by Melissa Donovan
In business since 2000, Infinity Images of Portland, OR works out of a 58,000 square foot facility with over 70 employees. It offers project management, design, engineering, prepress, large format printing and cutting, three-dimensional fabrication, finishing, installation, and fulfillment to customers across 15 different countries.
Above: Infinity Images worked with its swissQprint Kudu printer to create graphics for Nike’s Super Bowl LIX retail experience. The colors for the campaign where neon green and neon orange, ideal since the swissQprint Kudu is equipped with a neon ink set.
When asked what sets the print service provider (PSP) apart from the competition, Keith Gaumont, director of technology, Infinity Images, says the company “is a one-stop shop for brands with a story to tell. With design, engineering, printing, cutting, fabrication, and installation all under one roof, our project managers can oversee each step, ensure successful quality control, and save clients both time and money.”
Pop of Color
One way the PSP achieves differentiation in the market is by investing in new technologies. In June 2024, it became one of the first owners of a swissQprint Kudu hybrid UV printer outfitted with ten colors—CMYK, orange, neon yellow, neon pink, white, primer, and varnish.
The device can print pure neon inks, but it also offers the capability to combine neon spot color ink dots with CMYK process color ink dots, creating colors that typical printing processes cannot achieve.
Infinity Images is no stranger to swissQprint, as it owned a swissQprint Nyala 2 for eight years before upgrading to the newest device. “We chose the swissQprint Kudu as the platform for entering the world of neon ink color printing based on our positive experience with the Nyala 2 and swissQprint’s attention to quality and customer support, as well as its proven dedication to ongoing improvements to its existing UV print platforms,” states Gaumont.
Working Out the Kinks
Learning how to successfully print with neon color graphics is no simple task. Gaumont credits swissQprint’s Lory output software that drives the Kudu as well as a custom-built print driver from PrintFactory as instrumental to achieving relative ease of use.
One of the biggest challenges according to Gaumont is learning and understanding the limitations of and best applications for neon color graphics. For example, through testing, Infinity Images learned that swissQprint’s neon ink set is not fade resistant to UV light, so it is best suited for indoor applications. “However, neon inks fluoresce in normal indoor lighting and significantly more so when illuminated by black light sources, which opens applications not possible with traditional process UV ink sets.”
At present, the most popular application for neon ink printing is using almost-pure neon ink color mixes to highlight specific areas, logos, or text in a graphic. This adds an extra pop to the design. In particular, Gaumont says retail customers appreciate the attention-grabbing fluorescence of the neon color print products.
After trial and error, Infinity Images determined that the neon color inks print best on a white surface, and ideally one with optical brighteners, as it helps enhance the fluorescent appearance of the neon colors. However, since the swissQprint Kudu is equipped with white ink, it allows for the printing of a white ink base layer on any material and then a neon ink layer printed on top.
“This includes clear, colored, or chrome vinyl films; acrylic or wood panels; and black-faced boards or films, to name a few. Printing neon colors over a white ink base in specific spot areas on black-faced materials is a visually stunning application, particularly when black lit,” admits Gaumont.
Infinity Images also realized that mixing the traditional ink colors with the neon ink colors affects the vibrance of the resulting process in addition to the neon ink hues. To solve this, Infinity Images invested in a subscription to the Touch7 Neon ink color swatch system by Khaos Technology.
“This solution has been a real boon in providing a printed swatch-based system that our customers can use for reliably consistent neon and neon-plus-process color output. It also includes an Adobe Photoshop plug-in allowing for the incorporation of one or both of our Kudu’s neon ink colors into existing photographic or raster imagery,” explains Gaumont.
Finally, neon color graphics also present a learning curve when it comes to the PSP’s customers. Gaumont points out that there is a bit of an education in regards to managing client expectations.
“In terms of designing and creating graphics with neon ink colors, there is no real way to soft proof them on screen, so printed proofs are required. With these considerations in mind, we spend more time educating our customers to help them understand how to work with the limitations and strengths of neon ink printing to achieve best results,” he adds.
Results in Action
A solid example of where neon ink colors glowed is Infinity Images’ work for Nike leading up to Super Bowl LIX in 2025 when the Kansas City Chiefs played the Philadelphia Eagles in New Orleans, LA.
The PSP was tasked with creating an attention-grabbing immersive retail event that blended New Orleans community touch points with Nike and NFL branding, featuring imagery of the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. Its sixth Super Bowl collaboration with Nike, Infinity Images was tasked with designing, producing, and installing these graphics at a Nike retail store located near the Super Bowl arena.
The project began almost two months in advance of the proposed February 2025 deadline. However, Gaumont says despite the long lead time, one of the biggest challenges was time.
Nike and NFL brand leadership had to provide approval of each individual design component. 185×50-inch dimensional roof pop-off graphics required certification from a structural engineer as well as approval from the city and landlord. A 6,650 square foot exterior vinyl wrap required seven full working installation days. Exterior graphics were printed using the company’s Rho 1312 from Durst Image Technology US LLC.
Inside of the building, store walls and furniture were wrapped in addition to other printed pieces installed throughout. All of these graphics were printed using the swissQprint Kudu. “The addition of our swissQprint Kudu printer greatly expanded our color gamut and proved vital to hitting our client’s primary Super Bowl LIX campaign colors—neon green and neon orange,” shares Gaumont.
The swissQprint Kudu printed all of the interior vinyl and acrylic graphics, and Infinity Images color matched the green across the powder-coated aluminum mesh walls and both the orange and green to the painted turf.
Turf, aluminum, vinyl, acrylic, plywood, and mirrors were cut using either a Zund America, Inc. G3-3XL, Vytek Laser Systems’ L-Star laser, or Biesse Rover Plast CNC.
Nike leadership was thrilled with the final product. The pop-up store was live for five days in February of 2025 and in that time tens of thousands of customers stopped in.
Infinity Images was also happy with the final result. “Wrapping an entire building façade was a first for Infinity Images, and the overall design impact was greater than any other project to date,” notes Gaumont.
Future Plans
Currently, around five percent of what Infinity Images prints incorporates neon ink colors. At press time, the PSP was in the process of revamping its neon marketing sample materials and with that in the works, hopes to see increased interest in neon ink offerings in 2026.
In addition to neon ink printing being used as an accent on graphics found in retail settings like the Nike Super Bowl LIX retail experience, Gaumont says the team promotes the use of neon colors to enhance photographic imagery.
It is an exciting time at Infinity Images thanks to the acquisition of the swissQprint Kudu and its neon ink set.
Nov2025, Digital Output Magazine
