Ricoh Pro printers make a striking statement at Print Evolution Live thanks to Drytac

Ricoh Europe recently used Drytac’s Polar Grip polymeric self-adhesive vinyl to transform the look of two of its printers at its European Customer Experience Centre in central England.

Ricoh regularly hosts partners and clients at its European Customer Experience Centre in Telford, Shropshire. The site offers the opportunity to view a range of Ricoh machines operating in a live environment and to examine print output up close. As part of a recent update to the space, Ricoh’s communications team chose to apply custom wraps to several machines. The wraps were intended to draw attention to the equipment while also illustrating the visual effects and finishes that can be produced using Ricoh printing technology.

Each of Ricoh’s printer models in the centre has an avatar; thus, the idea was for the wraps to reflect each model's name. For the recent wraps, Ricoh chose to decorate its RICOH Pro Z75, known as the Dragon, and its RICOH Pro VC80000, which carries the avatar of the Harpy Eagle.

Drytac Polar Grip was selected for both printer wraps. Polar Grip is a polymeric self-adhesive PVC film that offers up to seven years’ indoor durability when paired with a matching laminate. The high-bond grey adhesive on the film allows users to apply graphics to a wide range of surfaces, including metal, plastic, wood, glass, and brick.
For added durability and safety, Ricoh paired Polar Grip with Interlam Emerytex Pro, a pressure-sensitive overlaminating film featuring a matte pebble texture, seven-year indoor and outdoor longevity, and multiple fire, slip and FDA certifications.

“We selected Polar Grip because the paint job on both the Ricoh Pro Z75 and Ricoh Pro VC80000 has a textured finish, so we wanted to be sure of a good adhesion of the vinyl,” said Shane Barrett, Pre-Sales Manager, Inkjet Solutions, EMEA High Speed Inkjet and Large Format Print at Ricoh Europe Graphic Communications.

The striking designs were printed in-house by the Ricoh Europe team on a RICOH Pro L5100e latex large format printer before being applied to the two machines. Both wraps were installed ahead of the manufacturer’s Print Evolution Live 2025 event which took place in mid-November.

“The print quality on Polar Grip was perfect using a generic PVC profile on our Pro L5100e and fed through the printer without any issues with perfect tiling and panel alignment for the installers,” Barrett said. “The initial reaction internally and from visiting clients was that it looks very impressive.”