Valentin Govaerts, Xerox Europe senior vice president Production Systems Group, was given the task of developing its wide-format strategy.

Why me? Govaerts asked. The growth is in graphic arts and big companies that are our customers for production machines.

The firm focused on Europe initially because its dealers in the wide-format market were in danger of switching suppliers.

Although it is introducing new monochrome products for CAD, which has until now been its core wide-format market, it is also selling colour machines suitable for a range of display print uses.

It has just launched a new monochrome machine, the 721, which produces 11 A0 sheets per minute, building on the 510 series it launched earlier this year.

In the long-term it is working with Fuji-Xerox on colour products, the first of which will launch at the end of next year, but it has signed short term tactical strategic deals with Epson and Mutoh.

It is already selling Epsons Stylus 10600, 9600 and 7600 aqueous ink-jet printers and from December will sell Mutoh Rockhopper II and Toucan solvent ink-jet printers.

The markets these products address are growing at 6% and 10% respectively, faster then the wide-format market in general, and Govaerts plans to grow Xeroxs share ahead of the market.

To drive the printers it has expanded its deal with French wide-format RIP/workflow developer Caldera to an exclusive deal, and one which Govaerts said would differentiate its offering.

In the UK it will work with a network of 10-12 resellers, including Litho Supplies.