Globe News
Empire Screen Printing installs Fujifilm Graphium for labels, packaging

Onalaska, Wisconsin-based Empire Screen Printing says its newly installed Fujifilm North America Graphic Systems Division’s Graphium UV digital hybrid inkjet press is opening up the door to new markets and additional revenues.

Established in 1960, Empire began in a garage in La Crosse, Wisc., as a one-man operation. Though its roots are in screen printing, the company has expanded into flexographic and digital printing with its newest solution being the acquisition of the Graphium. Empire Screen Printing provides print products for various industries within automotive, aircraft, electronics, food and beverages, government, sporting goods and retail.

Graphium, Fujifilm explains, is designed to help print service providers embrace complex label, packaging and specialty jobs that aren’t achievable with standalone conventional or inkjet presses. As well, the Graphium makes converting short to medium print jobs profitable, as it aims to streamline workflow, require less setup material, less ink/varnish/laminate, and minimize overruns. Furthermore, Fujifilm says the Graphium is one of the only modular digital inkjet presses offering the option to integrate true flexo and finishing stations for hybrid production and conversion, in a single pass.

“The print quality on the Graphium extends our capabilities of our screen printing when it comes to printing four colour process, fine lines, and perfect register jobs,” John Freismuth, president, Empire Screen Printing, says. “The Graphium is going to change the way print goes to market. I’ve heard many colleagues say ‘digital isn’t fast enough’ and ‘digital isn’t outdoor-durable,’ and with Graphium, you get both; it’s fast and the output is outdoor durable.”

Complex artwork regularly arrives at Empire Screen Printing, and the traditional screen printing process wasn’t able to handle the requirements demanded of clients.

“The Graphium allows us to successfully work with designers and companies looking for perfect registration,” said Freismuth. “Screen printing hasn’t been able to offer that, and with the introduction of digital, we can manage complex files at speeds faster than ever. With the Graphium we have the ability to output multiple jobs efficiently and cost effectively.”