Matthews Provides Extensive History In the Marking Industry

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, March 30, 2001, -- In 1850 John D. Matthews came to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from Sheffield, England. When he opened shop in this steel-producing town, the first products he produced were for metal marking. We have expanded his legacy to form the broadest product range of products available for identifying metals.

A competitive philosophy of surpassing the newest advancements in marking technology, while continuing to produce our tried and true products, has earned Matthews' recognition in the marketplace as a manufacturer of high-quality products for marking and identification purposes. Take a quick look at the tradition that has continued since 1850. Since the turn of the century, a focus of continued growth has made Matthews a leading manufacturer and distributor of all major marking technologies including:

• Ink-Jet Printing (Impulse, Continuous and Drop-on-Demand™)
• Airgrit® Etching
• Indenting Equipment (ProPoint™, programmable indent marking systems, hand stamps, steel type and dies, roll marking systems and impact presses)
• Laser Markers (Over 6 CO2 and YAG models to choose from ranging in price and capability)
• Contact Printing (Offset printers, direct printers, inspection marking systems and reciprocating coders)

Indent Marking for Just About any Type of Metal Product
Hand stamps are the simplest indenting tools that we offer. Characters are formed by the impact force of a hammer striking an engraved steel die. Hand indenting is useful for portable marking, applications with low production runs or when the shape of a part does not lend itself to an automated marking system.

For inserting into stamping, rolling, embossing or forming fixtures, Matthews steel type and dies can be furnished for marking on flat, curved, concave or convex surfaces. Regardless of shape, size or character style, we can design and manufacture the type or die exactly as required.

With an indenting force ranging from 1/2 ton to 10 tons, six models of Impact presses are available for manual or pneumatic operation. This technology is useful in situations with long production runs, precise mark registration and controlled marking.

Roll marking is ideal for applications where larger characters, longer legends and greater marking force are required and cannot be marked with impact indenting. With different holding options available, roll marking systems can mark both flat and round metal parts.

Computer-controlled ProPoint indenting systems permanently mark batch codes, part numbers, serial numbers, logos, time and date codes and other variable information on hard metal surfaces up to 50 Rockwell C. The units operate by firing a single, carbide-tipped stylus to form legible dot matrix characters. The unit can be mounted in-line or can be equipped with a marking stand for stand-alone operation. With an RS-232 interface, up to 20 units can be networked together.

Airgrit® Dry Etching for Hard Metal Surfaces
For metals with hard, anodized or highly polished surfaces, such as bathroom fixtures and hand tools, Airgrit etching systems produce a high-quality, frosted impression. Fine abrasive grit is blown through a stencil-like rubber mask resulting in a permanent mark on flat or round surfaces.

Printing Variable Information with Ink-Jet Printing
In addition to marking galvanized steel, ink-jet printing is also used to mark metal parts. This can be accomplished in a variety of manners. Jet-A-Mark® Drop-On-Demand systems print character sizes from 3/16" to 5" using fast-dry inks. For small character coding, you can select between the IP9000 for coding one line of information at speeds up to 300 fpm or our Continuous Ink-Jet Printers that offer multi-line coding at speeds up to 1400 fpm.

Industrial Offset Printing On Steel Coils and Pipe
Using special inks for metal marking, Print-A-Mark™ Offset Printers can mark coils of steel and aluminum, as well as metal pipe with high-quality text and logos. Capable of print speeds up to 800 fpm, the units offer simple, yet reliable operation.

DryDot™ Inspection Marking System
Color coding or inspection marking of metal parts is easily accomplished with the DryDot. A unique reciprocating printer, the DryDot heats non-toxic, solid ink to form a colorful dot that can be applied to metal products.

Contact Coder
Marking metal parts with batch and date codes and other product information is easy with the Contact Coder. Used for intermittent printing, the Contact Coder can be mounted in-line or supplied as a stand-alone marking station.

For additional information or free copy contact: Matthews International Corporation, Marking Products Division, 6515 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 USA Web: www.matthewsmarking.com