Designing an industrial printer to be as eye-catching as its printouts

The brief

Linx Printing Technologies PLC is a longstanding client of ours, as well as a leading supplier of continuous ink jet printers, impulse jet printers and laser coders. Their products code and mark millions of items every day, from bottles and cans to pharmaceuticals and car parts. As part of its on-going design development, they wanted to enhance the perceived quality of their ink jet printers, develop the branding and incorporate the latest feedback from customers. 

What we did

To begin with, we studied continuous inkjet printers. Almost all are encased in fabricated, flat steel plate enclosures. They can be un-ergonomic to use, anonymous and are often badly stained by ink spillages. To rectify these problems we employed ‘deep draw’ metal-forming techniques (usually reserved for vehicle manufacture, and used them to transform the Linx 4900. A first in this sector, the technique allowed a curvaceous satin steel enclosure that has completely eliminated liquid, ink and dirt traps. It is IP55 rated, which means it can be hosed down without water penetrating the case and a membrane keypad with a simple layout guarantees ease of use. Even when you’re wearing gloves.

Result

The Linx 4900 stands out from others on the market, not just in looks but also because it offers such distinct benefits. This new design has helped to enhance perception of the Linx brand. In short, it’s the cleanest, clearest, cleverest ink jet printer in its class

Client's Comments

"Linx set a target to increase sales by 20% for this product category, within six months of launch. They have in fact exceeded this target by some margin."

Neil Bennett, Engineering Director