Recently, British newspaper giant News International purchased for its British printing factory a web printing machine with a total value of 600 million pounds, including digital presses.
The newly purchased equipment will be mainly used for the printing of The Sun and The Times in the outlying areas of the UK. In fact, the reasons for the company to purchase these equipment are very simple: instead of spending time and money transporting these newspaper printing companies from a newspaper printing center, they might as well print at a local printing plant, which can reduce costs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Especially in the era of networking, we have strived for time.
When the News International Group was considering these plans, the digitally printed newspapers had been printed for some time, but people still paid much attention to the print quality, the color stability, and the printing cost of each newspaper, all of which took place over 3 years. In front of carton printing presses, digitally printed newspapers are getting more and more attention from readers. For example, in the United Kingdom, the Daily Mail (Daily Mail) printing in the United States uses the screen Truepress Jet520, which is just one of many examples.
Technology brings reforms
The outbreak of digital printing technology in newspapers is very simple: it is because of the continuous development of digital technology, printing, and prepress technology. Due to the increase in prices of printing plates, lithographic printing, printing companies have adopted digital printing machines, and the printing of digital printing presses and offset printing presses has not changed much in terms of color. At the same time, Xi'an printing, the speed of digital printing presses. It is also constantly improving. In the world, although the speed of digital presses printing newspapers has a certain gap with large-scale offset printing equipment, printing hundreds or thousands of newspapers is more than enough for 3 days, and the cost of each newspaper is much lower.
The pattern of digital printing newspapers prompted manufacturers to invest in this field. Océ, Xerox, Kodak, Agfa and Screens have all started developing R&D equipment for printing on-demand newspapers.
However, as is often the case, the choice of post-press processing related equipment in newspaper printing is very limited. Many experts said that the digital printing newspaper's post-press processing system has only one solution, the printing meter, the Hunkeler postpress system. However, with a growing number of manufacturers investing in this area, the choice will surely become more.
Hunkeler launched the first digital printing branch of a newspaper production line 10 years ago, but the idea of ​​printing newspapers through digital presses has already been revealed. Franz Hunkeler was hailed as a reformer for a long period of time. One of his ideals was to achieve short-run printing of newspapers in the 1990s. Afterwards, the company did a lot of experimental rice paper printing. In order to find the best solution, Hungler set up a research and development team. When someone asked whether the device could achieve digital printing of newspapers, Höchler already had the answer.
The first newspaper printing and postpress processing system is the final step in newspaper printing. The speed of the system can reach more than 30 meters per minute printing, and can be personalized according to the needs of different companies.
Induced hot investment in newspaper digital printing technology
Friedheim International Group has distributed Swiss newspapers' digital printing equipment to various agencies in the UK. Robin Brown, the company’s digital marketing manager for international solutions, said that the printing company and the latest customer inquiry in the digital sector are Increasingly, during drupa 2008, almost every British newspaper group was discussing digitally printed newspapers.
Currently printed in Shanghai, only one Stroma company in the west of London has performed well in the field of digital printing newspapers. This company is a division of Océ s Digital Newspaper Network and has been developing in the newspaper printing industry for 8 years. Long bag printing, using Océ's digital printing equipment and Hunkeler's first newspaper finishing system.
According to Steroma Brown, managing director of Stroma, the lack of printers for digital printing and finishing systems in newspapers is due to the shortage of funds invested in this area. He is convinced that the only way to approach the Hunkeler finishing system is by hand. The most difficult problem at the moment is that there are very few companies that choose to print newspapers using digital printing. There is no real motivation for printing machines for any company that emulates the Hunkeler finishing system. Hunkeler has invested heavily in research and development, so it has a suitable solution.
In Singapore, due to the fact that the labor force is very cheaply gravure printed, the use of labor in the detection and folding of newspapers is all but artificial.
Brown added that the original Hunkeler finishing system could make the newspaper production line easier for small presses. After digital printing, the next process is the last step, and having a Hunkeler device would be the best option.
Printed in the US, Newsworld Group, which has a global newspaper division, has benefited from the digital printing model. Through its connection with Alphagraphics' New York office, it is responsible for the printing and further expansion of the Daily Weekly. Like pet printing at Stroma, the printing company has been using Hunkeler's finishing system.
David Renouf, president of the Newsworld Group, acknowledged that there are fewer choices in the current post-press processing system for newspapers, but that more manufacturers have discovered the market potential and have a promising future.
This is like the question of "chicken or egg first". Because there is no more choice, it has delayed the development of digital printing newspaper technology. If no one prints a printed version of the newspaper, the manufacturer will not develop these devices.
In essence, all that is needed is just cutting, testing and folding. I believe there will be more companies investing in this area. After exchanges with customers, it was discovered that many manufacturers stated that they would invest in the printing of film in this area. The investment cost was approximately 500,000 Euros (45.5 million pounds), and a prototype will be produced after one year.
At present, Hunkeler has a great advantage in this field. The National Print Managers Annual Meeting has passed the test of the market.
Market potential is still huge
The problem currently facing is that there is no other newspaper digital printing and postpress system that can be considered. Chris Aked, Xerox’s marketing manager for continuous paper solutions, said: “Currently, after Hunkeler, it is the Lazermax Roll system printing technology that can provide digital printing solutions. I believe there will be more choices in the future."
When you need to inspect the machine, you can choose the folding machine of MBO or GUK, which is what Lazermax did. For manufacturers, there is no reason for Chongqing printing companies to stop them from developing new products.
With the ever-decreasing circulation of newspapers, the speed of short-run digital printing equipment can basically meet the current demand. No manufacturer of printing equipment will choose to give up because of Hunkeler's equipment. Hunkeler is clearly ahead of the printing companies and their equipment can cater to any current digital printing equipment.
With the initial emergence of other equipment manufacturers, Hunkeler is very aware of the current situation, and its manufacturers are closely following its printing in Kunming, and some companies in the market are also looking for alternatives to the new newspaper digital printing and finishing system. .
Brown said: “At present, research in this area is still in its infancy, but it must be advanced. The next challenge is to test the system installation so that the large-format “Sun†can print. In 2009, the album was printed. The strength of R&D will certainly increase further. The scope of application of this technology is not limited to the newspaper printing industry."
Printing customers are all looking forward to the emergence of new products. Hunkeler has already occupied a leading position in the packaging area of ​​small presses, but will also further technological innovation. For manufacturers, as long as there are any opportunities to create profits in the market, it will certainly trigger a new round of "fighting."