The full colour, single pass press incorporates drop-on-demand inkjet technology using aqueous inks. The Corrstream comes in three ranges: 66, 40 and 20. Sun has linked up with an unnamed partner for the print heads.
Mark Eaton, Sun Automation Group president said: "We have created a product that is fit for purpose. With a drive towards mass customisation, shorter inventory and products produced closer to sale, brand owners will see real value in the Corrstream."
Sun Automation global product manager Sean Moloney added that market conditions in the corrugated sector meant that the time was right for digital printing. He said that the Corrstream was very much an industrial printer, designed for 24/7 operations.
"The corrugated landscape has seen a reliance on fewer sectors such as food, beverage and FMCG," he said. There is over capacity and the sector has reacted with increased automation, reduced paper weights and fewer colours. There are issues but there is also an opportunity.
"Corrugated has had a renaissance in the past few years with developments such as shelf-ready packaging (SRP). This drives new value."
Moloney added that the advantage of the Corrstream for box makers was that it could take out "five workflow processes" such as plate making. "A reduction in set up time equals more margin," he said. "Digital technology also gives box plants to take value further up the supply chain."
Corrstream is capable of printing at 4,200 passes per hour and the machine is now commercially available. The Corrstream 20 model, which prints at widths of 557mm, is priced at around $2m, although the final price for the Corrstream range is dependent on individual customers' requirements.
Sun Automation said that the development of the machine had been nearly 10 years in the making. The company had spent around four years developing the digital technology with Kodak but the two parties split. According to Sun's Eaton, this was due to concerns over the reliability of Kodak's technology although he added that it was faster.
