Having recently signed an exclusive agreement with Durst UK whereby Coates Screen markets and sells the Durst Rho direct to media inkjet printer to the screenprinting industry, Durst UK provided a demonstration machine to Coates offices in Coalville, Leicestershire.

Durst UK demonstrated the Rho to Coates Screenπs 40 strong salesforce, coming from the UK, Germany, Spain, Portugal and France. They attended a whole day practical demonstration and training, after which, they invited their own customers to personal demonstrations over a three week period.

We are very grateful of the support and co-operation provided by Durst UK, and are excited at the business opportunity the Durst Rho brings to our business, said Bill Lovegrove, Marketing Manager of Coates Screen. With the Rho 160 printer included in our portfolio of products, we now offer screen printers the ability to take market opportunities that they ordinarily wouldnπt have. For example, because of the capabilities of the Rho 160, screen printers no longer will have to say ånoπ to accepting business that requires shorter runs or just-in-time printing.

The practical demonstrations given by Durst UK to our customers were scheduled for a three week period, however they have proved so successful that the period has been extended. In total, 45 interested companies have already visited the demonstration site, and another 15 are booked in for demonstrations.

Bill Lovegrove commented: We are delighted with the interest shown in the Rho by our screen printing customers with several companies requesting a follow up visit. One area they have expressed particular interest is in the new feeder/stacker system, which allows unattended operation for sheet fed printing material. Also, we have learn a lot about the potential markets some of which we hadnπt seen before.

I think the decision to set up the partnership with Durst is proving to be very fruitful and one I am sure both Coates and Durst are very happy with.

The Rho 160
The Durst Rho 160 is a breakthrough in wide format printing. It offers a combination of high quality printing, fast production speeds, low cost consumables and high flexibility with easy and fast media change with minimum waste to make wide-format printing simpler and more profitable than ever before. The Rho 160 prints directly to standard, uncoated roll media and boards up to 62 inches (160 cm) wide and rigid material up to 1.58 inches (40 mm) thick for lowest production costs and highest flexibility.

Since its launch just over 2 years ago, the Rho 160 has established itself as a market leader, with more than 100 units in operation around the world. It has also been highly acclaimed by the trade press for its flexibility, high quality output, and overall productivity. In the German Large Format Magazine, it was recently voted the ROI ≠ Champion (Return of Investment ≠ Champion) in a Large Format European Flatbed Printer Performance Contest.

The Rho 160 is now joined by the new Rho 160 Plus and the just launched Rho 205, which completes an impressive range of direct to media inkjet printers that are capable of satisfying the demands of the widest range of customer applications.