Ryobi 684 AJ
Tushar Dhote of Dhote Offset bought a Ryobi 684 AJ to improve the turnaround of jobs and feels that the machine is comparable to the best in the world
09 May 2013 | 4860 Views | By PrintWeek India
What does the machine do?
Ryobi 684 AJ is a four-colour straight offset printing machine made in Japan.
Why did you choose this particular machine?
For three good reasons: (i) compactness (ii) speed and (iii) strength.
Why did you make the purchase?
Basically we wanted to upgrade our existing machinery. Space in Mumbai is very expensive. We wanted to improve our turnaround of jobs, so as to increase the turnover in the same amount of shop floor space. Obviously, quality is also a major factor. Being in-house for over three years, we saw a lot of potential on quick turnkey, short-run jobs.
What features do you particularly like?
Our machine is fully loaded. It has a semi-auto plate changer, automatic washing devices, paper size preset, impression pressure preset and most importantly the CIP 4 interface for ink volume setting. I like Ryobi’s high precision punch the most. It has CCD cameras to get a 99 per cent perfect punched plate.
Is there anything that you dislike?
The only problem I see is there is no provision for an underlay blanket. As local paper has lot of variation in thickness and foreign bodies, we have to take real care of the blankets.
How reliable is it?
Very, very reliable.
What’s the quality like?
It is comparable to the best in the world – it can print stock from 0.04mm to 0.6 mm. The machine has double-diameter impression and transfer cylinders, which reduce the number of grippers, thereby providing a stable transfer of paper.
How easy is it to use?
Very user-friendly. My shop floor people were trained in matter of two to three days.
How much time or money has it saved?
We generally do short-run jobs. For example, we do a lot of credit appraisal reports, which are usually 400 to 500 copies and around 4 + 84 pages, all in colour. These 22 sets of four colours we finish in flat 5 to 6 hours; otherwise, a normal machine without CIP 4 and auto plate would have taken us 14 to 16 hours.
Has it won you any new work?
Certainly. We have added almost five to six new clients during the last eight months of installation. Most of them are contractual, short-run jobs. We have also upgraded our post-press to take care of faster turnaround.
Would you say that it offers value for money?
Yes. It is really worth the price to performance.
Were there any difficulties experienced during the installation or after?
None as yet. The service team is excellent.
What about the pre and after-sale service?
IEM (Indo European Machinery) has been a partner in our progress, and their after-sale service is excellent.
Who do you think the machine is right for?
This particular model is best for metros where space is a luxury and always at a premium. Those printers who have particularly shifted towards total CTP and have short-run requirements should go in for this wonderful piece of art.
Conclusion
User’s verdict
Conclusion
User’s verdict
Speed 5/5
Quality5/5
Reliability 5/5
Reliability 5/5
Value for money 5/5