulligan, Böttcher Australia and Peter Wagener, Euro Poles.
Kongsberg Precision Cutting Systems (Kongsberg PCS) has today announced a new agreement with GMS Pacific to handle its distribution and servicing business across the Oceania region.
Under the new agreement, GMS Pacific will manage all sales, distribution, and servicing of the complete range of Kongsberg digital finishing solutions and tools, from its base in Melbourne, Australia.
“This latest agreement is a part of our ongoing process of moving towards a more efficient and effective way to meet the evolving needs of our customers,” said Stuart Fox, President of Kongsberg PCS. “The team at GMS Pacific has more than 20 years’ combined experience working with Kongsberg solutions. We are delighted to now begin this partnership as the exclusive digital finishing solution provider for its business.
“With this distribution agreement, we are living up to our ethos of ‘global presence, local service’,” said Stuart. “While we realise a company our size doesn’t necessarily have the scale to offer the level of service we’d like in all parts of the world, having GMS Pacific as a local full-service distributor will enable us to give our customers across Australia and New Zealand the level of attention they deserve.
“GMS Pacific holds stock of spare parts and Kongsberg consumables in their Australian and New Zealand warehouses, so customers can enjoy the full range of sales and follow-up services and speak to a representative in the same local time zone, improving their experience and removing potential delays,” he said. “One of our digital finishing tables will be installed at the company’s Australian headquarters, giving customers the opportunity to have a close-up look at the impressive machinery in action.
“This exciting new agreement is about Kongsberg PCS focusing on improvements where we can really make a difference, to deliver the best levels of service to our customers,” said Stuart.
Delivering intelligent solutions for label and packaging manufacturers, GMS Pacific has been operating in the printing industry for over 40 years. As well as introducing the latest technology products and supplying the highest quality equipment and consumables, the company provides expert advice to customers across Oceania.
Andrew McNamara, Managing Director of GMS Pacific, said the new distribution partnership would further complement the company’s own offering and strategic aspirations. “We have built our business and reputation by consistently delivering quality, service and reliability, and developing long-term partnerships with leading brands that deliver profitable solutions to our customers,” he said. “Kongsberg PCS is the leader in its markets and a great fit with GMS Pacific. We are delighted to be cementing our relationship with Kongsberg, establishing a dedicated team to support customers achieve their own business growth through distributing the leading range of digital finishing solutions and technological advancements in the field.”
For more on the entire range of digital finishing solutions and tools visit Kongsbergsystems.com
November 28 2021
Xaar’s Ultra High Viscosity Technology is providing manufacturers with an array of new and practical production possibilities, offering the chance to print without limits and drive creativity.
The growing role and capability of inkjet printheads is presented in Xaar’s latest White Paper, titled, ‘Pushing the boundaries of inkjet technology with high viscosity printing’. It looks at the historical background to the limitation of inkjet technology’s use and highlights how the latest printhead innovations are enabling a much wider range of fluid viscosities to be printed at around 100 centipoises (cP) at jetting temperature, equating to approximately 1000cP at ambient temperature.
This capability is increasing the relevance and practicability of inkjet technology across a variety of new printing, coating, advanced and additive manufacturing applications. It is rapidly becoming the manufacturing technology for Additive Manufacturing and 3D printing, as well as for personalisation, coating and other innovative print and manufacturing processes.
Mike Seal, Xaar’s Head of Advanced Applications, Technologies and Fluids, said; “Ultra High Viscosity Technology offers a wide range of new 3D and Additive Manufacturing possibilities which are really as wide as the customer can think of.
“We’re giving people a new tool to create better products and with Ultra High Viscosity transforming 3D printing by enabling extra material properties that aren’t possible with other inkjet printheads.”
Xaar sees its Ultra High Viscosity Technology as providing an opportunity for manufacturers to transition to inkjet, giving a digital advantage of small batch turnaround and mass customisation, opening up a number of new client sectors without the need for wasteful and cost-inefficient minimum order quantities.
Mike added; “With inkjet technology the only difference between your final prototype and your product, is just the number you produce.”
The dedicated Advanced Applications Team at Xaar works with all its customers to explore new applications and technologies, and their 5-step process helps manufacturers find solutions for a wide range of industries and applications.
Mike concludes; “From enabling 3D printing on a truly industrial scale, to the mass customisation of 3D printed parts, we are excited to show customers how Xaar’s Ultra High Viscosity Technology can take them from an initial conversation through to full commercialisation.”
November 23 2021
Epson and World Mobile (WM) have agreed to partner to support education and bring new opportunities to unconnected schools in Africa. The project has got off the ground with network connectivity from WM and printers and projectors from Epson installed in schools that have until now been left off the grid in some regions of Zanzibar, Tanzania.
Epson projector used in Forodhani school in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania
This agreement reaffirms the two companies’ commitment to direct action that helps achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In this case, SDG4 Quality Education, SDG9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure and SDG17 Partnership for the Goals.
Forodhani school is located in Stone Town, Zanzibar. With around 700 pupils, the school has been left offline by traditional telecom operators, meaning that teachers and children at the school have not had the infrastructure or opportunities that are taken for granted in many regions of the world. Building on the low-cost wireless network introduced by World Mobile, Epson provided the school with an Epson EcoTank ET-4700 inkjet printer and an Epson EB-982W projector for education, bringing digital technologies to the classroom for the first time and opening a new world of opportunity.
“When we first visited Kiwengwa School, situated in a small village in the northeast of Zanzibar, the students were learning about the internet without the ability to actually go online so to see their faces once they were connected was priceless. Everything they had been learning suddenly became a reality. This project is not about Epson or World Mobile, it’s about focusing on, until now, disadvantaged local communities and providing the people there with opportunities to flourish,” said Henning Ohlsson, Sustainability Director of Epson Europe. “We firmly believe that providing a quality education for all is a key goal to achieve a sustainable society, and we are delighted to work with our friends at World Mobile to do our part. We have just started this project, but we hope that other partners will join us to create a positive cycle that benefits everyone involved.”
“We are so excited to begin this partnership with Epson,” said Micky Watkins, CEO of World Mobile. “It’s crucial to us that we share the same values as our partners. Epson has an impressive track record in sustainability and education. This partnership will help spread the word on our mission to connect Africa in a sustainable way and give teachers and students additional learning tools.”
Although the project is still in its early stages, both Epson and World Mobile are aiming to attract new partners and provide similar opportunities for communities and schools across the region.
The Norwegian Printing Museum in Stavanger will open on 20 November. It is located on the site of a former sardine canning factory in the historic district of the city. The factory building is home to the Norwegian Canning Museum. It was architecturally extended by Eder Biesel Arkitekter. The exhibition in the new building was designed by ATELIER BRÜCKNER. The two museums operate together under the name IDDIS, derived from iddikett, the word for label in local dialect.
The Norwegian Printing Museum looks back over a period of more than 40,000 years – from the first human records in the form of cave paintings to the digital present. One point of focus is on the transformation of printing techniques for text and images – with regional and local references: In Stavanger, the art of printing blossomed from the late 19th century onwards as local canned-fish production resulted in numerous printing orders. The label was of central importance for the marketing of canned fish. The latter was exported from Stavanger to all parts of the world – right up to the 1950s.
The museum offers playful access to more than a thousand sardine tin labels, which are presented digitally in the exhibition. Other impressive items are the historic lithography stones, a lithography press, various print cylinders and the equipment of a photo laboratory. In a spacious workshop area, the Print Shop, on the upper floor of the museum, it is also possible to marvel at half a dozen historical printing machines.
The museum exhibition on the ground floor of the building extends over two large, chronologically arranged spatial units. They are connected by means of a shared media tunnel, which is the climax of any visit to the museum and can be entered from two sides. If a visitor enters the museum from the Canning Museum, the first exhibition space encountered concerns image reproduction, with a focus on lithography and photography. A flood of images comes out of a camera and passes through the corridor, leading up to the present and then back to a Gutenberg printing press, accompanied by daily newspapers, typewriters and early computers.
The printing press is the central exhibit in the second exhibition space. With regard to content and positioning in the room, it is the turning point: The wide-scale dissemination of printed material became possible from 1450 onwards with the invention of moveable letters. Printed sheets shoot upwards out of the press and into the media tunnel, taking the visitor through time up to present-day e-publishing. Before the printing industry became established, the scriptorium was the central place for written reproduction. Presented as being of an importance equal to the printing press, it is staged as a spatial unit.
The exhibition spaces are structured by sets of cubic shelves made of wood. The cubes can be combined with each other individually, whereby they are displays for exhibits, or it can be printed on them in different ways. The general principle of this ordering system is inspired by letter cases, in which the letters of the alphabet used in the printed industry have their place.
The Print Shop on the upper floor of the building is also laid out flexibly: the theme-centred texts and object descriptions are printed on boards. They are inserted in wooden strips all around the exhibition space and in the chest-high zoning that separates the individual thematically dedicated areas from each other: different printing methods can be compared here. Typesetting and bookbinding are also themes. The printing industry of Stavanger with its rattling technical marvels fascinates up to the present day.
The exhibition is open Tuesday to Friday: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday also 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday and Sunday: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
IDDIS Norwegian Printing Museum and Norwegian Canning Museum. Exterior.
Photography: Marcus Sies
IDDIS Norwegian Printing Museum. Printing Press and Media Tunnel.
Photography: Marcus Sies
IDDIS Norwegian Printing Museum. The Written Word.
Photography: Marcus Sies
IDDIS Norwegian Printing Museum. Media Tunnel.
Photography: Marcus Sies
IDDIS Norwegian Printing Museum and Norwegian Canning Museum
Andasmauet 15
4005 Stavanger
www.iddismuseum.no/en/
Earlier this month Epson become the first1 company in the Japanese manufacturing industry to convert to 100% renewable electricity for all its domestic sites2, amounting to a total of 530 GWh annually. As a result, Epson will reduce its annual carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 250,000 tonnes.
With high global interest in societal issues, especially those involving the environment and energy, Epson established and is pursuing a new long-term environmental management policy called Environmental Vision 2050. To achieve the decarbonisation goal set forth in the Paris Agreement, Epson has positioned renewable electricity use as a priority action in its 2025 Science Based Targets achievement scenario.3
In March 2021, intending to fulfill its responsibility to society, Epson announced that all global Epson Group sites2 would meet their entire energy needs with 100% renewable electricity by 2023. This will enable the Epson Group to eliminate the approximately 350,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide arising from its electricity production globally every year.
Epson had planned to convert to renewable electricity at all its domestic sites by the end of the 2021 fiscal year (ending March 2022) but will achieve this ahead of schedule, meeting a milestone on the path to transitioning to 100% renewable electricity for the entire Group’s power needs. As a result, Epson forecasts that it can meet approximately 40% of the Group’s total annual electricity needs with renewable electricity in the 2021 fiscal year.
Steps toward meeting the Epson Group’s total electricity needs with 100% renewable electricity:
April 1, 2021 - All sites in Nagano Prefecture, where many Epson sites are located
November 1, 2021 - All sites in Japan (originally planned for March 2022)
2023 (plan) - All Epson sites globally
As stated in Epson’s Environmental Vision 2050, Epson seeks to become carbon negative and underground resource4 free. Accordingly, the company will invest approximately 100 billion yen on decarbonisation, closing the resource loop, and environmental technology development over the next 10 years out to 2030. Epson will concentrate most of its management resources on the development of products and services that help to reduce environmental impacts and that also contribute to reducing the environmental impacts of its customers.
By converting to renewable electricity earlier than scheduled, Epson will not only achieve its own environmental targets but will also help to encourage the spread of renewable electricity in society as a whole.
For more on Sustainability at Epson go to: https://global.epson.com/SR/
It’s no coincidence that the explosion of people working from home, Epson becoming officially the number 1 ink tank printer vendor worldwide¹ having now sold over 60 million EcoTank units globally* and the launch of Epson’s new EcoTank printers for the Home Office are all being announced together. Critically, none of the new Home Office models use any ink cartridges at all, replacement ink bottles that provide thousands more printed pages start at just $14.99 and all models come with the new, intuitive and clever Epson Smart Panel™ app.
EcoTank ET-2811 using the Smart Panel app
With two of the most challenging and unique years the world has ever witnessed and experienced, the home has become even more important for living and now working more than ever.
To help people in their new work from home environments, Epson has released four new models in its EcoTank printer range, designed for the Home Office – the ET-2811, ET-3800, ET-4800 and ET-4850.
EcoTank ET-3800
As the way we work and live continues to evolve, people are seeking more advanced, but still easy-to-use, solutions that can keep up with the new demands of their homes which are now also their workspaces and home offices.
To that end, Epson has launched a new generation of their best-selling, award-winning and most popular EcoTank printers designed for Home Office use to continue meeting the day-to-day printing needs of working professionals whilst still reducing the ongoing worry of running out of ink and the high cost of replacement ink.
These efficient new printers for the Home Office are all high-yield, multi-function models, positioned at an attractive mid-level price point with additional productivity features that include a high-resolution flatbed scanner for crisp and professional scans, a colour display for easy navigation and wireless connectivity so users can easily print from smart devices with the intuitive Epson Smart Panel® App.
The Smart Panel app makes working and printing from home so much easier and more efficient as it transforms most mobile devices into intuitive control centres for select Epson printers and scanners.
To view the Epson Smart Panel app in action click here or go to:
Working from home can be hard but Smart Panel makes it incredibly easy to set up, monitor, print, scan and more using your Epson device from the palm of your hand. It enjoys a simple wireless setup, innovative action icons, a customisable interface and indeed everything you need to manage and use your printer in one convenient app. As it’s fully compatible with Android® and iOS® devices, all you have to do is download the app from the respective app stores and you’re ready to go.
EcoTank ET-4800
Smart Panel is the perfect complement to EcoTank Home Office printer, a range designed with productivity, efficiency and ease of use in mind.
So why should you buy an EcoTank Home Office printer rather than a standard EcoTank Home printer?
Good question and one that really comes down to what you’re going to use it for.
EcoTank Home printers are ideal for just that, home printing use. A great daily drive that also satisfies school and particularly home school requirements.
EcoTank ET-4850
The new EcoTank Home Office printers are different, more advanced, has more features, prints more and does a lot more of the things you would associate with a printer found in a typical office, but at a far lower cost per page.
Some things are the same across the EcoTank range such as the fact that they are powered by Heat-Free PrecisionCore® Technology which offers revolutionary cartridge-free printing with easy-to-fill, super-sized ink tanks.
The EcoTank Home Office models also include thousands of pages worth of ink straight out of the box² — enough to print up to 14,000² black and white pages with some models (see below) and equivalent to hundreds of individual cartridges².
Plus, the Home Office models use Epson’s “clean and easy” EcoFit® auto-stop ink bottles with each colour uniquely keyed for easy filling of each tank, higher capacity paper trays, fax (yes, lots of people still use fax!), bigger colour touchscreens, auto document feeder (ADF), fast auto 2-sided printing and convenient wired and wireless networking.
In other words you can do more, using the ultimate wireless and networking technology and be powered by the latest Heat-Free PrecisionCore Printing Technology which delivers laser-quality black text using less power and fewer consumables so it’s far kinder to the environment.
For a Home Office printer that you don’t have to (or want to) worry about, the new Epson EcoTank for the Home Office range ticks a lot of boxes.
Okay, let’s have a look at some of those boxes that they tick …
EcoTank ET-2811
Main functions - Print, Copy and Scan
Connectivity - Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct
Print speed – 10 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Number of printed pages out of the box – 8,100² Black / 6,500² Colour
RRP $399
EcoTank ET-3800
Main functions - Duplex Print, Copy, Scan and Ethernet
Connectivity - Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct and Apple AirPrint
Print speed – 15.5 pages per minute black and white, 8.5 pages in colour
Display screen – 2.4" Colour LCD
Number of printed pages out of the box – 14,000² Black / 5,200² Colour
RRP $549
EcoTank ET-4800
Main functions - Print, Copy, Scan, Fax, ADF and Ethernet
Connectivity - Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct and Apple AirPrint
Print speed – 10 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Display screen – 1.44" Colour LCD
Number of printed pages out of the box – 3,600² Black / 6,500² Colour
RRP $499
EcoTank ET-4850
Main functions – Duplex Print, Copy, Scan, Fax, ADF and Ethernet
Connectivity - Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct and Apple AirPrint
Print speed – 15.5 pages per minute black and white, 8.5 pages in colour
Display screen – 2.4" Colour LCD
Number of printed pages out of the box – 14,000² Black / 5,200² Colour
RRP $649
All four new models come with Epson’s world-class one-year warranty with a free bonus second year upon registration.
Epson’s new Smart Panel app is compatible with a wide range of Epson printers and scanners and to view the full list, go tohttps://support.epson.net/appinfo/smartpanel/guide/en/
The four new EcoTank Home Office printers are available now at www.epson.com.au and from all authorised Epson resellers and retailers.
For more on Epson’s new EcoTank Home Office printers go to: https://www.epson.com.au/products/Printers_For_Home/home_office_small_office/index.asp
Picture credits
Epson’s new ET-2811, ET-3800, ET-4800 and ET-4850. EcoTank for the Home Office printers
Epson has earned its second successive platinum rating for sustainability from EcoVadis. The platinum rating, which was established in 2020, indicates that Epson was ranked among the top 1% of companies in the industry. Epson had received a gold rating the previous three years.
The platinum rating was awarded in recognition of Epson’s global sustainability initiatives. In the four themes assessed by EcoVadis, Epson received high scores for the environment, sustainable procurement, labour and human rights and ethics, putting it in the top 1% of companies in the industry.
Epson Global President Yasunori Ogawa said, "We’ve put solving issues in society, and especially achieving sustainability, at the heart of Epson’s corporate vision and business strategy. It’s a tremendous honour to receive this Platinum rating for the second successive year. In addition to setting ambitious goals to achieve our Environmental Vision of becoming carbon negative and underground resource1 free by 2050, we are continuing to implement measures to ensure good governance and social responsibility across our supply chain, including acquiring RBA2 certification at some of our key manufacturing plants. Most of all, however, I believe this Platinum rating communicates that to our customers Epson is a company that can be trusted, is determined to achieve sustainability and will fulfill its responsibility as a good corporate citizen.”
EcoVadis provides an independent, trusted, common platform for evaluating and rating more than 75,000 groups and companies in the world using sustainability assessment criteria that are based on the sustainability standards of thousands of external sources such as NGOs, labour unions, international organisations, local governments and auditing organisations.
Fully focused on solving societal issues, Epson has identified four materialities including “achieving sustainability in a circular economy” and “advancing the frontiers of industry” and is committed to creating products and services that contribute to its goal of achieving sustainability and enriching communities.
The company is leveraging its efficient, compact and precision technologies to generate innovations in areas like inkjet printing that minimise environmental impacts and increase productivity. Epson is dedicated to solving societal issues and to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
Epson seeks to achieve social sustainability and publishes details about its environmental initiatives, the creation of social value, corporate governance, and other sustainability activities in its Integrated Report and Sustainability Report. Information is also posted on the Sustainability pages of the corporate website.
For more on Sustainability at Epson go to: https://global.epson.com/SR/
October 25 2021
The winners of the 2021 Epson International Pano awards have been announced and the overall winner of the 2021 Open Competition was Joshua Hermann from the USA with three entries, 'Eternal Triangle', 'Morning Burn' and 'Ancient Backwaters'.
Explaining how his winning entries came to pass Hermann said, “It is an honour to have my images selected in the Open Category alongside so many wonderfully talented photographers. One of the great things about photography is its ability to inform. Growing up in south Louisiana and coming to know the swamp and marshlands from an early age, the unique beauty and interesting ecology of the area has stuck with me throughout my life. I hope to share the beauty of these places through my imagery, allow people to get a closer look into the uniqueness of these areas and ultimately to inform them of the importance of protecting these wetlands. When shooting Eternal Triangle, I observed a cypress tree generally has a wide flaring base. Due to its watery habitat, it develops this triangular base and root protrusions called cypress knees to help it stand in the soft, soggy bottom. As I paddled amongst the trees on this foggy morning the triangular trunks stood out in a symmetrical fashion. To me, it looked like enumerable triangles receding into the fog. I named this picture Eternal Triangle as an ode to one of my favourite jazz compositions by the great Sonny Stitt.”
Describing Morning Burn Hermann said, “When conditions are right and cool moist air begins to warm over water in the swamp, mist begins to form over the water. If you are lucky enough for the mist to stick around when the sun breaks the horizon, a wonderful show takes place. There is a short window of time where the sun begins to set the mist ablaze with light. As I paddled, the scene constantly changed in front of me while the sun inched higher above the horizon. I stopped in front of this grove and setup my camera as the swamp put on a light show went on in front of me.”
On Ancient Backwaters Hermann added, “Like trees in most of the US, many of the old growth cypress groves were felled during the logging era. Today there are a few places were these 1,000 plus year-old giants still stand. You will usually find these in pockets of backwater that were too hard for loggers to reach, or because the trees themselves were hollow and the trunks weren't the ideal shape for lumber. When I find these ancient monoliths in backwater ponds and sloughs, I am immediately transported to the swamp lands of ancient times.”
The Epson International Pano Awards showcases the work of panoramic photographers worldwide and is the largest competition for panoramic photography.
This year the competition received 5,378 entries from 1,245 professional and amateur photographers in 97 countries - amazing stats for a competition held in the middle of a global pandemic - all of whom were competing for thousands of dollars cash and prizes with main sponsor Epson Australia alone providing prizes that included an Epson SureColor P7070 printer, an Epson SureColor P5070 printer and an Epson EB-1780W ultra-slim projector.
The overall winner of the 2021 Amateur Competition was Daniel Trippolt from Austria with his Shining Night, Legendary Peaks and Shining Heart entries.
Trippolt said, “I discovered my passion for photography when I was 12 years old when my father gave me my first camera. Every free second of my free time was used to take photos of everything and everyone. From animal photography to sports, architecture and portrait photography, I tried everything and found my greatest passion and hobby in landscape photography. Here I am very much into hyperreal landscape photography, which distinguishes me from most Austrian landscape photographers. Landscape photography has become a huge part of my life, even if I don't have as much time to invest as full-time landscape photographers. The Covid crisis in the last two years has limited my landscape photography hobby a lot, which is why I'm all the more happy about my success in this competition.”
The Epson Digital Art Prize was won by Manuel Enrique González Carmona from Spain who said about his ‘Anatomy Lesson’ entry, “Minerals, water and water currents are the ingredients with which nature creates these ephemeral landscapes. With each rainy period the canvas is transformed. This canvas is actually a raft of toxic waste from a copper mine, located in the province of Huelva, Spain, which was captured by aerial shooting. These ephemeral formations will disappear with the next intense rains. I live only one hour away from this scenery, so I usually make a visit every week. There are always completely new structures and details that allow you to make countless abstractions and figurations. I often have the feeling that an abstract expressionist painter has created a large canvas and that I am capturing fragments of this work of art with my drone.”
Competition Curator, David Evans said, “We thought 2020 was a challenging year but 2021 took things to a whole new level. That said, despite the pandemic and so many other challenges the entries this year were nothing short of amazing. We are, yet again, overwhelmed with the level of support from entrants and sponsors, especially Epson and we thank you all so very much and also congratulate all this year’s winners and entrants.”
Craig Heckenberg, Managing Director, Epson Australia said, "Who would have thought the Pano Awards would again be so successful during such another challenging year. This commitment to excellence and continued success are two of the many reasons Epson has been a proud sponsor of the Pano Awards for the past 12 years we are delighted, but not surprised, at its continued popularity. The quality bar is raised every year and Epson is proud that our technology helps the photographers realise their passion and bring these amazing images to life. Epson congratulates all of the winners and entrants and as always, we stand amazed at their incredible passion and creativity.”
The judging panel for The Epson International Pano awards includes some of the world's top panoramic photographers and industry professionals.
To view all the winning and top image galleries go to: https://thepanoawards.com/2021-winners-gallery
For enquiries and more information contact David Evans at contact@thepanoawards.com
To say Epson has smashed sales of large, continuous ink tank printers into orbit is an understatement. The company having now sold over 60 million EcoTank printers* is officially the number 1 ink tank printer vendor worldwide¹ and occupies over 62% of large ink tank printer sales globally¹ – that’s 45% more than any other printer manufacturer¹. To celebrate these milestones the company has released its next generation in its EcoTank range for the Home and Home Office. Critically, none of the new models use any ink cartridges at all, replacement ink bottles that provide thousands more printed pages start at just $14.99 and all models come with the new, intuitive and clever Epson Smart Panel™ app.
An innovative interface, the Epson Smart Panel app transforms iOS® or Android™ mobile devices into an intuitive control centre for select Epson printers and scanners.
To view the Epson Smart Panel app in action click here or go to:
This powerful tool makes it incredibly easy to set up, monitor, print, scan and more using your Epson product, right from your hand-held device. With quick-configuration features, it offers easy product setup on your wireless network and automatically detects the Epson product you are using.
You can customise the Smart Panel to your own preferences and requirements as it’s been built to offer everything you need including easily accessing troubleshooting tips in one convenient app.
Very clever. Very useful. Very Smart.
So what’s so special about the new EcoTank Home printers?
The new EcoTank Home printers launch today (with the Home Office models to follow shortly) and consist of the new ET-1810, ET-2810, ET-2820 and ET-2850 models. These new models are specifically targeted and priced at entry level and budget conscious homes, are ideal for families and in particular home schooling. They also include WiFi for easy connectivity.
To say recent times have been challenging would be another great understatement. That said, one thing that’s become apparent is how home has become the “everything” place as many have adapted to hybrid work and school environments and having a reliable printer that can meet those new demands has become an absolute necessity.
From printing important presentations to endless school assignments and entertainment, families are increasingly dependent on performance printing technology to streamline workflows and stay productive.
Epson’s new EcoTank range uses innovative, heat-free, cartridge-free printing technology which delivers value and convenience for the ideal home printing experience.
The new EcoTank all-in-one printers offer cartridge-free printing with high-capacity, easily refillable ink tanks for zero ink cartridge waste. Users can save up to 90 percent² with replacement ink bottles versus traditional ink cartridges and each “low-cost” replacement ink set for the new EcoTank printers is equivalent to about 145 individual ink cartridges² – and enough ink to literally print many thousands more pages.
The new EcoTank Home printers include thousands of pages worth of ink straight out of the box³ and with every replacement ink set for fewer out of ink frustrations, all new models utilise EcoFit® ink bottles for easy, mess-free and worry-free filling.
So just how good, efficient and cost effective are they?
EcoTank ET-1810
Main function – Printing
Connectivity - Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct
Print speed – 10 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Number of printed pages out of the box – 3,600³ Black / 6,500³ Colour
RRP $299
EcoTank ET-2810
Main functions - Print, Copy and Scan
Connectivity - Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct
Print speed – 10 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Number of printed pages out of the box – 3,600³ Black / 6,500³ Colour
RRP $399
EcoTank ET-2820
Main functions - Print, Copy and Scan
Connectivity - Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct and Apple AirPrint
Print speed – 10 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Display screen – 1.44" Colour LCD
Number of printed pages out of the box – 3,600³ Black / 6,500³ Colour
RRP $479
EcoTank ET-2850
Main functions - Print, Auto 2-sided print, Copy and Scan
Connectivity - Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct and Apple AirPrint
Print speed – 10.5 pages per minute black and white, 5 pages in colour
Display screen – 1.44" Colour LCD
Number of pages out of the box – 6,500³ Black / 5,200³ Colour
RRP $499
All four new Home models come with Epson’s world-class one-year warranty with a bonus second year free upon registration.
By using an EcoTank cartridge-free printer homes and families not only maximise productivity and enjoy the freedom to print in colour, but also can help reduce the amount of cartridge waste ending up in landfills.
The new printers leverage heat-free printhead technology that produces sharp text and impressive colour and graphics on virtually any paper type.
Epson’s new Smart Panel app is compatible with a wide range of Epson printers and scanners and to view the full list, go to https://support.epson.net/appinfo/smartpanel/guide/en/
The four new EcoTank for the Home printers are available now at www.epson.com.au and from all authorised Epson resellers and retailers.
For more on Epson’s new EcoTank Home printers go to: https://www.epson.com.au/products/printers_for_home/ecotank/?grouptypeid=33&GroupID=113
October 19 2021
After an exhaustive assessment and evaluation process, Epson has been named the Forbes JAPAN Number 1 sustainable company.
Sustainability has played a major part in Epson’s corporate approach and philosophy for some time with the company achieving and further targeting some major milestones in this area.
Notably Epson recently revised its 10-year long-term vision to include a definitive commitment to developing technology that significantly contributes to the environment and a long-term perspective that creates sustainable value.
Epson also recently embarked on a campaign with National Geographic entitled, “Turn Down the Heat” where they engaged with Professor Katey Walter Anthony, her research on the Arctic warming and the effects of melting permafrost ice on the speed of global warming. As part of the campaign Katey uses Epson’s innovative inkjet printers whose Heat-Free Technology uses up to 94% less energy1 and power than comparable laser printers.
Earlier this year Epson announced it will be joining RE100, a global initiative that brings together the world’s most influential businesses driving the transition to 100% renewable electricity.
The company also announced that its worldwide group sites will all meet their electricity needs from 100% renewable energy sources (renewable electricity) by 2023.
With growing global interest in societal issues such as the environment and energy, Epson established its Environmental Vision 2050 to express its commitment to environmental management, and subsequently rolled out various measures aimed at achieving this.
The Paris Agreement subsequently established decarbonisation targets, and Epson created a scenario to achieve by FY2025 science-based targets aimed at achieving these goals. This scenario included the use of renewable electricity as an important theme, and Epson made plans and implemented measures to expand its use over the long term.
The company has established its policy as it seeks to accelerate its plans to become a leading environmental company, and with the belief that climate change represents a serious corporate risk and that Epson must play a greater role in mitigating that risk as it rolls out its business worldwide.
MUTOH America, Inc., an industry leader in wide-format printers, has been honoured for the 10th year in a row by the PRINTING United Alliance for product excellence and quality. ...
October 05 2021
MUTOH America, Inc., an industry leader in wide-format printers, has been honoured for the 10th year in a row by the PRINTING United Alliance for product excellence and quality.
For 2021, MUTOH has won five Pinnacle Product Awards, which recognizes products that improve or advance the printing industry with exceptional contributions in quality, capability, and productivity. Entries are evaluated by a highly qualified panel of judges from across the printing industry in more than 58 categories including analogue, digital, output, and non-output technologies.
These honours were formerly known as ‘Product of the Year’ awards.
The five 2021 output categories won by Mutoh are:
[* US $]
Mutoh Australia’s Managing Director Russell Cavenagh commented: “Its great to be part of a company that’s so focussed on quality and reliability. 10 years in a row is no fluke and testimony to the quality and productivity of Mutoh printers”.
Cavenagh's counterpart across the Pacific, Brian Phipps, President and General Manager of Mutoh America commented: “We are very honoured to win the Printing United Pinnacle Award again for five of our best-in-class printers made in Japan. Competing against the biggest names in the industry and being able to demonstrate MUTOH’s commitment to excellence and quality is very rewarding.”
To learn more about all of Mutoh’s award winners and other products visit www.mutoh-au.com
Bianca Willson from Multi-Color Corporation in Adelaide has been named South Australia’s LIA Heidelberg Australia Graduate of the Year at a presentation held at Fujifilm Business Innovation l...
September 21 2021
Bianca Willson from Multi-Color Corporation in Adelaide has been named South Australia’s LIA Heidelberg Australia Graduate of the Year at a presentation held at Fujifilm Business Innovation last Friday 17 September.
The prestigious biennial award is made by the Lithographic Institute of Australia (LIA) and is supported by Heidelberg Australia and Visual Connections. Nominations are received from employers for apprentices training for a wide variety of industry careers.
Bianca, who was judged the winner after an extensive interview and evaluation process conducted by a panel of industry experts, recently completed her print apprenticeship.
The other finalists for South Australia were Adam Brown from VisualCom, Nick Birbas from Multi-Color Corporation, and Fletcher Masters from Hanson Print & Design.
The graduates, their colleagues and families, enjoyed drinks and canapés at the the event, which was attended by about 30 guests – comparatively low for such events due to COVID gathering restrictions, but nevertheless a welcome opportunity to celebrate excellence, reported Gordon Wilson from the LIA SA committee.
Fletcher Masters, Nick Birbas, Adam Brown, Bianca Willson with 2019 biennial winner & LIA committee member, Jono Pitt.
“It was very pleasing to be able to recognise the achievements of these great young people, who will doubtless become some of the industry’s next generation of leaders,” Wilson said. “We sincerely congratulate Bianca on the win, and commend her fellow finalists, too, on their outstanding performance.
“The LIA has a long history of supporting education and training across our sector, and we are delighted to see the continuing high standard of graduates and, with the help of our sponsors Heidelberg Australia and Visual Connections, to be able to provide a tangible reward for their efforts as they seek to further their education and industry experience.”
To find out more about the LIA and the Graduate Awards, go to www.lia.com.au
Kornit’s first-ever impact report codifies brand vision of transforming the fashion industry with uncompromising eco-friendly production on demand: “These KPIs reflect Kornit’s co...
September 21 2021
Kornit’s first-ever impact report codifies brand vision of transforming the fashion industry with uncompromising eco-friendly production on demand: “These KPIs reflect Kornit’s core values, embedded into every aspect of our business,” says CEO Ronen Samuel.
Kornit Digital Ltd., a worldwide market leader in digital textile production technologies, today released its 2020 Impact and Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”) Report. This inaugural report affirms Kornit’s commitment to achieving specific ESG goals. This includes the way Kornit conducts business, creates meaningful impact in local communities, and achieves environmental sustainability, in addition to how Kornit will continue to build a diverse and inclusive company culture, foster employee growth and development, and empower fair and safe labor practices globally.
“Our vision is to boldly transform the world of fashion and textiles for a better, more sustainable planet,” said Ronen Samuel, Kornit Digital’s Chief Executive Officer. “This report serves as our roadmap to achieving this vision.”
Mr. Samuel continued, “The fashion industry is unfortunately responsible for severe ecological damage, producing nearly 20% of global wastewater each year and over-producing an average of 30% as an integral part of its ‘normal’ course of doing business. We are laser-focused on changing that trajectory. Sustainability is top of mind at Kornit, in our spirit and in practice, every single day.”
In addition to enabling eco-friendly production processes with technology and consumables that use less water, reduce waste, and minimize the carbon footprint, Kornit technology solutions enable sustainable production on demand, which eliminates overproduction of apparel and other textile goods. A 2021 Life Cycle Assessment conducted on two flagship products, the Kornit Atlas MAX and Kornit Presto S, demonstrated that relative to traditional analog processes, Kornit’s digital production systems used up to 95% less water and 94% less energy, and produced up to 83% less greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the Presto S system and up to 93% less water and 66% less energy, and produced up to 82% less greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the Atlas MAX system.
Based on this study, in addition to past sustainability performance results and strategic projections for business growth and market expansion, by 2026 Kornit Digital’s sustainable on-demand solutions are expected to enable the production of approximately 2.5 billion apparel items in a responsible manner to deliver:
More environmentally friendly printing is fast emerging as a key industry trend for the 2020s. With the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issuing a ‘Red Alert&...
September 14 2021
More environmentally friendly printing is fast emerging as a key industry trend for the 2020s.
With the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issuing a ‘Red Alert’ for climate change on 9 August, brand owners and consumers are increasingly searching out and choosing solutions that minimise carbon emissions and waste.
This is examined in detail in the new Smithers report – The Future of Green Printing to 2026 – published today. It is a trend that will increasingly reward print service providers, inks and consumables suppliers and OEMs, that invest in more sustainable solutions over the next five years, and beyond.
This will evolve into specific opportunities at each stage of the print value chain. Among the highlight topics Smithers’ expert research identifies are:
