The milestone is regarded by the company as an endorsement of the L-4033 technology with increasing acceptance by label converters in the local market.
There are currently four SurePress installations in Australia and New Zealand with Craig Heckenberg, business unit manager, Epson Australia reporting positive feedback from all concerned.
“The SurePress is extremely reliable and the quality is superb. Customers are telling me it has exceeded their expectations. The 100th installation gives us a great platform to launch the next generation, the SurePress L6034, to the region later in the year,” he said.
The new press is three times faster and incorporates Precision Core inkjet technology. According to Heckenberg, the first unit will arrive in Australia before the end of the year.
The hundredth SurePress L-4033 was installed by Japanese label converter, Kanae in Nagano. Epson launched the SurePress L-4033A in October 2010, steadily raising the product's performance on the basis of ongoing discussions with customers, and building up a strong sales and service network worldwide. In December 2012, Epson launched the SurePress L-4033AW with white ink. Epson claims the 100 units sold to date have given it a market share of approximately 10% in the sector.
SurePress prints on a wide variety of label substrates thanks to Epson's original Micro Piezo inkjet technology and original soluble inks. It has also been praised by customers for its usability, easy maintenance and its stable printing quality. As many as 20% of SurePress customers have purchased two or more units.
"We are committed to contributing to the profitability of our customers' businesses," said Eisuke Shimoyama, general manager responsible for sales and marketing of industrial solutions at Epson. "We will launch a new model [SurePress L634] that includes a print head using our cutting-edge PrecisionCore technology. Going forward, our aim is to expand our market share and lead the digitalization of the printing industry."
Epson has released a series of customer feedback responses on using the SurePress including this from Creative Labels in Gilroy, California.
"We have been using the Epson SurePress L-4033A digital label press for nearly a year and a half now, and we have been incredibly happy with both the vibrant, high-quality labels we are able to produce, as well as the exceptional service that we've received," said Chris Martin, vice president and co-owner.
"We've had customers come to us that tried printing complex labels using a competitive digital press, only to have colour and consistency problems. Using the Epson SurePress, we are able to print those labels with ease. SurePress helps us deliver a high quality product to our customer, and when our customers are happy, we are happy."
* Based on a survey by Epson of units sold in 2013.