Print 01: It's Showtime

As this year's biggest graphic arts trade show in the world, Print 01 carries from September 6-13 the expectations of 850 exhibitors and some 75,000 visitors from across the globe.

"For the buyer, this should be one of the most favorable industry trade shows we've seen in a long, long time," predicts TrendWatch co-founder Dr. Joseph Webb, who is delivering a keynote address on industry trends and predictions on September 7 during the first general session of the Chicago-based exposition.

He adds, "Manufacturers are suffering from the economic downturn, and I think attendees know that now is one of the best times to buy new products given that they're likely going to be at prices below what they may be later."

For the past four months, GAM has compiled manufacturers' announcements of products to be launched or exhibited at Print 01. Following are announcements that have not already been detailed in our previously published coverage of postpress, pressroom, and prepress systems.

Baldwin Technology Company Inc. is slated to feature the following products: automatic blanket cleaning systems; direct-imaging plate cleaning systems; small press cleaning systems; fountain solution, temperature control, and mixing systems; drying and curing systems; ink management, quality, and press protection systems; fold gluing and softening systems; materials handling systems and splicers; and tension infeeds and inserters.

Baumer Electric is set to introduce both its Scatec-1 laser-based paper sheet detector as well as its PosCon ZADM 22-line scan sensor. The Scatec-1 paper-sensing sheet detector is specifically designed for lap stream counting of any material with a leading or trailing edge, and operates independent of color. Single sheets to 0.2 mm in thickness in the working range of 0-103 mm below the sensor can be accurately and reliably detected at a rate of up to 1.5 million copies per hour, claims the company.

PosCon ZADM 22 is a pocket-size retro-reflective line scan sensor that offers an alternative to complex vision systems for size and position-sensing applications.

Challenge Machinery Company is introducing its CMT 330 digitally controlled three-knife trimmer, which trims soft-cover, perfect-bound books at up to 400 books per hour. Designed for on-demand applications, the unit can trim books up to 2" thick in sizes from 4x6" to 9x12".

The company also is unveiling its Champion 370 XT and top-of-the-line 301/2"-wide Champion 305 XT programmable paper cutters, the latter of which has a 10.4" diagonal color touch-screen display that uses a Windows-based system to simplify job set-up.

Check Technology Corporation is displaying the next generation of its high-volume, cut-sheet digital print system, the Imaggia II. It will be offered in either a 220- or 300-page-per-minute configuration at 600x600 dpi.

The Imaggia II print system features Intelli-Pick front-end collation from up to eight input bins. Each input bin can handle the large cut-sheet media size formats (up to 183/4" wide by 26" long) as well as a wide range of substrate weights and finishes.

Crown Roll Leaf, Inc. will have on display its SuperFormat offering, a proprietary silver rainbow holographic hot-stamping foil said to be free of intrusive shim lines, which expands the usable area between plate lines, claims the company. The foil is available in 12", 20", and 28" plate lines, up to 40"-width hot-stamping foil, lamination foil, and UniLustre non-laminated metallized paper and board.

DYC Supply Company is presenting its Platinum compressible printing blanket, designed for high-speed web offset and sheetfed printing applications. The offering features a water-resistant fabric backing, and requires a minimum of packing from the start and fewer repacks after start-up, says the firm. As with all DYC/Kinyo blankets, thickness is guaranteed to be within .0008" from roll to roll.

Eckart America L.P. is presenting its line of Metal Star press-ready metallic sheetfed inks, press-ready heatset metallic inks for web offset printing, UV metallic inks for offset and letterpress output, and Top Star color palette of offset metallic inks.

Encad is displaying a range of wide-format imaging devices, including the NovaJet 850 printer, available in 42" and 60" widths. The 850 utilizes eight-head ink line technology that allows users to employ either all eight colors simultaneously, print with a six-color process, or utilize a double mixture of CMYK to produce production-level print speeds.

Flint Ink Corporation is displaying an array of sheetfed inks, including low-VOC Agri-Tek V, waterless ArrowDri, stay-open Arrowfresh, high-speed/long-run ArrowMark, fast-setting ArrowTek, commercial and packaging CapiPlus V, Contempo and Plastik for synthetic substrates, six-color Hexachrome set, quick-setting Low Odor, and universal-use Versatil II.

Global Graphics Software and Global Graphics Hardware are jointly demonstrating the Cirrus 2 computer-to-plate system, ICG scanners, the MaxWorkFlow system, Harlequin and Jaws RIPs, and PDF Creator.

Graphic Whizard is introducing the FoldMaster 250, a 17"-wide air-feed folder capable of running at a throughput rate of up to 25,000 sheets per hour. The unit performs perforating, scoring, and slitting before the fold rollers using individually depth-adjustable accessory holders.

GTI Graphic Technology, Inc. is slated to introduce the Graphiclite PDV series of compact, affordable D5000 professional desktop viewers for critical color-viewing applications. The company also will display its CVX family of large-format stations, available in five sizes with a viewing area up to 48x130", featuring high-performance electronic ballasts coupled with Graphiclite T8 fluorescent lamps.

IMC America and Civiemme are presenting for the first time at a North American exhibition the Civiemme three-knife rotary trimmer RT 450, which has been designed for the in-line processing of press-finished products at full machine speeds.

The unit features segmented knives from Widia (which can be easily replaced without disassembly, says the manufacturer) and a rugged modular design. Product format ranges from 5" to 22", and trimming width can be manually adjusted via the screen display. Four models are offered: manual or automatic, with either one or two knives.

Innotech Graphic Equipment Corporation is demonstrating two products: a high-speed gap-cutting sheeter, available in web widths from 20" to 381/2", and an upgraded InnoFormer.

Innotech's multipurpose sheeter uses a patented vacuum cutter that cuts and removes transverse trim strips to produce trimmed-to-size sheets and folded products at high speeds, thereby eliminating further processing of sheets such as guillotine trim cuts.

The InnoFormer enables folds to be made in the running direction of the web at speeds up to 2,500 feet per minute (fpm), without the need for adjustments except for the lateral move to the line of fold, say company officials.

Lassco Products is introducing a new line of joggers, including the LJ-4 tabletop jogger equipped with a 17x17" table, capable of handling a full ream of 11x17" paper, that allows for perfect alignment of all forms of paper products, claims the manufacturer. Also included in the line is a small-format tabletop jogger (table size of 4x13") and a four-bin jogger (table size of 181/2" wide by 10" high, divided into 4"-wide bins) designed to sort and collate envelopes and checks.

Kodak Polychrome Graphics is launching its Premier Recording Film hard-dot film, which employs a new Enhanced Booster Technology (EBT) said to reduce process cycle time by up to 33% and provide consistent dot performance over a wide range of processing conditions. EBT triggers a chemical known as a nucleator during processing to inject electrons into silver halide crystals in areas where exposure has occurred. Says the company, another improvement is the coating technology for high-matte film, providing consistent high density and improved vacuum drawdown for applications like flexography, which requires long contact exposures.

LDR International is showing the latest development in its paper cutting, folding, and handling equipment, designed to streamline the movement of stock through the postpress area.

LDR will show a new Kudo jogger with air blast to separate sheets of paper, which allows an operator to load the jogger without having to fan the stock first. The latest loading and unloading equipment is being featured on Itoh paper cutters, including new programming upgrades.

nuArc Company, Inc. is exhibiting exposure and imaging equipment for color proofing and platemaking. The company is debuting the Vitran II UV curing system with TransPorter Lithographic Transition Conveyor for lithographic printing. The TransPorter, which can be adapted to accommodate various models of offset presses, utilizes the same digital control and vacuum belt system to move substrates easily from the press to the Vitran II unit, described as an economical but high-quality UV cure system.

Paktek Industrial Company, Ltd. is showing its automatic folder gluer system, equipped with a special feeder for stable operation.

Presstek, Inc. is demonstrating its ProFire thermal imaging system, which combines lasers, electronics, and motion control in one modular package. The ProFire system uses an array of eight laser clusters, spaced at 2" intervals across the width of the exposure system, with each cluster holding four FirePower laser diodes, each of which records its own spot.

Additionally, Presstek-enabled DocuColor 233 and 400 DI presses from Xerox Corporation will be shown at the latter's booth, while Heidelberg, Ryobi, Sakurai, and other press manufacturers also will feature DI presses equipped with Presstek imagers at their respective booths.

printCafé Systems, Inc. is showing modules and updates to its print management system software suite, including Hagen OA version 6.03, PMS Version 20.06, Logic Version 18.07, and PSI Version 11.022. According to printCafé, all of these systems offer integration options to Auto-Count, a direct machine interface tool, the PrintFlow scheduling module, and the PrinterSite e-commerce tool.

Print Tec is launching Print Tec University, an on-line educational vehicle for printers and prepress professionals designed to instruct how to better sell and market digital printing to print buyers.

Prolatus is showing a patent-pending proof mark-up process and a number of other developments to its Catalyst Technology-based suite of workflow solutions. The new mark-up solution will significantly change the traditional hard-copy proof mark-up process, says the company. Prolatus's technology enables those who rely on hard-copy proofs to communicate changes the way they always have, while permitting immediate exchange of the information with other proofing participants.

Tower Products Inc. is set to introduce a new fountain solution technology developed for the polyester and laser plate market. The product, marketed under the trade name Millennium Silver, provides wetting capabilities for these plate materials, offering printers increased control over print quality and color management.

According to Tower, the offering is used as a one-step product without any additives, at a significantly lower dosage, thereby affording better control over ink/water balance and preventing over-emulsification of ink.

Vits-America is displaying its short-makeready in-line former ILF unit, a servo-drive Multicut LP sheeter designed for in-line or off-line use, and a Rotocut S Sheeter equipped with two variable-speed-driven infeed rollers with air-loaded nip wheels. The Multicut LP, which is rated at speeds up to 1,200 fpm and can handle materials with cutoffs from 6" to 28", will be shown in operation along with the ILF unit on Müller Martini's A74 press. The Rotocut S will be operating on a Mitsubishi 16Z web at the show.

Xerox Corporation is formally unveiling its FutureColor digital press (see page 66), as well as introducing its Phaser 7700 workgroup single-pass color laser printer, capable of output speeds up to 22 pages per minute in color and black-and-white at 1,200 dpi. The latter is equipped with PhaserMatch ICC 7700 color management software designed to offer increased control by creating custom profiles that accurately match the colors of printing presses and other output devices for Mac OS and Windows users.