CU1811

HARDWARE review
Epson ' T ' Series
The quick and easy production of 2D drawings is still the bedrock of the building site, writes
David Chadwick
Amidst the drive towards the
digitisation of building models and
the ability to access detailed 3D
models of a project on site using laptops,
notepads and even smartphones, we tend
to forget that the bulk of building
information is handed out as 2D drawings
produced by wide format digital printers.
Although criticised now as being out of
date as soon as they are printed when
compared with the always connected and
immediately updated 3D model, 2D
drawings can now be produced on the
building site and handed out to the
workforce on a daily basis. And let's face it,
not everyone on the building site is going
to be carrying the latest technological
wizardry.
It's all a question of working practices and,
possibly, ingrained tradition, but many
workers still have utmost confidence in the
printed document and will find it easier to
share that information with work colleagues
than having them cluster around the
ephemeral images on a mobile phone.
The demand, therefore, is for high-speed,
easy to use printers, capable of producing
full-colour drawings and prints in any size
up to A1, and small and affordable enough
to place in the confined spaces of the site
office. Epson, well established in the quality
colour printing market, has responded to
the need by releasing new printers, namely
the 24-inch SC (SureColor) T3100 and the
36-inch SC-T5100 which can be installed
either as desktop of floor-standing printers.
In fact Epson calls them plotters, not
printers. Having previously been involved in
the wide format colour printing market
since its early days, I hesitate to call them
plotters - the terminology used on the
press release - as it brings to mind the
original pen plotters, which had a movable
arm that grabbed successive pens from
the side bar and actually 'drew' the 2D
building plans. No need to describe digital
printing with which we are all, now, very
familiar.
The ' T ' designation, though, relates to the
technical uses of the printers, as opposed
to most of Epson's range which is directed
at the Graphics market. This means that
they come with 4 colours instead of 8 -
perfectly adequate, though, for providing
realistic and high quality graphics images
when used for printing rendered images of
building models besides high resolution 2D
elevation drawings and plans.
The T-Series expands Epson's product
range into the low- to mid-range CAD
printer market, featuring a clean and
compact design coupled with Epson's
reliable printing technology. They are aimed
at anyone who wants to produce blueprints
and (another anachronistic name from the
past) line drawings, signage or posters --
architects, engineers, CAD and GIS users -
as well as being ideal for corporate offices
and even home and small office users.
WIFI CONNECTIVITY
The T-Series offers integrated wireless and
WiFi connectivity to print directly from
tablets or smart phones, and can also be
operated using the 4.3-inch colour LCD
touchscreen, which provides simple and
intuitive menu control of the printer.
The SureColor printers utilise Epson's
PrecisionCore MicroTFP printhead
technology, which uses Precision Droplet
Control and Nozzle Verification technology
to automatically detect and adjust nozzle
conditions to provide optimum printing
performance, together with next-generation
high-capacity UltraChrome XD2 pigment
inks to deliver durable archival prints with
brilliant colour and crisp lines on virtually
any paper type.
To reduce the frequency of replacing print
cartridges in a busy office, the printers
come with high-capacity cartridges, up to
50ml colour and 80ml black. The printers
pigmented ink technology provide fade
free prints in vivid colours and crisp lines.
As for speed, the new printers can
produce accurate A1/E-size prints in 31
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November/December 2018