TAVCO Construction Technology Blog

There’s one thing for sure about old Océ plotters, they were built to last, and many have stuck around for a long time. Although many people consider this an attribute, there is also a dark side.

The time has come where the entire Océ TDS (Technical Document Systems) product line and some of the first-generation PlotWaves have become legacy machines.

This has absolutely nothing to do with the mechanical integrity of the machine, but rather the PC that runs the whole system. 

In fact, our service department has been busy dealing with their share of Oce service issues regarding legacy controller PCs. Here’s why.

Recently, Canon Solutions America announced the launch of the Oce PlotWave 550 as the successor to their popular PlotWave 500 system. Like, its predecessor, the PlotWave 500 is a magnificent mid-volume, wide-format printer capable of printing 25,000 square feet per month. Also, it is fast! The PlotWave is capable of printing 10 D-size monochrome sheets per minute and can be configured as a 2 roll or 4 roll system. Likewise, it continues to use Océ Radiant Fusion technology, placing it as one of the most energy efficient units on the market. So, let’s see how it compares to another popular mid-volume competitor, the Kip 7970.

Canon Solutions America has just announced a new successor to the Océ PlotWave 500 printing system, the Océ PlotWave 550. While most of the design is similar to its predecessor, the upgrade brings some powerful new features to the table. Check out the benefits of the new PlotWave 550 Océ printer.

You know that competition is getting fierce when the inflammatory statements start flying. In this case, Kip America Corporation has been exaggerating claims in an effort to support their 800 Series Kip Printer. This model is a direct rival to the Océ ColorWave 500 from Canon. The common ground between these two is that they both use a dry-toner process rather than liquid ink to produce full-color wide-format documents. However, they use completely different technologies that are as far apart as fire and ice. Here are 5 myths that KIP is attempting to spread about the Océ ColorWave and the actual truth behind them.

The next evolution of Océ wide-format systems is here. The new PlotWave 345 and 365 replace the previous PlotWave 340 and 360 units respectively. Although there are many similarities between all of these models, there are some major improvements under the hood.

If you work in AEC - architecture, engineering, or construction, then you know the way you handle construction drawings has changed dramatically over the years. In the old days, bid sets were printed and distributed by print shops to general contractors and subcontractors. Now, almost all plans are shared electronically via email or some type of online planroom. Obviously, this has resulted in a drop in demand of large volume printing. Traditional reprographic shops have been hit hardest by this change. But, wide-format printing is not dead, it has just shifted.

Today’s CAD environments are a new kind of animal. New, powerful software applications and large, complicated files are the norm and they can literally choke the life out of an old, outdated plotter. These challenges tend to grind an architecture or construction company’s workflow to a halt. In order for these companies to compete and be successful in a heated marketplace, high-stakes deadlines need to be met. To do so, more powerful and sophisticated equipment is needed to meet these challenge head on. One of the new tools that these companies are turning to is a powerful plotter/scanner systems that utilize toner instead of ink jet technology to gain a whole new level of dynamics to their wide-format printing.

In this new space of color-toner wide format machines, there are two primary players, the Kip 800 Series and the Océ ColorWave 500/700. On the surface it seems like a pretty even match, but once you peel back some layers, the Océ simply brings more to the table.

Full-color printing has become all the rage in wide-format CAD printing, and for good reason. The amount of information communicated with color plans, transcends the limitations of traditional black/white construction documents. Research has shown how, by simply adding color lines, the potential for mistakes is greatly diminished. This is largely due to the ability to estimate bids more accurately and minimize change orders.

This new need for color CAD has been met with the introduction of new, more powerful, wide-format plotter/scanner systems capable of the task. Today, two popular contenders are the Océ ColorWave 500 and the HP Designjet T3500 eMFP. But, don’t think these models are evenly matched. Although both with print and scan in full color, the Oce ColorWave crushes the HP T3500 when matched side-by-side. Here are 9 reasons why.

When it comes to picking the best wide-format solution for your business, several factors have to be considered. The challenge is to make all the Pros/Cons make sense without getting lost in the details. Here we lay out data on two popular systems - the Océ PlotWave 340 and the HP Designjet T3500 MFP.

Sure, both will print, copy, and scan, but which will be the best fit for your specific demands. See for yourself.

Without a doubt, the Océ ColorWave 500, by Canon, stands out as one of the most unique and innovative large format systems on the market today. The driving force behind its uniqueness is the one-of-a-kind printing technology used by the ColorWave – Océ CrystalPoint Technology. This is a process where small TonerPearls, each about the size of a paint ball, are heated to a gelled state before they are precisely jetted onto the print material. The concept is similar to inkjet, but since the TonerPearls are, in fact, toner and not ink, all of the frustrating issues experienced with traditional inkjet plotters are absent—wet media, curled prints, smudging images, etc.

Everyone knows that as soon as you buy the latest tech gizmo, it is already outdated. Just look how fast new smart phones are released. This concept appears to dissolve, however, when printers are involved, especially wide-format printers. It is amazing how some companies will hang on to their wide-format equipment for years. Eventually though, the time will come there is no other option. You need to upgrade your plotter. If that is the case, here a few things to keep in mind. 

Look around and you will see that architects and engineers are incorporating more color data into their designs these days. This is largely due to the flourishing influence of BIM applications such as REVIT and Bentley. Likewise, research has shown, time and again, that color details reduce mistakes and greatly increases communication as compared to the traditional black/white format. This new approach has demanded that these companies now print their plans in full-color. Most AEC companies already have a wide-format color plotter in place, but what happens when the work load exceeds the capabilities of that plotter? They could always get a second one, or a third. But, perhaps, it time for a complete paradigm shift. In that case, see how the ColorWave Océ wide format plotter is providing a radical shift from the old inkjet school of thought.