HP Latex inks with HP wide scan printing technologies

Samples of HP Latex Printing Technologies.

HP Latex Ink samples

I first learned of these new technologies from general industry knowledge in 2007 but our policy is not to release information in advance of a company’s own announcement. I was then told additional information one week before the announcement (not from HP; lots of people were already talking about the new latex ink before it was announced). But still we did not issue any public announcement on the latex ink chemistry. We respect the right of a company to ask that information be not released until it is “official.”

Now that the HP latex ink chemistry has been announced to the public, we can mention this latex ink exists. Indeed there are other new ink announcements by other companies as well (being a professor tends to mean that we find out about things early, plus we can generally estimate that needs to be developed anyway, using common sense).

This is not an ink like the vinyl jet (an ink reportedly from DuPont, used in the failed Encad VinylJet), and we are checking on other innovative inks that require a heater such as Lumocolor, by Staedtler (one of our favorite inks).

Indeed HP latex inks are now from DuPont at all (as was a brief suggestion by other consultants at ISA).

This sample is printed with an after-market "latex ink" that attempts to emulate at least some of the properties of the HP latex ink. But this third-party latex ink does not require a special heating system; it can do okay with the ordinary heating system that is already on a normal solvent printer such as Roland, Mimaki, or Mutoh.

I found this latex ink in the beta-test site for this ink company; I was not visiting the printshop to look for latex ink; I was here to inspect a UV-curable inkjet printer. But in another room I noticed an uncommon ink, I asked about it, and was told it was the first after-market latex ink, with the important feature that it does not require any new printer. Of course it is unlikely this third-party solution offers the finesse of the HP system, but it costs $100,000 less, so is more palatable for clients in countries that can't afford a hundred-thousand dollar printer.

HP latex inks compared with other non-solvent, non-UV-curable inks

There is also another unusual and atypical ink, Magic Ink by Eastech. But some consultants have suggested that Magic Ink is a solvent-based chemistry. At FESPA Digital 2008, still another new ink appeared, a water-based non-solvent, non-UV-cured ink from Sepiax Ink Technology. Until it is possible to visit the Sepiax company and learn about their ink directly, I can’t comment further. For the HP latex inks I have spoken directly with the key HP ink chemist as well as been hosted for two several-day technology briefings and trainings on HP latex inks: once at HP Scitex in Israel and once at another HP facility.

The full story will be available at DRUPA 2008, so please stay tuned to FLAAR Reports for more information. What is crucial is the potential for HP latex inks to replace eco-solvent inks. The eco-solvent ink chemistry was a farce when first introduced between 2002-2004: it was still a solvent so was hardly eco-logical; it was expensive so was hardly eco-nomical.

Eco-solvent ink does require ventilation: I visited a printshop with a Roland printer and the owners said their employees complained they could not stand being in the same room as the Roland printer with the ink supplied by Epson. On that subject, be wary of claims by Epson that its new Epson Stylus Pro GS6000 printer can be used without ventilation.