Ricoh’s inkjet technology to be displayed on the body of a racing car in the 97th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb

Ricoh’s unique inkjet technology will be displayed on a racing car that will be racing in the 97th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA from June 24th to 30th.

As a sponsor to SAMURAI SPEED*1 racing team, Ricoh will paint the body and tires of the racing car, and also create a textured print wrap that will cover the hood and roof of the car. It will be the first time this solution will be applied to a racing car.

Painting the car’s body and tires will be done using Ricoh’s auto body printer and tire printer, which are unique systems that allow printing directly onto three dimensional surfaces. These systems are ideal for painting racing cars as the printed output is lighter in weight and also costs less, compared to traditional car wrapping techniques. A separate textured print wrap is also being created using layer printing technology which uses UV ink and can print a textured surface on a wrap. This wrap, which is intended to reduce air resistance, will then be applied to the hood and roof of the racing car.

Ricoh will also exhibit its technology at the Fan Fest, which will be held on June 28th, the Friday before Race Day. Guests will be able to experience a variety of Ricoh technology including DTG (direct to garment) printing, which will be used to create original T-shirts, a VR (virtual reality) experience of the race using video footage recorded using Ricoh’s 360° camera RICOH THETA, and a workshop using the brand new RICOH Handy Printer.

More information on Ricoh’s sponsorship can be found at: https://www.ricoh.com/pikes-peak/

*1 SAMURAI SPEED: SAMURAI SPEED first participated in the race in 1991. From 2012, they started participating in the electronic car class and since 2018, they have been challenging the race with their new racing car based on the high performance version e+ of NISSAN LEAF.

https://samuraispeed.jp/about-us/

About Ricoh

Ricoh is empowering digital workplaces using innovative technologies and services enabling individuals to work smarter. For more than 80 years, Ricoh has been driving innovation and is a leading provider of document management solutions, IT services, commercial and industrial printing, digital cameras, and industrial systems.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in approximately 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ended March 2019, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 2,013 billion yen (approx. 18.1 billion USD).

For further information, please visit www.ricoh.com

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