Markem-Imaje launches advanced printers to address the most challenging coding applications for FMCG

Markem-Imaje, the global provider of end-to-end supply chain solutions and industrial marking and coding systems, has launched its new 9750 Expert Series continuous inkjet (CIJ) coders, bringing three new products to market to deliver major improvements for FMCG manufacturers.

The 9750 Expert Series of continuous inkjet (CIJ) coders cost-effectively deliver peak results, even in high humidity, dusty conditions, and on ultra-fast lines. 

Data like lot numbers and barcodes are key to safe usage and traceability. Codes can also help ensure the right parts are put into the right equipment when components are shipped from intermediary plants to those doing the final assembly, for example, in electronics manufacturing. 2D codes, which are harder to print, are increasingly popular in today’s digital world due to the extra detail they encode.  Achieving the desired sophistication, legibility and durability is extremely difficult in some applications and production environments. The 9750 Expert Series improves results in such scenarios.

The 9750 Expert HD+ coder easily delivers particularly high quality, vision camera-readable GS1 Digital Links and QR codes as small as 5mm high (ISO 29158). The GS1 Digital Link is a relatively new option whereby a single QR code gives different information to various users, depending on the application used to scan it. 

Printing three lines of text on tiny surfaces such as aspirin tubes is also now more achievable than ever.

Thermochromic inks change color when the treated product reaches the required temperature so, while such inks cannot guarantee that sterilization has happened, they provide a useful indicator that the process has likely happened. 

While previous generation thermochromic inks were traditionally used on metal cans, the next generation ink, available on the 9750 Expert series, is capable of offering quality coding on new more sustainably popular mono-film plastic containers at increasingly high speeds. A commitment to producers who wish to evolve to the newest and future packaging trends and regulations.

The 9750 Expert and Expert+ can handle line speeds of up to 120,000 units per hour as well as high humidity and dusty environments. By design and unlike competitors, the 9750 Expert series are full stainless, have no retention zones and can be fully washed down.

Pigments are used when a very long-lasting and crisp code is required, and/or where achieving the desired contrast and legibility with a dye is difficult due to packaging color. Companies often need to use both inks with and across plants. Traditionally, this required two types of machines and many different spare parts. The 9570 Expert+ and Expert HD+ hybrid models accommodate both, so manufacturers can streamline maintenance and spare parts, giving them increased flexibility and lower costs.

“We’re proud that Markem-Imaje is one of the first, and currently only one of very few CIJ suppliers, offering coders which cut VOCs even when using MEK inks,” says Guillaume Montagnat, product marketing manager. “In consumable-saving mode, all 9750 Expert Series printers generate up to 35% fewer VOCs.” 

With MEK-free inks, it cuts consumables and volatile organic compound (VOCs) emissions even more: up to 50% as standard, and up to 60% using the consumable-saving mode, statistics yet to be surpassed by anyone else. Sustainability is further assured by allowing the swapping out of individual parts, and not entire ink circuit blocks, thereby sending less equipment to landfill.

CIJ printer market’s most easily customizable integration into an Industry 4.0 production line 

Incomplete printer integration can lead to items being produced without codes eg due to no ink, causing scrap or rework. With an M12 input/output (I/O) connector, and compatibility with various industrial communications protocols, all 9750 Expert Series coders are easy to integrate fully onto a line. They talk seamlessly to other equipment, stopping lines when necessary. Moreover, manufacturers no longer waste time and money in complicated wire installations to achieve this. 

Furthermore, Markem-Imaje is currently the only manufacturer with a 24-pin interface which is customizable to accept any of the 70+ signals companies might choose to run their line most efficiently. 

One of the industry’s highest uptime due to its Intelli’Design concept

Unlike most other CIJ printers, all key parts can now be replaced at the same time, significantly reducing service-related downtime. And, with up to 18,000 hours between major services, 9,000 hours for the hybrid models, the 9750 Expert Series coders offer one of the longest service intervals available.

Excellent performance and low total cost of ownership 

In addition to the specialized codes mentioned above, the 9750 Expert’s Intelli’Ink system ensures optimal coder performance and flexibility when coding a vast array of packaging materials, in all colors, with all inks. 

Its smartphone style 10-inch interface makes production more efficient since operators no longer experience any latency when swiping from screen to screen, and related menus can be accessed by simply touching a relevant section for 2 just seconds.

Additionally, its Jet Speed Control automatically adjusts ink and printer variables to provide perfect drop placement, quality and code consistency, minimizing scrap and rework… along with the earlier mentioned cost-saving benefits of less consumable usage and lower service-related costs.

Furthermore, the 9750 Expert Series’s full-featured Packaging Intelligence Suite software capacity allows for accurate, smart and optimized message design and data management across the factory from a remote location. This ensures greater accuracy and efficiency.