The Rock: Durst presents the synchronised digital structure printing

Watch the video-event which describes the advantages of the Gamma DG technology through a series of interviews with ceramic tile and glaze manufacturers met during Cersaie 2021

The result of more than 10 years of intense R&D work, Durst Gamma DG is an innovative technology that is set to revolutionise traditional ceramic decoration processes, being designed for digital printing of structures in perfect synchronisation with the designs.

The exclusive characteristics and business opportunities offered by Gamma DG have been confirmed by the ceramic surface manufacturers and the glaze and colour producers who have had the opportunity to try out the technology in recent months.

The week of Cersaie offered an ideal opportunity to discover the potential applications of this technology through previews of products made by Durst’s customers and partners using Gamma DG.

These include two leading Italian ceramic groups - Ceramica Del Conca Group, which showcased the new Dinamika Stone Edition collection, and Industrie Ceramiche Piemme with the new IBLA collection - that have been using Durst Gamma XD digital printers to decorate their products for more than 10 years.  

It is the combination of these two technologies that guarantees perfect synchronisation between structure and design. Once the structure has been printed, a barcode is applied to the underside of the tile while it is being transported to the decorating printer. Gamma XD then reads the barcode to load the corresponding image and prints the decoration in perfect alignment with the structure, almost as if it were a single pass.

The search for three-dimensionality is one of the most urgent needs of the international ceramic market. This trend was confirmed also by the numerous glaze and producers interviewed by Durst team at Cersaie. Among them were Colorobbia, Esmalglass-Itaca Italia, Smalticeram, Torrecid Italia, Vetriceramici e Younexa.

Watch the video The Rock

The RockJET^TM printheads are at the heart of the system

At the heart of Durst Digital Glaze technology are the proprietary Durst RockJET^TM printheads, which the company has specially developed to handle glazes with particle sizes of up to 45µm, very close to those of conventional glazes.

Each nozzle can be individually controlled to selectively apply the precise quantity of glaze needed to create the desired texture and thickness, allowing unlimited combinations of different designs to be created. Durst Gamma DG can be loaded with different types of water-based glaze (engobe, gloss, matt, coloured) at different densities, with the option of modifying the glazes on the line during printing to suit specific production requirements.

For this purpose, Durst has long been working alongside leading glaze and colour producers to develop digital glazes capable of further expanding the range of applications and effects that can be reproduced using Gamma DG.

Read the complete article in Ceramic World Review 144