Get the Most from Your Latex Printer

If you’re considering working with HP Latex print technology — or if you’ve purchased a latex printer that you’d like to get more use out of — you’ve clicked on the right blog. Let’s take a look at how HP Latex technology can help you improve production times, save money on consumables and offer more products to your customers.

Save Money: While your initial investment on equipment may be higher than other print technologies, the cost of consumables such as ink and media are quite a bit lower. In fact, latex ink costs are nearly half the price of aqueous inks. Media, such as banner material, can cost 10-30% less than aqueous versions, depending on the material. Those overall, long-term savings are significant.

Improve Workflow: When an HP Latex printer is installed in your facility, a tech will spend time with your team providing operation instruction, so the learning curve is quick and easy. Once in production, since latex inks don’t need to be coated, you’ll save the time and expense that come into play with coating canvas, for instance. With latex, there’s no need to add a protective coating, so just select a roll of gloss canvas, print, stretch and go — all within the same day! Plus, the durable latex inks are fade- and scratch-resistant and can last up to five years without a protective coating or laminate.

Offer More Solutions: This may be the biggest opportunity for print service providers. With latex, you can expand your offerings into all the major digital print market segments, including fine art and photo reproduction, canvas wraps, indoor and outdoor signage, trade show graphics, adhesive vinyls for a multitude of applications, and the exploding specialty décor market. More and more materials are currently being manufactured for latex production, including fabrics and wallcoverings.

The Latex Difference: When using HP Latex-certified materials, you are ensured that not only will you get accurate, consistent results, but in many cases you’ll be able to offer your customers products that have been verified for environmental and human health safety, which you cannot achieve with solvent technology, for instance. Often, hospitals, hotels, schools and corporations look for these verifications and certificates to help them achieve LEED certification for their buildings. You can make a big difference in helping them reach this goal!

Last year, HP introduced its Latex Print & Cut bundle, pairing latex printers and top-of-the-line cutters. Check out the video below to learn about the applications you can produce, like stickers, decals or vehicle graphics, and how they stack up to the competition.

To discover all the HP Latex printer options, please visit LexJet.com and call a LexJet print specialist at 800-453-9538 today.

Tradeshow Trends: How to Standout in a Crowd

There was a time when walking around a tradeshow was quite monotonous, not much creativity in the messaging or use of products from designers. Everyone was using flat graphics printed on paper – laminated for protection and glare-reduction, of course – displayed on a banner stand or two.

Times, audiences and products have changed, which means that tradeshow designers had to keep up with the demands of more sophisticated crowds. According to Statista, tradeshows are still one of the top activities for business-to-business marketing, generating nearly $13 billion in revenue in 2016.

If you’ve attended a tradeshow lately, you may have noticed that companies are building fully functional worlds on their plot of land on the convention floor. The reason for such a dramatic shift in attention-grabbing designs is because more than 80 percent of attendees are directly involved with purchasing decisions, according to Statista’s report.

Access to current print technologies such as latex and dye-sub allows for booth designers to expand their storytelling ideas, given such limited space and narrow window of time to capture the imagination of the attendees and draw them into the booth.

Many LexJet customers are using a variety of products and applications for tradeshows and we’ve included some of their favorites when it comes to producing show-stopping, conversation-inducing booths:

  • ChromaLuxe dye-sub aluminum panels boast beautiful photographic images to create décor or custom table tops where visitors relax and enjoy the artistry of the booth.
  • Graphics produced with latex-compatible EnduraFabTM textiles are lightweight and easy to install. EnduraFabTM Frontlit can be used to create banners or table skirts, or use EnduraFabTM Stretch in an SEG frame as an alternative to acrylic cardholders.
  • For soft, backlit graphics, HP Durable Backlit Fabric is another lightweight solution that creates crisp photographic images using latex technology.
  • The Avery Dennison MPI 2600 Series Wall Films can add texture and life to the temporary walls that dominate the tradeshow floor with graphics printed on eco-solvent or latex printers.

If you are looking for new products to explore, call your LexJet sales specialist at 800-453-9538 today.

HP Light Fabric for the Win

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If you’ve been following your favorite college basketball team during the NCAA Tournament for the past week, you have most likely felt the glory of winning, or the frustration of defeat. Hands down, winning is just so much better. Wouldn’t it be great to always feel that way?

G313404072004_JPGHighresTo win in the large-format printing industry, the key is to be able to offer a variety of media for a multitude of applications. In today’s market, it’s important to have a display or banner material that performs like a real MVP. HP Light Fabric has all the aspects you need to become a part of the championship team. This lightweight, knitted polyester fabric pops with bright, vibrant colors. It is an environmentally friendly alternative to PVC, and it has a winning price point, too.

G8263003012008_JPGHighresHP Light Fabric has a variety of uses, like displays, banners, event signage, retail POP and more, and it’s easy to use. HP Light Fabric’s excellent ink saturation produces brilliant prints that resists creases and wrinkles. It’s a perfect direct-print trade-off to dye-sublimation and fabric printing, and it’s compatible with HP Latex inks. It also has an approved fire certification.

To get on the winning team for banners and displays, call a LexJet print specialist a call at 800-453-9538 to learn more about HP Light Fabric and more.

Wall Couture Makes an Impact with Man Under Water

LexJet Print-N-Stick Wall Mural

Ken Gemes Interiors creates inviting, timeless interior environments for the discerning home owner, whether that owner is ensconced in the city or wants to revitalize a more pastoral location.

Having recently moved to the firm’s new location in Mount Vernon, N.Y., founder and president Ken Gemes transformed a warehouse space into a showcase of the firm’s design expertise. One of the pivotal components of the new space is a 15-foot-wide by 9 1/2-foot tall conference room wall mural from décor specialist Soicher Marin, based in Sarasota, Fla.

Soicher Marin has developed a line of wall coverings called Wall Couture™ that combines LexJet’s Print-N-Stick Fabric as the base material with designs, patterns, photos, art and graphics from Soicher Marin’s extensive art library, each uniquely selected and custom-printed for the client’s environment.

One of the benefits of Wall Couture/Print-N-Stick is its ease of use: it’s repositionable, removable and re-usable, and much easier to apply than traditional wallpaper or adhesive-backed vinyl. In this case, Soicher Marin printed the photograph, Man Under Water, in eight 28-inch-wide panels and sent the panels to Ken Gemes Interiors.

“Soicher Marin gave us excellent instructions and the mural went up without a hitch,” says Gemes. “The image is a real show-stopper in the conference room, and adds a big wow factor to our space.”

Soicher Marin’s Katie Bellinder says the key to a seamless application is in the overlap. “We print an inch overlap so that when they apply it to the wall, you put the first panel down, then the second one next to it with an inch of overlap, and so forth for each subsequent panel,” she says. “Then, you take a straight edge and cut off the overlaps so that you have perfect seams that don’t show. It’s not like traditional wallpaper, where you almost always have leftover material you won’t use. We print only what they need.”

The mural was printed on Soicher Marin’s HP Latex 260 Printer. Bellinder says the latex inks provide additional durability, and that scuff marks and dirt are easily removed with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.

Tools and Expert Advice at the HP Latex Knowledge Center

HP Latex Knowledge Center

Go to www.hp.com/communities/HPLatex to access the HP Latex Knowledge Center where you can talk to experts at HP, share insights with other print service providers experienced with HP Latex printers, and access valuable tools and information about HP Latex printing.

The HP Latex Knowledge Center includes:

  • A user forum where you can ask questions, share tips and tricks and more
  • Access to HP Latex experts on HP Latex 200, 300 and 800 series printers and the HP Latex 3000 printer, plus the HP WallArt Solution and applications and media for HP Latex printing
  • Technical videos, application tutorials and educational background material

HP will add updates and new features in response to your feedback and requests. The new HP Latex 300 series printers are available through LexJet, so if you have any questions about HP Latex or any other type of printer, call a LexJet customer specialist at 800-453-9538.

More Application Opportunities for Latex Inkjet Printing

Printing Backlits with HP Latex Printers

Give your customers the benefits of backlits, posters, maps, photo prints and more with HP Latex Printers. With HP Latex Printers from LexJet you can cut down on print time since latex inks are dry right out of the printer and ready for laminating and finishing.

Plus, you get better saturation and no banding, making backlit signs deeper, richer and more vibrant. The perfect backlit inkjet media is HP Backlit Polyester Film, which not only produces super-sharp images that pop out when backlit, it’s recyclable for a sustainable print process.

For posters, maps and other temporary graphics you can eliminate the laminating step for temporary graphics since HP Latex Inks are as durable as low-solvent inks, plus latex inks are environmentally-friendly. Choose from a variety of versatile HP and LexJet inkjet media, including HP Coated Paper and LexJet 46# Simple Bond WR for economical temporary signage, maps and technical applications.

HP Latex Printers also allow you to create long-lasting photo-realistic prints on a variety of photo papers. For eye-catching posters, HP Photo-realistic Poster Paper produces vibrant images at an economical price point. LexJet also recently introduced two new photo papers for the more discerning customer: Sunset Photo Gloss SUV 275g and Sunset Photo Satin SUV 275g.

LexJet offers the HP Latex Printer lineup – including the HP Latex 210 61″ Printer, HP Latex 260 61″ Printer and the Latex 280 104″ Printer – as well as a full range of HP and LexJet media compatible with these printers.

If you are not yet using HP Latex technology and are interested in finding out more, the timing couldn’t be better since LexJet is offering a Play Now, Pay Later promotion on all printers 36” and larger, including the HP Latex 210, Latex 260 and Latex 280.