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How to select Pad Printing Machines

It is quite difficult to make a prudent decision to select a particular pad printer when you have variety of options available in front of you. If you are clear with the process design and requirement details, then of course the selection becomes easy.

To make the right pad printer selection, we have the following suggestions:

Cost

• You should understand the cost of whole process, as cheaper machines end up with higher costs in the first year itself due to losses not accounted for during purchase i.e. ink costs, energy costs, plate costs, downtime costs, bad quality costs, lower yield costs.

Ink Cup

• Ink cup system should be closed so that ink and solvent loss through evaporation can be saved and ink can be prevented from dust, dirt particles.

Quick change over

• Machine needs to have special cross table with X/Y/Z axis , so that the component can be shifted according to the precise printing position. This saves time.

Cross table

• Machine needs to have suitable facility for quick change-over of ink cup and etched plate, so that multiple jobs can be done in limited time. Also the accessories for consistent print quality should be available with machine.

Ink storage system

• Proper ink storage system in the ink cup should be available. If, suppose during emergency, such storage is required.

Membrane keyboard

• An advance machine should have membrane keyboard with the following panel functions -- inching mode, single cycle, continuous run, multiple print, infinitely variable speed regulation, infinitely variable doctor contact pressure, adjustable doctoring pressure. When less variables are to be printed these can be avoided.

quality

• You need to have clear idea of the quality desired (fine printing is only possible with sophisticated technology like high quality cup ring, metals for fabrication).

Solution Provider

• Understand, if the supplier or manufacturer is competent enough to provide all solutions at his premises i.e. designing studio, plate and pad making facility, fixture or jigs making, ink and pantone preparation, ink testing, sampling facility, technical feed backs, after sales service, machine guarantee, so that you need not run in different directions for a single product printing. Manufacturers or suppliers should have proper set up (designers, engineers, technicians) to guide you when required, as well as display system at their site (showroom etc).

Printing area

• Select the machine that can cover maximum printing area, which can be sometimes 360 degree as per the requirement.

User & environmentally friendly

• Machine needs to be environmentally suitable so that it consume minimal ink. Evaporation of solvents should be very low.

Principal of pad printing:

The basic principal behind the pad printing technology is that the flexible rubber silicon pad picks up the image from the etched surface of ink flooded cliché and than transfer it to the component, where printing is required.

Steps of Pad Printing printing:

1st step:Flooding of the metal surface of plate through forward movement of ink container.

2nd Step:Backward movement of the ink container and blade attached to it. During this movement, the blade withdraws ink from the plate, leaving ink in the etched area.

3rd Step:Downward movement of pad on the plate, thus picking up the impression of the etched image.

4th Step: Forward and downward movement of pad on the component and thus transferring the image picked up from the etched surface.

Important landmarks in the evolution of Tampon printing or pad printing industry.

Before 1956 (crude printers)

Swiss watch dial industry used manual pad printers, in which gelatin was used instead of present day silicone pads. Blocks were mechanically engraved and cleaned by hand held blades. This was a crude and time consuming method.

1965

First modern day printer, developed by a young man named Mr. Wilfried Philipp (birth: 1928) in Germany, after numerous trials over ten years. It was the first official prototype of tampon printing of clock faces.

1968

Introduction of cold vulcanized silicone pads and solvent inks Experimentation and inventions was a part of life for Mr. Philipp and his company, which invented the pad printing machines. But in 1968 came the idea, which changed the destiny of Mr. Philipp, Tampoprint and the pad printing industry.

Tampoprint was the first one to use cold vulcanized silicone rubber and solvent containing inks, making wet on wet printing possible and hence revolutionized the market. This investment and its use was introduced to the plastic world.

1970-1971

First worldwide introduction of Tampon printing machinery at the Hanover Trade Fair.

1971-80

First patented electro-mechanical tampon printing machine, TS 100, at the world's largest plastics exhibition K71 held in Dusseldorf, Germany. This machine became the instant sensation. 100 tampon printing machines were ordered by the Swiss clock industries, marking the beginning of the mechanical engineering company.

1990-1995

Pad printing became automated. Special automations to print balls, syringes, cassettes etc. were made by Tampoprint. The process underwent modernization.

1995-2000

More advancements in pad printing technology. Industry witnessed the emergence of "Laser Marking / Lase Engraving", which made engraving and marking possible on any kind of substrate. Substituting chemical etching. During this period this method of printing watched out tremendous changes & sophisticated advancements in the printing technology.