The printing unit on the Océ InfiniStream
Canon has installed its first inline cartonboard coating, cutting and stacking solution for the roll-fed Océ InfiniStream at packaging printer Joh. Leupold GmbH, based in Schwabach, Germany.
The installation is the first result of a strategic partnership with Tresu Group and bielomatik to extend Canon’s solution offering for the Océ InfiniStream technology for digital printing of folding cartons.
Tresu Group and bielomatik provide an industry-scale inline coating, cutting and stacking configuration for digital cartonboard printing with the Océ InfiniStream consisting of the optimised flexo printing coating unit, Tresu webCoat, and the new bielomatik CFS di72 digital-controlled cutter, including piler with non-stop palletising. The printed output is coated with industry-standard UV or aqueous varnishes and then precisely cut into sheets and stacked on pallets ready for subsequent processes, eg die-cutting or decoration such as hot foil stamping or embossing. The system can handle any sheet size between B2 and B1 formats up to 1,060 mm length.
Dirk Vößing, CEO of bielomatik, said, ‘It’s an honour for bielomatik, being part of this new technology for the packaging market. Being selected by the market leader confirms our quality-conscious and customer-focused work and our expertise in paper and carton processing. This partnership of three well-known companies will offer perfect solutions for the digital printing and processing of folding carton for the packaging industry.’
Søren Maarssø, COO of Tresu Group, added, ‘We are very honoured by being chosen as a partner for the Océ InfiniStream project. We see this project as a natural step, for the full line set-up, from the traditional web coating into the world of digital printing production and therefore we are pleased to be able to bring our coating technology into this project.’
This partnership is a further important step in Canon’s strategy to take digital printing of folding cartons to the next level. The lack of industrial-scale productivity is one of the major reasons for the low digital penetration of the folding carton market. With the introduction of the roll-fed Océ InfiniStream technology, the company offers a digital printing solution that it says is a serious alternative to sheet-fed, offset printing systems. Professional folding carton production requires coating and high-precision cutting and stacking solutions for heavy cardboard.
Peter Wolff, director of commercial printing, Canon Europe, commented, ‘With the InfiniStream technology, Canon is investing heavily in the booming digitally printed packaging market. We are proud to have bielomatik and Tresu Group on board to further extend our solution offering. Both companies bring many years of experience in the packaging market into the partnership, supporting us to create a complete solution that matches professional standards. The installation and testing at Leupold is part of Canon’s proof-of-concept strategy to co-develop packaging solutions with lead customers.’
