Automatic Laminator and Trimmer

[idahodian]

Fujipla ALM 3222 Automatic Laminator and Trimmer - Does anyone have and use this Laminator? I am looking for something that has the auto features that this one has to do letter and tabloid sizes. I could not find any reviews for one on Mr. Google. I know that I have to get the proprietary laminate, but the labor saved is well worth it, when you have 100-200 sheets to laminate. If anyone has a better suggestion, please let me know.

 

[criccidisk]

We've had the ALM 3220 (its predecessor) for probably a decade or so. I'm not sure what improvements were made on the 3222, but ours has served its purpose despite its headaches. If you're looking to do 10 - 100 sheets or so here or there and you have a reliable dealer network for the laminate (this is big since they've had shortages over the last year), you'd probably be in good shape with it. I'd recommend printing some test sheets on your press and running those through a demo machine, paying close attention to:

• how it feeds (namely if it doubles and if it has any way to mitigate doubles),
• how long it can be left unattended (our 3220 has a very small feeder on it, meaning pretty frequent babysitting),
• when the side slitters are engaged: how consistent the trim position is on the sheets (ours walks quite a bit),
• how sturdy its feeder side guides are (this unfortunately pairs with the above since they wobble every time we reload paper),
• if there's a dwell mark on the lead edge of your laminated goods (the 3220 pauses when cross-cutting sheets just long enough to lead to this quality issue, especially on solid prints)
• if your printed goods delaminate.

For that last point, I should mention that that's a pretty hefty concern since you're stuck with Fujipla's laminate. Even on light-but-full coverage goods, this has lead to some wonky results after we take the goods to our guillotine or corner rounder. Run some solid CMYK patterns off your press and run them through the laminator to see if this is a concern. Usually you can tell the moment you bend the laminated sheet between your thumb if it's going to have a quality problem, but you can also draw an "X" with a knife on the sheet to see if you can grab the laminate independently of the paper.

With that being said, our 3220 has made us money, and we've successfully used it for thousands upon thousands of gloss, matte, and silk laminated sheets over its lifetime. You can't beat the convenience or footprint in its price range, and it's a breeze to set up. If you have consistent lamination work, just keep in mind you might outgrow it pretty quickly.

 

[narseman]

We've had the ALM 3220 (its predecessor) for probably a decade or so. I'm not sure what improvements were made on the 3222, but ours has served its purpose despite its headaches. If you're looking to do 10 - 100 sheets or so here or there and you have a reliable dealer network for the laminate (this is big since they've had shortages over the last year), you'd probably be in good shape with it. I'd recommend printing some test sheets on your press and running those through a demo machine, paying close attention to:

• how it feeds (namely if it doubles and if it has any way to mitigate doubles),
• how long it can be left unattended (our 3220 has a very small feeder on it, meaning pretty frequent babysitting),
• when the side slitters are engaged: how consistent the trim position is on the sheets (ours walks quite a bit),
• how sturdy its feeder side guides are (this unfortunately pairs with the above since they wobble every time we reload paper),
• if there's a dwell mark on the lead edge of your laminated goods (the 3220 pauses when cross-cutting sheets just long enough to lead to this quality issue, especially on solid prints)
• if your printed goods delaminate.

For that last point, I should mention that that's a pretty hefty concern since you're stuck with Fujipla's laminate. Even on light-but-full coverage goods, this has lead to some wonky results after we take the goods to our guillotine or corner rounder. Run some solid CMYK patterns off your press and run them through the laminator to see if this is a concern. Usually you can tell the moment you bend the laminated sheet between your thumb if it's going to have a quality problem, but you can also draw an "X" with a knife on the sheet to see if you can grab the laminate independently of the paper.

With that being said, our 3220 has made us money, and we've successfully used it for thousands upon thousands of gloss, matte, and silk laminated sheets over its lifetime. You can't beat the convenience or footprint in its price range, and it's a breeze to set up. If you have consistent lamination work, just keep in mind you might outgrow it pretty quickly.

I've got the old one too. Simple setup, simple to use, there is a feature to mitigate the "dwell mark" which I've never had to use. You have to get used to adjusting the tension on the rolls, top and bottom, so the sheets don't dive into the bin. Have had some incredible jams, mostly from multifeeds. The feed is friction with a spongy soft separator roller that sometimes lets you down and can mark the lead edge with residual toner. Had to trim the tension springs a few times as they weaken. And loading film without an existing film tail to tack onto can be tricky. Sometimes the side trimmings wrap around the shaft and are hard to reach for clearing. All that said, I put many thousands through this machine. And still going. Runs 1mil, 3mil and 5mil. Best not to engage the side trim on 5 mil, and not trim to stock edge. Leave a margin. Speed and temp is important for good results.

 

[idahodian]

Thank you for the comments. I would love to take a look at machines and run some tests. But we are a suburb of Boise Idaho and there are not many vendors for most equipment here, cheapest I have found is MyBInding.com. I have to buy online and travel to a shows to see equipment. I have been to IPMA once and came back with a 60k request for a Duplo 646, so they don't want me traveling, lol. We have issues will mail equipment constantly and are with Quadient only one vendor for them and Pritney Bowes rep won't ever respond to questions after coming in for a demo. Equipment is a constant battle, usually we are stuck.

 

[criccidisk]

I'd check with MyBinding or another supplier to see if you can mail them some press sheets to trial. Have them snap a video of them going through the setup and operation and have them mail the completed samples back to you. If a dealer isn't willing to do that, then you might be able to reach out to Martin Yale directly for samples (even if you can't purchase the machine directly from them).

 

[AP90]

I’m just going to throw this out there. I saw one on eBay one time that had a bracket on the outside so that it could run non OEM rolls and could run standard cheap laminate rolls.

i think I also talked to someone who figured out a way to put the Fujipla roll bracket on standard rolls to save money on laminate.

 

[Ynot_UK]

I've touched on this previously on other threads about laminating, the Fujiplas are essentially convenience machines with a simple operator interface but not designed for a production environment. We researched one very briefly a few years ago, before buying a Matrix 370DP with OmniFlow air suction feeder. The OEM film is hideously expensive and for anyone putting thousands and thousands of sheets through it, doing the math will show it won't take long for what you've spent on over priced film, to see you could have invested in a heavy duty automatic production laminator with the advantage of pneumatic rollers, alleviating all concern over heavy toner coverage and full bleed jobs. IMO, the Fujiplas have their place in environments such as schools & hospitals, where the unit cost isn't looked at and in hotel concierge & airport first class lounges, where they can charge five bucks or more per laminated sheet.

 

[Dmiller35]

We purchased a GraphicWhizard PT 33LSC in 2020 and have had great results with it. The need for proprietary rolls is a little bit of a downer. Honestly, our main use for it is 1-sided Laminated book covers. It keeps the sheets really flat.

 

[RonHuang]

https://www.ausjetech.com/h-col-170.html.

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Graphic Whizard PT 33LSC Laminate/Slit/Cut Designed to meet the demands of the digital short run printer the PT 33LSC not only cuts to bleed for a finished product, but also

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