By Melissa Donovan
Part 3 of 3
If you read the first two articles in our series about digitally printing labels, stickers, and decals you might be wondering about specific makes and models to produce the application. Well, read on as we share products from the vendors interviewed for this series.
Product Considerations
Durst Image Technology presents a full lineup of digital label printers with numerous capabilities at different investment levels that can be configured to best suit business needs. Finishing definitely needs to be considered but it is happy to work with print service providers to determine the best system to help grow the business. With proprietary, single-pass UV inkjet technology, Durst label printers provide the required flexibility to produce fast, efficient, and high print quality for the complete range of the application. The Durst Tau RSC family of 1,200 dpi variable, versatile, adjustable, and configurable machine systems opens up an enormous potential for new products and services in an ever-changing market.
The Epson SurePress L-4733AW is a low-priced press with white ink can print on almost all flexographic substrates without primer. It also prints on unsupported films such as candy wrappers, shrink, in mold labeling, and coffee/cosmetic web. The print quality is prime brand label quality. In fact, it is the only digital press under $250,000 with white ink and produces brand-quality, pressure-sensitive labels, and thin films at an industrial standard. The L-4733AW is a solution also well suited for entry-level environments because it is versatile, offers a streamlined workflow from proof to press, and is designed to be easy to use with unattended operation.
Ideal for high-volume production environments, the Epson SurePress L-6534VW is cost advantageous and capable of printing from 200,000 to 2,000,000 square feet per month. The L-6534VW enables reliable and repeatable high-speed printing and integrates all of the functions required for production, such as Corona treatment, white ink, digital varnish, web cleaner, ionizer, and an additional UV curing unit, all standard.
For print shops printing fewer labels, Epson also offers a lineup of on demand color label printers. The Epson ColorWorks solutions are commercial-grade, color label printers designed to help businesses—from small to large enterprises—cost-effectively print color labels on demand.
Mutoh America, Inc. offers a complete line of eco-solvent and UV printers capable of producing high-quality labels when one of the company’s ValueCut II cutters is added to the production process. Mutoh’s roll printers range in size from 24 to 104 inches.
With Roland DGA Corporation’s LG Series Printers, customers can print and contour cut the most intricate shapes with ease and accuracy and provide custom prints with high-quality, photorealistic images and unique touches like simulated embossing or special three-dimensional effects.
Whether creating prototypes or custom short runs, print onto virtually any media, including cardboard stock, foils, BOPP, PE, PET film, synthetic or natural leathers, and textiles. With the LG Series printers, there is worry-free, unattended printing. Simply start a job and let the printer/cutter run overnight to maximize productivity and profitability.
Valloy Incorporated’s BIZPRESS13R is compact size digital roll label printer for professional commercial label production. It supports 13-inch wide substrates in 1,000 meter length and prints by laser toner technology in full color at 7.3 meters per minute. It runs with a Xerox printer engine, so if print shop is using a Xerox printer they benefit from the familiarity. This printer is normally packaged with similar capacity digital roll label cutters like the DUOBLADE SX or DUOBLADE WX.
Consider It
The demand for digital label printing is not going away anytime soon. Adding a dedicated device or leveraging an existing wide format printer are two great options to make inroads into this profitable application.
Apr2023, Digital Output
