THE KIDDER AUTOMATIC PRINTING PRESS
Some of the larger manufacturers of both folding boxes and cartons are making good use of Kidder automatic printing presses in their printing plants. In some instances the Kidder is being used for printing cartons from large rolls of carton stock, and in other cases the machine is running on big orders of box labels printed from rolls of paper. Box labels may be printed in one or two colors on a special Kidder press, and the machine is equipped with a cutting device for cutting the labels to correct size as they are printed from the rolls of paper.
For complete information about these machines, write the Kidder Press Co., of Dover, N. H.
THE MILLER AUTOMATIC FEEDER FOR CHANDLER
& PRICE PRESSES
Recently the writer entered the printing department of a Philadelphia paper box manufacturing concern, and there were seen three Chandler & Price presses, equipped with Miller automatic feeders, running on large orders of box wrappers. One press was engaged in putting on the final color of a four-color design for a box wrapper; the second machine was running on a form printed in gold ink, and the third press was operating on a plain, black-ink job.
Chandler & Price Press equipped with Miller Feeder. The picture
shows the feeder in operating position.
Two of these Chandler & Price presses were of the 12 × 18 size, and the other machine was of the 10 × 15 size. The three Miller feeders were working at high speed, feeding the blank sheets in the presses with no difficulty whatever. One pressman, assisted by a boy, was keeping these three platen presses continually busy on long runs of the wrappers. His principal work was in taking away the finished work, and in putting up new piles of stock to be printed.
Under the old system of feeding platen presses, it would have required one pressman and three young men, or young women, to keep these three presses in continual operation, but with the Miller feeders, the same amount of work, (or even a larger output of work) was being done by one pressman and one assistant.
Miller Feeders are now being made in three different sizes—8 × 12, 10 × 15, and 12 × 18—by the Miller Saw-Trimmer Co., of Pittsburgh, Pa. At the present time they are made only for Chandler & Price presses of the three sizes mentioned. These automatic feeders will handle all weights of stock, from onion skin paper to heavy cardboard, and they will feed the sheets to close register for color printing.
It should be understood that the Miller Saw-Trimmer Co. will supply the Miller Feeders separately, so that the buyer may have the feeders applied to C. & P. presses, or the company will furnish complete “units,” consisting of the C. & P. press, Miller feeder, ink fountain, counter, speed pulley, motor, etc.
There is another automatic platen press feeder, called the “Humana,” manufactured by The Humana Co., of Newark, N. J.
KINDS OF WORK DONE IN THE PRINTING DEPARTMENT
OF A PAPER BOX FACTORY
For those not familiar with the special class of work produced in the average printing department of a paper box factory, the following information should prove interesting and perhaps helpful:
The manufacture of fine set-up paper boxes, such as candy boxes for example, would use the printing department mainly for printing customers’ business cards, designs, and pictures on glazed paper wrappers. Here is a special field in itself, for there are many different kinds of box wrappers, many of them printed in colors, or printed, gold-leafed and embossed. Many of the fancy wrappers contain beautiful pictures, done in four or more colors, while other wrappers have business cards printed merely in one color.
Loose wrappers for toilet articles, perfumery, and other things of this variety are often printed in tints and colors. Some are done in colors and gold, and after being printed, are embossed.
Many of the fine loose wrappers are applied to both set-up boxes and folding boxes, and not a few of them are works of art. By covering a rough set-up paper box, or a cheap carton, with a handsomely-printed loose wrapper, the appearance of the box is wonderfully enhanced. This goes to show the great utility of the right kind of printed wrappers.
The manufacturer of set-up boxes would also have considerable demand for glazed labels, to be applied to the tops of writing paper boxes, rubber goods boxes, and so forth. In many instances, labels of this variety are printed in several colors and gold.
Some of the fine set-up boxes are first tight-wrapped with white or tinted glazed paper, and afterwards fancy printed labels are pasted to the top of the lids and to the sides of the lids.
The demand for holiday boxes, particularly the kind loose wrapped with glazed paper containing holly designs, pictures of pretty girls’ heads, etc., is constantly increasing, and all of this variety of printing would also be needed by the set-up box manufacturer. The same manufacturer would perhaps require printed partitions, cut out of box-board, for inserts in neckwear boxes, suspender boxes and other holiday boxes. These cardboard “set-ins” are often printed with fancy designs in colors and gold.
In the printing department of a folding box factory the style of printed matter would be different from the fine wrappers and labels which have been referred to. Here the major portion of printing would be done on cartons, although plain labels would frequently be needed for cartons.
Large-size cartons for cereals, tea, dried fruits, spices, butter, cake, rice, powders, and medicine bottles are often printed in several colors, no labels or wrapper being needed. Other cartons have printed labels applied to their fronts, while others still call for printed wrappers of the “loose” style.
There is always a tremendous amount of printed matter required by both set-up box-makers and folding-box manufacturers, and therefore the average box-maker’s print shop is seldom idle.
In the next chapter the writer will take up the subject of practical printing as done in the box-maker’s plant.