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INNOVATIONS & INVESTMENTS
Apex sells ECRM DPP 1200
table top digital press
APEX DIGITAL Systems is to
sell ECRM’s DPP 1200, a table
top digital press based on an
OKI print engine.
ECRM has taken the core
print engine, added the same
Harlequin Rip as used on its
platesetters, colour management
and a new toner set, resulting in
a machine which shares the
same outward appearance as a
standard OKI, but which offers
a different value proposition.
The most important is that
the ECRM unit is more
expensive, £8,000 against £6,500,
but with toner coming in 40%
cheaper than the OKI version.
It will print a maximum A3
sheet at 31 A4 pages a minute
in 1200dpi resolution on stock
up to 300gsm. This covers
business card materials offering
an instant print solution to
printing these, if not for
finishing them.
The idea, says international
sales manager Ken Tucker, is to
keep the toner costs down “so
that the press is used more and
8 May 2011 www.printbusinessmagazine.co.uk
ECRM’s DPP 1200 table top digital press is to be sold by Apex Digital Systems.
Although outwardly similar to the OKI version, the toner is 40% cheaper.
more”. This is clearly
successful with some sites
running up to 100,000 A4 pages
a month, both as a short run
press and as a proofing device.
Using a test sheet and an
X-Rite i1 spectrophotometer, it
is possible to calibrate the
printer and produce profiles for
different sheets and to
manipulate tone curves to
obtain a good match for a litho
press or a more productive
digital press. The DP1200 then
becomes a good quality hard
copy proofer.
It offers some high end
capability. Because the imaging
head writes to a belt, micro
adjustment to the speed of this
belt ensures precise front to
back register of pages.
ECRM is planning to add an
‘instant quote’ software package
to generate the costs of
producing each job.
Morgana CardXtra Plus adds value
THE MORGANA CardXtra Plus
finishing unit, first shown at
Ipex, is now fully available.
It advances on the CardXtra
unit for processing business
cards by including Morgana’s
creasing system, providing a
huge boost to the the range of
products possible. These can
start from enhanced business
cards, using flaps up to
greetings cards and more.
Morgana has compiled a
casebook to show what is
possible from a printed SRA3
sheet. Each sheet can carry up
to 16 creases. It will cope with
material to 400gsm,using
suction feed to move the paper.
The CardXtra Plus goes well
beyond production of standard
business card products. A sheet
can be trimmed and creased to
Morgana’s CardXtra Plus finishing
unit includes a creasing system and
increases the range it can produce.
create a 4pp A4 brochure or A5
leaflets. Promotional round
cornered playing cards are
equally possible, provided they
fall within the 55mm width of
the device. This may not
stretch to cards used by
professional poker players, but
matches all other requirements,
including those for bridge
clubs. Likewise postcards can
be cut without the need to use a
guillotine for fiddly small
format work. Registration
accuracy is ±0.1mm, with
positioning through a mark
printed on the head of the sheet
which is used to position the
sheet precisely.
Set up is through a touch
panel on the top of the device
with memory recall of previous
job settings. However there is
also a range of templates to
allow the job to be printed in a
fashion to suit the finishing
unit with single button set up.
Further enhancements are
planned. A perforating module
will be available later this year
for example.
Price starts from around
£14,000.
Ryobi adds
inline die
cutting as
an option
IN ORDER TO OFFER more
flexibility to its Ryobi presses,
Apex Digital Solutions is
offering Kocher + Beck IOC
inline die cutting as an
additional option.
The highly accurate dies
(produced using a CTP system)
can be fitted to the last unit of a
press together with the
appropriate reverse die to offer
kiss cutting of pressure
sensitive labels or cut outs of
flyers. The reverse die replaces
the blanket using the same lock
up system, while the die itself
replaces the printing plate.
Discussions began at Ipex
Apex sales director Neil
Handforth explains, leading to
trials and testing before the first
official demonstrations at last
month’s Apex open house.
“We liked the cost
effectiveness and simplicity of
the Kocher + Beck approach,”
Handforth says. “It’s very easy
to set the press up and then to
run it. Makeready can be just a
handful of sheets to get the
pressure applied by the disc
exactly right to produce kiss-cut
labels.”
Given the cost of self
adhesive materials this wastesaving
measure is very useful.
The appeal is in saving time
and waste by eliminating a
production step.
Apex says that fitting the
system to the fifth printing unit
opens up the potential to print
four colour then coat, four
colour and die cut or five
colours. Conversion from one to
the other is relatively
straightforward.
The system has already
proved itself in Heidelberg and
other presses. “We are seeing
good interest levels in the IOC
system,” Handforth continues.
“It’s a relatively inexpensive
system compared to others,
while its simplicity of operation
is also a huge benefit.”