Santi, as he prefers to be called is a soft spoken Spaniard who speaks with impeccable English but of course with that attractive Spanish accent.
He is one of the most influential people in the development of HP's wide format printer range. His role at HP encompasses worldwide research and development, marketing, finance and operations responsibility over the full range of HP Designjet and HP Scitex large-format printers and supplies.
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Santiago Morera, Worldwide Vice President & General Manager, Designjet Business |
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Shane Lucas, local Director HP Graphic Arts South Pacific |
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Santiago Morera (Left) and Shane Lucas at the VIIE show in October 2009 |
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The Designjet L25500 |
The very limited number of L25500 machines that are currently available are travelling the world to the various expos and we were told that it was only due to the combined pull of local HP boss, Shane Lucas and Santi that we managed to have the preview machines available in Australia. With manufacturing taking place in Singapore, we also had HP's Dhirendra Khurana in Singapore to thank for making it possible for the machines to arrive in Australia on time.
We spoke with Santi and Director HP Graphic Arts South Pacific, Shane Lucas in the hope of gleaning some inside knowledge on how HP expect to see Latex technology impact our industry and its future role in the wide format industry.
WFOL: After investing more than 1 billion dollars in the development of Latex, we asked Santi how the world had reacted since it's launch last year with the first L65500.
Santi: "It was better than our wildest expections", he said. "We don't only measure the success by the number of machines installed, we also measure it by the number of square metres that have already been printed which amounts to more than 1.2 million square metres (as per a few days ago) on the L65500 and of course growing every day."
"Like all these things, some countries have taken advantage of the technology more so than others and we can report that Australia is included as a country that has rapidly adopted the technology with ten L65500 machines installed already in this region. Even with the other countries that have been a bit slower to adopt we can report that we are very happy with the progress being made. The technology has already proven itself as a very viable means of improving productivity and profitablility for its users and we have to accept that our customers consider this more important than the very positive environmental benefits of the technology.
The new L25500 printers are generating huge excitement. Already early sales are meeting our budgeted expectations. I would say there are two reasons for the excitement, firstly the product itself, people see it as a winning proposition and secondly, especially in the light of the slower economic situation that we have all faced, our channel partners and their customers have been able to offer the end customer something new, something which has enabled both our channel partners and their customers an opportunity to grow.
WFOL: Have you found any sceptism in the international market that a water based ink can perform to the same degree as solvents and eco-solvents?.
Santi: Once people understand the technology and what it can do, they appreciate the benefits that can be obtained
WFOL: Is there any media that should be avoided with Latex ink?
Santi: Latex is not designed for rigid media and of course porous media should be avoided. It has some limitations with textiles when used outdoor. Other than that the ink works well with most media.
WFOL: Regarding textile, how would you compare results between a Latex machine and a dedicated textile inkjet machines?
Santi: If you are a dedicated textile printer, I wouldn't recommend our product, you need to pursue the machines that are made for that purpose, however if you are called upon to print textiles ocassionally for indoor use, our printers will offer you a solution. Our proposition is the versatility of the Latex technology.
WFOL: In your opinion, is it feasable that Latex inks can replace more than just solvent and eco solvent inks, what about UV inks.
Santi: We know that our machines are drawing work from all sectors, some of it from the UV sector. However I think we have a very good market for UV on rigid media. UV will perform better than Latex in this sector. There is a big market for both technologies and HP is investing heavily in both.
WFOL: Do you see distinct applications for solvent and eco solvents.
Santi: Solvents still have a place in the market. For some time to come there will be a market for low cost, low quality work. However in the longer term it will be difficult for this sector to compete.
WFOL: Where do you see these market right now?
Santi: Anywhere where low cost and low quality is need, truck curtains would be a good example.
WFOL: Do these new L25500 models also incorporate HP's Wide Scan and Media Advance Technology.
Santi:Yes, of course, all our Latex machines embrace this technology.
WFOL: We now have the L65500 and the L25500 machines, can you give any clues as to what comes next for the Latex technology.
Santi: No, I cannot comment on specifics of this nature. However I can say that we are working on a 2nd generation of ink, we are also working on improving the costs for our customers, the durability, the quality. So we have some way to go on the ink side.
I do see a need for bigger sizes and more productivity. We have many ideas on how to achieve this as well as making the technology even more versatile than it already is.
WFOL: What sort of lead time is required to develop a new model.
Santi: It's very difficult to answer a question like that as there is no standard rule. We talk about the three year frame. When we talk about small improvements, it can be possibly 6-12 or 24 months, it obviously depends.
A big part of my job is to set priorities, working with the different regions and the various options at our disposal. We also have limited investment capabilities. To make a new model vs making 2nd generation of an existing model is always discussed at our planning meetings.
Next year and the year after you will surely see new developments.
WFOL: What sort of market share are you looking for in this next year, bearing in mind that you potentially have limited time to make an impact with Latex since your competitors must surely be working overtime to develop an equivalent or an even better option than Latex.
I wouldn't want to talk about a specific number but I can say that in all markets where HP participate we aim to be number one. There is no reason for us to believe that we cannot achieve this with the Latex technology. We have the technology, we have the distribution and support, we have the marketing expertise, all the requirements to enjoy a leadership position in this and other sectors where we operate.
Certainly our three year plan includes us in a leadership position but I cannot put a specific market share to this.
WFOL: HP have simultaneously announced ten new media to coincide with the launch of the L25500, so we asked Shane Lucas to ask if it was HP Australia's intention to offer financial incentives for Latex users to go exclusively with HP on media as well.
Shane Lucas: It is always tempting to offer any of our customers an incentive should they want to offer their own customers a complete HP solution, however we want to keep the Latex solution an open solution. In addition I would say that we don't want to build a huge media business either, we see more advantages for HP and our end users in keeping the system an open system.
Santi: We want to work with the other players in the media world and it is for that reason we have embarked upon a process of recognising certain media as being especially suitable for the Latex technology.
WFOL: If that is the case, we have to ask then, why did you launch the range of media that you have.
Santi: For two reason, to offer the end users media that is not currently available and also merely to offer customers a choice. I would echo what Shane has just said and that is that we want to keep the system an open system.
WFOL: Is there anything else that you would like to add.
Santi: Only that we are raising the bar in the wide format industry and will define a new way of doing signage in the future. We have to recognise the 'Green' message that is facing us all and I am sure the industry will also recognise the versatility of the Latex technology.
Australia and New Zealand are eager for innovation, customer service and new technology and we are very happy to supply that.
HP Australia
www.hp.com.au/graphicarts
