Productivity Drives Offset Press Purchase

Printers looking to produce high-quality work with a high throughput and an affordable price point, reported offset press vendors. In fact, according to Sean Springett, vice president of sales & marketing, North America, manroland Sheetfed, the overall outlook regarding the market condition for printers, be it commercial or packaging oriented, is positive in both the US and Canada for 2016 and going into 2017.

Upping the ante, Presstek is launching at drupa UV versions of its DI press, the eco-UV DI. “We’ve incorporated the latest UV technology into our presses; allowing our customers to print on plastics, market to a wider assortment of customers, and expand the application of their platforms,” Ralph Jenkins, director worldwide sales and marketing, noted. “They can now print on plastics, cards, labels, all on a DI press; previously, these types of applications wouldn’t have typically come over to this platform.

“This makes offset more relevant all over again,” added Jenkins. He reported Presstek already has one installation completed, and another – at a security card printer – pending.

“KBA is seeing growth in sheetfed press sales with packaging and commercial printers that are looking to fulfill unique applications so that they can provide added value in the printed product," said Eric Frank, senior vice president of marketing and product development. "We are also seeing press sales from printers who are looking for plant efficiencies in terms of daily net output."

Despite persistent headlines to the contrary, printers that serve traditional markets are still buying offset, Doug Schardt, Komori’s national product manager, said.

“The most interesting part of it is; we heard over the years that quite a few people said ‘I just bought my last offset, now buying digital.’ But the fact is, they are buying offset again.”

What is happening within our company supports our belief in the offset segment, Jenkins said. “We just acquired Anocoil Corporation (at the end of March) and our parent company AIP (American Industrial Partners) acquired Goss this past summer,” he said.

Presstek’s core product portfolio includes: 4- to 6-colour DI presses; thermal and inkjet computer-to-Plate systems; and printing plates for DI presses and CTP applications—all for the offset market.

There are a multitude of reasons to buy a digital press, but when it comes to productivity, offset wins, agreed top-tier offset press vendors. Running a high quality digital press at its maximum speed of 3,000 sph, the argument goes, you won’t be able to produce enough work to make the monthly payment. Of course there is work where only digital makes sense – such as any that requires variable data. But if you have to get the work out, it’s got to be an offset press, advocates stated.

And while toner and inkjet are defining their niche, there isn’t one alternative technology taking over the range of what offset can produce. “Where we see work taken off offset is for very short run and variable-data applications,” Jenkins said. “Other than that, offset is still the tool of choice for our customers.”

“When we look at global industrial print consumption, digital/ink-jet still represents a single digit caption of that market,” said Springett.

Productivity of today’s modern offset press is a key reason. Offset press technology in make-ready processes are down to under 10 minute cycles—sometimes even as low as four minutes—depending on whether it is a small or large job changeover.

KBA’s research and development team is focused on slashing the make-ready time to zero, with features that work in concert using the ErgoTronic console with its TouchTronic operating system, designed with one button job changeover.

“What we see is that the purchase decision is very application based,” Jenkins said. “Some of the key drivers to a decision that lead to an offset investment include the print manufacturing costs per page, and print production speed.”

If you look at the press as a print manufacturing tool, you can then consider which tools are necessary to do the work you need for your customer base.

“If something is longer run oriented or efficiency print oriented because of format size, then offset is still proving to be a very good investment,” Jenkins said.

Additional drivers include print quality standards; “offset is still the reference point for quality print,” Jenkins said. It also prints on the widest range of substrates available.

Offset also very delivers very robust duty cycles, vs. alternative technologies, which have much shorter life spans. “Within our customer base of AB Dick of small format or with our DI we have systems that are 25 years old,” Jenkins said. “In the Goss group, there are customers with presses that are 30 plus years that are still running and we are still supporting.”

The majority of offset press purchases are predominately being sold into folding carton, packaging printers, said Springett.

“We have seen based on press configurations that there is a growing requirement in the marketplace for luxury oriented packaging, where brands are looking to further differentiate themselves in a very competitive retail shelf landscape,” Springett said.  The specific markets driving this trend are cosmetic and fragrances, confectionary and packaged foods. 

The advanced automation available on today’s crop of offset presses is making these machines viable. “We are even seeing web-to-print shops embracing offset,” said Schardt, “and it’s because of the automation offered. They may look at digital, but they buy are buying offset; it’s an active market for us.”

Komori's KHS-AI software achieves ink and register stability in just 20 sheets- reducing make-ready time and paper waste; its Smart Sequence system links jobs for automatic production runs.

“The all new 18,000 impression per hour Evolution from manroland Sheetfed is designed to meet the current and future trends in either packaging or commercial print applications,” said Springett.  “We are already delivering complex, multi coater Evolutions with inline foiling, LED (light emitting diode) or LEC (low energy curing) UV, equipped with process advancements only found with manroland Sheetfed.  Whether there is a requirement for the fastest make ready possible, with simultaneous wash-up function in the ink train, blanket, and back cylinder, plate loading, coating form change-over and pre-setting of the press feeder and delivery - these are features manroland has had available since the early 2000's that as of today, are best represented in the Evolution and quite simply are perfect.”

Presstek offers a unique hybrid solution, said Jenkins. “ We use digital offset technology; a blend of both worlds. We get the print speed and quality and duty cycle of the offset engine and then we get all the efficiency of a digital engine integrated into one platform. We make that that platform available in many different sizes and configurations, depending on customer need.”

Compared to toner or inkjet presses, one of the big benefits in this type of technology is that you don’t have the cost and burden of clip charge, Jenkins said. “You also have a much wider color gamut. We also integrate waterless technology into our press platform, which is an important feature. The waterless component gives it much faster dry time, much higher richer color gamut; and keeps it environmentally friendly.”

Press manufacturers have incorporated advanced automation to drive down not only make ready time but also make-ready waste. For example, manroland Sheetfed’s Inline ColorPilot, requires only three sheets to process a color bar reading, noted Springett.  “Because of these systems the gap between inkjet and offset is not as large as it once was.”