Deliver Customization and Character with Digital Wallcoverings

“Life is a blank canvas, and you need to throw all the paint on it you can.”

— Danny Kaye

Danny Kaye’s celebrated quote, smothered in sentimentality, may have been relatable decades ago. But times have certainly changed. While the legendary actor’s zest for molding one’s life still rings true, the portion about paint is a bit outdated.

At least when it comes to spicing up the creativity of your walls.

Analog application methods — such as paint or standard wallpaper — have given way to modern digital transformations. No longer are the antiquated, time-consuming, and artistically limiting methods like rotogravure printing the only process used to produce large volumes of wallcoverings. And with good reason.

The boom in urbanization, skyrocketing demand for digital technology and increasing expenditure on infrastructural activities, has propelled digitally printed wallpaper into a market that is expected to reach $7.75 billion by 2025 — the largest area of growth within the interior decor market — according to a report from Smithers Pira.

Customers crave customization and want a unique feel in their workspaces, homes, and even outdoor settings. This digital wallcovering revolution, presenting a variety of custom designs and options to spark creativity, has helped enhance overall visual appeal. Entire rooms can now be revitalized with a single image over multiple panels, dramatic feature walls, customized murals, lively die cut wall decals, and carefully crafted ceilings — all produced on a wide range of media. Customized finishing, such as contour curves and various laminations, can also be applied.

This dynamic shift has motivated interior designers and creatives to think outside of the proverbial box. From wall decor, wall graphics, and wall coverings inside hotel room interiors, restaurants and retail establishments, corporate board rooms, and office building lobbies, material choices expand to offer designers and print service providers (PSPs) endless artistic freedom. What’s more, the recent recovery of the residential and commercial construction industry, along with the prominence of social media, pop-up retail spaces, outdoor wall murals on brick walls or buildings, and the pent-up demand for customized murals have sparked digital wallcovering prominence.

But the process hasn’t been smooth sailing. Overriding challenges in the digital printing marketplace, including color consistency issues from panel to panel, geometric uniformity, and durability, have been major concerns with traditional digital wallcovering products. Limitations experienced in latex, solvent, aqueous, and toner-based products, as well as obstacles with heat and stability/durability of liquid-formed inks, have created technical problems within digital wall decor printing.

The root of the problem: No single option was available to help PSPs who were looking for more automation and worry-free production to address these complications.

To quell concerns, UV curable ink featuring a gel substance that works differently than traditional liquid-based inks was introduced. Canon aimed to engineer a solution that was best suited to take the strengths of existing ink options, remove limitations, and deliver something different to the market.

Without coalescence, PSPs can consistently deliver precise, accurate, and repeatable color — from roll to roll and from job to job — utilizing UVgel. And paired with LED cold cure technology, printers can cut labor costs and remove the cost of reprinting mismatched panels.

Chuck Wingard, president of Tree Towns Imaging & Color Graphics, says, “The Colorado printer series gives us durability, dimensional stability, much higher speed, less ink usage, and confidence that the client will be impressed with the quality of the product.”

All you need, of course, is that blank canvas.

Discover more on Canon UVgel technology and the Colorado printer series at LFPP.CSA.CANON.COM/POWEROFUVGEL.