| The Canon iR-ADV C9000 Pro has received a | | | | volume on the 70ppm 9070 could be up to |
| thorough review from industry experts We've all | | | | 350,000 A4 sheets. For comparison, an |
| been impressed by the Canon imageRunner | | | | ImagePress tops out at 500,000-550,000 sheets. |
| Advance C9000 Pro series of light product printing | | | | Inline finishing options include an inserter, hole |
| press since their release last year, but when | | | | punch, bookletmaker with leading-edge trimmer, |
| praise comes from industry authority | | | | and a new folder, which can produce five folds |
| ‘PrintWeek Magazine' special mention would | | | | including standard Z and C folds as well as a new |
| seem to be in order. In a recent edition, | | | | double-parallel fold to offer greater flexibility |
| PrintWeek lauded the C9000 Pro's excellent | | | | in-house. |
| ‘combination of functionality, flexibility, | | | | For colour printing, The ImageRunner uses some |
| productivity and image quality,' and gave one of | | | | technologies borrowed from the ImagePress but |
| the most exhaustive reviews of the machine yet. | | | | also brings its own capabilitues to the table. New |
| Here, we provide you with a summary of | | | | toner has been designed to lower the energy |
| PrintWeek's findings and some of our own | | | | needed in fusing, which is one reason why energy |
| thoughts on what is undoubtedly the leading light | | | | consumption on the Image Runner Advance is |
| production digital printing on the UK market at the | | | | 40% lower than with the CLC. The toner is |
| moment. | | | | waxed based which eliminates the need for fuser |
| Canon's ‘Colour Laser Copier' (CLC) was for | | | | oil. The colour print range is slightly narrower than |
| years a real work-horse of the digital printing | | | | on the ImagePress but to keep output consistent, |
| industry, fending off rivals in its category well into | | | | Canon has developed a system, Automatic and |
| the new millennium. However, growing competition | | | | Reciprocal Colour Density Adjustment Technology, |
| and demands for more features and greater | | | | which monitors and automatically adjust the |
| productivity, have sadly led to the demise of the | | | | density of each colour. |
| CLC in recent years. With its strategic aim of | | | | Driving the C9060/70 models is EFI Fiery GX300, |
| being number one in the markets it serves, Canon | | | | which is available either as an external RIP or an |
| has fought back with the ImagePress professional | | | | embedded controller. Both come with the latest |
| printing machines in the colour production sector. | | | | Fiery Command Workstation 5 for an |
| And now, in light production, comes the | | | | easier-to-use interface. Two software packages |
| ImageRunner Advance Pro. | | | | are available, Uniflow and Helix. Uniflow provides |
| There are two ImageRunner Advance C9000 Pro | | | | print job tracking, auditing and analysis. Helix |
| models, the C9060 Pro and the C9070 Pro, | | | | provides job-ticketing and can be configured to |
| providing 60 and 70 colour pages per minute | | | | route jobs to the most appropriate machine. |
| respectively. | | | | Canon has also worked with document software |
| One of the most-talked about features on the | | | | firms, including Microsoft and Adobe, to provide |
| new range is its onboard profit centre. Nikki | | | | extended functionality for customers using their |
| Richardson, Canon Solution Marketing Manager | | | | applications. One example is a plug-in to Adobe |
| commented | | | | Reader that Canon has developed that enables |
| There's definitely an opportunity for printrooms to | | | | annotation and comments to be added, which |
| become profit centres with one, and it would | | | | would otherwise need a full copy of Acrobat. |
| reduce costs massively. | | | | The final string to the machine's workflow bow is |
| With the new digital printing press, companies can | | | | the MEAP-plus architecture. This is a development |
| print internal marketing materials they may have | | | | platform that allows Canon and third parties to |
| outsourced previously. Richardson commented | | | | integrate new tools and services into the |
| that this option is particularly appealing when | | | | workflow. |
| combined with personalisation and the C9060/70 | | | | While it might seem a throwback to the days of |
| Pro's ability to produce print on demand – | | | | copiers over printers, the C9000 is available with a |
| ensuring that every document produced is | | | | scanner for document input. Particularly for |
| relevant and needed. Compared with the CLC, the | | | | in-plants serving local government and any other |
| Image Runner Advance also comes with a wider | | | | organisation still heavily reliant on paper-trails, there |
| media range and extended inline finishing options. | | | | are plenty of applications that call for the ability to |
| The C9000 takes stocks up to SRA3 paper size, | | | | scan in hundreds of pages. Canon's response is |
| and in custom sizes a little bit bigger, and can | | | | the Duplex Automated Document Feeder (DADF) |
| handle a maximum weight of 300gsm. It can also | | | | a 200 A4-page-per-minute automated one-pass |
| cope with coated stocks as well as uncoated, | | | | double-sided scanner that has a feeding capacity |
| helping to ensure its output looks as professional | | | | of 300 sheets. |
| as possible. | | | | As PrintWeek have said the ImageRunner |
| The C9000's intended average monthly print | | | | Advance machines |
| volume is 35,000 A4 pages, which is historically | | | | May have turned up a little late at the light |
| much higher than is typical of light production | | | | production party but they haven't come emty |
| printing machines. However, maximum monthly | | | | handed. |