Condair manufactures both high pressure and compressed air and water spray models
Keep your Cool
Print service providers (PSPs) are faced with all manner of challenges when it comes to being able to produce high-quality work. One of the less talked about issues, but what should be regarded as among the most important considerations, is humidification.
Failure to manage humidification could lead to all sorts of issues; from poor quality output to health issues for workers. Here, we speak with specialist providers in this area to find out more about the technology behind the systems and what new options are available to PSPs looking to make humidity a concern of the past.
Identify Issues
Condair is one of several manufacturers of humidification systems for use in print. Dave Marshall-George, sales director at Condair, says that as low humidity issues frequently do not occur year-round for UK-based PSPs, they can often be overlooked and thought of as a seasonal annoyance, with an accepted drop in productivity or quality that temporarily occurs every winter.
However, he warns the impact could be substantial, particularly if it leads to a drop in quality with a loss of clients as a result.
“This impact may easily go unnoticed, as clients don’t always highlight dissatisfaction and rarely inform a supplier they are now using someone else,” Marshall-George explains, continuing: “To make an informed decision to invest in a humidification system, a printer must first be able to identify and associate any productivity issues experienced as a result of low humidity.
Condair says larger print rooms often benefit from spray humidifiers
“Secondly, they must be able to financially assess the cost of any humidity-related issues and finally weigh the cost of the humidifier against these losses, both in the initial outlay and in the longer term. This equation can be relatively difficult to put together, but Condair has great experience in this sector and often works with printers to provide detailed return on investment calculations following free site assessments.”
As for where issues may arise, Marshall-George says low humidity in a print facility will draw moisture from any exposed paper surface, causing dimensional changes to occur. This can be seen in wavy edges on paper stacks and results in problems such as mis-feeds on machines, mis-registration issues, and web-breaks.
Humidity below 40%RH will also promote electrostatic build-up, which can result in issues such as paper jams on machines and dust being attracted to plates. Maintaining humidity at around 50%RH allows static charge to naturally dissipate through the air, avoiding these problems.
“The good news is that in a UK climate, there are many months when the indoor humidity will naturally fall within the ideal level of around 50%RH,” Marshall-George says, adding: “However, it is during the cold winter months when UK printers typically experience humidity below the recommended 40%RH threshold and need to use humidification systems to maintain a productive operation.”
Looking to the products available from Condair, Marshall-George says there is no one-size-fits-all solution for managing humidity in the print sector, with the correct solution dependent on the level of humidity needed, the constraints of the area, the contents of the room, the air movement and budget, among many other factors.
“What has made Condair successful in the print sector, with clients including Heidelberg and HP, is being able to provide expert application advice, alongside the most comprehensive range of humidifiers available,” Marshall-George says, adding: “Being the manufacturer, and not just a distributor, allows Condair to perfectly tailor a humidification system to the needs of a client, and deliver the manufacturer’s engineering knowledge on-site.”
“Smaller rooms, for instance with a digital print machine, often only need a wall-mounted steam humidifier with a fan unit, such as the Condair EL. These humidifiers can provide from just a few kilos of steam per hour to around 40kg, with easy maintenance and good humidity control.
“Larger print rooms often benefit from spray humidifiers, as they not only provide humidity control but also free evaporative cooling. This can be advantageous, given the waste heat generated by print machines.”
Marshall-George adds that many older industrial buildings used by printers often suffer from poor ventilation, which can lead to excess air humidity causing condensation and mould on the building fabric, and excessive water absorption by the paper. Alongside humidifiers, Condair also offers a range of dehumidifiers to help alleviate these types of environmental issues.
Quality and Efficiency
Elsewhere and another provider of these solutions is DriSteem. Stephen Finkel, Western European regional sales manager at DriSteem, says that to produce high-quality printed products, print shops must maintain an appropriate level of moisture content in the air.
DriSteem says print shops must maintain an appropriate level of moisture content in the air to produce high-quality print
“Using humidifiers to boost humidity levels in an indoor space has lots of benefits for PSPs,” Finkel says, adding: “By investing in added humidification technology, printers can improve the quality and efficiency of their printing processes and extend the lifespan of their printing equipment, leading to long-term cost savings.”
Singling out core benefits, Finkel says that the stand-out advantage is better print quality. Humidity levels affect paper properties like moisture content, stiffness, and curl, but when paper absorbs moisture from the air, it becomes more pliable and easier to handle which results in better print quality because the paper is less likely to curl or wrinkle during printing.
“Low humidity levels can also cause inks to dry out quickly, leading to poor ink transfer and lower print quality,” Finkel says, adding: “With optimal humidity levels, inks stay at the right consistency, allowing for consistent and accurate ink transfer.
“Additionally, static electricity in the air can cause unwanted smears. Microscopic ink droplets, having so little mass, are extremely sensitive to even the tiniest influence. Once pulled off course by a static charge, droplets can merge into a blob and ruin the print.”
Aside from this, Finkel says low humidity levels can slow down ink drying, leading to longer production times and reduced efficiency. Additionally, printing equipment can become dusty in dry air, causing damage to press components and increased maintenance costs. By adding humidity to the environment, dust and other particles in the air are reduced, extending the lifespan of press components, and reducing maintenance costs.
In addition, Finkel notes how presses are sensitive to changes in paper moisture content and paper that is too dry or too moist can cause paper jams and other production issues. By maintaining optimal humidity levels, paper moisture content can be kept at the right levels, reducing the likelihood of paper jams and other production issues.
As to how DriSteem can help, Finkel says the company offers a wide range of products such as electric humidifiers, gas-fired humidifiers, steam-to-steam humidifiers, and atomising humidifiers, with each solution designed to address specific humidity control needs, making it easy for customers to find the right product for their specific application.
“DriSteem's high-pressure system will be released for sale in Europe later this year,” Finkel says, adding: “It is the perfect solution for print shops because it provides high-capacity humidification along with the flexibility to manage multiple zones with a single pump station.
O Factoid: DriSteem's high-pressure system will be released for sale in Europe later this year O
“Plus, the evaporative cooling effect offsets the building's cooling load. These systems have been available in North America for many years, we are excited to extend their availability to the European market.”
Increase Productivity
Turning to our third featured provider, the aptly named Humidity Solutions is well-placed to offer guidance.
Managing director John Barker explains controlling relative humidity within the optimal range of 50%RH to 60%RH will greatly reduce or eliminate issues, helping to improve quality, reduce waste, and increase production speeds and profits.
John Barker, managing director of Humidity Solutions, says humidity control will help improve quality, reduce waste, and increase production speeds and profits
“Every printer wants to produce the best results possible with minimum waste material and at the fastest machine speeds to maximise customer satisfaction and the greatest profitability,” Barker says, adding: “Introducing water in the air in a controlled manner creates the ideal humidity to ensure that these objectives are 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 1kw. Marginal gains are often sought, but with humidity control, significant gains can be made using tried and tested technology.
“The dangers of not investing are missed opportunities to cut waste, and increase productivity and print quality by maintaining the stock in perfect conditions for a hydroscopic material such as paper or card whilst also producing the same environment day in, day out in which to print so removing one of the many variables that the print sector has to deal with.”
As to how Humidity Solutions can help, Barker says the most widely used type of humidifier in the print and packaging sector is the high-pressure water system, which incorporates a 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 offers the Neptronic SKVF
evaporative humidifier as part of its range
Alternatively, easy to install, low maintenance, very low running costs, and close control – or for applications where the print hall roof is low, Barker says Humidity Solutions can use an evaporative system such as Neptronic’s SKVF.
“This solution doesn’t have a visible spray and provides all the benefits of the high-pressure humidifier, but with the option of delivering while suspended from the roof or localised around the feed end of the press providing humidity control and cooling,” Barker says
“High-performance fans recirculate the air in the press hall evaporating moisture when the air is passed through a moist matrix which evaporates the moisture to deliver humidity in a controlled manner directly to the critical area, which can create localised control in a large factory reducing capital costs.
“Low energy, highly efficient humidity control is used in most manufacturing industries to help cure glue, keep the
product in the correct condition, and to ensure quality of finish and to maximise profitability in an ever increasingly competitive sector.”
Barker’s closing comments sum up the core message of this feature; investment in a quality humidification system will help PSPs to strengthen efficiency and improve the quality of their printed output, which will in turn increase financial income.
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