Print finishing systems and services company Müller Martini was at China Print in Beijing, showcasing its SigmaLine Compact technology that was first introduced at Drupa last year.
With the SigmaLine Compact, roll-fed digital printers can produce more end products in a 40m2 space with fewer staff and a lower waste rate.
With a web speed of up to 200 m/min, the new addition to the SigmaLine family boasts rapid changeover times for job and format changes. Changing the folding schemes (from 3-across to 4-across, for example) takes less than 10 seconds.
Designed to handle digitally printed rolls up to 22.5-inches, the SigmaLine Compact is targeted at digital printers producing pre-products for softcover, hardcover, thread sewing, and saddle stitched print products.
“The digital market in China was originally moving quite slow and was famous for long-runs and big quantities, meaning you could use the conventional offset print and binding technologies,” Müller Martini Asia Pacific region managing director Sven Olsen said.
“But, in the last 12-24 months, the landscape has evolved drastically. Publishers want short-runs and in smaller quantities. So, printers in China are evolving their businesses and we’re catering to the market’s needs by showing some of our latest digital print finishing equipment.
“At this show, we have created a full production line by including a Hunkeler roll-to-stack inline solution – an unwinder and trimmer – with the SigmaLine Compact.
“This covers the entire production line from printed roll to finished book. So, we can produce books of different sizes and thicknesses even with a continuous run, which is unique from the conventional way of making books.”
Olsen confirmed that the company recently sold one of these lines to a customer in China, and that the production line showcased at China Print will go into another Chinese customer’s premises after the conclusion of the show.
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