An integral UV ink curing unit has been developed for the KBA Karat 74 DI press by Digipressfinder, a used press supplier that specialises in refurbishing and selling digitally imaged offset presses.
The original Karat 74 uses conventional heat set offset inks. Digipressfinder’s conversion lets it run UV-cured inks. It has developed internal UV curing units that can be retrofitted to any existing B2 format Karat 74 for £45,000. A low energy twin lamp system cures the ink, followed by the UV coating and curing.
‘Switching to UV inks can help quick turnround jobs,’ said director Steve Hopkins, ‘as there is no waiting time for the work to dry before finishing’. It also opens up the possibility of printing on a wider range of substrates, especially plastic, he added.
Digipressfinder is also working on a UV drying system for the Presstek 34DI, which will cost £35,000.
According to Mr Hopkins, ‘Our customers are overjoyed at the results they are getting on the retro fitted Karat 74. It has really expanded the printing capability of the press and obviously improved on lead times which is imperative in today’s competitive market. The Karat can now successfully print on a variety of substrates, eg polyprop, and is enabled to do bespoke applications such as lenticular printing. Digipressfinder do not just retrofit a system, we educate and train the customer on the whole process of UV printing on these presses.’
Contact: www.digipressfinder.com
