KENNESAW, GA—Uteco North America and 14 partners held a two-day Open House at its Technical Service Center, Nov. 5-6, 2013. The event, themed Print Technology 2013, combined a tabletop networking exhibition with live demonstrations of the firm’s 10-color Onyx Diamond HP 108 central impression press.
It drew standing-room only crowds, approximating 200 on Day One and 100 on Day Two. Those in attendance witnessed the running of two-different jobs on the 53-in. wide web at 1,475 fpm, quick changeover between the two jobs and an emergency stop and restart that brought the press into register and up to color within minutes of shutdown. Uteco touts its Press Control During Transition (PCT) as the innovation driving such productivity improvements.
Also demoed were a Flexo Wash anilox roll cleaning system, a Camis plate mounter and Atlas Titan’s SR9 Series slitter/rewinder. Tabletop exhibitors included: 3M, Atlas Titan, BST Pro Mark, Camis, Dixie Graphics, Enercon Industries, Flexo Wash, Harper Corporation of America, Inkspec, MacDermid Printing Solutions, Polyplex, The Provident Group (Anderson & Vreeland), Rossini North America and Sun Chemical.
As demoed, Uteco’s Onyx HP 108 press was equipped with the firm’s patented Direct Drive Evo technology. It was said to ensure optimum dot quality and promote extremely fast job changeovers. State-of-the-art hardware and software systems automatically set print register (PCT) and printing pressures (P2P) at startup, thereby reducing waste, ensuring optimum performance and maximizing return on investment.
Also incorporated into the press were Uteco’s ShopWare production management control and monitoring system, designed to facility both easy man/machine interface and high productivity; as well as its LogiPack automatic reel and core handling system on its FlexoSmartPackQC platform, and of course Uteco’s often publicized Kiss & Go Automatic Impression Setting system.