ISP - July/August 2013 - 2

edItorIal
response

more Than color

Industrial + Specialty Printing
www.industrial-printing.net

gaIl Flower

Editor

Buying a new piece of equipment or
improving your current printing system for
industrial, functional printing can make
for a difficult decision. For one thing, the
equipment goes way beyond printing color.
And if you do print color, you might have to
work with electroluminescent or chemically
active elements that require specialized handling. Substrate materials are often different. Some are susceptible to damage when
they’re not treated with the utmost care;
others are extremely sensitive to heat and
must be cured via low-temperature methods.
Fortunately, there are experts at hand
to help you with the process. In this issue,
on page 24, in The Joy of Specs, Stephen
Brodeur, program director at Milara; Paul
Bolduc, president and CEO of Kammann
USA; and Joseph Gilberti, president of
Systematic Automation give their ideas on
custom solutions for industrial printing
applications. And when you need practical advice on how to keep that equipment
working at optimum levels, the article about
maintenance by Robert Barnes on page 16
reviews the basics on how to keep preventable problems at bay.
Where do you start the process when you
need your existing equipment to integrate
some customized processes? A meeting of
engineers and technicians usually helps
determine what you want to print and all
of the possible solutions to help you get the
job done. You may need specialized jigs to
hold and deliver parts as part of a handling

system. You might need plasma treatment to
clean and make a surface acceptable for further work. You may need a cooler UV-LED
curing system for heat-sensitive substrates or
parts. Inspection systems for quality control
may fill a need.
No matter the need, identifying what you
want your equipment to do in a clear, logical
discussion always helps. Many solutions can
be found in house. Some of the printers I’ve
talked to have such solutions that appear to
be home grown. And if you cannot find what
you need, look for some help from those
who already supply systems for industrial
printing.
Check for suppliers who give good
training for their new systems, including
maintenance. Check for one that knows
other companies with referable expertise.
Make certain that they have the expertise
and that involves integration. Speed in delivery, training, trial runs, automated systems,
inspection, and guaranteed support supply
the assurance that you can have what you
need for future growth.
Remember when you purchased a
new car? After the first problem, even if
it’s a minor one, is when you realized the
importance of support. Functional printing
requires flexible, reliable support from a
trained in-house staff of technical engineers, a plan for future projects, and a few
suppliers that you can use as needed to help
your company realize its full potential for
future growth.

gaIl Flower Editor
gail.flower@stmediagroup.com
Ben p. rosenFIeld Managing Editor
ben.rosenfield@stmediagroup.com
BIll parsons Art Director
lInda Volz Production Coordinator
linda.volz@stmediagroup.com
BusIness deVelopment manager
steve duccilli
steve.duccilli@stmediagroup.com
edItorIal adVIsory Board
Joe Fjelstad, Brendan Florez, Dolf Kahle,
Bruce Kahn, Ph.D., Rita Mohanty, Ph.D.,
Scott Moncrieff, Randall Sherman,
Mike Young, Wim Zoomer

Jerry swormstedt
Chairman of the Board
tedd swormstedt
President
steVe duccIllI
Senior Vice President of Content
steve.duccilli@stmediagroup.com
gregory sharpless
Editor-In-Chief
gregory.sharpless@stmediagroup.com
KarI FreudenBerger
Director of Online Media

customer serVIce
Industrial + Specialty Printing Magazine
Customer Service
P.O. Box 1060
Skokie, IL 60076
ISP@halldata.com
F: 847-763-9040

2 | IndustrIal + specIalt y prIntIng www.industrial-printing.net

ISP - July/August 2013

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