Automation adds speed and flexibility to screenprinting

Automating the screen-printing process broadens possibilities for glass decoration and provides flexibility. AWT World Trade, one of the leading global manufacturers of screen-printing equipment for glass, has built systems for restricted spaces in which the product had to move from one room to another during decoration and even, in some cases, taking a right-angle turn. The ink or paste often a ceramic and glass particle compound called fit-passes through the portion of the mesh not masked by the stencil and is deposited directly onto the substrate. The company has also manufactured a press and drying combination capable of printing an image as large as 7 × 14ft. The unit, which was custom-made for a major glass manufacturer, was designed to handle glass slabs weighing 700lb and more, while minimizing the manual intervention required moving them through the printing and curing process. It offers several other models in its Accu-Print High-Tech line that are suited for glass decoration.