31st May 2008: The Berufsgenossenschaft Druck und Papierverarbeitung presented three BG ‘Emission Tested’ certificates to the Komori Corporation at special event to mark the occasion at Drupa today.

The BG ‘Emission Tested’ Certificate is a seal of quality and is only awarded to presses whose emissions are clearly and permanently under the prescribed limits. The emissions tested under rigorous include: cleaning solvents; dampening solution additives; inks and/or; varnishes  (mist); powder; noise; ozone and UV radiation  (at UV printing).

In presenting the Certificate for the new Lithrone LSX40 launched at Drupa, plus the Lithrone SX29 and the SPICA 29P to Komori’s President and CEO, Yoshiharu Komori, BG Head of Technical Inspectorate, Albrecht Gloeckle, said: “For almost 20 years, Komori  and BG have been working together to develop safe machinery that not only produces high printing quality but also meets the relevant European safety standards. At Ipex 2006 we issued the first “Emission tested” certificate to Komori. At DRUPA 2008 we are very pleased to be issuing further certificates, and once again to a brand new press – a rare achievement.

“Today most customers want not only the highest quality print but also proof of ecologically friendly production. Reducing, and if possible preventing, emissions in the printing industry is important not only for the environment but also for operator safety. These certificates recognize that Komori puts environmental and operator considerations at the very core of press design.

Before the BG Emission Test Certificate was awarded, the Lithrones had to pass extensive measurements in Japan, in the UK and also in Denmark. In multiple tests the machines had to print on paper as well as on cardboard (carton), using standard ink, UV ink, varnish and also UV varnish. The result of these tests showed that the Lithrone presses are designed and built so that the relevant emissions are well below the internationally recognized limit values.

Mr Gloeckle highlighted two important features: “Many Komori press today are operating with low alcohol content in the dampening solution – in many cases not only completely without alcohol but also without the requirement for problematic substitutes. It is significant that all Komori presses at Drupa are running alcohol-free, so it is clear that Komori is making an essential contribution to the reduction of emission of solvents. Secondly, I would like to highlight the particularly low noise emission values of the Lithrone presses. Printing on both paper and cardboard (carton) we have measured 73 – 81 dB(A). These are considerably below our current valid noise emission values.