Gerber ships world’s first cationic ink jet printer
Imagine an ink jet printer that is capable of printing
on virtually any surface and creates prints that are dry and ready to
use immediately after printing. That’s what Gerber’s Solara ion
printers do. Before you get too excited, let us mention that there is a
good chance that you will get a sticker shock when you see the Solara’s
price tag. But then, it isn’t really a consumer product – but a
fascinating technology nevertheless.
The Solara ion can print on media that are up to 64” (1.6 m) wide and up to 1” (2.54 cm) thick. The printer
covers up to 639 square feet per hour at a resolution of up to 1440
dpi, delivering “intense reds, greens, and blues” through its CMYK
engine, according to the manufacturer. The prints are durable
enough to be used outdoors and are promised to remain intact for up to
three years. Gerber said that the Solara ion uses a piezo-based,
drop-on-demand cationic UV curable printing technology.
Obviously,
this isn’t your average inkjet printer that you would use to print
letters or tax returns. Gerber says that the device is targeted at
printing applications such as billboards, fleet graphics or vehicle
wraps. Both rigid and rollable media are supported by the device.
There
wasn’t any exact information on the price of this printer. Gerber,
however, mentioned that the Solara ion offers better performance than
any other wide format UV system on the market today for under $150,000.