Xeikon Launches Digital Press

Published: September 26, 2014

EEDE, THE NETHERLANDS | Xeikon has introduced the Cheetah digital color press, said to be 60% faster than any other model in its current press portfolio.

Company says the five-color press is dedicated solely to self-adhesive/pressure-sensitive label production and can output high quality labels at 98 fpm (30 mpm). The press, which was introduced at the recent Labelexpo Americas, will be available commercially during 2015.

“This increase in speed represents a huge leap forward in digital press technology,” says Patrick Van Baelen, VP-WW marketing at Xeikon. “It will enable [our] label printers and converters to embark on a new era of productivity and efficiency, with much greater flexibility to react to their clients’ requests for shorter time-to-market. The Cheetah narrows the gap between digital printing and traditional flexo/offset methods for producing labels. In addition, the increase in speed also results in a lower total production cost.”

The Cheetah can handle substrate widths to 13 in. (330 mm) with a true print resolution of 1,200 x 3,600 dpi. It utilizes full rotary printing where the press speeds are independent of the number of colors used and/or the repeat length of the job. Full rotary printing also makes step-and-repeat and subsequent finishing operations straightforward, company says, adding that the press also offers all the benefits of the Xeikon 3000 Series, including the use of dry toners that meet FDA regulations for food contact and the ability to print opaque white toner in one pass.

In addition to the standard CMYK + White, the fifth station on the Cheetah can be used to print gamut expansion colors or security toner. The press also includes automatic in-line register and density controls. The imaging width is up to 12.7 in. (322 mm) while the repeat length is variable from 0–180 ft (0–55 m). Media weights range from 40–350 gsm.

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