The general commercial market is Bobst’s chosen target and, as Bobst UK’s sales and marketing manager John Hall says, it’s a market that can benefit hugely from die-cutting: not only does a platen bring the possibility of cutting, it also offers embossing, scoring, kiss-cutting and perforating.
“For any general jobbing printer, having an in-house die-cutting facility is like opening a door to a whole new market. You can produce any kind of non-square print,” he points out, reading from Bobst’s carefully targeted sales literature: “Folders, wallets, 3D direct mail, greetings cards, menus, mousemats, envelopes, DVD and CD jackets, tags, bags, and loads more.”
To attract this market, Bobst has taken its entry-level SPeria die-cutting platen, added extra commercially attractive gadgets, supported it with a programme of services, and is selling it as the Commercial 106.
The manufacturer has some work to do in the general commercial market: it’s perceived as a supplier to the folding carton market, with all its connotations of specialisms and heavy industrial machinery. Nonetheless, it seems general commercial printers are more than ready to consider non-square print. Since Ipex, Bobst has sold three Commercial 106s, of which two have gone into printers and one to a print finisher.
Market misconceptions
Bobst’s main problem is that the market thinks die-cutters can’t handle lighter stocks and/or smaller sheet sizes. Bobst has addressed this on the 106, incorporating extra handling devices for untroubled running. The kit carries the Bobst special paper handling devices (optional on a SPeria) as standard.
These are effectively a raft of air-blowers throughout the machine that let lighter stocks (anything up to 250gsm or under) run faster without losing registration. The air-blowers are particularly important at the infeed and just before the cutting impression, giving a timed blast of air that keeps the sheet smooth, helping its dimensional stability.
The Bobst “small-sized-sheet” kit, also normally optional on all the machines through its range, comes with the 106 as standard, and it allows the machine to handle sheets as small as 300x350mm. The small-sized-sheet kit comprises an attachment on the front gate of the feeder that drives the sheets positively into the front and sidelays. “You lose a lot of control as the sheet gets smaller. Couple that with the lighter stocks this machine will typically put through and it means we’ve had to address these two combined factors with good, robust counter-devices,” says Hall.
One feature that’s been specially designed for the 106 (but which will now also appear on the SPeria) is the “dynamic” opening of the delivery grippers. Traditionally, Bobst kit has opened its delivery gripper bars once the sheet has stopped, but on the 106, the addition of air blowers in the delivery means the lighter-weight sheets, which would normally float down into the delivery stack, are driven positively down.
The Commercial 106 also builds special pivoting joggers into the delivery, which combine in a switch-like operation to tilt the jogger to jog along its horizontal edge so samples can be easily extracted. And finally, for those commercial printers worried about protecting the productivity of their investment, the 106 has the bonus of Bobst’s remote diagnostic package. Linked by modem to the UK division’s Redditch headquarters, the 106 can be diagnosed and some types of corrective action put in place without an engineer stirring from his workstation.
Another feature particularly geared for the commercial market is the ability to register the sheet to either side of the die-cutter. Bobst machines have normally had only one set of sidelays, which register the pattern to the edge of the sheet. Acknowledging that commercial printers may produce sheets that call for registration on the both sides, Bobst has given the 106 the ability to vary the register sidelay on a job-by-job basis.
A folding carton firm or general packaging printer has experience with the nicks or tags that hold a die-cut job into the sheet until it’s taken off the delivery, but a commercial printer is less accustomed to it, says Hall. But through clever engineering, Bobst has ensured the 106 can minimise the weight and width of the tags, giving commercial printers a more cosmetically attractive finished sheet. Hall explains: “A die-cut sheet needs nicks or tags to hold the cut blank in place while the sheet goes through the final stages of delivery and jogging – it gets speeded up and slowed down from its inert position on the platen, and that can pull the sheet and damage the cut blank. But on the 106, we’ve designed in much easier running due to a double cam design that drives the gripper bars.” The effect of this is that the tags designed into a tool can be fewer and less substantial than on a typical tool, giving what Hall calls “a more commercially acceptable sheet”.
Manual setting
Setting the Commercial 106 is a manual process, with all makeready parameters set by hand. It uses Bobst’s Centreline setting technology, where all movements are equally mirrored down an imaginary central axis, making adjustments faster and more accurate. Once it’s up and running, the 106 is monitored by Bobst’s Control Unit Bobst Electronic (CUBE), which displays information on cutting pressure, quantities of sheets run, and operational fault-finding.
Bobst is aiming for three discrete types of user, and is matching them with three distinct sales packages. Step In, designed for printers and those new to die-cutting, offers the whole package of training and what Hall calls “hand-holding from day one”. Step Up, designed for those with some die-cutting experience on a cylinder-type machine, offers support in transferring to a greater productivity level. Finally, Step Across gives transitional support to printers and finishers with older die-cutters. “Sales and interest so far have been very encouraging – we feel there’s an untapped market out there,” says Hall. “Printers are really needing to add value to a finished sheet, and this is a terrific way of doing just that.”
SPECIFICATIONS
Max sheet size 1,060x740mm
Min sheet size 350x300mm
Stock thickness range 0.08–2mm (solid board) or 4mm corrugated
Max speed 7,700 sheets per hour
Price £265,000
Contact Bobst UK 01527 519710 www.bobstgroup.com
THE ALTERNATIVES
Crosland Young Shin 1040S Revotech
Crosland is the UK distributor for the Korean die-cutter manufacturer, and this is the highest-spec fully automatic die-cutting platen it sells. Its minimum sheet size is larger than the Bobst’s, and it handles a range of stock thicknesses more appropriate to the folding carton market. Like the Bobst, it’s set up entirely manually.
Max sheet size 1,040x740mm
Min sheet size 440x340mm
Stock thickness range 0.1–3mm
Max speed 7,500 sheets per hour
Price N/A
Contact Crosland VK 0161 877 8668 www.croslandvk.com
Heidelberg Dymatrix 105
Heidelberg’s Dymatrix range first appeared at Drupa 2000, and has had modest commercial success since then. The 105 is a fraction larger and faster than the Bobst (although its smallest sheet size is also larger) and its stock thickness range is suitable for a commercial environment.
Max sheet size 1,050x740mm
Min sheet size 400x350mm
Stock thickness range 0.08–2mm
Max speed 9,000 sheets per hour
Price N/A
Contact Heidelberg UK 020 8490 3500 www.heidelberg.com
IMC CP-IMCUT-1060ST
The Korean manufacturer’s only fully automatic die-cutter was launched at Ipex. It’s a folding carton machine, with a relatively large minimum sheet size, together with a stock thickness range designed for lightweight cartonboard rather than commercial applications.
Max sheet size 1,060x740mm
Min sheet size 450x330mm
Stock thickness range 0.3–2.6mm
Max speed 7,500 sheets per hour
Price N/A
Contact IMC UK 07767 413217 www.imcukltd.co.uk
Sanwa TRP-1060-SEII
Sanwa’s newest die-cutter is particularly suited to the commercial market, with the ability to handle smaller sheets and a focus on lighter weight stocks. Top sheet size is a fraction larger, which makes it slower than the Bobst.
Max sheet size 1,060x750mm
Min sheet size 400x330mm
Stock thickness range 0.1–1.5mm (solid board)
Max speed 7,000 sheets per hour
Price from £195,000
Contact Sanwa UK 01924 377521 www.sanwa-europe.com
Bobst Commercial 106
Bobst is branching out. The world's most famous die-cutter manufacturer is spreading its customer base in an attempt to protect itself from difficult market conditions faced by its traditional customers. Trade finishers are struggling in general: the half-dozen or so that have gone under in the last two years is evidence of that. Runs are being cut at packaging printers, profit margins are shrinking and all sectors are starting to sit up and pay attention to the cheaper Asian die-cutters flooding into the UK - kit from Taiwan, Vietnam and China costs, on average, 30% less than the top-quality, Swiss-made Bobsts.
