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Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Finding a Competitive Advantage for Poster Printing

Poster Printing
Productive Displays, Addison, Ill., was able to print high-quality posters cost-effectively with Sunset Photo Satin SUV.

There are certain volumes for poster printing where digital inkjet printing simply can’t compete with offset or screen printing. However, those volume numbers, and the margin where such projects are profitable, inch higher for digital printing companies as time goes by.

Inkjet Poster PrintingBruce Ulrich, president of Productive Displays in Addison, Ill., reports that with the addition of LexJet Sunset Photo Satin SUV 275g, that volume number where his company can compete for poster jobs with offset and screen printing is near 1,000.

“Typically, where we compete most effectively for this type of work is in the 1-800 piece range. Once we go over 1,000 pieces I would need another 20-30 percent off the cost,” says Ulrich. “We used another product in the past, but it was much more expensive. I needed to find an option that would give us at least another 40-50 percent off the cost of producing posters.”

Ulrich found that option with LexJet with Sunset Photo Satin SUV 275g. Moreover, Productive Displays is able to provide a higher-quality, sharper and more color-accurate poster. Sunset Photo Satin SUV is also instant-dry, so that production of multiple-run posters can move quickly and smoothly using the company’s Mimaki JV3 solvent printers.

Inkjet Poster PrintingThe job pictured here for Dish Network is an excellent example as it required three versions with 100 prints of each version. Variable-data print projects, where there are multiple versions of the same print, continues to become more commonplace, fitting nicely into a wide-format digital print company’s wheelhouse.

“With most customers, they’ll come back and ask me for the price for three versions, five versions or ten versions. When they say that to the offset or screen print companies there’s a setup charge. I try to explain to them that where our favorable cost situation comes into play is that it doesn’t matter how many versions they want, the price per poster won’t change,” explains Ulrich. “The client was very pleased with the look and quality of the posters. The Sunset product will allow us to compete more cost-effectively against the offset and screen print companies for poster-related projects.”

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Fishing for Business with Backlits

Phasmid Rentals, located near Bozeman, Mont., rents vehicles with a twist. Say you want to fly fish… Phasmid will rent you the vehicle to get there, fully outfitted for fly fishing. When Phasmid needs someone to outfit them with everything they need for signs and graphics, they turn to INK Outside the Box.

Printing backlit signs with a laminateINK Outside the Box recently upped the ante of its product line, adding a lift truck to its equipment inventory. This is a big deal for a company that’s been focused primarily on large format inkjet output, but the move made sense because customers were demanding help with their backlit signs.

INK Outside the Box was happy to oblige and has successfully grown business in this direction. Now, instead of just selling the printed sign face, they can service the installation as well.

“Since we’re there we might as well service the sign; it’s easier to fix the lighting when you’re replacing the sign face. Fortunately, I already had expertise; I was a journeyman electrician for awhile,” explains Justin Lind of INK Outside the Box.

Lind also decided to experiment with the production of the sign face, printing directly to LexJet Performance Gloss Vinyl Laminate (3 Mil) with the company’s Mimaki JV3 solvent printer, applying the printed laminate to a milky white polycarbonate sign face, and then protecting the image with either a matte or semi-gloss ClearStar liquid laminate.

“It’s almost like doing stained glass; the light comes through it really nice,” says Lind. “It lets a lot of light through, a lot more than if you were to print to a semi-translucent white vinyl, so we’re getting bright colors out of it.”

The sign face for Phasmid Rentals pictured here was printed using this method and Lind says it lights up spectacularly at night, especially with the black-printed background and the light-colored lettering. We’ll post a nighttime shot soon, so check back here for an update.