2020: The Year in Finishing

2020 has been the year of imposed flexibility—and a worldwide pandemic made it abundantly clear that diversification is the key to surviving and thriving in uncertain times. The finishing category offered a range of opportunities for printers to stand out and expand their offerings. The highest volume of announcements in finishing this year have been in the cutting and embellishment categories, followed by exciting developments in robotics, and some fascinating new offerings in book-of-one bindery automation. 

Additionally, the year’s challenges brought us encouraging stories about transformation—companies seizing upon opportunities to open up to new markets and customers by using their finishing equipment in creative ways, with the equipment manufacturers stepping up to support their journeys. 

The Pivot

In what began as an exciting early Q1 leading into a drupa year, things quickly turned to uncertainty by March. By then, the biggest news in finishing was related to notices of continuity and support. There was a wave of virtual demos and events, and a round of notable retirements. And then something interesting happened—everybody started to get creative. 

Printers and equipment manufacturers figured out how to work with different materials to develop products to meet the needs of entirely new business segments—using their finishing equipment to make PPE, temporary beds, dividers, sneeze guards and signage. In-house finishing equipment and a willingness to adapt and change to get new products to market quickly became a differentiator for many businesses and helped to provide critical sales in an unexpected downturn. 

For example, the team at B&R Moll figured out how to turn their Rotary Die Cutting System into a roll-fed system that can accept PET materials and die-cut face shields. Standard Finishing Systems customer, Moo, is using their RD-4055 Rotary Die Cutting system to make paper face masks. The marketing team at MGI gave their customers a “buzz worthy” creative idea for embellishing face shields with super hero graphics as a nod to first responders working on the front lines. 

Other challenges brought on by COVID were in the realm of sales. POLAR showed tremendous creativity in marketing during COVID, launching a “Solo to System” campaign in July. The campaign was designed to promote industrialization in postpress, and to provoke a move from a solo cutter to a cutting system. The special promotion offers the lift peripheral for free with an upgrade from a qualifying high-speed solo cutting system to the four-piece CuttingSystems 200 (cutter, jogger, unloader and lift). In addition to a free peripheral machine, the value-add for the customer is up to 100% more output, increased safety and efficiency.

To keep the sales pipeline moving, many finishing equipment manufacturers had to scrap in-person demos and master the art of the interactive streaming video demonstration.

“We have definitely pivoted here at Standard,” said Don Dubuque, director of marketing. “Pre-COVID, we were very busy with in-person VIP visits, and now we are doing lots of virtual equipment demonstrations. The virtual demos have been really successful for us as we get through COVID, and they will certainly be a part of our sales and marketing portfolio even after we get through the pandemic.” 

2020 Advancements in Finishing 

Looking across the announcements and news of the year, there were definitely a few categories that were on fire—cutting, embellishments, automated perfect binding and robotics. Let’s start with cutting. 

Cutting Trends and News

There were lots of upgrades and installations in cutting to save time, reduce errors and to automate and improve workflows. Cutting investments were also driven by necessity due to today’s labor issues—including competing with Amazon for labor, dealing with smaller talent pools, the new challenge of social distancing on the shop floor, and the human limitations of keeping up with high-speed equipment and repetitive tasks. Announcements of companies investing in cutting technologies like the BOBST VISIONCUT, Zund G3, Colter & Peterson SABER cutters, Rollem Insignia6 Die Cutters, and others were frequently popping up in the newswire throughout the year.

The year also brought new offerings in cutting technology. Here are some of the most exciting highlights, featured here in alphabetical order by company: 

The Duplo DPC-400 Dieless Digital Die Cutter produces short-run packaging, custom-shaped cards and labels without physical dies. It cuts, kiss cuts and scores in one pass on a range of substrates including paper, laminates, adhesives and synthetic stocks up to 14” x 20.”  Media is held in place on a flatbed through a suction zone below the conveyor belt as the tooling head moves throughout the sheet. Great for labels and stickers, packaging, prototypes and samples.

Heidelberg developed the Multimatrix 60 FC small format die-cutter and hot foil stamping machine to support short to intermediate runs in digital or commercial printing. The machine is great for presentation folders and irregular-shaped direct mail pieces. 

Highcon stepped up to meet the demand for digital die-cutting in the Packaging and POP space with the Highcon Beam 2C. Featuring non-stop feed, crease, laser cut, strip, waste removal and stacking for corrugated, this machine meets the stringent market requirements for corrugated packaging at speeds of up to 4,000 B1 sheets per hour. The Beam 2C is available in two versions – a pallet-fed standard configuration, and a field-upgradable non-stop feeding, stacking and waste removal configuration. 

Koenig & Bauer launched the CorruCUT in 2020—a new sheetfed flexo press designed for the large- and high-growth market for direct printing on corrugated board. The CorruCUT can print and rotary die-cut in one pass on corrugated sheets with a width of up to 110 inches. The machine can run at speeds of 12,000 sheets per hour. 

For printers who produce laminated cards for direct mail promotions, the new Moll Flexcut 760 rotary die-cutter line offers the ability to thermal laminate, rotary die cut, strip waste and deliver a finished product in one pass. They’ve basically turned a tedious, three-step production process into one streamlined workflow. The system can handle substrates from 8pt.-30pt. and is ideal for anyone who produces gift cards, hospital and student IDs or insurance cards. 

MBO had some exciting advancements for direct mail and material packing this year, but I’m highlighting their niche Bograma ACC Deck-Making Unit and STA550 Card Pile Stacker for its innovation in labor reduction for smaller format cut products. The big value in die-cutting is handling large amounts of finished products, like cards/tags/labels, with little to no labor. These two machines perform small product cutting, collating, counting and stacking functions with a single operator.  

It could take 20 or more separate cuts on a guillotine to accomplish what the new Tecnau Stack 1212 can do in a single pass. The Stack 1212 pairs with the new generation of sheet-fed B2+ inkjet presses (and sheet-fed offset presses) and supports impositions from 1-up to 21-up with final output as small as 4” x 5.” The machine footprint occupies a space-efficient 100 sq. ft. 

Embellishments 

Digital print effects, foil, laminate films and coatings were smoking-hot in 2020, as value-added print and digital effects have hit the mainstream and proven their value over the past few years.

There was definitely a trend in stylish new holographic and metallic films and surfaces. Nobelus launched a new Rainbow Holografik Overlaminate film with seamless rainbow holographic pattern, and a Gilt Metalized specialty thermal printable laminate film with a stunning gold reflective foil effect. Not to be outdone, Mainline Holographics premiered a new White Holographic surface that mimics the look of white board or paper for an entirely new “subtle yet vibrant” holographic patterned effect for luxury brands, cosmetics, fragrance and more.

Foil and eco-friendliness don’t usually end up in the same sentence, but ACTEGA EcoLeaf Digital Metallization technology for self-adhesive labels uses only the precise amount of metal required for the printed area. EcoLeaf replaces the use of hot and cold foil rolls and their subsequent high impact on waste. The digital metallizing technology also reduces the cost of profit-driving metallic embellishments for packaging.

There were also several notable new equipment offerings in the embellishment category this year (in alphabetical order by company):

In the high-speed web specialty coatings category, Harris & Bruno premiered the ExcelCoat ZRW—a coater capable of running aqueous and/or UV coatings, allowing printers to meet customer demands in conjunction with the increasing need for post coated media. The ExcelCoat ZRW, offered in 22” and 42” (simplex or duplex) configurations can be integrated in-line with most digital high-speed web presses. It can also be supplied as an offline solution with dedicated unwind and rewind. 

MGI JetVarnish 3D One is the newest and most cost-effective point of entry into MGI’s complete series of sheet-fed, digital print enrichment finishing presses, offering sculpted/raised special effects, or flat spot UV coatings on runs from one to thousands. This machine occupies a smaller footprint and is positioned to provide printers with new revenue streams from value-added services.

The Roland DGSHAPE LD-300 Laser Decorator allows for precision foil decoration on larger three-dimensional items, plus the ability to imprint directly onto natural leather. Designed to embellish cosmetic items, custom gifts, wallets, purses and much more, this machine is incredibly versatile and will open doors for print service providers to service new markets. 

Scodix launched the Ultra Press Series of digital enhancement presses that are tailored to industry sectors – W2P, Commercial and Specialty, and Packaging. This new array of 6 specialized presses offer service providers an opportunity to choose the press that will best support the future growth of their business.

The new Xeikon FEU (Fusion Embellishment Unit) is a stand-alone embellishment solution for label printers and converters. With complete digital finishing and embellishment capabilities, Xeikon’s FEU is based on MGI technology and provides UV spot varnish, tactile varnish, foil, 3D textures, high-opacity white and other effects across a wide range of substrates.

“Book of One” Bindery Automation 

There were two disruptive developments in “Book of One” bindery automation this year:

Muller Martini has developed an automated case binding system for book-of-one (or many) production scenarios. The Vareo-Infinitrim Hardcover Cell brings fully-automated hardcover digital book production to the market with a bang. This groundbreaking advancement features an end-to-end, “file-to-finished product” workflow solution that intelligently manages production throughout the entire manufacturing process. The system features automated endsheet-tipping, perfect binding and trimming for hardcover digital books all-in-one pass.

Also new to the market is the Standard Horizon BQ-500 Perfect Binder, which is designed for optimum book-of-one productivity with increased automation, and increased quality control over a wider range of substrates compared to competitive models. The system is equipped with iCE LINK, a new cloud-based monitoring tool from Horizon that can also handle KPI analysis, PM schedule/alerts, JDF/JMF workflow, scheduling, job creation, editing and more. The BQ-500 Perfect Binder can be run in-line with the fully-automated HT-300 Three-Side Trimmer, also released this year and 35% faster than earlier models.

Robotics and Automation

There is no way for one machine operator to keep up with the newest automated and high-speed folders without using an automated back end. This issue also applies to today’s high-speed perfect binders and saddle-stitchers as well. The solution is generally to add more people and/or to slow down the machine, which defeats the purpose and efficiency of high-speed equipment.

“In commercial printing, the postpress department accounts for the highest personnel costs at typically around 60%,” said Jörg Dähnhardt, head of postpress business management at Heidelberg.

So, by adding robotic technology to the bindery, we can reduce the amount of human labor and error, increase the flow of materials and reduce the operator’s workload.

The Heidelberg StahlFolderTH/KH 82-P uses their “Push to Stop” folding technology for the highest output, and the ability to produce different folded signatures or jobs of similar formats and folds on a single pallet—without any human touchpoints. The system is barcode-driven and initiates job changes, so there are no slipsheets between jobs. However, high-speed folding requires high-speed stacking, and the Heidelberg Stahlfolder P-Stacker features a cageless autonomous robotic stacking mechanism that supports non-stop production and loading at a rate of 300 stacks per hour, with minimal gaps between the stacks.

When coupled with the MBO Palletized Feeder, the MBO CoBo-Stack Palletizer features a collaborative robot (also called a cobot), that needs no protective cage. The palletizer runs uninterrupted, and nearly eliminates physical labor to the point where an operator could be running other machines, focusing on quality control, loading or prepping for the next job.  

Related to the topic of robotics and automation, Henrik Christiansen of Graphic Robotics wrote a couple of must-read stories for WhatTheyThink! this year— “Printing Plants and Robots after the Coronavirus” and “Fence-Free Collaborative Robots.” If you have not read them yet, they are definitely worth looking up, because he is not just writing about the topic—he is actually developing and implementing cobots and robot cells in the printing industry today. With all of the post-COVID changes in work environments and the acceleration of business decisions during this time period, robots and cobots may be closer to your business than you think.

Finishing as the Final Frontier

Exciting things are happening in finishing, and I have every reason to believe that we’ll see an acceleration of innovative technologies in the bindery in 2021 heading into drupa, with a continued focus on automation and workflow efficiency across all bindery categories, value added print effects and precision cutting technology.