With minimal warning, swissQprint has unveiled a new high-end flatbed printer, the Kudu. Capable of 300sqm/hr output, the Kudu will have its world premiere at Fespa in Berlin this week.
The 3.2 x 2m UV LED flatbed complements the existing range of the Swiss manufacturer’s flatbeds, the Nyala, Impala and Oryx models, and shares various aspects of their ‘fourth generation’ qualities, introduced in late 2021. Unlike them, it offers 10 colour channels (the rest have nine) as well as significantly faster output at ‘convincingly high output quality’, based on addressable resolution of up to 1350dpi.
A newly designed mechanical foundation is also key to image quality. This uses linear drives to ‘ensure precise droplet placement such high speeds,’ according to the company’s Chief of Sales and Marketing Officer Carmen Eicher. It also features the Tip Switch vacuum bed control found in the other models, with 260 zones to give highly selective vacuum control across the bed. The printer is driven by swissQprint’s Lory software, which uses a virtual flatbed interface motif.
The Kudu can be expanded with a roll-to-roll option and its 10-colour configuration allows a wide range of choices from CMYK, light C, M and K, white, effect varnish, primer for difficult substrates and neon yellow and pink spot colours.
