Episode 236 - Inside KELENN Technology's Innovative Inkjet Solutions
Technological innovation sits at the heart of printing's evolution, yet few companies demonstrate this commitment quite like KELENN Technology. In this enlightening conversation, founder Didier Rousseau reveals how his Paris-based company has spent two decades developing groundbreaking inkjet solutions by reinvesting an astonishing 50% of revenue directly into R&D.
What makes their approach distinctive is the modular building-block methodology. Rather than starting from scratch with each customer challenge, they've developed scalable technological components that can be rapidly assembled and customized. The result? Custom printing systems that can be fully operational within just one week after installation – a remarkable achievement in an industry where implementation typically stretches across months.
The applications showcase the versatility of their technology: flexo replacement solutions that achieve demanding solid color densities at 1200 dpi; envelope systems processing 20,000 documents hourly at three meters per second; direct-to-shape printing using robotics to apply photographic-quality images onto three-dimensional objects like lenses; corrugated printing at 360 meters per minute despite variable surface distances; and perhaps most intriguingly, security printing innovations including direct watermark application onto packaging. Behind these developments stands KT Labs, their research facility housing approximately 50 different equipment types dedicated to analyzing and optimizing the complex relationships between substrates, inks, printheads, and applications. This testing environment creates a fast pathway from concept to industrial validation.
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