Dublin-based SL Graphics has won an award for an innovative project that combined HP Scitex UV-curable ink technology with HP Latex inks, using a recently installed HP Latex 1500.
The wide-format print specialist, founded 20 years ago, has long relied on HP technology, installed by HP supplier Diatec. Around eight years ago it installed an HP Scitex FB500 UV printer, shortly followed by an HP Scitex FB700. At the start of 2019 Diatec recommended the company replace a solvent printer with a new HP Latex 1500 3.2m-wide printer, an investment that paid off in the form of a win at the Irish Print Awards 2019.
The award was specifically for an office refit project for Deloitte, which combined HP Latex and Scitex UV inks on transparent vinyl. SL Graphics was awarded the title of Bespoke Large Format Digital Printer of the Year at a black-tie awards ceremony on 29 November last year.
‘Many of our competitors were large companies so it was nice for a smaller outfit to be recognised in the IPAs,’ said Dave Savage, director, SL Graphics. ‘We had a great night and even did a little dance on the stage when we collected our trophy.’
Mr Savage explained that SL Graphics chose the new HP Latex 1500 printer following extensive research into systems that could deliver the same colour vibrancy as its older solvent printer. ‘I had been looking for something that could give the same colour balance and vibrancy on backlits. I hadn’t seen anything to match it until I saw the HP Latex. The day I saw the results on backlit PVC skin and textiles was the day I decided to buy it.’
