BST India is showcasing a range of innovative solutions at drupa to enhance manufacturers’ production processes. With a focus on user-centric design, these innovations offer streamlined operation and improved print quality while reducing waste. Highlighted offerings include digitally networked web guiding and register control systems, web monitoring and inspection technologies, including SMARTData – a comprehensive tool for centralized operation, analysis, and optimization of production processes – which will be displayed at the BST stand C21 in Hall 10.
SMARTData – BST presents market-ready software
SMARTData from BST offers a comprehensive solution to enhance quality in web processing, streamline user workflows, and improve reporting. In addition, it saves time and reduces the susceptibility to errors by automating job data input directly from ERP, MIS systems, or prepress. Additionally, SMARTData intelligently utilizes data by synchronizing it across multiple processes through a modern RESTful API, ensuring accurate process data and quality reports. This facilitates precise error control and prevention. SMARTData interfaces seamlessly with an unlimited number of BST systems for easy integration.
SMARTData-capable register control
BST’s regi_star 20, a leading register control system for in-line printing presses of all common printing processes, tool stations and insetter applications, can now be fully integrated into the customer environment thanks to SMARTData. This enables direct loading of jobs from prepress into BST systems for efficient processing. The accompanying process data aids optimization efforts, further minimizing potential waste.
At drupa, the well-established RSH sensor family of the regi_star 20 will be expanded with a new UV sensor. This sensor is designed to detect and scan UV coatings within the wavelength range of 370 to 390 nanometers. Handling like a standard sensor, UV coatings can be quickly adjusted and the printing set-up process extremely accelerated. It is possible to adjust both the longitudinal and lateral register. During the production process, it is ensured that the UV coating is permanently in register. All this saves waste, time and costs and contributes to higher quality and greater sustainability.
In addition to regi_star 20, the universally applicable TWINStar register control system will be on show at drupa – the compact system is particularly impressive for controlling trailing printing units, finishing or tool stations and for insetting pre-printed materials.
Web guiding: Trendsetter BST presents new operating concept
By ensuring that the processed material is exactly in its intended position, BST web guiding systems effectively minimize waste and downtime. For the first time, the new Commander SMART COM 100 allows the sensor and control unit to be operated from a single control point. This includes the new ekr CON 610 control unit and the new CLS CAM 200 sensor, which is only half the size of its predecessor, the CLS Pro 600, and enables even better control results thanks to optimized sensor technology.
In addition to these innovations, BST will be presenting FRAMEGuide and COMPACTGuide, its reliable and classic web guiding systems. BST web guiding systems can be equipped with interfaces and exchange process data with or via SMARTData, for example.
Further development of the iPQ-View web inspection system
To provide customers with enhanced added value in terms of image quality, sustainability and longevity, BST has further developed the iPQ-View high-end video web inspection system, which has been established in the market for many years. The iPQ-View now features cutting-edge CMOS sensor technology, along with energy-efficient, durable high-performance LEDs, and other practical innovations. In addition, the housing size has been significantly reduced to allow more flexibility in difficult installation environments.
The PROView web monitoring system, a comparatively inexpensive and simple solution, will also be on show for the first time at drupa. Even at a maximum web speed of 1,000 meters per minute, it enables reliable print image monitoring.
AI-based inspection and inspection solution for fully digital printing systems
iPQ-Check from BST is the leading inspection system for printing on a wide range of materials. As an intelligent tool for quality management, iPQ-Check combines 100% print image inspection with high-quality web inspection across the entire print format and sustainably improves print quality. As part of the iPQ-Center, both inspection and web monitoring can be set up via an interface to further reduce the risk of incorrect entries in job setup and handling time with the systems. Customers also benefit from the optional SMARTData integration, which allows data to be used across processes.
The new iPQ-Check Digital inspection system is used for digital printing systems. Thanks to SMARTData, iPQ-Check Digital is fully integrated into the customer’s workflow: Jobs are created in prepress, then loaded into SMARTData Preparation, where data is prepared for and transferred to iPQ-Check Digital to perform the inspection. The digital process enables operator-free job setup, automatic job changeover, full inspection from the first format and job sizes with a quantity of one. In addition, specific print defects in digital printing can be checked with process-typical defect classes, such as narrow streaks – representative of print nozzle failures – and bending defects.
For even more precise defect classification, both iPQ-Check and iPQ-Check Digital now offer an additional defect class whose data set is generated using artificial intelligence. For example, customer-specific defects or defects with high relevance, such as mosquitoes, can be classified more clearly and make an important contribution to further evaluation.
Print inspection in the complete workflow
The TubeScan print inspection system with SMARTData QLink enables complete automation of label printing – from pre-press to packaging and dispatch.
Job data is already generated in the pre-press stage via interfaces to common ERP and MIS systems and sent to the print department via the customer network. This means that jobs can be set up much more quickly. With QLink on the press, the roll log can be edited during printing. The credit counter is displayed in real-time – per roll or cumulatively over the entire job. Two highlights are particularly interesting for digital printing: The ‘Dynamic Job Change’ enables a job change without stopping the machine if there are several jobs on a roll. TubeScan automatically recognizes the new job and retrieves the corresponding master in real time for comparison during inspection. This saves time and reduces waste. Setting up the system is also simple: synchronization with the print repeat is purely software-controlled. External trigger sensors are not required. But inline inspection with TubeScan can do even more: variable data can also be inspected in parallel. Variable barcodes or alphanumeric character strings can be checked, decoded and compared with a database by TubeScan.
QLink data extracted from the printing process is utilized for error rectification in subsequent processing stages. Additionally, the rewinder can be automated with QLink Rewinder for precise error positioning. Furthermore, information printed on finished rolls can instruct a packaging robot on which rolls are ready for delivery, enhancing automation and efficiency.
All QLink data is accessible and editable by the QM department through the network or a cloud solution, providing security and efficiency for demanding orders facilitated by BST TubeScan.