“Increasingly though, we see repeat orders from operations that introduced lamination a number of years ago and now offer it as a staple part of their services, or who are increasing their capacity to meet greater demand. “The ability to add further value is also offered by Foliant laminators. The Foliant Multi-Functional Imprinting Unit uses 'Foil for Toner' to create a foiling and spot UV effect – even for variable data. As no foil blocking tools are needed the solution is quick and affordable.” With this, Seaber talks us through some of the most popular Foliant machines available from IFS. First, the Foliant Vega 400A is B3+ industrial laminating machine designed for heavy duty digital outputs and high volumes of offset printed sheets. It features an integrated deep pile vacuum feeder and a high-speed bump separator, with non-sticky pressure roller and in-run adjustable twin decurl bar and overlap system. The Foliant Vega 400 SF is a compact B3+ industrial laminating machine for heavy duty in-house lamination of digital and offset outputs up to 38cm x 72cm. Equipped with integrated deep pile suction feeder, pneumatic high speed bump separator, adjustable dual decurl bar and overlap system, it has a top speed of 20m/min. Also from IFS is the Foliant Mercury 530NG, a 27mpm heavy-duty industrial system with a Heidelberg suction feeder and a high-speed bump separator as standard. In addition, the Foliant Taurus 530 NG 4X4 is 35mpm double-sided laminating system with two laminating units for equal quality on both sides at all speeds. Swinging back to the Foliant Multi-Functional Imprinting Unit, Seaber says this offers a cost-effective way to transform output from the Vega, Mercury, and Taurus B3 and B2 laminators. unique oil system that he says improves lamination and reduces energy consumption. The stand-alone unit can run at a speed of up to 25 meters per minute. “It offers excellent quality output, making it the ideal solution for all in-house commercial laminating requirements,” Hillhouse adds. Also from Morgana are both the Laminator 450 and 450 Pro high-performance compact machines, which Hillhouse says combine speed, ease of operation, and quality, making them the ideal solution for the in-house commercial laminating requirements of many print businesses. The Laminator Pro 450 measures 1,700mm x 730mm and, according to Hillhouse, has been designed to be both efficient and cost-effective, helping print producers to offer an all-in-one service to customers. Printers will be able to avoid the costly set-up charges and mark-ups that go with outsourcing lamination work to a trade finisher. “Utilising its deep pile automatic suction feed system, the Laminator Pro can achieve production speeds of up to 1,875 landscape SRA3 sheets per hour, allowing printers to undertake jobs requiring higher quantities and faster turnaround times with minimal set-up, wastage, and supervision,” Hillhouse says. Peter Haddad, managing director of Apprintable, which recently invested in the Laminator Pro 450, also speaks highly of the machine. He says: “The speed, the ease of webbing it up, and the fact that we can just let it run almost completely unattended have been the obvious benefits for our productivity. “We laminate business cards, flyers, and point-of-sale work, as well as more unusual products such as tent cards and coffee cup sleeves. We can use matt, gloss, and soft touch finishes, and will also be adding matt biodegradable material, in keeping with our sustainability focus.” Outstanding Results Next up, Intelligent Finishing Systems (IFS) has a number of finishing options from its network of manufacturing partners. Jason Seaber, technical sales director at IFS, says new systems and solutions are often highly automated, quick to set up, and easy to use, and therefore aid operability, productivity, and job flexibility. “Easy-to-use systems are vital, particularly when team members are required to operate a number of different systems,” Seaber says, adding: “The ability for operators to be quickly trained to produce outstanding results, immediately, allows work to be completed straight away. This fosters confidence in using the system and ensures profitable production from day one. Using outdated or under-powered equipment can certainly lead to poor quality lamination, which equals a job that reflects poorly on your business landscape SRA3 sheets per hour on the Morgana Laminator Pro 450 1,875 ◄ Apprintable recently invested in the Morgana Laminator Pro 450 64 email: news@printmonthly.co.uk Issue 342 - May / June 2023 FOCUS ON / LAMINATION EQUIPMENT
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