Analysis on Application Characteristics and Development Trend of Combined Printing
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Combined printing, as its name implies, is a processing method that combines various printing methods and cooperates with different post-processing techniques to produce finished or semi-finished products. It combines the advantages of various printing and post-processing, while also combining the shortcomings of various printing and post-processing! Combined printing, with its excellent print quality and technical performance, became the hottest topic in the printing industry in 2008, and also represents the latest trends in today's high-end label and packaging printing.
The core problem that combined printing needs to solve is to effectively avoid the shortcomings while exerting the advantages of various printing processes. This is also the direction that printing equipment suppliers and printers have worked together for many years.
Basic concept of combined printing
For combined printing, everyone has their own different understandings. What are the main combination methods currently popular in the industry? According to statistics, the current combination in use includes: a combination of flexo and silkscreen; a combination of flexo and gravure; a combination of flexo and offset; a combination of flexo and embossing; a combination of embossing and silkscreen; Combination of printing and silk printing, gravure; combination of flexo and silk screen, embossing; combination of flexo and offset printing, silk screen printing; combination of offset printing, silk screen printing, flexo printing and gravure printing; flexo printing and post-processing operations such as cold transfer; Combination of hot stamping, lamination, indentation, embossing, slitting and die cutting; combination of flexo, silkscreen and post-processing; combination of flexo, silkscreen, gravure and post-processing; silkscreen, gravure Combination of embossing and post-processing; combination of offset, flexo, silkscreen, gravure and post-processing; plus the above combination of digital printing or inkjet, implemented in 2008, to implement variable information Printing combinations, etc.
Different printing combinations have created brilliance at different stages, such as the Merian 4150 in the 1990s, the Gallus EM model at the beginning of this century, and the Mobility's MO. However, with the development of science and technology, the intensification of competition, and the improvement of living requirements, people have put forward higher requirements for combined printing. So what is the current combination that truly represents the highest level of labeling and packaging? It must be combined with today's most important and advanced printing methods and post-processing operations, namely: offset, flexo, silk screen, gravure, digital printing, and post-processing operations such as cold transfer, hot stamping, lamination, indentation , pressure bump, slitting, die cutting, and inline quality inspection.
The combination of light pressure printing flexo printing and heavy pressure gravure, hot stamping, and long ink road offset printing is a problem in itself, a manufacturer that can truly combine these high-end technologies and produce economic benefits. The world is also limited, including: Italy's Giduue; Gallus; Switzerland's Nilpeter. The models are mainly Schande Xpannd of Kidu, RCS of Gallus and MO of Nilpeter.
Advantages and disadvantages of each major printing method
There is an old saying in China, ‘no chicken is not a feast’; in the printing portfolio ‘no offset is not a real combination’! Offset printing, China's most extensive and popular printing method, includes everything from advertising designers to all practitioners, end users, and everyone with a 'glue' look.
Offset printing is carried out by transferring the PS plate to the blanket and transferring it to the substrate. Offset printing has low cost, abundant resources and sufficient technical staff. The printing overprint is accurate and can be controlled within ±0.02mm; the dot reproduction is best, the transition of the transition dot or the net is very beautiful, and it will not exceed 10%~15% in the most deformable dot area; the printing quality is high, The usual printing resolution can reach 150 to 300 lpi. However, offset printing is lacking in the field of printing, and it is difficult to keep the ink color consistent. Sometimes it is necessary to print twice in the field.
Flexo printing is a developing environmentally friendly printing, also known as green printing, which is a very common printing method in Europe and America. Flexographic printing is suitable for a wide range of substrates for excellent field, line printing and glazing. In large-area field printing, flexo prints excel in saturation and consistency, and the colors are bright and beautiful, and the prints can keep the ink color consistent. Flexo printing usually has a printing resolution of 100 to 175 lpi. Water-based inks, alcohol inks, and UV inks are commonly used inks for flexo printing. The flexographic printing is a short ink path, and the ink transfer roller transfers the ink onto the resin plate and directly prints on the substrate, and the printing is light pressure. The main problem of flexo printing is that the printing of dot printing is large, and the cost of consumables such as ink and printing plate is higher than other printing methods.
Gravure is a widespread and widespread printing method other than offset printing. The excellent solid printing effect of gravure printing (the thickness of ink layer reaches 30μm) and the printing effect of metallic ink are most commendable; the printing resolution of gravure printing is usually 100-359lpi; other advantages of gravure printing include high printing quality and high production efficiency. The color consistency is good, the material adaptability is good, and the printing plate has high printing durability. In combination with other printing processes, gravure printing can produce metallic luster, similar to hot stamping, and cost-effective. Gravure is the most direct heavy pressure printing, and the metal plate roller is directly inked and printed onto the substrate. The main problem with gravure printing is that solvent-based inks are generally used, which is not environmentally friendly. Although aqueous inks for gravure printing are also being developed, it is not currently possible to completely replace solvent-based inks. In addition, the printing ability of the gravure fine dots is lacking, and the small dots are easily lost.
Silk screen printing is a kind of supplementary printing, mainly reflected in higher ink hiding power and color intensity, and the thickness of the ink layer is 20-100 μm. Silk screen printing is suitable for special surface treatment, surface finishing of bumps, base of transparent film and printing of Braille. Silk screen printing ink layers are thick, but printing speed is slow, while rotary screens are relatively expensive.
The embossing is used in China's label printing. It has the advantages of low cost and cheap plate making. However, the print quality and printing speed of the embossing are limited. In addition, since the ink color transfer of the embossing has a large correlation with the speed, the contact time, and the temperature, it is likely to cause a problem of poor consistency of the ink color and poor printing in the field. In Europe and the United States, embossing is a printing method that is being phased out.
Advantages and trends of combined printing
Combinatorial printing combines the advantages of a variety of printing methods to produce high-quality, top-quality printing products for luxury luxury printing that deliver the best product appearance. Combined printing can add value to prints, making products more valuable and competitive, thereby gaining a larger market share; combined printing also provides an innovative platform that allows processes to be combined freely and freely designed. Since the product completes all printing and post-processing on one machine, no intermediate links are required, and the quality of the product is easily controlled, thus shortening the delivery time of the product. With combined printing, production and processing are more convenient, the cost is more economical, and the production efficiency is further improved. Since combined printing uses many high-tech applications, the investment in equipment is higher, which also increases the threshold for entry, increases the difficulty of counterfeiting, and makes the prints produced by printing companies unique.
As end-users' requirements for differentiation increase, combined printing now and in the future presents a positive trend: the combination printing method adapts to the needs of the development of the modern printing industry, adds value to prints, and can be brought to printing companies and end users. Bringing rich profits; it represents the highest level of label printing, and the prospects are promising!
With the large number of applications of new processes, new technologies and new materials, combined printing is increasingly showing its strong advantages, and its development prospects are extremely broad. High-end modular printing equipment will set off a wave of innovation and progress in China, thus realizing its two business values: the first is to add value to its products, and the second is to differentiate and reflect its uniqueness.