Durst, the world-leading manufacturer of industrial digital printing, today announces the launch of the new 13" wide Tau 330 UV ink jet digital label press. The new Durst press is the first UV ink jet digital device in the world to print on a 13” web. It will be showcased for the first time at the 2012 DRUPA trade fair in Düsseldorf, Germany (Hall 6, Booth C60), May 3-16.

The new Tau 330 features a maximum printing speed of 157 linear feet per minute, reaching an industryleading hourly production capacity of 10,222 square feet. The Durst Tau 330 will be available in a 13" and an 8" print version. “Best in class” image quality is achieved thanks to Durst’s proprietary Single Pass UV Inkjet Technology, featuring Xaar 1001 print heads with a physical print resolution of 720x360 dpi, with drop on demand, variable drop size and grayscale technology that results in an apparent image resolution of over 1,000 dpi.

The standard CMYK color configuration of the Tau 330 can be augmented with opaque WHITE UV ink, plus the process colors Orange and Violet. Unique to the Durst Tau label press, Orange and Violet are essential for precise Pantone color matching. Durst’s worldwide CEO, Dr. Richard Piock, commented: “Beside our well-recognized high opacity white ink and the additional process colors for high Pantone color coverage, the new Tau 330's print width offers expanded job size flexibility, and production capacity second to none. These will be important competitive advantages for Durst customers”.

The Tau 330’s UV inks are formulated for durability, an especially important quality for applications such as product identification labels; UL recognized components; consumer electronic equipment labels; outdoor equipment and power tool labels; and other applications where the label must perform during the whole product lifetime. Durst Tau UV inks and 3M media combinations jointly carry PGJI2 recognition, simplifying UL recognition for converters who need to maintain ink registrations with UL for many of the traditional press applications.

Also on display at DRUPA will be the Tau 330 Variable Data Print (VDP) option with “in-setter” functionality to print on pre-die-cut or pre-printed labels, allowing label-to-label variability as well as “late stage versioning” at full printing speed.