The Emergence of Laser Diecutting

The hi-tech technology is beginning to make headway in the diecutting industry, but it won't replace mechanical cutting methods altogether.

THE DIECUTTING PROCESS is centuries old. While the equipment has progressed through the years, the basic method has remained the same—until now.

Laser diecutting has made a splash at many trade shows around the world in recent years, as companies such as AB Graphic International and LasX Industries, Inc. market new laser diecutters, and HP and Mark Andy add the technology to their presses. Traditional mechanical methods of diecutting will never die out due to laser cutting's growth, but the newest equipment offers a host of benefits that are worthy of attention.

The upside

Laser diecutting is beginning to emerge as a viable, attractive alternative to mechanical diecutting methods—including platen and rotary diecutting. However, these traditional means of cutting have proven more than effective in cutting any kind of material used in packaging at speeds that bring smiles to the faces of converting and printing shop owners. They've proven their worth in design capabilities, too.

"Very complex shapes don't seriously reduce press speeds like [it does with] lasers," said Michael Bittner, an associate of Kocher + Beck USA, who represents several different machine manufacturers.

Platen and rotary diecutting methods are also efficient for medium to long runs. This was a major advantage a few years ago, but as the demand for short-run package printing jobs increases, so does the demand for a diecutting technology that is better suited for such performance requirements.

Enter: laser diecutting. Laser diecutting may be a few years off from industry-wide acceptance, but its innate capabilities are seemingly well-suited to today's changing package-printing industry. For starters, since laser diecutters require no die inventory, short runs can be cost-justified, Bittner said.

In addition, he said, "Same-day digital production often necessitates laser cutting. [And] short runs can be gang run more practically."

Beyond advantages in the short-run realm, laser diecutting units like LasX Industries' LaserSharp® digital laser system require very little to no makeready or set up, said Craig Greenwood, company equipment sales manager.

"In minutes, an electronic file can be loaded and prepped for production," he said, which makes same-day turnaround a reality.

Laser diecutters can do everything platen or rotary diecutters can do—cut, score, kiss cut, and perforate—but with the ability to "integrate variable or demographic data into the diecutting," Greenwood added. And because dies are eliminated and replaced with electronics, he said, there's little maintenance or tooling involved with laser diecutters.

"The advantages listed allow printing and packaging companies more flexibility, quicker job turnaround, and less downtime," Greenwood said. "All of this equals increased manufacturing productivity."

There's upsides, there's downsides

For every upside, there's a downside, and every kind of diecutting method has some disadvantages. With platen and rotary diecutters, the nature of dies means they incur costs throughout their lifetimes. Bittner cites the costs involved with changing dielines and tooling, which "often dissuade customers from buying additional labels."

With laser diecutters, disadvantages are few, but steep. Like all diecutters, laser cutting systems have trouble with some substrates, especially plastic films like PE and PVC. Also, cutting PVC with a laser diecutter produces toxic fumes that require an expensive filtering system to protect workers and the environment, Bittner said.

Speed is another shortcoming of laser diecutters. "In long-run, standard pattern and substrate environments, a rotary diecutter will operate at higher speeds than a laser diecutter," Greenwood said.

The biggest drawback to laser systems, however, is its initial cost. "Generally speaking, a variable repeat lasercutter stand-alone [system] is around $200,000 for 25-60 fpm or $300,000 for 50-120 fpm (dual laser), and speed is totally determined by shape, of course," Bittner said.

This is in comparison to mechanical diecutting methods, where an average unit costs around $125,000 and can run up to 125 fpm, regardless of the shape being cut, he added.

It's important to note, Greenwood added, that laser diecutters do have a relatively fast return on investment. "The initial cost of laser diecutting equipment is higher, however, in a number of applications, productivity is greatly improved and the system can pay for itself quickly," he said.

The face of diecutting in tomorrow's world

No proponent of laser diecutting will argue that the new technology is bound to eliminate traditional diecutting methods. Instead, it's thought that laser diecutting will become the perfect complement—the "value-added" of the diecutting industry—to mechanical diecutting.

"At LasX Industries, we do not see laser digital converting as a replacement for traditional diecutting," Greenwood said. "We feel it is more of an enhancement and an additional service to offer, similar to the relationship of flexo or offset printing to digital printing."

That's not to say that laser diecutting won't become a prominent technology. As the technology is further developed to run faster and less expensively, more converting and printing companies will embrace it, Bittner said. In addition, as the demand grows, laser diecutting systems will be further improved.

However, the magnitude and time frame of the future growth is questionable, at least at this point in time, said Christopher Raney, vice president, folding carton products, Bobst Group USA Inc. "For me, today, laser diecutting is good for cutting only, good for extremely short runs or very complex shapes," he said. "In reality, this is not the market that the majority of people are in. The market requirements are for cutting, creasing, and even embossing of board or paper at higher volumes and speeds, and laser technology is nowhere near that today."

There is also the fact that there's still room for improvement in mechanical diecutting procedures, which may make laser diecutting's advantages a little less standout in the future, but that is something only the future knows.

Bittner explained, "It is more a matter of need of conventional dies for attaining a higher production rate, which is very applicable to higher volume/commodity type product cutting, vs. the need of the laser process for attaining quick turnaround and offering high detail dielines, which is applicable for lower volume/premium type product cutting.

"At the end of the day, does one want maximum throughput of the shorter or the longer runs, just cutting a few shapes or cutting many shapes?"

by Kate Sharon

Associate Editor