New Prosper 6000 Inkjet Production Printers from Kodak

Kodak in introducing its latest digital color production printers, the Kodak Prosper 6000 Presses, which it says feature new innovations in paper transport, drying, and writing systems, combined with advanced press-management technology. Based on a new product platform, the systems are designed for production printing in the book-, commercial-, and newspaper-printing businesses, as well as for print-service providers of data-driven print applications such as direct-mail and transaction printing.

The Prosper 6000 Presses are powered by an advanced Intelligent Print System (IPS) that Kodak says continuously monitors, evaluates, and adjusts operations to ensure exceptional quality printed output. With the improved IPS, the firm says the Prosper 6000 Presses can monitor and instantly correct color registration, delivering enhanced registration performance. The Presses’ writing system use Kodak’s newly formulated nanotechnology inks, which Kodak says provide a greater color gamut, and deliver print quality rivaling that of offset output on a wide range of un-coated, coated, and glossy papers.

The Prosper 6000 is available in two configurations:

• The Kodak Prosper 6000C Press, said to be ideal for commercial-print applications requiring high ink lay-downs.
• The Kodak Prosper 6000P Press, designed specifically for publishing applications such as printing books and newspapers that typically require use of light-weight paper and low-to-medium ink lay-downs.

Both Prosper 6000 Presses print at speeds of up to 1,000 feet, or 300 meters, per minute on matted and un-coated papers with a duty cycle of 90 million A4 top quality pages per month – up to 2.5 times faster than the Kodak Prosper 5000XLi Press. Enhanced ink-drying capability is said to allow use of heavy-weight glossy and silk paper stock to be printed on the Prosper 6000C Press at 650 feet, or 200 meters, per minute.

According to Doug Edwards, president of Kodak’s Digital Printing & Enterprise group: “Today’s printers need tools that enable them to quickly respond to the needs of their customers, as well as the needs of the business. From book publishing to commercial and newspaper printing, the future of the industry will revolve around digital solutions. The Prosper 6000 Presses deliver the highest industry performance coupled with quality approaching 200 lpi (lines per inch), allowing customers to increase agility so they can adapt to the changing demands of the business and better respond to their customers.”

Kodak puts color-consumables cost for at both systems at approaching $0.005 per A4-size page.

In order to accommodate short-run, on-demand printing, Kodak says the printers make it feasible and economical to print up to 200-lpi quality books at production run lengths of up to 3,000 copies.

The firm also says the systems can produce high-gloss, targeted direct-mail pieces for an average of 30 percent less than using electrophotographic (toner-based) systems, and are suitable for for production runs of up to one million mail pieces. For newspaper printing, the systems can be used for mid-size markets, producing from 15,000-20,000 newspapers.

For more information and complete specifications on Prosper 6000 models, visit Kodak here.