At Pronto Direct, a 24-year-old digital business at Southport on Queensland’s Gold Coast, a new strategy seeks to reset the company and position it to make the most of emerging wide-format technologies and beckoning markets.
The buzz at Pronto has been all about expanding the company’s offerings from a small base of A1 poster work and coreflute signage, which was outsourced to the trade.
General manager Geoff Davey describes the new approach as ‘layering our services’ to clients. “We asked our customers what other printing work they needed and we could do for them – and it took us into non-traditional areas. We are seeking applications within their business; what they would call non-traditional print, and then talking about ways we could achieve that. It is not so much about seeking new customers – although we always welcome these – as it is about providing more services and building a fence around our existing customers.”
Pronto created swatches to show customers what kinds of opportunities lay in wait for them and, more often than not, the response from the client has been “Wow, that’s great, that’s us”. And it can be anything from a one-off print to a long run.
“Once we had enough outsourced work to justify buying a machine, we then began to explore the market in terms of new opportunities,” says Davey.
Bringing wide-format display printing inhouse has seen an explosion in print applications at Pronto Direct. A visit to PrintEx 2015, which had more than the usual wide-format offerings along its aisles, resulted in an investment in an Acuity LED1600 hybrid printer from Fuji Xerox, which can handle roll-to-roll jobs as well as rigid substrates, and makes quick work of high value-adds such as opaque white and spot clear applications. Installed in August, the new 2.4m kit ushered in wide-format production under Pronto Direct’s roof.
While Davey sees posters as its core wide-format activity, which Pronto Direct formerly serviced through outsourcing, there are growing orders for specialties such as one-way vision material for car windows, low and high-grade fence scrims for construction sites, promotional banners, large 2.4m coreflute signs and canvas jobs.
“The idea that is most exciting is that the LED enables us to use a clear varnish, which we are using for highlight printing, by which we can accentuate a particular colour or feature of the job. We are doing a lot of that work, including images on transparent stock. It creates a relief finish, where we are using the white ink underneath, then the UV inks, then the varnish on the top, and achieving a 3D effect, which is fantastic,” he says.
“Relief printing works well with light boxes for hotels and clubs, rigid-mounted award certificates, in fact, any kind of work that clients used to go to agencies for,” Davey says.
Pronto Direct, which has a staff of 39, still sees direct mail and variable-data printing on its two Xerox iGens as its cash cow. Wide-format constitutes ‘only a fraction’ of commercial printing at the company, says Davey, but he regards it as ‘a very, very high-growth area’ on the ledger, and rapidly catching up as an earner. “We’re budgeting for something like a 50-60 per cent increase year-on-year.” Some day Pronto Direct will add a flatbed to its wide-format line-up, he predicts. (As for offset, the company used to outsource some orders but has extricated itself from litho altogether now).
Target markets
New opportunities definitely exist for wide format print businesses outside of their traditional markets, according to Ryan Warby, Epson Australia’s national business development manager, sign and display. “One suggestion on how to expand would be to talk to your equipment or media suppliers and explore the range of specialty media for your existing equipment. For example, some printers are not aware that they can print digital art on canvas using their solvent machines. Other opportunities lie within interior design, including wallpapers, and hard surfaces such as cabinetry, then there is mesh for building sites, flags and other soft signage.”
Warby says that in the decorative market space, curtains, fabric and soft signage are the key areas to target. For this, he sees digital dye-sublimation as the most suitable and common solution. “This process will provide a bright and durable result on a vast range of fabrics. It involves printing first with dye-sublimation inks onto a transfer paper. Using heat and pressure, this pigment is activated and embedded into the synthetic material. The latter process is normally performed with a large roll-to-roll heat transfer machine, a calendaring unit, which can be a major investment and blow out the short-term ROI on moving into this market space. Today the opportunity lies in investing in the printer to print the transfer paper inhouse, then outsourcing the heat transfer only. This allows for decent turnaround times and quality control on the print itself. Also this way, the provider retains the intellectual property of the digital file for their client.”
Among its eco-solvent solutions, Epson offers its SureColor SC-S30600, 64-inch/162.6cm four-colour roll-fed printer, and SC-50600 and SC-70600 variants, while in dye-sub, the SureColor SC-F6000 and SC-F7100 machines have drawn interest. When considering the required technology to print within the display and decorative markets, Warby believes it is necessary to work back from the application itself. “At Epson we have technology solutions across a vast range of LFP printers, including eco-solvent and dye-sublimation solutions. For wallpapers, canvas prints and wall graphics, you would use an eco-solvent solution to print to these substrates. On the other hand, fabrics, cushions, curtains, and so on, will benefit mostly from dye-sublimation.
“There is some crossover from eco-solvent printing onto fabrics and soft-signage solutions, however, these results are not as bright or vibrant as the dye-sublimation solution. There are also other interesting markets evolving in the short-run digital printer garment sector. This DTG (direct-to-garment) technology is not only suitable for T-shirt printing, but other items such as tea towels and promotional items can be produced this way. Epson’s large investment in this space opens the opportunity for business to explore these expanding markets with a total solution including warranty for peace of mind,” he states.
There are a range of new opportunities available to wide format print businesses using UV and dye sublimation technology, reports Greg Stone, sales manager, Roland DG Australia. UV ink technology allows printing directly to the surface of objects, opening up a broad range of items that can be printed to, as there is no need for specially coated substrates. With a desktop UV printer, one-off and short runs of personalised items, gifts and merchandise can easily be handled at a low cost. These items would traditionally need to be produced using pad or screen printing methods, which have timely set-up processes, and are only cost effective for large print runs.
“Businesses with large format and flatbed UV printers are able to take advantage of opportunities in the increasingly popular interior décor and architectural markets. Items such as cushions, furniture and upholstery, divider screens, glass splash backs and wall hangings can be produced using large format UV technology.
“Similarly to UV printing, dye sublimation printing is replacing methods such as screen printing. Due to high costs and limitations of traditional print processes, it is only since the advent of digital dye sublimation that high quality photographic images have been able to be printed on to everyday items. Dye sublimation offers businesses a quick and cost effective method of producing decorative applications such as furnishings, fashion items and personalised goods,” explains Stone.
Roland DG offers a range of UV printers, such as the VersaUV LEJ- 640FT, a wide-format UV flatbed that can print on material up to 150mm thick and weighing up to 100kg. With UV printing, businesses require the technology to expand into the decorative sector range — from desktop printers, to hybrid roll-to-roll, and flatbed printers. “This technology allows you to more accurately meet customers’ demands, with the production of personalised items and short-run original goods on demand with minimal set up costs – opening up multiple business opportunities.”
For dye sublimation, Roland DG has a line-up that includes the Texart XT-640, which was developed specifically for dye- sub transfer printing. Dye-sub once again ranges from desktop printers to wide format equipment, says Stone. “With this process, however, users require heat presses, that range from small-format ‘clamshell’ and 3D vacuum heat presses, to larger calendar units and flatbed heat presses. Businesses are able to personalise pre-treated or polymer custom objects, and also produce a range of high-value textile, soft signage, fashion, sportswear and furnishing applications.”
UV inkjet technology uses long lasting, energy efficient UV-LED lamps to cure ink directly to the surface of the media, he says. In addition to personalised goods, interior décor, and architectural applications, this technology allows for the creation of product prototypes, labels, decals, packaging prototypes and also sign and display applications.
Valley's electronic edge
While for many display printers, the explosion in non-printed digital display technology has been viewed as a threat, but not so at Valley Edge Design, a 25-year-old design and print provider in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.
Managing director Rocky Cassaniti has made the decision to produce electronic signage. Cassaniti has been in printing for 26 years and has seen the great and not-so-great times. Valley Edge Design went into the signage business in 2002. “There was a need to support our clients with signage products and large format printing. We were designing it, why not manufacture it also and bring those costs inhouse?
“The formulation of printing and signage and design as its core led me to think about how else we could service our clients. The billboard media business has always fascinated me, and is a big industry with some big players. I’m not thinking of them as competition. My ultimate goal was to help promote my clients and my not-for-profit clients through effective billboard advertising,” he says.
A major part of Valley Edge’s DOOH activity is running its own billboard which showcases advertising from third-party clients as well as inhouse promos. Says Cassaniti: “We have had so much positive response that the billboard is full of advertising each week – one advert running for eight seconds with seven adverts running per minute. We ran the new Qantas ‘coming home’ campaign for about six weeks which was a great client to showcase our digital billboard screen.
“Other clients include YMCA, Ray White, Mater Children’s Hospital, MIFQ – and our best client, Valley Edge Design Centre! Yes, we promote ourselves on a static skin on the reverse side and a digital advert runs every day. We have new inquiries every day and every new inquiry is an opportunity to promote all areas of the Valley Edge Group.”
How did Valley Edge acquire and implement the technology? “It is the latest in Japanese LEDs manufactured in the USA,” explains Cassaniti. “We didn’t buy cheap. If you buy cheap, you get cheap. I spent a year researching the industry and a year implementing the business.”
The electronic signage business at Valley Edge Design is named Gas Media, a title Cassaniti has owned for more than ten years and related to Valley Edge Design’s location at Newstead/Fortitude Valley, Queensland and the gasometer which supplied gas to Brisbane’s north side in the 1970s. “I have now trademarked the name and have had offers from a competitor for a joint venture. The billboard is located inbound on Abbotsford Road, Bowen Hills, on the Coates Hire site.”
Cassaniti reports that LED signage has boosted Valley Edge Design’s overall performance. “Gas Media has brought a new dynamic to our business. The culture is awesome and the feeling is quietly satisfying. Not only do we design our clients’ brochure, we print it and make the signage for their business and if they are serious about growing and marketing their business, then we also promote and advertise them to 37,000 vehicles per day. Has it improved our performance? Well, it has definitely given us the edge. Which is what we are all about.”
“Inkjet dye sublimation printing is the process where specially manufactured inks, containing heat activated ‘dye sublimation’ dyes, are fixed by heat and pressure into a polyester substrate, such as a polyester fabric or polyester coated surface. This process requires the graphics to be printed on to special transfer paper, then a heat press is required to transfer the ink on to the item that you want to decorate. Once again, in addition to producing decorative applications such as fashion items, interior décor and personalised goods, users can deliver additional applications including flags, banners, backlit displays, and sportswear.”
Screen Australia reports that the new Screen Truepress Jet W3200UV-HS flatbed UV has gone into Melbourne large format signage and display printer, Resolution Imaging, its third Australian installation since being introduced locally in 2014. Resolution Imaging’s director Darren Watkins says: “We previously had a Screen 1632UV but needed more productivity plus white ink as we grew and attracted more customers. The W3200UV has been a huge success in this regard and more; a step up in productivity, a step up in quality and several steps up in versatility.”
Screen’s managing director Peter Scott sees Truepress Jet W3200 UV as a versatile UV printer that can handle both rigid and roll materials. He says, “Stunning decorative products can be printed using multi-passes and file masking. The results are rich, three-dimensional and extremely appealing to both eye and touch. Lenticular ‘moving’ images can also be produced with multi-pass. The fundamental work-horse capabilities of the printer are not compromised, so it is always available for a long run of 3.2 x 1.6 metre beds for instance.”
EFI’s entry in UV is its 2m/3.2m Vutek GS Pro-TF series for custom formed signs, packaging, POP displays, vending panels and other thermoforming applications. In dye-sub, EFI has its Vutek 3250r, a 3.2m fabric printer that handles textile printing and soft signage.
HP’s Latex 850 is a 3.2m solution using water-based HP Latex inks with applications in self-adhesive vinyl, paper, wallpaper, PVC banner, and film, as well as printing direct to fabric for indoor temporary textiles. Agfa offers its Jeti Titan S and the Jeti Titan HS: true flatbed, six-colour UV inkjet printers, while in dye-sub, it fields machines such as its Ardeco 3312 and 3308 high-end roll-to-roll soft signage printers.
Challenge of DOOH
Non-printed display is becoming a force to be reckoned with and outdoor media companies such as oOh! and APN are pouring money into building digital infrastructure. Significant numbers of assets in airports, shopping centres, even suburban bus shelters, are either being converted to digital or created in digital from new.
Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) currently makes up 27.3 per cent of total revenue, year-on-year, as at November 2015, up from 16.9 per cent in the same period for the previous year, meaning it has grown by a whopping 60 per cent in a year. The Outdoor Marketing Association (OMA) believes this growth trend will continue as digital technology enables advertisers greater flexibility and immediacy when planning their Out-of-Home (OOH) campaigns. But OMA’s CEO Charmaine Moldrich sees printed signage as ‘still alive and well’, with DOOH as ‘the icing on top of the OOH cake’.
“It is naive to believe that digital doesn’t increase the opportunities for OOH media operators, advertisers and consumers alike,” Moldrich tells ProPrint, “but out of the 78,000 or so advertising faces we sell, the majority of them are still printed faces.” Overall outdoor audiences grew by 3.4 per cent in 2015, but Moldrich says that while there has been investment and growth in digital, “it is not at the expense of our static [printed] inventory”.
“By aligning with mobile and digital technologies, OOH is now able to connect advertisers with their audience anywhere, anytime, changing the focus from the age-old formula of image, copy and logo, to one that offers creatives a plethora of ways of immersing people in a product or service and connecting audiences to those experiences. A static poster can give a brand dominance and really say ‘I own this space’ – which is a powerful proposition”, she says.
Can printers get in on the DOOH act? Definitely, says Moldrich. “I absolutely believe printers can successfully adopt non-print technologies as part of their product offering. Digital offers a new layer to the static medium and gives OOH more depth than ever before. As other traditional media channels struggle to adapt to technology, OOH has continued to stay relevant by integrating digital and online into the existing channel.
She makes the point that in many applications, static displays have the edge on video LED screens as they can be larger, the client’s message is the only one on the display (unlike electronic rotation of advertisements), and motorists can glimpse the full printed message during their brief pass-by.
Epson’s Ryan Warby predicts there will always be a place for large-format printing in the display markets. “However, as we have seen with many technological advancements, businesses need to adapt and look for new opportunities in order to thrive. This is where expanding and investigating new and niche markets is key. The old cliché applies, businesses that adapt and invest are more likely to succeed over their less adaptive counterparts.”
Roland DG’s Greg Stone assesses that with the emergence of non-printed display technology such as digital signage, there has been little impact on the wide format printing sector. “Non-printed displays and print signage should be viewed as complementary, and used together to deliver effective messages to viewers. There are many opportunities for print providers to learn about non-printed displays, and offer this as part of an overall signage solution.”
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