Page 22 - Print21 Magazine May-June 2021

Labels & Flexibles
Epson has taken delivery of and installed Australia’s first high productivity SurePress L-6534VW industrial UV digital label press at its new Experience Centre in Yennora, Sydney.
Epson launches 50mpm UV label press
Imaging giant Epson has brought its new digital UV SurePress L-6534VW into the country, and says the highly specified printer will meet the
demands of the ANZ market. Epson has a big history in digital
label printing, with a range of desktop printers, and the resin-based reelfed printer Surepress L4444. The new SurePress L-6534VW prints at speeds of up to 50 metres per minute for higher productivity, with Epson citing the quality, ease of use, and potential for profitable printing as key factors.
It uses wide gamut CMYK inks with a “high opacity” white as standard, and includes what Epson says is an innovative in-line digital varnish, which it says delivers smooth gloss, matte and spot finishes.
“The investment in the new L6534-VW shows Epson is committed to the label market, and to the transition from analogue to digital,” Craig Heckenberg, CEO Epson ANZ said. “Label printers who install
the new Surepress will benefit from performance, precision, and the ability to add value inline. It is based on the proven PrecisionCore technology, with a host of innovative features to deliver real value and opportunity.”
The L-6534VW label press combines Epson PrecisionCore
Below
printheads around a central impression drum in conjunction with a narrow platen gap. Epson says it delivers precise droplet placement without web meandering or skewing. It says its LED pinning system also helps deliver finer tonal gradation and sharp images.
Epson says its proprietary Nozzle Verification Technology (NVT)
and automatic head maintenance efficiently help the L-6534VW label press print through each shift.
As the L-6534VW label press supports a wide range of label applications, including food and beverage, and the labels it produces are also weather resistant. Durable labels on industrial products are a key target market.
Standard features for the L-6534VW include corona treater, web cleaner, ioniser and additional UV curing kit for increased ink adhesion on difficult substrates, all of which, according to Epson, combine to help the press provide the highest level of versatility in print production.
Epson says the PrecisionCore linehead is the key behind the high performance and reliability of the SurePress L-6534VW. Each of the six lineheads are comprised of PrecisionCore print chip modules (printheads), delivering what Epson says is precise quality with accuracy
and high resolution.
Smooth and natural gradation
and colour tone, from highlight to shadow, can be reproduced with 600 x 1200 dpi resolution using a minimum droplet of 3 picolitres and Variable Sized Droplet Technology.
Epson says its PrecisionCore linehead, the “highly accurate” web feeding technology, and Epson- developed UV ink, enable high-speed printing up to 50 m/min with “high reliability and reduced down time”. It says the L-6534VW saves time on every job with its many automated and efficient productivity features.
Epson says its own LED UV pinning system semi-cures and stabilises, controlling ink spread for finer tonal gradation, sharp images and vivid colour. UV light is applied immediately after each colour is printed. This allows “perfectly round drops to be placed in their correct positions”.
Held tight
Meandering and skewing of the web does not occur because the substrate is held tightly around the drum. The substrate is “fixed” to the drum as it passes all printhead colours, hence it provides excellent colour-to-colour registration.
Nozzle verification technology
is an automatic nozzle check system with “advanced” ink droplet detection technology. All nozzles are auto checked after cleaning and before printing.
The L-6534 has the Epson innovative digital varnish ink. A gloss or matte finish can be printed selectively as a varnish.
The single-pass high-opacity white ink provides “high-density performance” equivalent to screen printing and the “ideal base layer” for printing vivid colour on clear or metalised substrates. The bright white ink also gives the ability to print opaque, fine text and lines, even when printing clear labels. It offers the flexibility to print white on top of colours.
Clear film can be printed with colour ink first, followed by white ink using a printing method that allows you to view the results from the back of the film (reverse printing). 21
Performance and precision: Craig Heckenberg, CEO, Epson, with the
new Epson Surepress L-6534-VW
22 Print21 MAY/JUNE 2021