The flexo printing linkage processing production line has been increasingly used in folding carton processing, becoming the most rapidly developing printing processing method, which has brought tremendous impetus to the development of carton processing industry. Even in some of the regions with the slowest growth in the carton processing market, there have been major developments.
There are still some processors who do not believe that post-press processing such as die cutting, waste disposal and forming processing is a vital part of flexographic printing production. However, only the carton that has been die-cut, discharged, and formed has actual packaging and shipping performance, and is truly a practical package. Imperfect post-press processing actually makes perfect printing meaningless.
There are still many factors restricting the processing efficiency of carton processing plants. For example, whether to use single-sheet or roll-fed paper, circular die cutting or flat die cutting, online die cutting or offline die cutting, etc., all directly affect the production capacity of the entire factory. Business interests and ability to serve customers.
Comparison of sheet and web processing
In the carton processing industry, the single-sheet paper feeding, multi-machine offset printing, and flat-press die-cutting process still occupy the largest market share. Its technological process is:
Paper Roll-Single Sheet-Pause-Printing-Pause-Crushing-Pause-Die Cutting-Pause-Discharge-Finished Carton
From the perspective of capital investment and labor cost, if you still operate a carton processing plant in this mode, you will definitely face huge pressure.
Therefore, existing sheet-fed carton processors have to take two approaches to lead the competition: first, to achieve the highest possible speed of production with existing equipment; and second, to achieve high-volume processing Under the low-cost production, such as the carton of many different specifications are processed together.
The high equipment investment cost, the time-consuming printing job conversion, and the difficulty of managing multiple sets of processing equipment at the same time, especially the difference in speed matching between printing and post-press processing, is continuously reducing sheet paper offset printing + flat die cutting Proportion in carton processing.
The typical flexographic printing connection processing process is that the web material directly enters the printing part, and then the processed finished product is output from the other end. The process flow is:
Paper roll-printing + die cutting-finished carton
Obviously, this production method reduces capital investment, die-cutting consumption and labor input, and shortens the time for finished products to reach customers. This is very different from the multiple processing procedures of repeatedly loading and unloading the machine in the processing of a single paper box.
After being aware of this difference, and considering the requirements of the processing period, the following results can be compared: offset printing requires 5 sets of printing equipment, while flexographic printing requires only one set of printing equipment; offset printing requires 6 procedures, The flexographic printing process requires only 2 processes; the offset printing process ultimately requires 10 to 12 workers, while the flexographic printing process requires only 2 to 3 workers. The pros and cons of craftsmanship are obvious.
Comparison between circular die cutting and flat die cutting
Whether it is sheet printing or web printing, if it is equipped with flat die cutting, the subsequent processing will have some defects in manufacturability. Therefore, the choice of die cutting process has become the second most important determinant in carton processing.
Although the price of circular die-cutting die is still higher than that of flat die-cutting die, the price of circular die-cutting die is gradually lowered and the reliability is gradually increased, which makes its popularity continue to expand. Up to now, more and more carton processors have realized the superiority of the circular die cutting process, mainly reflected in the higher average processing speed and similar consistency of the processing technology (rotary printing + circular pressure Round die-cutting), lower investment and simple and fast preparation.
In terms of equipment investment, the price of one flat die cutting machine is sufficient to buy multiple round die cutting machines. Although the price of the circular die-cut die-cutting plate is slightly higher, its investment can be postponed, and only when the actual carton processing order is received, the mold needs to be purchased. To go further, modern round die cutting plates have been manufactured so accurately that most of the pre-press preparation work is completed in the mold processing plant. The die cutting plates are cushioned, hollowed out, and stamped with pads. Waiting for the preparation work no longer exists in the printing enterprise, the printing enterprise only needs to use a thin piece of double-sided tape to stick the plate, which actually reduces the cost.
Of course, the most important of all factors is still production efficiency. Compared with the linkage flat die cutting process, the production efficiency of the round die cutting process is much higher. After successfully adopting new methods such as reducing cutting blanks, the success factor of carton processing production is the number of processing per unit time, that is, how to improve production efficiency. Although the combination of flat die cutting and web printing process also has a higher processing speed, the higher equipment maintenance costs, the difficulty of die cutting and waste discharge and the difficulty of registration make the actual processing production capacity incomparable Round die cutting process.
Of course, circular die cutting is not a panacea. The large-format printing of small carton processing and production adopts the flat-press die-cutting process, which still has advantages, and in some aspects even exceeds the processing capacity of the narrow-width rotary + round-press round die-cutting process.
It should be noted that there are many types of circular die-cutting and die-cutting processing equipment, and it requires considerable knowledge to make a successful choice.
Solid die-cut version and magnetic die-cut version
The solid die-cutting plate of steel alloy has been the main die-cutting plate used in the round die cutting for nearly 20 years. In the past, die-cutting plates were expensive. Considering that carton processors should continue to maintain a competitive advantage, the price of molds has been significantly reduced in recent years, almost to the point where carton processors no longer need to consider too much. The mold manufacturing and processing technology has also advanced to the point where it can be delivered within a few days (and it may take several weeks before, large molds even need a few months), the mold processing accuracy is getting higher and higher, and All the preparations for the die cutting process have been completed before delivery.
Although the mold manufacturing and processing technology is making molds continue to reduce costs, for some carton processors and certain production conditions, the physical die-cut version still has some shortcomings. In order to make up for this as soon as possible, mold manufacturers have accelerated the development of flexible die-cutting plates, namely magnetic die-cutting plates. It uses a magnetic roller to fix the die-cut plate.
The development of magnetic die-cut plates is very rapid, mainly because of their low price. The price of a set of magnetic die-cut plates is only about 25% to 30% of the price of a set of solid die-cut plates. Through the application in recent years, the magnetic die-cutting plate has established its position in the processing of a very small amount of cartons. Especially when the carton processor cannot determine whether a certain carton can be processed in large quantities, it can be used in the trial production of carton samples and test products. Under normal circumstances, if the carton processor can reasonably calculate the annual output of less than 8 million cartons, it can use magnetic die-cutting plates, and when the annual output is greater than 8 million cartons, solid die-cutting is used. The version is more suitable.
Two differences should be noted here. First, the die-cutting process of most magnetic die-cutting plates requires an auxiliary process or a waste bin, which is different from the processing of solid die-cutting plates. The physical die-cutting plate has been equipped with an integrated pin-type waste discharge part, so it has advanced aspects in simplicity, reliability and processing speed; second, the magnetic die-cutting plate cannot be re-grinded after the die cutting blade is passivated After the normal die cutting blade is passivated, the solid die cutting plate can be repeatedly ground 3 to 5 times. This is the reason why 8 million cartons are processed as the reason for choosing different die-cut plates.
Future development trend
With the application of some innovative technologies, those carton processors who have been accustomed to the old processing mode of sheet-fed offset printing + flat-press die-cutting are resistant to the new changes by using flexo printing + round die-cutting The biggest obstacle. A considerable amount of money has still been invested in old-fashioned processing equipment and traditional carton processing methods, and some major equipment suppliers are constantly reminding each carton processor what to do. However, they often do not understand the market pressure and corporate needs faced by carton processors. Only new technologies that meet the future needs of carton processors will prompt them to carefully understand the new processing model.
Flexo printing equipment suppliers and manufacturers of circular die cutting equipment have realized that, based on common long-term interests, both parties should cooperate with each other to complete the transition and transition between new and old equipment and processes as simply and smoothly as possible. Once the carton processors understand the advantages of the new production process, they will learn and learn from a variety of channels, from learning the theory of flexographic printing processing to learning to install magnetic die-cut plates correctly.
Bamboo Stick,Bamboo Stick Cotton Buds,Bamboo Cotton Swab Stick,Color Bamboo Cotton Stick
COTTONWHISPER (TAIZHOU) DAILY PRODUCTS CO.,LTD , https://www.zjcosmeticpuff.com