Autobond has chosen Northprint for the worldwide launch of the MINI 105 TPHS (Thermal, Perfector, Heidelberg, Stacker) Laminator, which the Derbyshire manufacturer believes will become one of its best selling models. The new MINI 105 TPHS can laminate stock from A4 to B1, both sides in one pass, at speeds of 60m/min, which equates to 5000 B1 sheets/hr or 7300 B2, while the landscape design gives it a foot-print of only 2.8x2m. Autobond will also show at Northprint its MINI Digital 36, which has been designed to laminate output from digital presses.

The new MINI 105 TPHS has a Heidelberg Speedmaster rising pile back separation stream feed head with a vacuum feed table, allowing continuous and accurate feeding of a wide range of stock types. The feed head is processor controlled and receives continuous job data from a sophisticated encoder on the laminating roller. Reliability is further aided by the extremely robust construction, which incorporates 30mm thick steel side plates. "This is an important addition to our product line up and Northprint is perfectly timed to introduce the MINI 105 TPHS, which will be the largest laminator in Autobond's MINI series," said MD John Gilmore. "We believe the laminator's speed, versatility and compact size will appeal to a wide range of sheet fed printers, as well as the traditional finishing or laminating trade house."

The laminator can apply matte or gloss OPP and acetate film on to stock ranging from 90 to 650gsm. Features include Siemens electronics and a touch screen control panel, PLC and inverter drives, a digital sheet counter, adjustable anti-curl bar, pneumatically adjustable in-feed nip rollers and a pneumatic air clutch to provide constant tension between teh laminator and the sheeter. Siemens electronics allowed Autobond to include remote diagnostics so that customers anywhere in the world can have immediate help if they have a problem.

The MINI Digital TP has become a very popular model amongst digital printers, who increasingly want to improve the image quality and durability of the final printed product. This has traditionally presented certain difficulties. Stock coming out of most digital presses is low in moisture and high in static, making sheets difficult to separate and feed. In addition, some toners, particularly oil-based toners, are extremely difficult to get film to adhere to unless the adhesive is heated to a high temperature and there is a substantial amount of pressure in the laminator’s nip rollers.

The MINI Digital TP creates nine tones of pressure in the nip rollers and, combined with the ability to heat the adhesive to 140°C overcomes the traditional problems associated with laminating digital print, ensuring good adhesion between the film and the sheet. This easy to operate machine laminates stock single or double sided from A4 to 36x 57cm at up to 30m/min, which equates to 4500 SRA3 sheets/hr. The footprint is only 2.2x1.1m, yet the MINI Digital TP benefits from all of the features of the larger Autobond machines, such as 30mm thick steel side panels.