New player in the TIJ arena

Dean Hornsby, whose business card reads “Redimark Brand Evangelist,” is at PACK EXPO creating plenty of buzz. Small-character digital Thermal Ink Jet printing, or TIJ, is what Redimark offers in the first, and so far only, machine available, the Model TC12. It uses cloud connectivity to make backup, storage, and retrieval of coding data fast and effortless. And it’s especially suitable for marking flat surfaces--paperboard, flexible film, labels--in the food and beverage, household goods, personal care, and home improvement industries.

But what really sets Redimark apart is the business model behind it. You order machines and ink cartridges directly from the web site, redimark.com. There are no sales representatives. As for installation, you do it yourself, and according to Redimark the coder can be up and running within minutes. Hornsby says that the one of the drivers behind the launch of Redimark is the belief that the small-character marking and coding market is overserved by continuous ink-jet. Now there is an alternative. Cartridges for this new breed of printers come from Funai Electric Co., the Japanese firm that in 2013 acquired Lexmark International’s inkjet-related technology, patents, and assets. But the fast-drying inks, says Hornsby, are a Redimark formulation. One last thing: Redimark’s TC12 sells for $995.