The Best of Inkjet and Toner

In the commercial print market today, analog printing processes, especially lithographic offset, still rule in terms of the volume and value of materials printed. However, that volume and value are falling as demand rises for personalized materials printed on demand and in smaller but more frequent numbers. These demands can only be met by digital print.

Market researcher Smithers tells us that in 2032 digital print will be worth $230.5 billion, accounting for almost a quarter of the global value of all print and printed packaging. This is a little under 3.0 trillion A4 prints, an increase of 68.6% on the 2022 market [1] And within that figure for digital printing, inkjet accounted for 61.4% of digital print value with 62.4% of volume in 2022. This will increase to 74.1% of value and 77.5% of volume in 2032 [2].

As the commercial print sector continues to digitize, businesses have a choice when it comes to the best digital print technologies to take them forward. For some, the speed and quality of inkjet will be paramount, while for others, the added flexibility of toner and the ability to print special colors and special effects for creative applications will be of greater utility. For many, a combination of both technologies will be the answer.

Fujifilm is unique in offering best-in-class solutions and decades of experience in the development of both inkjet and toner technologies, so whichever digital path a company takes, Fujifilm has both the product portfolio and the expertise to support.

Furthermore, Fujifilm’s analog print heritage means that it understands the process and challenges of introducing digital print technologies into a business in a way that digital-only rivals cannot. When all these factors are considered, there is no better partner in the market to support digital transformation.

The Fujifilm Inkjet Story

The story of Fujifilm and inkjet technology is a story in many parts. There are the printheads; the UV and water-based inkjet inks, and the sophisticated integration and optimization technologies that tie it all together. Fujifilm inkjet technologies power printing solutions like the Jet Press 750S, which has been setting the standard for quality and reliability in digital print production in the commercial sector for a decade, as well as a range of inkjet production solutions for the sign and display and label and packaging sectors.

Printheads

Fujifilm Dimatix is one of the most recognizable and respected brands in inkjet printhead development. The company began in 1984 as Spectra, Inc., a very early pioneer of industrial inkjet printheads. In 2005 it changed its name to Dimatix before being acquired by Fujifilm the following year. Fujifilm itself is renowned for its history of innovation, particularly how it rapidly diversified when the bottom fell out of the photographic film market in the early 2000s. That drive to innovate has continued apace, and the acquisition of Dimatix was part of Fujifilm’s strategy to build arguably the strongest and most diverse inkjet technology platforms in the industry.

Water-based inkjet inks

Fujifilm is one of the few companies in the world with significant R&D and manufacturing capabilities in both water-based and UV inks for the commercial, wide format, and packaging sectors.  Fujifilm’s development of water-based inks for commercial applications in particular began in earnest in 2005 with the acquisition of Avecia’s Inkjet Business. A specialist in the development and manufacture of high-performance dyes, pigments and colorants, Avecia (now Fujifilm Imaging Colorants) was founded in 1985 with the launch of the first generation of high-purity inkjet colorants, and by 1994 it had built the world’s largest digital aqueous ink manufacturing facility in the USA.

With the 2005 Fujifilm acquisition and the massive investment in R&D that followed, more recent developments have produced a raft of new capabilities, including photo-grade dyes for image permanence of 50+ fifty years, proprietary reactive dispersant technologies, and the development of ultra-high performance aqueous inks for Fujifilm’s flagship B2 inkjet press, the Jet Press 750S.

Fujifilm Imaging Colorants, as a result of this consistent and continuous innovation, is a business that has grown to be the world’s largest manufacturer of aqueous inkjet fluids.

The Fujifilm toner story

It may not be widely known to a European audience, but Fujifilm has a long history of introducing innovative toner-based office copiers, monochrome printers, and full-colour commercial printing systems, alongside significant document and business service solutions. Historically this technology was developed through its Fuji Xerox subsidiary, now called FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corporation.

Although initially a joint venture with Rank Xerox (later Xerox), the business was consolidated to the Fujifilm Group in 2001 when it acquired 75% of the equity and became a wholly owned Fujifilm subsidiary in 2019 when it acquired the final 25%.

In the last 60 years, Fujifilm has developed world-leading expertise in toner-based technologies, which now include high-performance EA-Eco toners and fusing systems, laser imaging, and registration systems, screening and smoothing algorithms, and finishing and post-processing systems. Many of these technologies are best-in-class, resulting in industry-leading printer performance.

Fujifilm Toner Technologies