Preface
Since SBL Machinery officially launched the Regret series of blog articles last month, the topic of last month’s article was “How To Purchase The Right Die cutter Machine ｜4 Things Die cutting Machine Customers Regret The Most (Buying Guide) “caught many people’s attention, receiving positive comments and responses. Some customers said: “Why don’t you launch this series of articles earlier, it can really greatly reduce the chance of buying bad machines when purchasing post-press equipment such as box rolling machines, folder gluers, and bronzing machines.”; Some customers responded: “I can’t wait to see the follow-up regret series of folder gluer and bronzing machine articles.”
Back to the theme of this month’s article, the editor hopes through “How to purchase a suitable folder-gluer?｜4 things that folder-gluer customers regret most (purchasing guide)” this month, sharing the 4 things that are most likely to regret because they have not considered and evaluated clearly. First, to help everyone choose a folder-gluer that is more suitable for their own needs, and second, to help you avoid falling into traps or falling into myths when purchasing a folder-gluer. I firmly believe that if you refer to the following 4 things before purchasing, you can greatly reduce the chances of going wrong.
1. Paper type and box type
Now with the rapid development of the packaging and printing industry in various countries in the world, the application of folder gluers is becoming more and more extensive. Packaging boxes for wine, medicine, food, cosmetics, and commercial products are basically processed by folder gluers. Different industries use different box types and paper materials according to their characteristics.
For the printing and packaging industry, “folder-gluer” is the paper processing machine in the last process. The type of paper material and box type of the customer’s work are greatly related to the effective output of the folder-gluer. The editor will use the common “paper type” and “box type” listed below, so that you can discuss with the machine manufacturer and choose the correct model.
1-1. Paper category
There are about dozens of types of paper materials, and the editor only lists the more common 8 types.
1-1-1. Coated paper
- Paper characteristics: double-sided white and smooth. Touch the paper surface with your hands, you can feel that the front and back sides are smooth and delicate.
- Range of pounds: 80P~180P.
- Application: Commonly used to make DMs and posters that require color printing, or for small cards and tags.
1-1-2. Platinum Card
- Paper characteristics: double-sided white and smooth. Touch the paper surface with your hands, you can feel that the front and back sides are smooth and delicate.
- Range of pounds: 80P~180P.
- Application: Commonly used to make DMs and posters that require color printing, or for small cards and tags.
1-1-3. Copper Sika
- Paper characteristics: The same material as coated paper, except that the poundage is higher and the paper material is thicker. Touch the paper surface with your hands, the front and back sides are smooth and delicate.
- Range of pounds: 200P~400P.
- Application:It is often used in high-quality and required color printing product such as product instruction manuals, paper cards, manuals, etc.
1-1-4. Gold foil and silver foil
- Paper characteristics: Paper with metallic surface texture. Due to the paper material, it needs to be printed with special UV ink, so the printing plate and production cost are higher than other paper materials.
- Range of pounds: 80P~150P.
- Application: mostly used for packaging of high unit price commodities.
1-1-5. Gray copper
- Paper characteristics: The same material as coated paper, except that the poundage is higher and the paper material is thicker. Touch the paper surface with your hands, the front and back sides are smooth and delicate.
- Range of pounds: 200P~400P.
- Application:It is often used in high-quality and required color printing product such as product instruction manuals, paper cards, manuals, etc.
1-1-6. Cupronickel
- Paper characteristics:The front is white and smooth, and the back is also white paper; the interlayer of inner and outer paper cores is gray.
- Range of pounds: 270P~550P.
- Application:It is mostly used for the packaging of cheap goods. Because the inner surface is white, and the texture is better than gray copper paper; therefore, the price is slightly higher than gray copper paper.
1-1-7. Kraft paper
- Paper characteristics:There are original kraft paper and white kraft paper, and the color of kraft paper of different pounds is different; even for kraft papers of the same poundage, there will be a slight color difference between each shipment.
- Range of pounds: 80P~180P.
- Application:Kraft paper can be widely used for all kinds of packaging that want to present a simple texture, and it is most commonly used in the production of portable paper bags.
1-1-8. Corrugated paper
- Paper characteristics: In terms of hardness (waviness), the common types are A flute, B flute, AB flute and E flute.
- Range of pounds: 100 g/m2~200 g/m2.
- Application:Two-layer corrugated paper is often added another paper for the packaging of heavy goods; three-layer corrugated paper is mostly used for outer boxes.
1-2. Box type
- Straight box
- Crash lock box
- Hex box
- Octagonal box
- Special design box
2. Model considerations (size and functionality)
Various folder-gluer manufacturers have many types of models, and make you confused? In fact, the folder-gluer and the die-cutting are similar, and the names of the models are classified according to certain rules. The editor uses the description of the SBL folder-gluer, so that everyone can see the size or functional clues from the model, and teach you how to choose the folder gluer model that is suitable for you.
2-1. Size and functionality
Most folder-gluer manufacturers,
There must be different sizes and models to choose.
The model name code is usually a combination of “numbers + English characters”.
The first 3 to 4 yards [Number] represent [Size], (Note: 3 yards are in cm, 4 yards are in mm)
The following [English character] stands for [functionality].
Taking SBL machinery as an example,
There are 8 options for the size of the folder-gluer: (the size of the number represents the maximum width of paper that can be cut/mm)
•550
•800
•1000
•1100
•1200
•1350
•1450
•1600
The functionality of the folder gluer has the following 7 options
• S (2 creases)
• W (4 creases)
• DW (4 creases + 4 upper glue barrels)
• WV (4 creases + servo)
• WN (4 creases + upper drive)
• WLV (4 creases + servo)
• WNV (4 creases + servo + upper drive)
2-2. Principles of Model Evaluation
The composition of the “model”,
It is composed of the two aspects of “size” and “function” mentioned in 2-1.
After the cross combination, there will be many different models to choose.
As for how customers should choose and evaluate before they can buy a model that suits their needs?
Or not buy a model that will regret in the future?
The editor provides the following model evaluation methods:
2-2-1. Confirm your own environmental conditions
Model selection,
Some customers will rely on previous purchase experience,
Some customers will rely on budget or functional considerations.
But there is a very important pre-work,
That is, to confirm the “space size” of the pre-installation plant for the “installation machine position approach line” of the plant.
There have been several cases because the “factory space” or “entry line” is very small and narrow,
It takes a lot of extra work to install the machine,
If necessary, it may even need to have lead time to customize to solve the problem.
It’s like before buying a car,
Instead of spending a lot of time collecting information on various car models of various brands,
You should first confirm the size and restrictions of the parking space or garage where you plan to park your vehicle.
This is the correct step to improve the timeliness of follow-up communication and efficient procurement with manufacturers.
2-2-2. Confirm your own needs
It depends on which type of paper (carton) the majority of your customers are,
Generally speaking, if there are many outer packing boxes, it is necessary to choose a larger model that is also suitable for corrugated paper.
And if there are mostly cartons, you can choose a smaller size and apply to general cardboard models.
The folder gluer has a large difference between the model size and the platform.
Take SBL machinery folder gluer as an example,
From the smallest machine 550mm to the largest 1650mm,
The price of the machine is cheaper than that of box rolling machine and hot foil stamper.
Therefore, some customers will buy a model with a smaller size (550 or 800)
Then match it with a larger model (1000 or 1100)
This arrangement can accept orders for most common paper and carton sizes.
This kind of buying strategy is recommended.
2-2-3. "Model" needs to be considered together with "Fitting"
The reason why “model” needs to be considered in cooperation with “optional accessories”,
You should consider the needs of functions from customers or yourself,
As a priority for models.
Take sbl machinery folder gluer as an example,
There is an optional function “visual detection and defect shaving mechanism”,
This functional machine can be equipped with visual inspection equipment,
Remove the paper (carton) with abnormal printing surface or dirt,
But this optional function is only supported by the following four models
•TS-550 WN/WNV
•TS-800 WN/WNV
•TS-1000 WN/WNV
•TS-1100 WN/WNV
So if you need a specific feature,
It is necessary to consider whether the machine manufacturer has provided a model with this function for matching.
2-2-4. Fully communicate and discuss with the business
Take my favorite example, seeing a doctor.
When we go to the doctor,
If you explain your condition to the doctor in more detail, (e.g., current physical or psychological problems, duration of the disease, frequency of pain, recent changes in daily routine or diet, genetic history, etc.)
When doctors have more information,
Isn’t it easier to make the correct diagnosis, treatment and prescribe the medicine?
Folder gluer machine is the same concept,
You must fully discuss with the original salesperson,
E.g., Current customer types (customer size, order volume), type of paper that is often cut, problems often encountered before…etc.)
Provide information on your own needs and environmental conditions as much as possible,
As a result, you can purchase a die cutting machine that is more in line with your own needs,
Second, it can greatly reduce the possibility of regret in the future.
3. Optional accessories (size and functionality)
Taking SBL as an example, there are about 30 accessories for folder gluer machines.
I will write another article to explain in detail later.
But the editor wants to emphasize that the key point is whether to purchase a folder gluer machine with SBL,
Please do take some time to prepare,
Or ask the salesperson about the ” applicable timing”, “functionality” and “restrictions” of these accessories.
Some people will hold the opposite view,
They don’t think the accessories are too important.
We can also install or purchase the accessories according to our own needs after purchasing it.
The editor wants to clarify that this is a common myth of folder gluer customers. The reasons are as follows:
3-1. Optional accessory related to model
Optional accessory is usually used to solve a problem, or to achieve an additional special need or function,
But as mentioned earlier,
If the company may require an optional accessory in the future to achieve special functional requirements,
However, because the original purchase model cannot be equipped with this optional accessory,
At this time, you may face the problem of not being able to install or need to spend high customization costs.
Before purchasing, you should find out the compatibility of these optional accessories and models.
So as not to cause regret in the future.
3-2. High cost of installation after leaving the factory
Some customers did not realize the importance of the optional accessories when purchasing the machine.
If added these accessories when the machine is installed at the factory or after a period of use.
It will be far better than purchasing these optional accessories before the machine leaves the factory.
The reasons for the cost that will increase to 50% or several times are as follows:
- Expensive international shipping for parts
- Need to bear the additional installation time and travel expenses of the technician
- Customized fees
4. Second-hand prices
Maybe there are many questions in your mind?
Is the most important thing in purchasing machinery nothing more than the comprehensive selection of the price and function of each brand of machinery?
What is the relationship between “the second-hand market price of die cutting machines” and “the 4 most common regrets”?
In fact, in the previous blog article “10 Selection Indicators That Machinery Manufacturers Won’t Disclose (Part 2)“,
We mentioned the price comparison,
And the consideration can
Apply to the issue of avoiding the pitfalls when purchasing a die cutting.
4-1. Reasons for evaluating second-hand prices
The process of business operation is likely to have the need to resell die cutting machines for the following reasons:
- Because of capacity expansion, the company purchases new models, and sell old models
- Merger with other businesses
- Strategic consideration to convert the original business type
- The original production output will be reduced due to market considerations
The process of the above changes is likely to involve the demand for second-hand machine buying and selling.
At the same time, this is also the reason why the second-hand price of the die cutting machine needs to be included in the evaluation mentioned by the editor.
4-2. Importance of used price
The editor once again explained the last example to let you understand the importance of second-hand prices:
Based on the premise of similar machine performance,
Company A’s machine sells for $300,000, and Company B’s machine sells for $200,000.
But after 5 years of normal use,
Because A machine may have the high market share and brand awareness,
It can also be sold for $200,000 on the market,
The second-hand machine of the B machine has a low market share and poor machine durability.
Even the resale price of the market is $100,000, the B machine will go begging.
In such a situation, is there a higher chance of regretting buying machine A or machine B in the future?
The answer is very obvious.
Simultaneously, this example also echoes a key point emphasized by the editor,
Be sure to evaluate the second-hand price of the machine before purchasing.
Because no one can surely guarantee the next 3 years, 5 years or even 10 years,
There will be no possibility of resale or replacement of the machine,
Including the second-hand price factor can greatly reduce the chance of regret.