Although the amount of printing has decreased in Japan, the total amount of auto flat, rotary-screen and roller printing is large, compared to that of inkjet printing.

The production rate of inkjet printers is slower than conventional methods. That is why a fair share of printing is being carried out worldwide through conventional methods such as auto flat, rotary-screen, roller and hand printing today.

Outside view of TPF, Seiren Co., Ltd.

A CAD room at TPF, Seiren Co., Ltd.

A Viscotecs PR sheet hanging on the outside wall of the Tokyo branch, Seiren Co., Ltd.

Mass production enabled by Seiren Co., Ltd., Japan

Is inkjet printing not suited for mass production?

There are exceptions, one of which is Seiren Co., Ltd., Japan, whose factories have a number of inkjet printers lined up together, in operation with focused and specialized printing.

As it involves a large amount of investment for parallel inkjet printing, many companies remain with a sole printer at work for small-lot production.

Introduced below is how the Fukui factory of Seiren Co., Ltd. operates with arrays of printers and its mass production is accomplished.

Several hundred inkjet printers, or the so-called Viscotecs system, are lined up together and simultaneously print out designed patterns transmitted from CAD. Different designs may be selected for printing through each printer. Patterns are designed through CAD and can be printed out at a command.

Other companies, though willing to do the same, remain as they are, for it requires a large amount of investment. Seiren's system was shown to a confined circle of journalists, scholars and industrialists on a visit to the factory at operation, however, details of the Viscotecs mechanism are yet to be released.

How much the head nozzle of Viscotecs could be improved in ink discharge is what is eagerly anticipated by many.

It is not easy to predict as details are kept quiet by Seiren. Still, it is such an advantage to be one of the first to realize parallel lines of simultaneous printing in the world. It indicates that only having such capital strength as Seiren's could enable mass production by inkjet printing, and that other companies could not emulate it.

Future prospects of inkjet printing
Moving towards realization of higher speed

If other companies are to carry out mass textile printing with a single inkjet printer, its speed requirements will be more than 200 meters per hour. Until then, Seiren will be alone, far ahead of all others.

Prices of inkjet print systems vary. For a unit of Canon's inkjet print system, the cost of investment would be as high as adequately covering the price of two economical auto flat-screen printers.

Rotary or auto flat-screen printers of prices near to Canon's inkjet print system (bubble-jet method) would carry out a far larger amount of printing.

Canon Inc., which delivered its inkjet systems to Hashimoto Senko (textile printing) and others around 1999, has converted its sales strategy to put more emphasis on bubble-jet printers for office use.

Now, let us now look at Stork N.V., Holland, a pioneer of inkjet systems for textiles, and at its sales promotion.

At ITMA '91 in Hannover, Stork introduced an inkjet print system for design sample production.

At the next ITMA '95 in Milan, Stork exhibited a test device of inkjet printing for large-sized textiles. The applied ink was reactive dye based.

Production of inkjet printers was given an added boost among Japanese companies such as Canon, Konika and Mimaki. Konika presented one with disperse-dye-based ink. At ITMA '99 in Paris, another Japanese company, Toshin Kogyo, exhibited an inkjet printer for wide textiles with its 'special color system'. A broad range of inks for inkjet printers, including reactive and disperse-dye-based ones, was brought into use in Japan. Worldwide attention was now drawn to Japanese inkjets.

Among moves which Japanese companies such as Konika and Mimaki made, the formation of a knowledge alliance with Stork was particularly well noted. Its outcome, OEM products, was exhibited as Stork's at ITMA '99.

The special feature of the device displayed in the Stork's booth was that it included wide textiles in inkjet printing, just like its opponent Toshin Kogyo's.

Expectations that Stork would extend its efforts into the development of a high-speed inkjet printing method were let down, as it decided to stand quietly away from Zimmer, Toshin Kogyo and Reggiani and the energy they were putting into their research.

What then is in Stork's mind would probably be apparent at ITMA 2003 in Birmingham. That is the forecast by many in the printing industry.