We installed an incredible new printing press! To do so meant digging through the floor into the ground, under a big plastic tent, with a crew of 2-6 people. It took 39 days to prepare for and carefully move the 150,000 pound press into place. It was sure to be an impressive project, so we captured it with a time lapse video. Take 90 seconds to watch, and you’ll see a great shot of the finished press at the end
It’s what this new press can do, though, that’s got everyone on our team excited. It’s the first perfecting press in the southwest U.S. to use H-UVTM technology, which is the use of H-UV lamps to dry ink on paper at extremely fast speeds – instantly. In fact, the lamps actually cure the ink on the substrate. Instant drying means unmatched quality over the life of the printed piece. For example, an uncoated sheet printed on a different press might never fully “dry”. It doesn’t feel wet, of course, but tiny amounts of ink could rub off. If you’ve ever received a white business card from someone, with ink rubbed on one side, you know what I mean.
The sheer speed at which this machine operates is extremely quick as well. Setup and run times are much shorter, increasing efficiency across our enterprise. In printing we often talk about how many large press sheets can be printed in an hour; this new press completes 15,000. But to put that in perspective, that’s 120,000 flyers, printed 4-color on both sides, at a size of 8.5” x 11”, in one hour.
This hybrid press allows for some unique finishing techniques too. Because ink dries instantly, coatings can be added during the printing process, including spot UV, as well as satin, gloss and flat UV. Because this is an 8-color press, we can print up to 8 colors in-line (at the same time) or perfect 4 over 4 (print 4-color on both sides at the same time). Having this option means we can print a brilliant 4-color image on colored stock or synthetic substrates by laying down white ink first. Some of these techniques are well suited for packaging, and they give designers some great options to explore too.
Prisma has been upgrading and changing equipment and procedures to greener alternatives for many years, and this new press is another big leap in that direction. H-UV lamps emit zero ozone, give off much less heat than other presses, reducing electricity used, and reducing the overall impact based on how fast a job is produced.
If you’re in Arizona, we invite you to see it in action. Contact your Prisma account executive to visit our campus and see this massive piece of technology.
Its official name is an Eight-Color Komori Lithrone GL40P Perfector with H-UVTM System, and we’re excited about the versatility that we can offer to our clients.
