ESKO is launching a new complete print inspection solution for digitally printed label production.
With AutoSet Digital, the firm revealed it has introduced an end-to-end solution that automates AVT print inspection of digitally printed labels from prepress through to on-press and finishing.
“The labels market is in a period of considerable change,” said Guy Yogev, senior director of product marketing. “Volume-wise, there has been around a 15% growth in digital label printing and around 40-to-50% of all label presses sold today are digital or hybrid, so it’s clear the market is growing significantly.
“But in this volatile market, the overall macro-economic climate of crisis and economic recession is driving increased pressure on margins, forcing label converters to look for ways to improve operational efficiencies and reduce waste. Businesses are looking for ways to reduce the volumes of material they use, which means reducing defects, over-runs and waste, all while dealing with the added pressure of on-time deliveries and quality expectations.
“Operators might sometimes still be able to visually identify errors on presses running at 30m per minute, but as speeds increase, so does the risk of error. With digital presses getting faster, now is not the time to be loose with quality. The cost implications of such errors can be huge, which is why we have created a complete end-to-end automation solution based on connectivity between prepress to production and all the way to finishing.
“Historically, many businesses have been put off investing in print inspection on digital lines because of perceived product limitations. For example, an inspection system needs to be set up for every run, and digital printers will typically have multiple SKUs in the printed roll and in many cases the design and job can change on the fly with no press stop. With inspection you might have had to stop and reset the system for each SKU, which created a real-time barrier with integrating inspection. But now, AutoSet Digital takes information for each SKU from Esko Automation Engine and relays it directly to the print inspection system.”
AutoSet Digital is said to be covering all of the digital workflow – whether the inspection is done on the digital printing press, on a hybrid press or on a digital finishing line.
“The system on the press records defects, and after production the physical roll is uploaded to the finisher together with the virtual roll,” Guy added. “This virtual roll includes the recorded defects mapped on the entire roll and either the operator or a dedicated QC editor can review and edit the virtual roll. Once edited, the mapped virtual roll will automatically signal the rewinder/doctor machine where the physical roll should stop at the identified point to remove the defect.
“It could be a single label due to an isolated defect, or an entire segment if there has been an issue. Either way, the operator can immediately clean up the roll and rectify the error, it also brings operator efficiencies, freeing up their time to work on other value-adding tasks during a run.”
Guy explained that AutoSet Digital brings the same efficiency and productivity benefits to hybrid presses and digital finishing lines.
