Mimaki unveils high-value, low-cost dye-sub printer

Mimaki has launched a new mid-range, 1.8m-wide dye-sublimation printer at Fespa targeted at users looking for low-cost production of high-value applications.

The TS300P-1800 is available in four- or six-colour configurations, offering a top speed in one-pass draft mode of 115m2/hr CMYK or 38m2/hr in four pass standard mode. Speeds in the equivalent six-colour modes are 65m2/hr (two-pass) and 20m2/hr (eight-pass).

The TS300P-1800 sits between the TS500 flagship sublimation printer and the TS34 in Mimaki’s portfolio.

“One of the big advantages over the TS34 is you can fire at a higher head gap with excellent precision and so avoid any problems with wet cockling, which can be a big issue in dye-sub when you’re printing on thin transfer papers,” said Mimaki Europe general marketing manager EMEA Mike Horsten.

It offers a maximum head gap of 7mm and features a powerful platen vacuum to keep cockling to a minimum.

It uses drop-on-demand piezo heads, understood to be from Panasonic, offering variable drop sizes from 5pl to 25pl and a maximum resolution of 1,440dpi.

According to Horsten, the TS300 is perfectly suited to multi-machine industrial users wanting to run multiple printers from one RIP as well as entry-level users already in vinyl production looking to take their first steps into “professional” textile.

It runs the new Sb410 inkset, which Horsten said “will be at a very attractive price point”, designed to go head-to-head with third-party inks, but at the highest quality. The ink is available in two-litre packs, for unattended operation, which can be also changed on the fly.

It also comes with a heater as standard and can handle rolls up to 40kg and 250mm in diameter.

The TS300 is available for immediate order, with shipping expected to begin in mid-July. Pricing is around €25,000 (£18,000).

As well as a wide-range of established print engines, other new kit on the firm’s Fespa stand will include the recently launched A2-format CFL-605RT low cost flatbed cutter.

“Everything on the stand will be our latest technology and we’ll be focusing on how our technology can help customers target new applications and new markets,” said Horsten.