Labelled the “world’s fastest web-fed full-colour inkjet press”, the machine uses Kodak’s Stream Inkjet technology with the manufacturer’s water-based Ectacolor inks, achieving up to 410m/min or 5,523 A4ppm in Turbo print mode.
While commercially available in Europe now, the machine has not yet been displayed publicly on the continent or in the UK, and is yet to see its first installation in Europe since the US’ first Prosper 7000 Turbo was installed in Rochester, New York in November 2023.
Supporting a maximum web width of 648mm with variable cutoff length up to 1,372mm, the engine can print on a range of coated and uncoated stocks, newsprint, specialty and recycled papers, with weights from 42-270gsm.
Aimed at printers looking to migrate larger direct mail, commercial, transactional and book printing jobs onto digital workflows, the press will be displayed in conjunction with a Horizon iCE StitchLiner Mark V, producing saddle-stitched catalogues, and a Hunkeler paper processing line, which will demonstrate the handling of a “demanding” direct mail job.
“We are excited to bring the Prosper 7000 Turbo Press to Europe for the first time and to raise the bar in terms of speed and production efficiency at Hunkeler Innovationdays,” said Jim Continenza, executive chairman and chief executive officer of Kodak.
“Our Prosper presses, using high-speed continuous inkjet technologies and proprietary Kodachrome and Ektacolor inks, and Kodak Optimax primers, help printers in the ‘and’ era of print by providing ultra-productive, cost-effective printing of a wide range of applications.”
Aside from its high-speed Turbo mode, the Prosper 7000 also offers Quality (600x900dpi) mode, which it says is roughly comparable to offset printing using a 200lpi screen, and Performance mode, which offers 600x600dpi and an offset equivalent of 133lpi.
Turbo mode prints at 600x450dpi, equivalent for 85-100lpi, and can be used for newspaper printing with low ink coverage.
Hunkeler Innovationdays takes place in Lucerne’s Messe exhibition centre from 24-27 February.
