With the ongoing trend to track more products through the supply chain now boosted by significant Covid-19 related online retail sales growth, Domino Digital Printing Solutions has seen substantial investment by label converters into adding variable data printing of tracking codes onto labels for online retail supply chain requirements.
Jim Orford, Domino Digital Printing Solutions Global Product Manager for the K600i, comments, “In the last two years, the number of codes being printed has almost doubled. We have witnessed a substantial growth for variable data printing, both in the number of K600i printers installed, with a far higher uptake of wider and higher speed configurations, with systems printing up to one million different codes onto labels per hour. This trend towards online retail is understood and many of our label converter customers have invested significantly in capacity to meet this.”
Other K600i applications include security and anti-counterfeit mark printing, traceability codes for pharmaceutical and tobacco products, promotional games and loyalty schemes. Jim Orford adds, “Variable data printing enables a label converter to both develop new business and benefit from this added value work.”
The versatile and modular Domino K600i inkjet printer is designed to be mounted inline on a conventional flexo press or label finishing line and could be described as another form of embellishment. The printer is configured to the required press web width it is integrated onto, ranging from 108mm (4.25″) to 781mm (30.8″) with variable data print applied anywhere across the web. It operates with either UV-curable or aqueous inks at web speeds up to 200m/min (650 ft/min). Data files and job setup is managed by the Domino Editor Starlight or Editor RIP PC-based controller solutions, with data processed inline at the same time as it is printed. For additional security, the Editor Starlight can be integrated with a vision system to read, verify, track and provide a quality grade for the codes being printed. Domino supplies the Lake Image System’s Discovery Multiscan vision product as part of a total turnkey variable data printing and verification solution package.
Philip Easton, director of Domino Digital Printing Solutions, says, “The K600i has been a real success for Domino and reflects our 44 years experience of developing digital inkjet products. The i-Tech or intelligent Technology features provide such a reliable and robust solution and it is a real pleasure to receive positive feedback from our customers about how our products have progressed, improving productivity and allowing their businesses to grow and prosper.”
The key Domino K600i i-Tech features include i-Tech CleanCap, an automated process for cleaning and capping the print head; i-Tech ActiFlow, an ink recirculation system that reduces the risk of diverted jets impacting print quality; and i-Tech StitchLink which enables optimum registration allowing an image to be printed anywhere across the full web width.
