It was about one-and-a-half years ago that Fujifilm India inaugurated its swanky demo center in Mumbai’s northern suburb of Dahisar. During these months, the demo center has been hosting wide format printers from across the country. Presently, the demo center houses two Acuity series LED printers and one ‘made in India’ Vybrant 1800 eco-solvent printer.
“The decision to set up the demo center was one of the most important decisions by the company management. We are conducting 10-12 demos every month with printers coming from across the country at their own expense,” says Pradipta Chowdhury, manager sales – WFIJ, graphic arts division, Fujifilm India.
Majority of the customers who visit the demo center are high-end signage printers; about 30% are from photo book printing segment and 10% of the visitors are from the industrial segment.
The demo center has had a positive impact on Fujifilm’s sales as well because live experience extended to the printers only helped boost their confidence to go for the investment. “The investment in this type of technology is big so when customers see their ideas become a reality right before them, it instills confidence in them. In UV, the range of applications is numerous, so it becomes extremely important that printers see those ideas in practice.”
Talking about Fujifilm’s first ever ‘made in India’ Vybrant 1800 eco-solvent printer, Chowdhury informs that dealers have been appointed across the country and formal sales are expected to commence very soon. The Vybrant 1800 printer targets indoor and outdoor signage and branding applications market. It has been exclusively developed and manufactured by Macart Equipment Pvt. Ltd., the leading manufacturers of inkjet printers in the country, with their manufacturing units in Pune, India.
Vybrant 1800, the wide format eco-solvent printer, was launched in September last year at the Mumbai demo center. The printer is driven by patent Fujifilm technology and has been specifically designed to provide high quality at affordable costs. The printer is equipped with Fujifilm Dimatix Q-class industrial quality print-head and runs on Peizo DOD technology.
Rising popularity of soft signage
According to Chowdhury, soft signage is gradually gaining acceptance in India, especially among Tier-I brands.
“Big brands, especially the ones in mobile phone industry, are aggressively moving towards soft signage. There are many advantages of soft signage, such as no usage of PVC, ease of use and reuse, better backlit qualities and more realistic effects. Even Tier-II brands are willing to make a shift to soft signage but due to the high costs involved, the shift is a bit slow,” he argues.
