Marking the opening of a new million-dollar HP Graphic Arts Solutions Center - where the latest in printing technology advancements for commercial printers are on display - HP recently announced the availability of new solutions and services for the graphic arts market.

Highlighting the news is the availability of the HP Indigo press 5000 in North America and Europe, the Middle East and Africa and the availability of HP Vivera Inks for large-format printers.

First introduced at Drupa 2004 as a centrepiece of HP's ongoing digital publishing initiative, the HP Indigo press 5000 is a four-colour digital press with seven-colour capability geared for mid-size to large-scale commercial printers and has the capacity to produce up to 4000 full colour pages per hour.

Previously available only for HP's consumer printers, HP Vivera Inks for large-format printers benefit professional photographers, graphic designers and fine artists who need the highest quality when digitally reproducing their original works.

HP also announced increased partner support from key industry leaders as well as new financing options to help customers make the transition to digital printing.

The announcements were made in conjunction with the opening of the HP Graphic Arts Solutions Center in Atlanta, where visitors can take part in in-depth discussions with technical experts on the benefits of digital printing and one-to-one marketing for their particular business.

"These announcements and others we will be making throughout 2005 further strengthen and expand HP's leadership in graphic arts production," says George Mulhern, senior vice president, Enterprise Imaging and Printing, HP. "No other company in the world can match HP's breadth and quality of graphic art solutions, enabling us to leverage the many opportunities this exciting industry offers."

Designed for maximum productivity, ease of use and superior image quality, the HP Indigo press 5000 features a number of paper handling and ink system innovations. These include multitray input, which allows the operator to load one tray while the press prints from the others, and a high-capacity paper output system that features a convenient sampling tray for easier proof checks.

With the front-end HP Press Production Manager, the HP Indigo press 5000 handles even large variable data jobs quickly and efficiently. Based on open standards, the HP Production Press Manager combines simplified operation with scalable, high-performance RIP and web-to-print connectivity. This results in true workflow integration for dramatically improved throughput and significantly higher breakeven point for short-run printing.

"The HP Indigo 5000 has the superior quality, the highest productivity and the best workflow we have ever used," says Peter Sommer, owner and manager of Germany-based Sommer Corporate Media, which is beta testing the HP digital press. "We absolutely have the right partner for digital printing at our side."

Uptime is further maximised by the new HP Instant Support System, which automatically alerts the HP Indigo Customer Care Center when a problem occurs and allows a technician to remotely troubleshoot the press.

The latest generation of HP ElectroInk is employed to print 97% of Pantone colours, including brand-essential corporate colours, and offers greatly expanded substrate capabilities supported by HP Indigo Printing Papers. Other advantages include no-commitment consumables programs, one year of free service and attractive service pricing once the initial coverage period ends.

HP Vivera Inks are specifically engineered and tested to ensure the delivery of vivid, lifelike colours with a broad colour gamut and crisp black text. Inspired to create a formula that provides increased detail and vivid, blazing colours, HP scientists and engineers chose only superior ingredients. The result is ink formulations that blend with advanced precision for consistent, true-to-original prints.

Because HP Vivera Inks are ultra-pure, they dramatically reduce printhead clogging. The combination of ultra-pure inks and HP-exclusive protectants keeps documents safe from airborne pollutants and fading, enabling photos and graphics to resist fading for decades.*

One of the first large-format printers to employ HP Vivera Inks is the new HP Designjet 90 Printer series, a six-colour, A2+/C+ size solution that produces very high-quality images with a wide range of colours, deeper blacks, continuous tones and gloss uniformity. Using HP Vivera Inks along with select HP papers, photos printed on the HP Designjet 90 Printer series can last up to 82 years,* which is significantly longer than traditionally processed photos.

For more information see www.hp.com/go/graphic-arts, www.hp.com

*Wilhelm Imaging Research concluded that prints made with HP No. 85 ink cartridges and HP Premium Plus papers may be displayed indoors under glass for 82 years before noticeable fading and staining will occur (See www.wilhelm-research.com for details).