By Barney Cox
28 March 2013
Scodix’s Sense is an enhancement process involving the pin-point application of clear polymer to enhance metallic effects
Digital print has made great strides. It now matches offset quality and, in some instances – such as on uncoated paper – beats it. But digital finishing hasn’t kept pace with these printer developments, which is unfortunate. Finishing effects can change both the feel and look of a job; many high-value applications could, by their nature, benefit from digital’s short run and creative capabilities and post-press’s prowess at adding value, enabling print to touch people in the ways that digital displays can not.
Releases such as Highcon’s Euclid digital die-cutting and Scodix’s Sense show that finishing is now catching up. Euclid could be described as the love child of a die-cutter and a cutting table; it has mum’s brain, driven as it is by Esko software, while dad’s brawn is replaced by laser cutting and creasing with some pseudo-3D imposition. The Scodix, meanwhile, is a Swiss Army knife for fancy finishes.
In Great Britain both are sold by Conversion UK, which recently notched up its first sale of the Highcon Euclid to Derbyshire-based Glossop Cartons, which created a stir at Packaging Innovations last month, launching an on-demand carton service based around its acquisition.
Carton converters are interested in the Euclid because it does away with the time and expense of die-making, enabling such on-demand production and greater creative scope. No die doesn’t just mean no cost, nor the delay in getting one made; it’s also possible to reproduce designs using laser cutting, enabling, for example, fancier filigree cuts and micro perforations.
“Digital printers are an interesting proposition,” says Conversion UK’s managing director Mark Nixon. “They aren’t looking to solve a production problem so much as develop new products and markets. They aren’t asking how the technology works, but what it can do for their clients.”
Scodix Sense’s latest metallic capability is most on-trend, enhancing metallic finishes and combining with silver foil or metallic ink to make a good effect great. The firm has done some work to make metallic more suitable for digital production and you don’t need to buy its machine to take advantage. Its great idea is for printers to make mirrored board on demand by applying a silver laminate just prior to printing instead of buying prepared board. Scodix has been working with Spanish firm Derprosa’s film, which is approved for use on the HP Indigo. The advantages include choosing the weight and size of board best suited to the job and laminating only what’s needed. So: no overs, and no waiting for a merchant.
For metallic effects, CMYK over a silvered board gives an unlimited range of colours. Digital presses with white ink can mask out areas where metallic isn’t required – a cheaper and more accessible approach than investment in metallic digital toners or inks. Color-Logic’s software makes artworking and repro easier, and also allows more creative effects.
Spot varnish on top is the icing on the cake, and the Scodix isn’t the only way of applying the icing. Other digital machines offer this option, including the MGI JetVarnish, which can also apply thick layers to build relief. Vendors are also seeking to extend digital print’s remit by bringing these abilities on-press; Kodak started the trend towards gloss and textures and has followed up with metallic and fluorescent toner, while HP has added a range of effects on its Indigo, including spot varnish and digital embossing.
While lacking the Scodix’s camera registration, a wide-format UV-curable flat-bed with clear and white may also be an alternative to make the most of metallic, as well as providing useful effects on its own. Alternatively, if there’s never going to be a need to handle big sheets, one of Mimaki’s UJF-series flat-beds could be just the ticket.
For cutting and creasing larger formats, or for throughput too low to justify the Highcon, companies may find that a table from the likes of Esko, Dyss or Zünd does the job. In fact, Esko’s Kongsberg iXE-10 takes the technology familiar to large-format firms and packages it in a form suitable for smaller formats, which Duplo sells to commercial printers in the UK.
There are definitely signs that digital finishing developments are starting to catch up with digital print, and at just the right time to help print stand out from the multi-channel marketing scrum. While some approaches take capital expenditure there are others that demand vision, lateral thinking and imagination, which digital printers tend to have and are priceless.
