Xaar confirms long-awaited Thin Film launch and Ricoh partnership

(ShareCast News) - Xaar has launched its long awaited thin-film Piezo platform (P4) and confirmed the agreement of a partnership with Japanese technology giant Ricoh to accelerate the development of thin-film printheads. Xaar's 5601 printhead, the first of the P4 family to be made available to customers at the end of 2016, is expected to open up major new markets for conversion to digital printing and is a key component of management's ambitious £220m-by-2020 revenue target.Thin film Piezo printheads are designed to offer an unrivalled combination of low cost of ownership, print quality and usability, while the small drop and performance of the 5601 makes it ideal for textiles, laminates, commercial print, carton printing and many more applications.A first product, a product of the partnership with Ricoh, has been shown to industry for the first time at the drupa Trade Fair in Dusseldorf.Xaar chief executive Doug Edwards said the launch and the strategic collaboration with Ricoh will both "provide end customers in many industry sectors with improved productivity at lower cost".He added: "Continued investment in technology and product development, together with strategic partnerships, are key elements of our 2020 vision."The new thin film platform will require considerable on-going development spending relating to the large number of Thin Film variants planned, with each application jetting completely different fluids.Last month broker Peel Hunt said it expected Xaar to expense £20m of annual research and development expenditure fully through the P&L as it was incurred. "Even within textiles, the first targeted end market for thin film, significant on-going development work is required, as the fluids will vary by substrate - cotton, polyester, nylon, etc."Peel Hunt analysts cut their calendar 2017 pre-tax profit by 34% to £14.5m and EPS by 33% to 15.8p, which is still 30% ahead of the house broker due to its more optimistic £105m top-line assumption for that year. But with Edwards transforming the company from "historically an operationally-focused business...to an externally focused business with greater emphasis on commercial applications, customers, new markets and partners", they reinstated their 'buy' recommendation.Xaar shares were up 2% to 479.5p on Thursday.