Expo visitors view impressive demonstrations of flexible in-line/near-line

digital finishing capabilities

Hauppauge, New York – During the annual OnDemand Conference & Exposition, visitors to the event witnessed how versatile Muller Martini Sigma technology can be.  Muller, collaborating at the show with Océ, demonstrated an in-line digital printing and print finishing system that also provided diverse near-line finishing capabilities, illustrating how today’s most advanced digital solutions can offer a wide range of book manufacturing options.

“The show was very well attended, with key decision-makers from throughout the industry stopping by the Océ booth to witness our latest Sigma technology for digitally produced perfect bound books,” said Andrew J. Fetherman, Manager, OnDemand Solutions Division, Muller Martini.  “This underscores and solidifies the growing importance of commercial quality finishing for the digital market.”

Demonstrated were Océ VarioStream 7000 series continuous feed duplex printers running into an IBIS Smartbinder saddle stitcher as one delivery option, and, also running into a Muller Martini SigmaBinder perfect binder via a Shuttleworth conveyor as another delivery option. The SigmaTower cooling tower and the recently re-engineered SigmaTrimmer were also part of the line that was featured at the OnDemand expo.  Complementing the demonstrations were special tours of the Océ booth, conducted throughout the expo, giving show attendees further opportunities to learn more about how the equipment could be utilized to fulfill a wide array of digital book manufacturing strategies.

“In addition to viewing demonstrations of flawless in-line digital production offering the dual capabilities of saddle stitching and perfect binding, show-goers were particularly interested in the ability to hand-feed product into the SigmaBinder perfect binder while product was simultaneously running into the IBIS stitcher,” continued Mr. Fetherman.  “In fact, many visitors to the booth stated how impressed they were by the technology’s power to address the best of all worlds...in-line efficiency when the entire line is running, plus, near-line capability at virtually any time, all with no make-ready.”

The OnDemand expo marked the U.S. debut of the SigmaTrimmer’s new, patented swing-cut design.  SigmaTrimmer features three independently driven knife elements and can automatically trim books of varying sizes and thickness without any human intervention.  SigmaTrimmer, along with SigmaBinder and SigmaTower, are components of the modular and scaleable Muller Martini SigmaLine OnDemand digital book manufacturing solution.  SigmaBinder produces perfect-bound books at up to 1,000 fully variable-sized copies per hour, with hotmelt utilized for separate spine and side gluing.  SigmaTower ensures proper cooling of perfect-bound books and optimal curing of the adhesives.  In addition to perfect binding and trimming, the SigmaLine solution also offers the capability for continuous-feed printing, folding and collating.