January 30, 2004 -
Xerox Introduces Next-Generation Docutech Technology; Creates New ‘Mid-Production’ Category, Widens On-Demand Printing Market
First black-and-white copier/printers to incorporate DocuColor iGen3 technology
NEW YORK, Jan. 29, 2004 – Xerox Corporation (NYSE:XRX) today unveiled the first results of a $400 million investment to create the next-generation platform for black-and-white digital production printers, the Xerox DocuTech 100 and DocuTech 120 Copier/Printers. The two products are designed to increase Xerox’s lead in the short-run, on-demand printing market, which it created with the introduction of the first DocuTech system in 1990.
These are breakthrough products – built on a new technology platform – that create a digital alternative to complement offset printing and enable new revenue streams for print professionals. The products are designed for quick print shops, in-plant central reprographic departments and large enterprises for print jobs such as reports, booklets and day-to-day copying and duplicating – all areas where short runs, quick turnaround, variable information and offset-equivalent print quality are required.
Not only do the systems set industry standards in image quality, productivity, ease of use and reliability, but they also define an entirely new “mid-production” product category, delivering the kind of printing and publishing power previously only available on higher-end equipment.
“Our market research indicates that a significant gap exists in the market between light- and full-production digital black-and-white copier/printers. This gap makes it difficult to profitably address intermediate print volumes and job complexity. The new DocuTech 100 and 120 are the first to fill this gap with more advanced, more robust capabilities than light-production equipment and at a lower cost than full- production machines,” said Charles A. Pesko, managing director, CAP Ventures. “These mid-production products offer print-for-pay and in-plant print shops new technology that will promote both business opportunities and cost efficiencies.”
Incorporating technology developed for Xerox’s revolutionary DocuColor iGen3 Digital Production Press, the new DocuTech copier/printers are based on an innovative modular architecture. Compared with existing digital production printers, the new DocuTech products use 40 percent fewer moving parts, allowing for faster repair time and greater reliability.
“We expect this next-generation platform will do for the black-and-white world what the DocuColor iGen3 is doing for color – expanding business opportunities for Xerox and its customers within a $7 billion market of black-and-white pages currently produced on offset,” said Gil Hatch, president, Xerox Production Systems Group. “This platform works seamlessly with our open workflow offerings and is superlative for developing a new family of digital systems.”
The DocuTech 100 produces as many as 100 pages per minute in copy or print mode, and the DocuTech 120 runs at 120 ppm, establishing a new speed benchmark for digital copiers. The two are designed for average monthly print volumes up to 500,000 pages with a guaranteed, consistent duty cycle of as much as 700,000 pages a month. They are environmentally friendly by generating no hazardous waste through non-toxic dry inks. In addition, the noise level of both products has been reduced – four times less than other digital production machines.
Setting Industry Benchmarks
With 300 patents covering its groundbreaking technologies, the DocuTech 100 and 120 leapfrog competitive offerings. The new models provide:
· The best black-and-white image quality. The DocuTechs are the first black-and-white products to use iGen3 SmartPress Imaging technology, providing superior monochrome image quality using a patented “non-contact” process.
· The best scanner available. The DocuTechs are the industry’s only copier/printers that can simultaneously scan both the front and back of a document, boosting productivity and reliability. And the dual scan heads provide the fastest, highest-quality scanning in the market – 120 impressions per minute at 600-by-600 dots-per-inch resolution.
· The first built-in CD/DVD with CD read-write capability on a production copier/printer. With a CD/DVD drive, people can print jobs directly from CDs and automatically burn an archival CD of production jobs as part of the printing process.
Innovating for Productivity
In addition to adapting the SmartPress Imaging technology, Xerox has included other iGen3 innovations in the DocuTechs. Among them: SmartPress Paper Handling, which uses three independent air systems – a fluffer, an airknife and a vacuum feedhead – to move paper reliably without causing abrasions; and SmartPress Sentry, which continuously monitors and adjusts image quality to improve performance and reliability.
Contributing to the DocuTechs’ unparalleled image quality is a control system that performs 750,000 registration calculations every second and can adjust the paper in increments one-eighth the diameter of a human hair. An internal “cyclone cleaning system” removes 99.96 percent of dust and other contaminants inside the machines that may affect image quality and shorten the life of machine parts.
In addition, people need to learn only one interface for copying and printing. The DocuTechs have a single integrated interface, the Xerox DocuSP production printing controller, to support the most common print streams and file formats, providing job compatibility with 28 Xerox production systems for job balancing and local printing.
Like all Xerox printing and publishing systems, the two DocuTechs offer versatility in paper selection, feeding and finishing. Up to eight programmable trays can handle as many as 11,600 sheets ranging to 12.2” x 18.5” with weights from 16 lb. bond to 80 lb. cover. Xerox also offers the broadest selection of paper and specialty media designed for the DocuTech 100 and 120, which opens up the range of printing applications such as carbonless, transparencies, tabs and index stocks.
Pricing and Availability
Order taking on the DocuTech 100 and 120 will begin Feb. 1 through Xerox direct sales representatives, agents and concessionaires, with initial installations beginning in March. U.S. prices start at $77,000 for the DocuTech 100 and extend to $99,000 for the higher-speed DocuTech 120.
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Customer Contacts:
For more information on Xerox DocuTech systems, visit www.xerox.com or call 800-ASK-XEROX.
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