South Africa-based printing manufacturer, Print on Demand, has become the first company on the African continent to leverage the benefits of HP’s Inkjet technology, having recently installed an HP PageWide Web Press T240.
From the company’s inception 6 years ago, Print on Demand has been a leading digital printer and innovator within the African market. The company has worked with authors from across South Africa to give them the opportunity to have their writing printed into hard copies and distributed across the country and international markets.
The company specialises in on-demand printing, whereby it only prints and distributes copies to order, meaning if ten people want a copy of a book, it will print only ten editions. Not only does this save hassle for authors when it comes to storing thousands of hard copies, but also contributes to sustainability practices, meaning no book will ever go to waste.
Since the installation of the new HP PageWide T240 Web Press, Print on Demand has been able to target new applications and trends, such as personalisation and shorter-run times – crucial for its print-to-order specialism. The quality of its printing has also improved, with the company thanking HP’s High-Definition Nozzle Architecture for higher-quality outputs. This technology raises the bar in digital colour quality as it uses 2400 nozzles per inch native resolution and dual drop weight, resulting in exceptional image quality and detailing such as shadows, something which is ideal for demanding applications in publishing, direct mail, and commercial print.
When speaking about why the company chose to install an HP PageWide T240 press, Managing Director, Tertius van Eeden said, “a particular edge is the machine’s ability to produce both the speed required for publishing and the quality demanded by commercial brand owners. HP has given us a data driven solution in PrintOS that gives us real time access to production analytics at a click of a button.”
Not only has the installation of the PageWide T240 press helped Print on Demand meet their sustainability goals by reducing wastage, the press has also helped to optimise production efficiency and access new markets. The unprecedented productivity, versatility, and print quality across a wide range of commercial applications has opened doors for the company within the commercial space.
With the HP PageWide Web Press T240 in Performance HDK mode, the company have been able to sustain full productivity whilst enhancing image grain with dual drop weight black. This has produced incredible results with continuous alignment and with repeatedly monitoring and actively adjusting colour to colour registration to provide consistent quality throughout a run.
Tertius van Eeden also commented, “as a leading digital printer and innovator in the African market, we have decided that the HP PageWide T240 would be a complimentary addition to our booming business and a strategic advantage in the growth of e-commerce distribution business.”
When speaking about the expansion of HP Inkjet into the African market, Nachum Korman, Global Head of Worldwide Industrial Indigo & PageWide at HP Inc., said, “this is a milestone paradigm shift for Africa as HP continues to drive the analog-to-digital transformation in that market. Offering extraordinary versatility along with exceptional colour quality and productivity, this installation signals the strength of the opportunities for the HP inkjet presses in the rest of the region.”
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