Van Straaten deploys world´s biggest sublimation printer

Rob van den Braak/28/03/2016/Fespa INT, Large Format/Sign

Van Straaten, a nearly 100 year old family company at Schiphol Airport (Amsterdam, the Netherlands), was looking for something bigger than their 3,2 meter wide printer. Durst developed, together with a visual branding specialist, a 5 meter wide version of their Rhotex dye sublimation printer. This printer will allow Van Straaten, who have a production hall which spans 6500 sqm, to take on the biggest jobs in the world. Van Straaten finds their clients through their international offices and their clients are big firms and brands who appreciate the colour and quality of sublimation. Read more about this gigantic printer and about Van Straaten in the press release below.

WORLD’S LARGEST SUBLIMATION PRINTER NOW IN PRODUCTION AT VAN STRAATEN IN THE NETHERLANDS

7 March 2016

Van Straaten is proud to announce that it is now the owner of the latest breakthrough in sublimation printing – the Durst Rhotex 500. Durst developed this sublimation printer, capable of 5 m wide textiles, in close consultation with Van Straaten. Up until now, these type of sublimation printers have been able to handle a maximum width of 3.2 m. This breakthrough makes it possible to sublimation print large spreads in one run without the need for joins, producing a truly stunning result. Sublimation printing on this scale is also eco-friendlier.

Van Straaten and Durst have been working together very closely for several months to develop the world’s largest sublimation printer. The partnership came about as a result of Van Straaten’s goal to sublimation print larger format soft fabrics. The printer will be presented at the FESPA Digital 2016 trade show being held at the RAI Amsterdam from 08 to 11 March. A second printer was recently installed and tested at Van Straaten’s 6,500-m² production facility at Schiphol Airport.

HIGH QUALITY & GREEN

Heat-sensitive inks bond directly with the textile’s surface during the sublimation process, penetrating the material’s structure. The quality of sublimation prints are excellent, because dot patterns aren’t visible. Other major advantages are that prints do not fade or damage easily, and are totally odourless. These are just a few of the reasons why sublimation printing is gaining in such popularity. However, until recently, one of the limiting factors of sublimation printing was a maximum width restriction of 3.2 m. This whilst the market demands larger soft fabrics.

In addition to the ability to use sublimation print for larger sized soft fabrics, sustainability is a major value add. The fabrics that Van Straaten has introduced for this sublimation printer are REACH certified and contain no heavy metals or PVC. The inks used are also water based. Sublimated textiles can also be folded. This means that they can be packaged, stored and transported more efficiently, resulting in leaner logistics processes for the customers of Van Straaten.

NEW WORLD STANDARD

Van Straaten is a family-run business that has been a pioneer in innovative visual branding printing techniques for ninety-eight years now. It believes that it will be setting a new standard in printing with the arrival of this new printer. Niels van Straaten (Managing Director) explains, ‘The progression to 5 m wide sublimation printing is a logical one. There’s ever growing demand for “bigger and better” and visual media are no exception in this respect. This new sublimation printer also gels nicely with our policies on sustainability. We’re currently the first company to offer 5 m sublimation printing, but it will soon become the norm.’

Rob van den Braak

Printer’s devil (1964), phototypesetter, offsetprinter, teacher of graphic techniques, salesmanager, productmanager, trade journalist, founder of BlokBoek e-zine (2011). But above all husband, father, friend and lover of life in southern Spain (since 2010).