There are two things we take serious pride in here at Summit. One; our innovative ideas. And two; the ability to back those ideas up with serious skill and the latest tech. So, when HP came knocking on our door with a brand new product, are you surprised we said HELL YES and hopped onboard?
We’re excited to announce (in a total humble brag) that we are one of only five North American print shops to get fluorescent ink and the only Canadian participant. A hefty responsibility we’re taking seriously.
Why Was Summit Selected?
- We were the first digital label printers in Canada using HP technology, we’ve been around the block with HP and their technology
- We have the most digital presses in Western Canada
- We really are just that fun to work with
When we received the inks we knew we had to do something really cool with this remarkable product and the trust HP placed in our skills. So we got the team together (on a responsibly socially-distanced beer Zoom of course) and had a thought. It was time to turn the label market on its head once again. We decided to push this ink and our press further than even HP thought possible, and print with all four inks at once.
Why was this so crazy?
The standard digital press has seven ink stations, which means it can print CYMK plus three additional inks. So, to make this work, we had to develop a creative way to make some room and ditch the primary colours.
First, we figured we could flush out and fill the ink slots with all four fluorescents, then add black. Using only 5/7 slots and still hitting that rich black contrasting colour.
But, we wanted to push farther. So we used EPM mode (enhanced productivity mode) to digitally access our entire colour gambit on top of the Fluorescent Inks. This proprietary HP software allows digital printers to maximize their print efficiency. By dropping the K from CMYK we essentially turned our press into an RGB press temporarily, so now we had CYM and all four fluorescents acting in total efficiency. That’s a very long and technical way of saying we tried some wild stuff, and it worked!
What it took:
- 5 press operators
- A full drain and rinse of all 8 inks
- 12+ hours of work
- 5 artfile variants
- 16 hits of ink
- 1 talented artist
- 1 seriously dedicated team
We think the result was well worth it. But don’t just take our word for it. Check out the result in our introduction to Flourescent inks blog here!
Now, time for one final list because we love a good list. What did we find out? How about:
What’s Cool about Fluorescent ink!
- They’re ultra-bright, which absorb and reflect more light than conventional colours.
- They glow under blacklight
- Brand new technology to digital label printing
- Eye-catching and edgy
- Fluorescents compel consumers to action
- Unlimited creative options
- Digital print capable; meaning quicker set up, lower minimums, and better registration
SO WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Let us know your thoughts on this Beta project @summitlabels on IG or by dropping us a line!
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