Playing it cool
For all the incredibly creative applications print companies can produce on their presses, these machines would not be able to operate to their maximum capability without the support of ancillary kit.
One such technology comes in the form of humidification systems, which, although not used by all print companies, play a key role for many businesses, especially those running heavier machinery.
But where does one start when it comes to either installing a humidification system for the first time or updating their existing setup to a more efficient system? Here, we speak with suppliers of humidification systems and a user of this technology to get the inside track on the benefits the kit can offer.
Taking control
First up and as its name may suggest, Humidity Solutions is an independent specialist in humidity control, offering a range of humidifiers and dehumidifiers from some of the world’s leading manufacturers. John Barker, managing director of Humidity Solutions, explains humidity control is not a new technology and its positive effects in the print and packaging sectors are well known.
Humidity Solutions supplies equipment from a number of major manufacturers ”
Barker says: “Printing is said to be the control of an infinite number of variables. This need not be the case as with the control of the humidity, you then have control over the environment in which you work and over the stability of the paper that you are working with.
John Barker, managing director of Humidity Solutions
“Paper is a hydroscopic material and so it is effected by the relative humidity levels in which it sits. The drier the air the more moisture that the paper gives up to the surrounding air which consequently changes the structure of the paper away from the ideal that the paper supplier delivers it at.”
He adds: “Less moisture in the paper causes tensions resulting in dimensional instability which affects the quality of the finishing and images. This can create paper curl or waves in the paper causing miss-feeds and paper jams within the printers as well as web breaks as static charge causes rips in the tight edges and static as dry air is non-conductive. As a result, static charge builds up on paper or plastics which dissipate as we touch them or a route to earth is created.
O Factoid: Humidity Solutions works with brands such as Neptronic, Vapac, Airtec, Cotes and Hidros O
“Ensuring that the air is at a humidity of 50%RH will greatly reduce or eliminate these issues and improve quality, reduce waste, production speeds and profits.”
Barker goes on to explain that every print company wants to produce the best results possible with minimum waste material, at the fastest machine speeds to maximise customer satisfaction and profitability. By introducing water in the air in a controlled manner, he says this will create the ideal humidity to ensure objectives are much more likely to be achieved at a relatively low cost and with low running costs.
“An evaporative or spray humidifier can easily be installed with power requirements of less than a kilowatt,” Barker says, adding: “Marginal gains are often sought, but with humidity control significant gains can be made using tried and tested technology.”
Looking at some of the latest technologies available to print companies, Barker highlights that the most widely used humidifiers in the print and packaging sector are high-pressure water systems that use a very low energy usage pump to pressurise the water, creating a very fine atomised spray, delivered via atomising nozzles positioned at high level or on wall mounted delivery heads.
Humidity Solutions supplies equipment from a number of major manufacturers
“Easy to install, low maintenance, very low running costs and close control, or for applications where the print hall roof is low, we can use an evaporative system which doesn’t have a visible spray and provides all the benefits of the high-pressure humidifier, but with the option of delivering down walkways at low level or localised around the feed end of the press providing humidity control and cooling,” Barker comments.
Justified cost
Elsewhere and Condair also has a range of options available for humidification control. Dave Marshall-George, sales director at Condair, says the benefit of using humidifiers in printing facilities is the same as any investment made by a printer - it’s all about return on investment.
Condair offers a complete range of humidity control systems for print and packaging companies
“Will maintaining the ideal production humidity improve profits enough to justify the cost of the humidifier’s installation and on-going service requirements?” Marshall-George says.
“To answer this question the print manager needs to recognise and examine all expenses resulting from a low humidity environment. This can include any issue caused by static, blocked ink jets, paper curl, setoff, doubling, register differences, web breaks, paper cracking and a host of other production problems.”
Marshall-George adds that it also helps if the print manager can recognise when the facility is experiencing a low humidity. To do this, he recommends installing wall mounted hygrometers, so that everyone can see when the humidity is low and it becomes easier to associate inadequate humidity levels with production issues.
Condair also supplies free desktop hygrometers for printers, so they can get to know their own humidity through the seasons.
“We offer a complete range of humidity control systems for print and packaging companies; this includes compact wall-mounted steam humidifiers, which are ideal for small digital print rooms, to large high pressure spray systems, which can serve huge press halls,” Marshall-George says.
“Condair also offers dehumidifiers for printers who are suffering at the other end of the humidity scale and need to reduce their humidity levels. This is all provided with free expert advice on product sizing and selection, as well as help producing the return on investment calculation necessary to ensure the investment is worthwhile.
“It doesn’t take many failed jobs or lost clients to justify the cost of a humidification system.”
Eliminating challenges
Switching attention to users of humidification systems and seeing this technology in action on the front line of the industry and Venture Banners presents an excellent example of a success story for this equipment.
The large-format print trade business identified the need for a humidification system back in 2016 after it installed a new EFI FabriVu, as part of a move to pursue more work within the fabric printing market.
Venture Banners installed a new humidification system to support its EFI FabriVu large-format printer
Scott Conway, managing director of Venture Banners, explains that the company trialled both print processes for dye-sublimation print, transfer paper and printing direct to the substrate and felt that printing direct gives the best possible results in terms of image sharpness and also colour vibrancy. However, printing direct posed some challenges.
“As the head moves across the material it creates static,” Conway explains, adding: “This static then wreaks havoc with the print heads, drawing ink randomly creating an interesting but wholly unwanted ink misting effect.
“The way to eliminate this static is with humidity, so the answer was to have the whole production environment humidity controlled. If you’ve ever been to Disney World in Florida, think the fine mist sprays that cool you down, but on an industrial scale.
“The hardware to create the desired humidity is quite impressive in its scale; the water has to be softened first in a large reservoir before being pumped at high pressure through fine mist nozzles in the production environment.”
Conway adds that the importance of investing in a quality and trusted humidification system cannot be overstated, due to some of the issues that can arise with this type of kit.
The hardware to create the desired humidity is quite impressive in its scale”
“There are humidity measurement devices in the ceilings that tell the system when to start pumping and having air conditioning is an issue as both systems are fighting against one another,” Conway says, adding: “And there’s always the spectre that if anything was to go wrong with the misting system, you’ll be spraying water all over your machines, albeit very soft water.”
From speaking with both suppliers and a user of humidification systems, the benefits are clear for all to see. As well as making the environment you are working in a much more pleasant place to be, this technology can also play a major role in the performance of your other printing kit, in addition to the final look and feel of the printed items that you are producing.
As Barker from Humidity Solutions concludes: “Humidity control has many benefits and should be one of the automatic tools for managing the print variables.”
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