Kodak Continues To Shine In Digital Printing
Kodak continues to shine in the digital printing arena, and the newly released Kodak Nexpress 2100 provides a glowing example of what sets Kodak apart from the remainder of the digital printing business.
The Nexpress technology was initially created as part of a joint launch venture between Kodak and German printing conglomerate Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (generally referred to as Heidelberg). In 2004, Kodak chose to move ahead solo, and purchased out Heidelberg’s 50% stake in the new product line. It became an immediate hit, and the good results of the enterprise, even though the earnings turned out to be rather one-sided, has led to continuing talks between the two printing giants, with more ventures between Kodak and Heidelberg a distinct possibility in the close future.
The Nexpress 2100 is geared towards small and medium sized printing service providers or big companies, providing it a marketplace footprint that sits easily right smack in the center of the print business bell curve. The Nexpress also dealt with substrates of many different sorts, opening doors printing service providers throughout the business, and permitting many printers, for the first time, to service metals, alloys, foams, carboard derivatives, and much more.
But what sets the Nexpress apart from the competitors is Kodak’s dedication to top-quality graphical features that leave the competitors in the dust. Most digital printing technologies utilize a 4-color ink selection generally referred to as CMYK, which stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key – an industry term for Black. Nevertheless, the Nexpress uses a five colour configuration. This fifth colour is not so much a discrete color, like blue, as it is really a finishing choice, and the associated fifth imaging unit inside the NExpress 2100 permits users to incorporate a wide range of printing choices within their completed work: glosses, inline coating, spot-coloring, and so on.
By offering real-time colour choices with this fifth imaging unit, the Kodak Nexpress 2100 – as with all of the models in the Nexpress line – produces rich, vivid colours, and allows users to make subtle coloration changes on the fly, just like present day Variable Data Printing, but affecting coloration and finishing rather than textual content.
Is the Kodak Nexpress 2100 the printing revolution your company has been looking for? To discover more, download our complimentary Digital Printing Manual and discover more about them.
Ted Davalos is a digital printing specialist and contributor to DigitalPrintingPress.org. He often shares his expertise on topics like Kodak digital printers via the internet.