Challenge Titan Paper Cutter Series

Titan Programmable Paper Cutters

The Titan Paper Cutter Series continues the Challenge tradition of innovation, delivering large cutters features and sophisticated yet easy to use controls in convenient smaller format sizes. Models are available in 20 inches / 50.8 cm, 23 inches / 58.4 cm, and 26-1/2 inches / 67.3 cm cutting widths.

The Titan’s solid cast iron and steel construction provides years of quality cutting. The solid one inch thick metal tables provide a strong work surface necessary in a production environment.

The fully programmable Titans are accurate to within +/- 0.002 inch (0.05mm). For manual adjustments, the line-light indicator projects onto the stock to quickly allow for visual alignment. A low-pressure foot pedal clamping system provides safe control of the clamp where pre-cut clamping is needed, such as holding slick stock in place of verifying cut position.

Barcode Reader

Titan cutters with the TC control system can add an optional barcode reader to run multiple production lots quickly and efficiently. Once the job arrives at the cutter, simply scan the barcode printed on the job ticket or in the bleed area and the cutting program will instantly load into the machine. The barcode contains all cutting commands, or it can refer to pre-programmed job name already stored in memory.

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Titan 200 – 20″ Cutter

Challenge Titan 200 TC

This budget conscious 20 inch manual backgauge paper cutter meets the toughest safety standards in the industry today. When it comes to choosing your next paper cutter, this one is easy…step up to a Titan 200!

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Titan 230 TC – 23″ cutter

Challenge Titan 230 TC

Today’s print market places great demands on your business. Investments in cutting-edge wide format, inkjet, and digital print engines ensure you meet your customer’s diverse needs. Finish your upgrades with a Challenge Titan 230.

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Titan 265 TC – 26″ Cutter

Titan 265 TC 26" Cutter

The Titan 265 is based on a solid cast iron and steel construction for maximum durability. Featuring a powerful hydraulic clamping and cutting that yields up to 26 cuts per minute!

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The Titan Series are safe, productive, and durable machines that fit almost any budget.  Stop wasting valuable production time using that old cutter. Step up to a Titan Series cutter today! 

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Titan Series Paper Cutters

Titan Series Paper Cutters – Large Cutter Features in Small Format Sizes

Titan Series Paper Cutters

Delivering large-cutter features in convenient, small-format sizes!

From the budget conscious 20″ manual backgauge model to the programmable versions of the Titan Series, these hydraulic powered cutters offer large guillotine features in a compact footprint.

Featuring cast-iron and steel construction, quality American manufacturing, and many low-maintenance features, the Titan Series provides years of trouble-free operation. These are safe, productive and durable machines that fit almost any budget. 

The Titan Series Paper Cutters continue the Challenge tradition of innovation, delivering large cutter features and sophisticated yet easy to use controls. Models are available in 20″, 23″ and 26.5″ cutting widths.

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Titan 200 – 20″ Paper Cutter

Challenge Titan 200 TC

The Titan 200 is based on a solid cast iron and steel construction for maximum durability. Featuring light-safety curtains, enclosed rear table, two-hand cut buttons, and knife safety latch. Fully hydraulic cutting and clamping.

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Titan 230 TC

Titan 230 Paper Cutter

The Titan 230 TC features a solid cast iron and steel construction for maximum durability. Category 4 light safety curtains, enclosed rear table, two-hand timed non-repeat cut buttons, and a knife safety latch.

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Titan 265 TC

Titan 265 TC Paper Cutter

The Titan 265 features a solid cast iron and steel construction for maximum durability. Industry – exclusive UHMW gib surfaces, composite bushings, and a one-inch thick solid metal table require virtually zero maintenance for years of trouble-free operation.

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Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Horizon CRF-362 Creaser Folder

Creasing and folding productivity through intelligent automation

Standard Horizon’s creasers and folders are specially designed to handle the unique requirements of digital print. With digital print friendly processing, quick set-up and changeover for shorter production runs, Horizon’s fully automated creasers and folders save setup time with minimal make-ready. 

In a world where offset and digital operate side-by-side, Horizon delivers solutions flexible enough to finish both.

Check out Horizon’s latest in creasing and folding below!

CRF-362 Creaser / Folder

Creasing and folding - Horizon CRF-362 Creaser Folder

The Horizon CRF-362 Creaser / Folder has been designed to handle the unique requirements of creasing and folding digital color output across a wide range of light and heavy weight stocks, coated or uncoated.

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CRA-36 AutoCreaser

Creasing and folding - Horizon CRA-36 AutoCreaser

Multiple functions are built into a compact system. The Standard Horizon CRA-36 enables creasing, perforation, slitting and gutter/edge trimming all in one pass!

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AF-406F Small Format Folder

Creasing and folding - Horizon AF-406F Small Format Paper Folder

The Standard Horizon AF-406F is a versatile and flexible folding machine that performs diverse folding operations and adds a new dimension to the pharmaceutical folder with short make-ready and intuitive operation.

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Take creasing and folding to the next level with Horizon’s Automated Creasers & Folders! Deliver the highest quality finished applications with greater efficiency than ever before.

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Creasing & Folding In One Pass

Creasing & folding in one pass

Avoid cracking of digitally-printed stocks with the Horizon CRF-362

The Horizon CRF-362 Creaser / Folder has been designed to handle the unique requirements of creasing and folding digital color across a wide range of light and heavy-weight stocks, coated or uncoated.

Capable of up to 10-crease lines on a sheet, the CRF-362 uses an impact scoring technology that eliminates or minimizes cracking of the stock on printed image.

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Quality Creasing

Suitable for creasing covers, restaurant menus, shop cards, invitation cards and laminated sheets. The impact creaser avoids cracking on digitally-printed applications.

High quality creasing helps to prepare high quality perfect bound book covers. Spine, hinge and flap creases can be properly produced by selecting up or down creasing.

Up to 10 creasing lines can be performed in one pass. Creasing depth can be adjusted. Up and down creasing are performed in one pass. Creasing positions can be adjusted in increments of 0.1 mm / 0.004 inch.

High Quality Folding

Two fold knives are equipped for high quality folding, even on heavy stocks. Six different folding patterns can be set up simply by using the icon based touch screen.

Set-up and changeovers, including fold pattern, creasing number, and up/down crease selection, can be easily achieved through the high resolution color touch screen designed for simple and intuitive operation.

Touch Screen Panel

Up to 200 jobs can be stored in memory for easy recall. The system can handle paper weights up to 400 gsm for creasing without folding (350 gsm with folding) and sheet sizes up to 14.33″ x 34″. Enjoy speeds up to 5000 sheets per hour with one crease and one fold.

Horizon CRF-362 Creaser / Folder – Creasing & Folding In One Pass

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Horizon CRF-362 Creaser Folder

Specialty Folding – CRF-362

Are you ready for the next generation in creasing and folding?

The Standard Horizon CRF-362 Creaser / Folder has been designed to handle the unique requirements of creasing and folding of digital color output across a wide range of light and heavy-weight stocks, coated or uncoated.

Specialty Folding - CRF-362 Creaser Folder

Crease and folding can be done in one pass for easy and accurate processing of a variety of applications such as restaurant menus, greeting cards, book covers, and marketing collateral.

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CRF-362 Benefits Include:

Pre-Confirgured Patterns

The CRF-362 comes configured with 7 selectable fold patterns and 6 selectable cover creasing patterns for perfect binding including spine, hinge, and flap creasing.

Eliminate Image Cracking

Capable of up to 10 crease lines on a sheet, the system uses an impact scoring technology that eliminates or minimizes cracking of the stock or printed image.

Add-in Perforation

The CRF-362 can also easily handle perforations with the optional PRF-36 Perforation Unit

Easy Setup & Changeover

Set-up and changeovers – including fold pattern, creasing number, and up/down crease selection – can be easily achieved through the high resolution color touchscreen designed for simple and intuitive operation.

Broad Paper Range

The system can handle paper weights up to 400 gsm for creasing without folding (350 gsm with folding) and sheet sizes up to 14.33” x 34”.

For more information on Standard Horizon’s CRF-362 from Standard Horizon, please contact us at 810.238.7370 or click here!

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Six Solutions, One Binder

Fastback binding strips are the highest quality, on-demand binding products on the market! Fastback strips come in various styles, textures, thicknesses, and colors – so you and your customers never have to compromise.

Create strip bound, image bound, softback, easyback, hardback, and custom hardback books / documents with the Fastback 20 in less than 15 seconds! Watch the video below!

Fastback Strip Bound – How to bind a document in 15 seconds!

Fastback Model 20

Create super strong, impressive books in 15 seconds or less, with the Fastback Model 20.

The Fastback Model 20 is the perfect binding machine for copy shops, financial institutions, government agencies, or educational environments. It will produce excellent results at a very low cost, whether it’s binding presentations, yearbooks, or important documents.

This machine is not just for the office, it is a real workhorse and can be used 24 hours per day!

View the Fastback 20 >>

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

How to bind a document in 15 seconds with Fastback!

Create super strong, impressive books and documents in 15 seconds or less with the Fastback Model 20. That’s 3.5 times faster than punch and bind systems.

Bind thin to thick documents from 10 – 700 page documents (or up to 350 sheets) with minimal, space-saving supply inventory. Supports lengths up to 12″, including letter and A4 paper sizes.

The Fastback binding is strong, durable and attractive. Pages in a Fastback document can withstand more than 50 pounds of pull. The tough thermoplastic adhesive will not become brittle with age, so it’s perfect for archival storage.

Your first book is good, there is zero waste and zero spoilage! See how fast and easy binding can be with the Fastback 20 by watching the short video below…

With Fastback binders you can create perfectback books indistinguishable from high-quality production perfectback. Fore more information, please contact us at 810.238.7370 or click the button below for more information.

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Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

OKI C9DP Series - Digital Envelope Printers

Professional digital printing at your fingertips with OKI Digital Print Solutions!

With the OKI C942dn and C931e, premium print jobs that required expensive printing equipment or outsourcing are now available affordably and on-demand. Digital printing delivers rich, saturated, press-like color – without the mess. With no setup costs and fast turnaround times, users can broaden services, expand short-run offerings and deliver high quality printing on demand. Whether printing-for-profit or looking to reduce costs and bring your specialty printing in-house, the OKI C9 series is the solution.

OKI C9 digital printers can be used as a standalone production station, and
also complements existing production equipment by offering extended
printing capabilities. The C942dn and C931e have a compact footprint, vast
capabilities, and are remarkably easy to use and maintain. With four- and
five-color printing options available, users can unlock creative potential and produce a wide range of breathtaking output including invitations, stationery, brochures, packaging prototypes, point-of-sale material, window graphics, banners, labels and more!

Unlock new markets & grow your business with digital printing

What’s the best choice for you? That all depends on priorities and budget. Because one size doesn’t fit all, OKI offers solutions for every need.

Each environment has different needs. Some want full color, plus white to begin creating innovative and exciting print applications, and others want four color printing to reduce their overall cost per print, and offset jobs that normally require a larger press to complete. OKI is the ideal color print device for creative, opportunity-seeking print shops, design firms, and even large retailers: a fast, flexible, cost effective, easy-to-use printer that lets you do more in house than ever before.

Download C9DP Series Brochure >>

Production-level print shop in a box

C942dn LED Digital Color Printer
OKI C942dn

The OKI C942dn lets you do something very unique – broaden your printed offering with White toner. OKI’s most revolutionary five-color print system delivers the ultimate high-impact output by intelligently and accurately applying White toner under CMYK to produce brilliant color printed on dark media. This is a truly ground-breaking device for creative graphic artists and print shops that want to stand out.

Generate additional sources of revenue with the ability to print white and create breathtakingly unique printed output – everything from business cards to colored wedding invitations now become possible!

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Big time color output for a smaller price

OKI C931e Digital Envelope Printer
OKI C931e

The OKI C931e is the perfect solution when CMYK is all you need. Designed for printing on white and light colored substrates, the C931e delivers the same high quality output and media flexibility – but at an incredible value and low total cost of ownership.

With the ability to print Super-B (13″ x 19″) sheets and banners up to 52″ long, the C931e nicely complements existing production equipment by offering extended printing capabilities and lowest toner cost per square inch.

Learn More >>

Mid-State Litho, Inc. (MSL)
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
Ph: 810.238.7370
 www.midstatelitho.net

Printing United 2019 – Competition & Partnership

The major industry expo, Print United 2019, took place October 23 – 25 in Dallas, Texas. This was a special sort of year for the whole industry. Leading up to this show there were all kinds of questions about the future of our industry’s trade shows. Sadly, we’ve gotten used to some of that. This year has reset things for a lot of people. Despite trying political times and a degree of uncertainty in the market, things are great. The market continues to beat expectations and shows like Print United demonstrate a fresh vibrancy that’s boosting spirits. This year, the aisles were packed and next year’s show is slated to be nearly double the square footage!

Over the past 20 years or so, as the internet has matured, we’ve seen it replace a lot of the function that trade shows used to complete. Learning about products and hyper-specific discussions happen 24 hours a day online. However, there’s still a magic to a trade show, seeing is believing, and for people making large investments we can understand the value in comparing products directly.

The Print United show in Dallas came off the heels of a poorly attended show in Chicago. These two shows were only two weeks apart, causing exhibitors to make a difficult choice of either splitting their investment or hedging their bets with one show or the other.  This scheduling was no accident and may represent a major blow to the future of the Chicago print show. On the flipside this expo upset is bringing much of the traditional print finishing market into the fold of the sign and graphics world with Print United.

This battle-of-the-shows strikes up a lot of feelings for everyone in the mix. On one hand it’s tragic; yet we can also see a bright side of reunification that was bound to happen in one way or another. There’s always competition in business but if we stop and think about it we’re all supporting each other more than we realize. The shop just like yours, is in some ways different, catering to a similar but different set of needs. It’s easy see it as competition but in many ways it’s a functional partnership. What I mean is that competition drives us to be better and we all should find success in that.  There’s room for all of us and direct competition pushes competing businesses into distinct specializations. It makes us better.

In negotiating, it’s natural to fight for as much as one can get. Both parties push for what they think is best for them. Ideally both parties come out of an agreement with a partial win. In a tug-of-war on the boundary of a deal, mutual benefit arises by keeping both parties honest and honorable. Of course not every deal goes smooth and even when things go south we are destined to take our lumps. There’s a net effect out of eating crow: it stinks! We learn from those experiences and stop making those mistakes. The next deal is smoother and the mistake isn’t repeated.

Everything even down to the deal you make, is about being a good partner. Your competition only makes you stronger. Your clients drive you to be your best. And we all seek success that brings us to game day.

Steven Barrett
MSL Account Executive

Mid-State Litho
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48570
PH: 810.238.7370
www.midstatelitho.net

Are you a good equipment shopper?

  • Left to Right (Circa 2009):
    Yasuo Taketsugu (Horizon), Doug Barrett (MSL), & Eijiro Hori (Horizon)
  • Left to Right ( November 2019): Steven Barrett (MSL), Doug Barrett (MSL), Eijiro Hori (Horizon), & Mark Culley (MSL)

What is your normal approach when you are considering new equipment? Do you spend a couple weeks on the web researching the machine you are interested in? Or do you know what you want when you see it? You may contact your local sales rep and start asking the questions that matter the most to you and maybe you might set up a demonstration. Some might order it sight-unseen. I think most of our customers rely strongly on their dealers to help guide them in the R&D phase and we take that seriously. When you place your trust in us we want to make sure we do everything we can to help you make the most informed decisions you can.

I was compelled to write this because I, along with Mark Culley, and my son Steven Barrett, have all just returned from Kyoto, Japan where the first ever Think Smart Factory Show was held. Not only did we attend the show but we also toured the Horizon Factory, the Fujifilm Ink Jet Assembly Plant, and also the Konica Minolta Research and Development Campus, where we had an in depth demo of the KM-1.

  • MSL Smart Factory 2019
  • Doug & Mark
  • Jack, Doug, Kihm, & Steve
  • Konica Minolta KM-1

Why would we bare the expense and time to attend something like this? There is only one reason and that reason is knowledge. Knowledge makes us better sales reps and adds to our pulse on the industry that we bring to you as your local equipment distributor. MSL has always spent a great deal of time and money to keep our technicians and all of our sales representatives trained and up to speed with what our industry is doing.

 We spend as much money on training our sales people as we do our service techs. We attend every trade show in the US from start to finish. We attend Drupa in Dusseldorf, Germany every 4 years, DScoop, and any other events that we feel will add to our understanding of this industry. We also belong to 3 different peer groups that are also important sources of information – The American Dealer Group, BindRite Dealers Association, and Detroit Printing House Craftsmen. 

The American Dealer Group is where we get to rub elbows with about 25 other dealers from all over North America.  These are all dealers very similar to our organization.  We meet twice a year and discuss everything from service and sales compensation to what products work and which ones don’t. This is a great resource because we review real feedback from actual in-the-field experiences through multiple dealers.

 I am trying to drive home the fact that we are always shopping our product line. We not only make sure that the products work by getting feedback from other dealers, we are also attending shows worldwide to make sure what we are selling is also relevant to the industry and our customers. We have walked away from products that weren’t to our performance or quality standards or if there are issues with the vendor or support. Not having the proper product and support from any given vendor is a recipe for disaster. We have had complicated installations but we learn from them and we work tirelessly to eliminate the potential future problems. As a result, we strive to ensure that every installation is smooth and productive for the customer, in the least amount of time.

It is our responsibility to make sure products we represent work as the manufacturer intended. We spend a great deal of time and money making sure we understand our industry and where it is headed. Take comfort when working with us on equipment that we really do have your best interest at heart and in mind. We have hand-picked the equipment we sell, we know what works, and we only place it where it will make you, our customers, profitable.

Doug Barrett
MSL Account Executive

Next Stop…Dusseldorf 2020

See you in Dusseldorf in the spring of next year. Visit Drupa with us, it is the most important Graphics show in the world. This is where you see the future of our industry, and I have to admit the food and beer are also worth the trip!

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
Ph: 810.238.7370
www.midstatelitho.net