NPE 2000 Showcase - Decorating:Technology, speed drive decorationNPE 2000 Showcase - Decorating:Technology, speed drive decoration

A plasticcup or a frisbee appears plain and uninviting whenunmarked. But throw a little pad printing or hot stamping intothe equation, and the OEM instantly has a more attractive productand brand recognition. Makers of decorating equipment at NPE alsotried to make their wares stand out from the crowd, offering everythingfrom wet-on-dry printing to robot integration.

In pad printing, Printex's first all-electric, the ePrint-100,uses a servodrive system that matches cycle speeds of pneumaticmachines while providing greater precision. Users can stack multipleimages on one plate and program the image pickup location withlittle or no adjustment of the printing pad or fixture tool. Printex'sother new printer is the modular G2-150, which is available withtwo-color, four-color, transverse printing, and turntable indexingattachments.

Imtran brought four new pad printers to the show, startingwith the GS-200. This pad transfer printer is capable of fourto six colors, with a closed cup or open doctor blade, and isbilled as a plug-and-play unit into any of the company's automationscenarios. It's also available in a servo version, the GS-200S,which comes preprogrammed to accept a variety of standard automationmodules. Pricing ranges from $20,000 to $60,000.

Economy is the word on the last two pad printers, the ES-35($5450) and ES-50 ($7650). Both use a one-color ceramic closed-cupsystem - 2 1/2 or 3 1/2 inches for the ES-35, and 2 1/2, 3 1/2,or 5 inches for the ES-50.

A heavy-duty version of its earlier models was introduced byAutoroll Print Technologies. The Padflex 3000 is built with asteel frame designed to eliminate flex during pad compression,and can accommodate up to four 180-mm closed ink cups. Pressurecapability has also increased to start at 80 lb/sq in. Maximumimage size is 6.6 inches in diameter.

Pad Print Machinery of Vermont brought a CNC unit with all-axiscontrol, which is programmable to pick up the image anywhere onthe clichè -- the conveyor will stop at any position. Upto 999 jobs can be held in memory, with each job assigned a specificnumber to be recalled upon request.

The Model 628 Pat-A-Print machine from Service Tectonics Inc.was introduced to fill the niche for inexpensive, small-footprintpad printers. This one-color, 10-by-16-inch unit can run 3200cycles/hr with its 3-inch-diameter sealed ink cup system.

While most pad printers move the part, Teca-Print's new systemkeeps the part stationary while rotating the four pads on an ABBrobot. A joystick directs the arm movement, which can be savedin memory. Print capability is one or two colors, with more colorpossible if additional dispensers are added (it comes with twosealed ink dispensers). The pad printer and robot combinationcosts between $140,000 and $180,000.

On display at United Silicone's booth were two new pad printingmachines, the UP 300 and UP 500 Series. Both attempt to save theuser time through the use of covered inkwells and changeable sealedink reservoirs. The UP 500 has a larger print area and can standalone or be integrated with an automated system.

Hot stamping is a close companion to pad printing, and UnitedSilicone recognized that by introducing its Uni-Ring multiprintdecorating system that integrates hot stamping with pad printingapplications. Two other new machines, both straight hot stampingpresses, also are capable of heat transfer. In addition to thehot stamper model, the US 25M comes in a heat transfer versionwith the company's redesigned Web-Trak for accurately placingheat transfer decals.

A number of companies were offering hot stamping on cylindricalobjects. CPS Resources claimed to be the first to apply foil ona taper with its R-200 hot stamper. The $25,000 machine decoratescups with a maximum foil width of 823 inches and also appliesup to nine-color heat transfers on tapered surfaces. For stampinground or square buckets and pails, Cassco Machines introduceda moving roller heat transfer decorating system with a servodrivehead that is designed for press-side automation.

Also for hot stamping cylindrical objects is the P50-RAN1 fromDubuit of America. This totally numeric, high-speed machine canstamp up to 3000 parts/hr, and costs $30,000. Acromark Industries'Model 996 hot stamping press debuted in Chicago as well, withthe capability of decorating up to 360° on parts from 1/4-to 1 1/4-inch diameter with a maximum length of 7 inches.

Cup printing saw the introduction of new dry offset printingtechniques. Graphics International Group demonstrated Omso's eight-colorHergo 608 dry offset printer, running 36,000 cups/hr and requiringjust one operator. Speedy decoration was also on display at Polytype'sbooth where its eight- to nine-color Model BDM-611/920 reachedspeeds of 600 ppm. It features a low-profile compact design thatallows easy access to all color heads, since the top head is only2m from the floor.

AE International showcased its new two-color, wet-on-dry printingtechnique, in which the ink is UV dried. This process reportedlyeliminates wet trapping and color contamination problems, makingpossible four-color, photo-quality images. No mixing of inks isrequired. The technology has been applied to its ImagePro 5800servodriven and controlled offset printing machine (see photo,opposite bottom).

One firm that didn't bring its decorating equipment to theshow as protection from its competitors was Miner Technologies.Miner's Accuprint servocontrolled dry offset printing systemsrun a nine-color, one-step process that is faster than other printingmethods, say company sources (see photo).

At Tampoprint International, lasers were on display in an upgradedCTP 60/90M printing machine. Printing is done with foil, on whicha laser marks a company's image. By using foil, the need to changeprinting plates by hand is eliminated. The upgrade allows thelaser unit to be used during dead times for inline or offlinework.