DAYTON, Ohio., September 9 – Kodak Versamark and Muller Martini will showcase the marriage of traditional offset and digital high-speed variable printing with a new hybrid printing system in a North American debut at the Print 05 exhibition, September 9-15 at McCormick Place in Chicago.

The new hybrid printing system uses two high-speed KODAK VERSAMARK D-series printing systems, the DS9100 and DS6240, to print variable data information in-line with a 4-color MULLER MARTINI Concepta web offset press to create high-value, highly personalized printed documents at speeds of up to 1,000 feet per minute at an incredibly low cost per page.

“The advantages of hybrid Variable Offset Printing for agencies and clients are compelling as it is the fastest, least expensive way to produce highly personalized pieces in volume said Ron Gilboa, Vice President of Marketing,  Kodak Versamark.  “The hybrid   printing solution being showcased at Print05 offers printers true variable data in a single-pass production.  By combining the cost and quality advantages of traditional 4-color offset with the proven benefits of highly personalized pieces, content owners, designers, direct mailers, and print providers will have a new level of freedom to design and budget for mass mailings yet target much smaller audiences with more relevant offers and messaging, increasing response rates and lowering total cost per response.”

Muller Martini and Kodak Versamark have been working together for two years, first showing the hybrid press at Drupa 2004.  The hybrid press being demonstrated at Print 05 will be even more compact and will be using a 2-up format capable of outputting over 2,000 images per minute (4,000 in a duplex configuration). In addition to these fast speeds, KODAK Continuous Inkjet Technology offers an easier production workflow, requires less labor, all at a lower total cost per page versus comparable "off-line" applications where an offset pre-printed shell is fed into a variable digital printer for overprinting.  In addition, the configuration being shown at Print 05 will utilize Kodak’s Color Management technologies to ensure that the offset and digital printed output is harmonized.

“Both the MULLER MARTINI Concepta and KODAK VERSAMARK D-series printing products are already widely accepted individually by printing customers,” said Andrew Feathermann, division manager, Press Division for Muller Martini USA. “Combining the two printing processes into this new hybrid offset/digital press will allow print providers to lower their total manufacturing cost, offer faster turnaround times, and increase volume.  These new capabilities also will make it possible to do in-line customization and micro-versioning for large volume direct mail and other commercial printing markets.“

In addition to demonstrating the new hybrid offset/digital press, Kodak also will showcase Versamark’s continuous inkjet technology in the Mailing and Fulfillment Pavilion, Booth #3089, with products from the D-series product portfolio, the DS4350, DS7122, DS5240 and the DS6240. There, Kodak will demonstrate a complete mailing workflow, including envelope addressing, automated scanning, read and image, camera matching & verification with automatic rejection of non-matched printing and plastic card tipping and imprinting.  KODAK technology also will be on display at dozens of partner booths around the show floor.

About Muller Martini

Muller Martini is the world’s largest producer of print finishing solutions for commercial printers, trade binderies and newspapers as well as short-run and digital book manufacturers.  The company is the foremost provider of innovative workflow solutions that can empower printers and binding specialists to enhance processing efficiencies, increase profitability and build new revenue streams.  Muller Martini is also one of the leading manufacturers of Web Offset Presses.  With U.S. headquarters in Hauppauge (Long Island), New York and nationwide sales and service support throughout the United States, Muller Martini Corp. serves as the country’s leading source for bindery and printing expertise, providing customer-specific training and responsive service to printers and binderies coast-to-coast.

 
About Eastman Kodak Company

Kodak is the leader in helping people take, share, print, and view images – for memories, for information, for business, and for entertainment.  With sales of $13.5 billion in 2004, the company is committed to a digitally oriented growth strategy focused on four businesses:  Digital & Film Imaging Systems – providing consumers, professionals, and cinematographers with digital and traditional products and services; Health – supplying the medical and dental professions with traditional and digital imaging and information systems, IT solutions, and services; Graphic Communications – providing customers with a range of solutions for prepress, traditional and digital printing, document scanning, and multi-vendor IT services; and Display & Components – supplying original equipment manufacturers with imaging sensors as well as intellectual property and materials for the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) and LCD display industries.  More information about Kodak (NYSE: EK) is available at www.kodak.com.

For more information, visit www.kodak.com/go/print05.

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Kodak and Versamark are trademarks of Kodak.