Publicité
Photoweb, a Grenoble-based company specializing in online photo printing, is upgrading its industrial facilities with the arrival of its very first Belharra inkjet press, developed in partnership with French company Kyocera Nixka Inkjet Systems (Knis). Presented at Drupa 2024, this entirely French-designed machine is dedicated to high-speed photo printing, while integrating the environmental constraints of industrial production right from the start.
"We didn't buy this machine from a catalog. We thought it up, dreamed it up, designed it and built it with our partners. It embodies our role as an agent of change. The arrival of this new printing process marks a historic turning point not only for our company, but for the entire industry" says Laurent Boidi, Photoweb's Managing Director.
The Belharra, a 60% reduction in environmental impact
Publicité
With 218 employees and sales of ?33.6 million, Photoweb is accelerating its CSR strategy. According to Clément Poursac, in charge of the company's environmental approach, this new press will enable a 60% reduction in environmental impacts measured by life cycle analysis (LCA), including water consumption, toxicity, soil use and greenhouse gas emissions. The machine, designed to operate without liquid discharges or chemicals during the production phase, will save 1,000 m 3 of water per year compared with the silver-based process, which is still common in some workshops.
Printing technology for up to 35 million prints a year
On the technical front, this high-volume photo press can handle up to 35 million prints a year, with renderings claimed to be equivalent to silver-halide standards. The Belharra also features a customizable finishing function, gloss or matte, without the addition of lamination.
The machine's performance has already enabled the launch of an initial range of eco-designed products, including a wall calendar at the end of 2024, soon to be followed by the photo prints themselves. Photoweb plans to transfer 80% of its photo printing volumes to this press by 2030.
Publicité
This development is based on close cooperation with Knis, an industrial company based in Auvergne, France, which was formed when the Japanese Kyocera group acquired the French manufacturer of inkjet printing engines and systems, Nixka. This collaboration enabled Photoweb to design a tailor-made tool, both in terms of ergonomics and colorimetric processing, integrating sustainability objectives right from the start of the project.
Towards wider technological dissemination in the photo printing sector
The Isère-based photo printer says it wants to share its approach with other printers. "Positive impact only makes sense if it's shared. That's why this innovation isn't just for Photoweb. It is a collective response to a global problem. The challenge of this coopeÌtition is to move forward together to turn an industry around." says Laurent Boidi.
Publicité
Photoweb is positioning itself not just as a user of the Belharra, but as co-developer of an industrial tool designed to become a standard. By showcasing this approach to the rest of the industry, notably at Drupa, Photoweb hopes to stimulate a wider dynamic of transformation in the world of consumer photographic printing.
