Printing directly on glass
Before the advent of wide format digital flatbed printer, glass printing is primarily done with screens, which required extensive set up, cleaning, storage, and reclamation, which makes screen printing very labour-intensive. The KMAJET wide format flatbed printer eliminates all of this, making small to medium runs very cost-effective. You can now easily fulfill the design and performance requirements of complex glass printing jobs.
Digitally printed flat glass is everywhere. You’ll find it used in shower doors, architectural partitions and, automotive windshields, and appliance panels. It’s also used in furniture, on gaming equipment and on countless decorative and artistic products for the home.
In today’s competitive glass industry, where production runs are getting shorter, it is needless to say that cutting production costs and making procedures more efficient are vital for the glass processors to remain competitive.
Printing can be done on float as well as on tempered glass and, once printed, it can be also laminated to safety glass. As the term direct on glass implies the textures, images, photos and texts can be printed directly on any glass sheet. Previously, printing on glass was being done using screens to spread the ink on the surface. The development of digital printing technology is now up to the traditional method: no longer are screens involved, no screen cleaning, storage, maintenance and no concerns for damaged screen mesh.
Cost-efficiency is not an issue any more with digital printing, as making and handling screens for smaller sizes and quantities does not put any additional stress on the budget. This is good news for interior designers pursuing customised and tailor made solutions in decorating offices, stores and homes. A revolution in interior architecture could even be claimed here. It will also be beneficial to automotive repair and replacement sectors, who usually deal with small batches.
Digital printing advantages
Compared to traditional production methods, digital printing offers a variety of advantages:
Variable data: The ability to include serial number, date and any other information that can be changed easily between copies or job.
Eliminates screens costs: In digital printing there is no need for production tools, such as: photo-tools, printing screens or stencils. These costs are eliminated.
Digital printing improves time to market: Digital printing significantly shortens job production time, due to the elimination of the preparation time of the films and screens, as well as the elimination of the extensive set-up times of traditional production equipment. The use of digital printing solutions provides a competitive advantage over other glass processor companies.
Improved yields due to better consistency: Digital printing is the shortest way from an electronic file to a finished product.
Multi color print: The ability to print several colors in one print, while screen-printing, requires one screen for each color.