The Pro Z75 at Ricoh’s Customer Experience Centre (CEC) in Telford is already running test sheets and is in the final stages of engineering sign-off, with the first live customer demos slated to start in the next few weeks.
The CEC’s machine is configured with Heidelberg pallet feeder as well as a two drawer Ricoh feeder, and a conventional stacker unit. Later it will be retrofitted with an undercoat unit.
“The Pro Z75 continues to evolve and develop at pace; it’s happening with the installation here at Telford and it's happening with our first installs. There’s been significant changes to the product since the first beta site,” said Tim Carter, commercial print director for Ricoh Graphic Communications.
“We’re in the final stages of the installation here in Telford and in three to four weeks we’ll be in a position to start to do custom samples and invite customers in for bespoke experiences and demonstrations and show them what it's capable of. We’ll then start to develop our pipeline and also be into a position to move forward with [UK] installations.”
While the focus of the event was Ricoh’s latest technologies, the first fruit from its partnership with Chinese wide-format manufacturer Flora Digital, which was launched at Fespa earlier this year, was also put through its paces. The co-developed Flora X20 hybrid UV printer can run rigid and flexible media up to two metres wide and 51mm thick on substrates ranging from PVC banners to vinyl and rigid boards.
The one-day event also played host to live demonstrations on some of Ricoh’s high-speed inkjet lines, including the 150m/min Pro VC20000 mono line for books and manuals.
However, the star of the continuous feed show was the flagship Pro VC80000. The 150m/min four-colour line was shown running UPM Finesse Silk offset reels with no pre-coat. The highly automated press features Ricoh’s patented ‘firefly’ dryer technology, which uses small, heated rollers for a speedier start-up time.
Separately, after the event closed its doors, Ricoh announced it was establishing a new business, Ricoh Printing Solutions Europe, to “consolidate key functions related to industrial printing”. The business unit will begin operating in April 2025 with the goal of driving growth across its inkjet business.
Headquartered in Telford, it will come under the Ricoh Graphic Communications (RGC) Business Unit umbrella and fuse functions such as sales, engineering and support, and give the European business a louder voice in R&D.
While Ricoh’s technology portfolio was front and centre at last week’s Print Evolution Live event, a number of breakout sessions were also run through the day. Topics covered ranged from a deep dive into Ricoh’s inkjet and toner offerings, including demonstrations, to sessions on workflow automation and a case study on an innovative project where Ricoh partnered a leading online food retailer to automate its print and packing process.
The day was opened with a keynote from IPIA general manager Brendan Perring who detailed the trade body’s print research and advocacy project, ‘A New Narrative for Print’, which is sponsored by Ricoh. The event was rounded off with a keynote from Jeremy Page, EVP and global director of creative at brand strategy and PR agency KWT Global, who discussed the impact and opportunities of AI on communications industries.
