Monthly Archives: August 2008
Autoprint Mini Offset Machines
Autoprint is a mini offset printing machine manufacturer based in Coimbatore in India. It has received several awards for excellence in printing machine manufacturing in India. It may be safe to consider that it is now the best manufacturer in India when it comes to mini offset machines.
At our press we have one single color Autoprint Knight Offset Machine with the optional Kompac Dampening. This is the best single color mini offset machine that Autoprint has to offer at present. We use the machine daily for producing color printing materials. The Knight machine is quite suitable for multicolor jobs in runs within a thousand or two. It has two inking form rollers with a total of 15 ink rollers. The cost of the machine with the kompac dampening system comes under Rs. 800,000/- in India along with all taxes.
Autoprint has come out with its new two color mini offset machine, Autoprint Dion 250. This is a replacement to the Knight 250 CB which was introduced for a short period and withdrawn from the market due to some technical problems. I am yet to receive information on this new product because the sales have really not started at present. The Autoprint Dion is under Rs. 1,500,000 in India.
It may be remembered that Autoprint had ambitiously launched a mini offset four color machine in the Indian market some one or two years back but it failed due to problems such as registration issues. Hopefully they will come out with a good replacement soon. Autoprint is a name that you can rely upon. Their country wide support is excellent with sufficient engineers all over the nation.
Technova’s Polyjet System
TechNova is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of digital & analog offset printing plates; printing chemicals; and inkjet, laser and drafting media. It is primarily based in India but their products are available in many countries through their authorized dealers.
In Drupa 2008, Technova launched their Metal CTP System, Metijet and Metijet Plus. Metijet is imaged on an inkjet printer such as Epson 7880 at maximun 120 lpi and then it is baked for a few minutes before being mounted on the press. Metijet Plus, on the other hand, is imaged on the Epson Printer and then it is exposed on an exposing machine before being processed and mounted on the press. It is capable of holding 150 lines per inch.
Currently, Technova’s Polyjet system consists of Polyester CTP and Film to Plate system. The Polyester CTP plates are known as Polyjet Plates which are imaged on the Epson Printer and then baked for a few minutes and thereafter transfered to the press for printing. They hold good registration and fine halftone reproduction. The only difficulty is that the right temperature for baking is hard to get in the beginning. A linearization file has to be applied to get correct output from the inkjet printer.
Technova’s film to plate system includes the InstaDry film. The film holds excellent registration and gives good four color printing plates for the press. They come around 90% close to imagesetters. This film is also imaged on an Epson Printer.
The Epson Printers offered by Technova along with the system are available in 17″ and above widths. The software used is Technova’s Polyrip which is really the Open Rip software.
Technova’s Polyjet System comes under Rs. 600,000 for the 24 inches width Epson printer. The price may have increased now as this is the price that I received one or two years back.
Difficulties With Laser Polyester Plates
a) Background Tint and Unwanted Specks – One of the most common problem with laser polyester plates is background toning caused by toner scatter from the laser printer on the plates. This problem becomes acute when the printer is running out of toner. Printing a few blank pages can help solve some cases where the toning is caused by dirt deposited inside the printer. Blank pages should also be run through the printer after a paper jam to clean the printer.
b) Misregistration – Registration is critical for jobs which demand more than one colour. If two colors are to be printed then two master plates have to be printed, one for each of the colors. Now the colors have to be printed on the plate such that their placement is accurate. Laser printers perform poorly in this. Exceptions are some high end laser printers such as Xante’s Platemaker series. These printers perform exceptionally well with polyester plates but both the plates and the printers are more expensive than the ones we get from vendors like HP for printers and Technova or Hurst Chemicals for plates. Xante uses its own plates known as Myriad Plates. Inkjet plates perform better in registration issues as the plates tend to be more stable and there is no heat as in the case of laser technology which might affect the plates.
c) Poor Printing of Solids – Areas in plates where there are a heavy concentration of a particular ink are known as solid areas. Laser printers again fail in this test too.
d) Stretching of Plates while Running in an Offset Machine – This is yet another problem which occurs with most of the laser plates.
e) Long Runs not Possible : Laser plates are limited to short run production usually in a few thousands. The toner on the plates tends to come off after some thousand impressions.
f) Laser Plates are Use and Throw : Laser plates are difficult for reuse as the toner comes off the plate after one time use.