Epson Completes Construction of New Inkjet Print-Head Factory

Seiko Epson reported today that it’s completed construction of a new factory at Akita Epson Corporation, an Epson company in Japan. The company says the new factory will triple its inkjet print-head production.

Epson invested 3.5 billion yen ($24.65 million) into the new factory, which began construction in November 2022.

The company noted that its print solutions are based on its original Micro Piezo inkjet technology for customers in the office, home, commercial, and industrial print markets. It says global demand for inkjet printers is forecast to continue growing, fueled by strong demand for decentralized printing since the COVID-19 pandemic, with robust demand for its  high-capacity ink tank printers not only in emerging markets but also in North America and other developed economies.

Epson PrecisionCore MicroTFP Print Heads

According to Epson, demand for commercial and industrial inkjet printers is also increasing along with a technology shift from analog to digital printing in sectors where the printing media is not paper, such as digital textile printing. Moreover, many commercial and industrial inkjet printers use Epson PrecisionCore MicroTFP print heads, which can be  adapted for different applications by assembling MicroTFP print chips in various combinations.

PrecisionCore MicroTFP print heads are equipped with an array of individually controlled ink nozzles. They can eject 50,000 tiny ink droplets per second, with droplet sizes as small as several picoliters (one trillionth of a liter).

Currently, about 20 percent of Epson’s inkjet printers are equipped with PrecisionCore print heads, but Epson expects this percentage to increase, since commercial and industrial printers and high-speed line-head inkjet multifunction printers use a larger number of print chips per unit.

New Factory

The new Akita Epson factory is designed to increase the production and assembly of print heads, the core component of inkjet printers, to keep pace with the increased production of MicroTFP print chips made possible by investment in the front-end process at Epson’s Hirooka Office, in Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture. The new factory is also designed to provide space for future expansion of the facility, with a view to strengthening the product lineup, expanding print-head sales to third parties, and meeting growing demand for inkjet printers equipped with PrecisionCore MicroTFP print heads.

The new factory is situated adjacent to Epson’s existing print-head factory. For its design, Epson robots and other equipment will be arranged in islands. By using this island design, Epson aims to increase production efficiency by 30 percent on a high-throughput production line.

Akita Epson says it closely collaborates with Epson’s research and development centers in Japan. It also shares the advanced production technology how it gains through the production of core devices with Epson’s overseas production sites to improve the Epson Group’s overall manufacturing capabilities.