Belgium’s Supercolor opens doors to new work with double HP Latex investment

Belgium-based diversified printing business Supercolor has revealed how its decision to invest in an HP Latex 3600 printer and an HP Latex 800W printer has enabled it to take on more work in profitable markets subject to strict health and safety regulations.

Based in Merelbeke, near the city of Gent, Supercolor offers a wide range of services, stretching from window and wall graphics to car wrapping and printed displays. The company works with customers in a host of industries and delivers printed applications for use in environments such as retail, events, hotels and offices.

Supercolor’s diversified offering is very much powered by HP, with the company having run HP Latex printers for many years. The print service provider needed to further strengthen its production setup to satisfy a rising demand for its services and – having spoken in depth with the specialist team at approved HP distributor Pantoon – opted to invest in an HP Latex 3600 and an HP Latex 800W.

Supercolor completed the double purchase in March 2023, and both machines have now been up and running for several months.

Supercolor has already felt the benefits of the new investments, revealing how the eco-friendly technology behind HP Latex has allowed it to expand into markets where certain elements of printed work are subject to strict regulations.

HP Latex printers run water-based HP Latex Inks, which have much less impact on their surroundings than alternative ink products. They have a significantly lower volatile organic content (VOC) count than other ink types, opening up their use in environments where any harmful emissions must be kept to an absolute minimum.

“We are now able to take on more work in the medical sector, in which printed applications must meet certain health and safety criteria,” Supercolor Manager Philippe Staelens said. “This is also true of other interior graphics applications. To build a sustainable print business, we need a supply chain that shares our values and that’s one of the reasons why we chose HP printers.

“With the new HP Latex printers, we can now deliver more work to more customers within these sectors. This includes the large format printed work that our company is well known for.”

Staelens also noted the benefit of working with white ink on the HP Latex 800W, explaining that this has allowed it to take on more window graphics projects.

“With the white ink option, we can now print with a white underlayer on transparent materials such as film and vinyl, which is particularly useful with printed window graphics applications and has strengthened our offering in this market as a result,” Staelens said.

Staelens added that the decision to return to HP again for its latest investments was an easy one: “From working with HP Latex printers for some time now, we are fully aware of the benefits that this technology offers. HP Latex printers are very reliable and secure, while they also allow us to print on a range of media. We are very pleased with the purchases.”