An Update on Short-Run Diecutting
Although there have been many new finishing systems introduced in the past two or three years, one type of system has caught my attention. The spread of high-quality, cut-sheet digital presses has created a real opportunity for short-run finishing for all sorts of packaging, labels, stickers, boxes, pocket folders, greeting cards, and retail display material.
Enter the short-run, quick set-up rotary diecutter. These machines are quick to set up and easy-to-operate. All use flexible, metal magnetic dies. They are designed specifically for short-run, quick turn-around work. They can diecut, kiss-cut, and crease. Sheet feeding mechanisms vary from vacuum belts, rotary suction wheels, and other mechanisms. The most recent entries come from MBO-Bograma, Duplo, Horizon and Rollem.
Sheet register can be via edge-detection, or mark. Higher end models will register the sheet to the die without stopping, and can account for image shift on the sheet. The Horizon RD-4055 can even re-register the sheet to the die multiple times, so that a single die can be used for multiple passes, lowering the die cost.
Prices and features range (like all systems) from the lower-end 3,000 per hour units to the MBO-Bograma BSR 550 Servo’s blazing 12,000 per hour capability. The BSR-550 also claims the top spot for capital investment for this class of rotary diecutters.
But these machines have allowed printers to add a whole new library of digital short- and medium-run products to their finishing portfolios. And new products mean new potential customers, which is always a good thing!
Don has worked in technical support, sales, engineering, and management during a career in both the commercial offset and digital finishing sectors. He is the North American representative for IBIS Bindery Systems, Ltd. of The United Kingdom.
