The innovative Zero-slip Nip from Goss International features a proprietary new microcellular material an eliminates the need to adjust nip roller settings as part of a job or version change.
Goss International has earned the 2006 PIA/GATF InterTech Technology Award, for web press folder technology that eliminates the need to adjust nip roller settings as part of a job or version change. Called Zero–slip Nip, the web press folder technology has rollers made of a proprietary microcellular material that automatically accommodates any changes in paper thickness and ribbon count, without affecting the amount of pull that the rollers place on the paper web.
The latest award is the company’s tenth InterTech award for technologies, demonstrating the Goss commitment in innovation and sophistication of design of its products. Recently the company earned the award for Automatic Transfer technology, the Magnapak newspaper packaging system and the DigiRail digital inking system
CEO of Goss International, Bob Brown says the company’s recent award is reflective of the company’s ability to continue to be on the forefront of innovation.
“We are proud that our research and development commitment has once again been recognised through this prestigious award, he says. “Our record with the InterTech awards reflects our ability to innovate and to deliver unique competitive advantages to our customers,” says Brown.
The Zero-slip Nip technology works in conjunction with a specially designed varible-speed drive system for the folder nip roller, and is available on new Goss commercial web press folders or as a retrofit for existing folders.
Product manager for Goss Lifetime support services, Ron Bartell, says Zero-slip Nip technology reduces the makeready time and eliminates the need of a skilled operator to set the nips and evaluate the ribbon tension.
“Setting folder nips has always been a time consuming and labour intensive aspect of makeready that typically takes about ten minutes per former and relies on the skill of the operator in both setting the nips and evaluating ribbon tension,” explains Bartell. “This innovation eliminates that adjustment requirement altogether, allowing nip pressure to be set once and for all, at the time of installation, and never adjusted until a new set of rollers is installed,” he says.
The Zero-slip Nip is the result of some extensive research by Goss engineers, to maximise the advantages of newer, wide-web commercial presses, with multiple ribbons. Having been unable to find a roller material that could eliminate tension differences and slipping ribbons, Goss enlisted the help of Fry Communications to develop an entirely new material that prevented these things, and eliminated the need to adjust the rollers.
The resulting product Zero-slip Nip, eliminates the slack ribbon condition associated with the ribbon closest to the former board, and reduces start-up waste associated with the slack ribbon. The microcellular nip rollers also last up to 50 percent longer than previous rollers and enhance the overall product quality through improved ribbon control.
Goss customer company, Fry Communications, is one company already realising marked improvements in makeready times, operating speeds, product quality and start-up.
According to plant manager at the Fry Communications facility in Mechanicsburg Pennsylvania, US, Mike Weber, the time saved during makeready will provide the company a lucrative return on the investment they have made.
“What we are actually seeing to date is beyond our expectations in many ways,” he explains, “Time saved during makreadies will pay for the upgrade in less than two years, but the added benefit of increased running speeds and reduced waste will bring the ROI in even sooner,” he says.
Goss International is a global leader in web offset printing solutions, with a complete product range of newspaper and commercial press systems, as well as mailroom and postpress equipment and postpress equipment to worldwide markets.
