An American Printer Commentary
By Andy & Julie Plata
Co-CEOs, the OutputLinks Communications Group
June 27, 2018
Developing breakthrough print technology is a daunting task. But, doing that while a company is dealing with the multi-year organizational upheaval, Xerox has endured, would seem almost impossible. But, leave it to Xerox to do the impossible – and they did!
At a special June 26 birth event at the Gill Hatch Center in Rochester, Xerox announced their new baby, the Baltoro HF Inkjet Press.
Tom Wetjen, Vice President of our American Printer division, was present to witness the unveiling of Xerox's new production-class, high-quality, cut-sheet inkjet press. As Tom retired from Xerox as Vice President of the Graphic Arts division, his insights to the unveiling were critical to this article.
Despite the impressive technology (more on that later in this article) what most impressed us was how quickly and effectively this press came to market.
Most printer OEMs require years to introduce a new print technology. Baltoro was developed, tested, unveiled to the public, and ready for sale in record time. Human babies take nine months. We guess that Baltoro took a bit longer than that to birth, but not too much longer.
You can already submit orders for this new press, and the first official order was filed the day before the birth event.
While Xerox’s CEO and his senior management team were reorganizing the company, Xerox’s technology team was able to stay focused on developing the next breakthrough technology for their clients.
Made to Think
Xerox’s new “Made to Think” philosophy seems to be at work in this product development.
The press is a 100% Xerox designed from the ground up. All the components are directly from Xerox. The frame, the engine, the inkjet heads - all components are Xerox developed. That is impressive!
The high-quality, high-speed, cut sheet Baltoro press has 1200 x 1200 dpi imaging and automation technology needed for a print company to enter new high-profit markets while also increasing quality and throughput for existing applications.
| Xerox Baltoro HF Inkjet Press: High Fusion print engine, High Fusion ink and High Fusion print heads designed to support low-cost, high-performance imaging on a great variety of media as wide as 14.33” / 364 mm at speeds of up to 300 images per minute and a printable width of 13.76”/350 mm. |
Target Applications
Target applications are high-volume, high-quality, catalogs, transaction print, and direct mail. The new press eliminates the need for pre-conditioned media, priming solutions, or precoating to save printers money and critical time.
For print companies waiting for the right time to enter the inkjet market, Baltoro now makes inkjet accessible.
Making Inkjet Accessible
Making inkjet accessible encompasses the press’ price, reliability, automation, media, service, and finishing.
- Cost: We would expect an entry cost of less than US$700,000, but that’s just our guesstimate;
- Reliability: Built on the Brenva and iGen’s proven imaging and paper handling heritage;
- Automation: Monitors, diagnoses and perfects images in real-time and Xerox FreeFlow Core;
- Media: Eliminated the need for re-conditioned media, priming, or precoating;
- Service: The press’ simplicity allows options for easy self-service;
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Finishing: Options are available for inline finishing plus connectivity to third-party solutions.
Comparing Offset, Toner, and High-Fusion Inkjet
One of the event activities compared samples printed on three platforms - offset, toner, and inkjet.
Tom Wetjen had this to say about the comparison, “I looked and looked at the prints, and they were so close in quality. I did not realize inkjet could be that good!” (NOTE: Tom is not an easy person to please when checking print quality).
Additional Information
For additional Baltoro HF Inkjet Press technical and product information:
- Specifications — Xerox® Baltoro™ HF Inkjet Press
- Brochure – Inkjet Made Accessible Portfolio
- 8 Page Brochure — Xerox® Baltoro™ Disruptive performance and economics.
- Brochure — Inkjet Made Accessible
Thanks for reading. Your thoughts on this topic are appreciated.
Empowering the print message for the digital age,
Andy & Julie Plata
Co-CEOs, American Printer, and the OutputLinks Communications Group
Stay tuned for our continuing Commentary on the changing print industry environment and the effect on the print industry’s employees, dealers, partners, stockholders, and print buyers.
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