Introduction and Analysis of Round-die Cutting Tool

The round-die cutting tool has the following advantages:

1. Higher efficiency than the flat-die cutting tool in printing equipment. It shows significant advantages in the production of large quantities of products such as cigarette packages, medicine packages, paper cups, adhesive labels, milk packages, and paper beverage packaging.

2. Higher cutting precision. The round-die cutting tool can achieve a precision of +0.10mm. For some high-precision products, only the round-die cutting tool can meet the requirements. For example, Yunnan Qiaotong Packaging Printing Co., Ltd. produces premium Honghe cigarette packages for Honghe Cigarette Factory. Originally, flat-die cutting was used, which was difficult to meet the requirements of the cigarette factory. After the equipment transformation and the use of round-die cutting, the product achieved excellent results and met the customers' requirements.

3. Higher paper utilization and less waste. Due to the round-die cutting tool, there is no need to leave gaps like the flat-die cutting tool, which allows for tighter layout and cross-layout, resulting in higher paper utilization. This advantage is especially significant in today's rising raw material prices. 

Favorable conditions for the development of the round-die cutting tool:

The rapid development and technological advancements in the domestic post-printing round-die processing equipment manufacturing industry have created favorable conditions for the use of round-die cutting tools.

1. Development of offline die-cutting: Offline die-cutting refers to the separation of post-printing processing equipment from printing presses (including creasing, embossing, die-cutting, and hot stamping). In recent years, China has made great achievements in the manufacturing of offline die-cutting machines. Wuhan Jincai Technology Co., Ltd. and Baoding Sairuite Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. cooperated to produce offline four-station round-die cutting machines (including die-cutting, creasing, embossing, and debossing) and four-station round-die hot stamping machines (including holographic hot stamping) for Chongqing Hongjin Printing Co., Ltd. These machines are at the world-leading level in non-stop material change and zero-speed paper feeding technology, greatly improving die-cutting efficiency and reducing waste. The hot stamping machine breaks the characteristic of foreign round-die hot stamping machines having only one station. It can simultaneously work on multiple stations, completing tasks that used to require multiple processes in one roll unwinding operation, significantly increasing efficiency.

2. Development of inline die-cutting: Inline die-cutting refers to the joint operation of post-printing processing equipment with printing presses (including creasing, embossing, die-cutting, and hot stamping). Flexible printing press and gravure printing press manufacturers have changed their previous practice of having only one die-cutting station, and have reserved several positions for installing round-die cutting tools on printing equipment. Some even directly configure round-die cutting tools based on customer requirements.

3. Market demand: The rapid development of the tobacco, milk, and beverage industries has created market demand for round-die cutting tools. In the tobacco industry, the integration of intellectual property rights of cigarette brands by the government has led to a reduction in the number of cigarette brands and an increase in the production volume of single-type cigarette packages. Furthermore, with the increase in speed of high-speed cigarette packaging machines, the requirements for creasing and die-cutting precision of cigarette packages have become higher. In the milk and beverage industry, the demand for packaging has increased due to the improvement of people's living standards. Roof packages, Tetra Pak packages, and Combibloc packages, among others, require high precision in creasing and die-cutting to prevent liquid leakage. Therefore, the use of round-die punching, creasing, and die-cutting tools can achieve excellent packaging results. These factors have provided a rare market opportunity for the promotion and use of round-die cutting tools.

Issues and improvements of round-die cutting tools:

Due to the relatively short time of localization, domestic manufacturers of round-die cutting tools have not yet become large-scale and strong, and there is still room for improvement.

1. Shorter lifespan compared to foreign products: Compared to foreign round-die cutting tools, domestic round-die cutting tools have a shorter lifespan. Therefore, domestic manufacturers need to focus on improving tool materials, processing techniques, blade designs, and surface coatings, as there is still significant room for improvement in these areas.

2. Higher cost and longer processing cycle: Compared to flat-die cutting tools, round-die cutting tools require a larger initial investment and have longer processing cycles. They are not suitable for small batch production, but can reduce the cost of use for large quantities of products.

3. Enhanced awareness of round-die cutting tools: To effectively use round-die cutting tools, printing companies need to pay attention to several issues. Operators and maintenance personnel should learn more about the use, adjustment, and maintenance methods of round-die cutting tools to extend their lifespan. Dedicated personnel should manage the tools, clean and apply rust inhibitors to idle tools, wrap them in felt, place them in dry wooden boxes, and store them in well-ventilated areas. Labels should be placed on the boxes indicating the tool's name to prevent accidental damage. When lifting the tools, they should be handled with care. Proper records of the tools should be maintained, including the manufacturer, actual usage, and sharpening times. The manufacturer should mark the tools for better management. Tool adjustment should be performed by dedicated personnel following standardized procedures as required by the manufacturer. The correct tools should be used, and for block-type die-cutting tools, the die-cutting block screws should be tightened with a torque wrench (generally 13N-m for M5 and 15N-m for M6). Using a regular hex wrench may result in breaking or loosening the screws, which can damage the blade during high-speed