I was very concerned about the way everyone manages ink, because I believe that every factory has many opportunities to improve the printing process, manage ink costs, and produce high-quality carton for customers. I often think that due to poor printing methods, too many unplanned downtimes and customer complaints have resulted, and thousands of dollars are wasted every year.

When carrying out cost accounting for cartons, we can easily identify and track material costs, labor costs, and administrative expenses. However, for some reason, our ink costs are drowned in these figures. Some factories have different quotations for single-color carton boxes, while for multi-color printed carton boxes they are in a mess. They rarely track special orders again because it is difficult to measure ink coverage on a special order. I suggest everyone to write down their annual ink costs, you may be surprised how big this number will be.

Due to the low coverage in the entire batch of printing, the company's specific colors and logos have wrong tones, and unrecognizable certificate stamps, how many orders have been returned? This can be attributed to poor ink management. However, I regard this as an opportunity because with a little effort, we can have a positive impact on customer service, reduce unplanned downtime, and strengthen our position in the market.

Here are some of the methods I have successfully practiced in factories in many different countries.

meeting

Arrange several "technical" meetings with your ink supplier every year. At the beginning of the meeting, you can have a short discussion and confirm the annual cost of ink consumed, thereby quickly clarifying the importance of the meeting. I encourage everyone to try to be a demanding customer. As a carton packaging supplier, we are one of the best suppliers in the world, but our customers are very demanding, and usually they can make us a better supplier. Recall how your ink was purchased. Are you ordering ink through consignment or directly? Have you bought the right ink? Does your supplier provide technical support? Do they provide neutral pH or pH stable inks? We must learn to understand the difference.

in stock

Keep counting the ink in your factory. The ink does have a shelf life. Printing with old or expired inks is impossible, and comes at a price. This can result in many and costly unplanned downtime. Due to the old ink, how many cartons were directly thrown into the hopper? In many cases, the old inks are used for debugging only to complete the orders last week or a few months ago. The color of the ink will never be the same again. So please clean up your ink inventory. The ink should be thrown away one year after the production date. I hope you can let your ink supplier increase the font size of the production date so that everyone can clearly see and better manage the ink inventory.

maintenance

In addition to the above discussion about ink machinery, we must not forget to actively maintain ink in chemistry (rheology). The carton factory spends a considerable amount of ink every year. Staff and managers should manage the entire process with ease to ensure the optimal performance and consistency of the ink. The simplest solution is to provide a "pH adjuster" by the ink supplier. Staff can add a few ounces of the product to the ink cartridge every hour. This process of coordinating with the ink company will put the factory in a successful and beneficial environment and achieve a win-win situation for all parties. What I want to show here is that we only understand the characteristics of inks so that we can maximize the performance together, so that we can become a better carton packaging supplier on the market and beat our competitors.

Anilox roller

Check your anilox roll to make sure you understand the design and type of anilox roll in your factory. Many times, each factory has a variety of anilox rollers suitable for different flexo and die cutting. Different designs and mesh (ink hole) capacities will produce different amounts and layouts of ink in various colors and shades. As an industry, we should do better in managing anilox rolls.

The anilox roller used for printing is the same as the corrugated roller on a single-sided machine. It must be well known, properly maintained, and looked after to provide accurate and predictable ink volume for each order on the printing plate. In a perfect situation, each time the cell of the anilox roller comes into contact with the surface of the printing plate, the ink should be completely transferred. If you look at a cell filled with ink from the side, you will notice a small bubble at the top of each cell. As long as the air bubbles keep in contact with the mesh wall, the surface friction of the ink will cause the ink to stay in the mesh cavity. When the printing plate touches the top of the bubble, the bubble bursts and all the ink should fall out of the mesh. This is only true if the chemical properties of the ink are correct and consistent. This is also one of the ways we control colors. In addition, this is also the reason why the printing plate should be fixed on the printing cylinder, so that the contact with the surface of the anilox roller is exactly consistent. The amount of ink in the net hole also determines the color and hue, which should be considered when changing the version. In order to ensure the consistency of colors between the plates, the anilox roller should also have the same capacity.

Detergent

When cleaning, you must know the pH value of the detergent used. The maximum pH value cannot exceed 10.5. Once this index is exceeded, it will cause the separation of the anilox roller ceramic coating and the roller body itself, damage to the mesh cavity, insufficient ink transfer and poor printing. This kind of improper care and maintenance of the anilox roll is also costly-it will cost thousands of dollars in repair costs, additional unplanned downtime, and poor printing results.

Install the splint

Similarly, we must carefully choose the installation of splint, the first choice is to use plastic clips. Sometimes the metal clips fall off during production, which will hurt the anilox roller, so the anilox roller can no longer be used. This situation always occurs in the working area of ​​the anilox roller, and this anilox roller needs to be replaced. This is another cause of unplanned downtime. Again, the cost is enormous. A large proportion of the anilox roller business today is the "maintenance business" caused by the staff's improper operation and production damage.

Printing machine

The corrugated industry uses different types of printing machines. One design is adsorption transfer, and the other is a vacuum transmission system. These two designs are very special, providing different opportunities for carton manufacturers and different air environments for flexo inks.

The vacuum transfer printer provides a high-volume air environment for the ink. Vacuum provides a negative air environment inside the printer. Ink suppliers should understand this, because in order to maintain proper rheology, they need to provide the ink with a slower reaction amine. The adsorption printing machine has a more static air environment, in order to control the color of the ink, only the normal reaction speed of amine is needed. The vacuum transmission system is a very good design, which can bring more opportunities for manufacturers. We need to be aware of the difference. In order to adapt to different types of printing presses, I suggest to classify the ink inventory.

Another major failing design is the doctor roller and closed doctor blade system. The double roller doctor roller system delivers ink to the atmosphere, during which normal evaporation occurs. Ink suppliers need to know this in order to supply the correct ink in this process. And we know that the closed blade system delivers ink to the anilox roller in a closed controlled environment. This is actually a more efficient system because it enables us to provide more accurate inks for demanding printing needs. Both systems are very successful, however, all we have to do is to involve ink suppliers.

Please take a moment to review your ink system, ink design, and the various points I discussed in these articles. I hope to improve the overall performance of your factory and make you a better and more competitive carton manufacturer.

Hair Curlers And Curling Tongs

The 2-in-1 Hair Straightener And Hair Curler is an ideal, multifunctional brush iron that realizes a variety of hairstyles such as naturally straight hair, volumised top and curls in different sizes - as you like according to the occasion. The hair-catching clip makes it easy to curl shorter, layered hair without getting loose.

Hair Curlers And Curling Tongs,best curling wand for short hair,Dry Hair Curling Tongs,Temperature Control Curling Irons,Hair Curling Wands & Curling Tongs

Ningbo Meirou Electric Appliance Co.,Ltd. , https://www.mrairblower.com