Mimaki Europe and BOFA Intl announce market release of BOFA Air Purifier Unit

Mimaki Europe has announced the market release of the BOFA Air Purifier Unit. Launched in March 2020, the product was developed for one of Mimaki’s most cost-effective yet high-performance printers, the 3.2m-wide SWJ-320EA solvent printer, whereby it extracts VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) emitted during production to ensure a cleaner and more pleasant working environment.

BOFA’s R&D team utilised elements from two of its tried and tested PrintPRO Universal extractors to develop the new BOFA Air Purifier Unit. Drawing upon this expertise, BOFA created the new 4-metre-long unit which attaches directly to the Mimaki SWJ-320EA printer with a 5mm continuous gap from the media. It effectively extracts the fumes across its length, proceeds to filter them, and then releases the clean air back into the production environment.

Extensive testing has been carried out and confirmed that the level of VOCs released from the printer dropped from highs of 250ppm to as low as 1.8ppm. The BOFA Air Purifier Unit also reduces any unpleasant odour to an absolute minimum and features user replaceable HEPA/gas filters.

The SWJ-320EA, launched in 2019, combines productivity and print quality with low operational costs and initial outlay, offering a cost-effective solution for super-wide and large format printing. With the optional BOFA Air Purifier Unit now commercially available through Mimaki’s partner network, this competitive system can form part of a cleaner print facility for the production of a wide variety of large format indoor and outdoor applications, including POS materials, banners and billboards, displays, transport and floor graphics.

Bert Benckhuysen, Senior Product Manager from Mimaki Europe said: “BOFA are market leaders in portable fume extraction technology and their expertise proved invaluable when developing a solution that supports our latest solvent printer. As a result of this successful collaboration, the ‘business benefits’ of investing in the SWJ-320EA with a BOFA Air Purifier Unit span all areas of the user’s organisation – from the production line and production floor, to product quality and profitability – giving our customers a significant competitive edge.”

Sign and display printers interested in installing the SWJ-320EA can order a print sample kit from the Mimaki Europe website to evaluate the print quality achievable with this system first-hand.