by Cassandra Balentine
Integrated technologies are increasingly adopted to support humidification in digital corrugated printing environments.
“In the past, humidity readings were displayed on a unit- or wall-mounted display, and operators would check them periodically. Today, facilities take a more integrated approach—collecting humidity data across the production floor, linking it to print quality and performance metrics, and using that information to maintain tighter control of the environment,” suggests Dave Schwaller, senior application engineer, DriSteem.
Smart Humidity
Advancements in humidification, including better integration opportunities, offer benefits like purposeful data, more sensors, better visibility, and automatic control.
“By integrating humidity and temperature data with production performance metrics, operators can directly correlate environmental conditions with print quality issues. This allows teams to fine-tune humidity settings based on actual results, improving consistency and minimizing waste, especially where precise moisture addition is critical to print quality and board stability,” explains Schwaller.
This approach is especially valuable when using adiabatic humidification systems, which Schwaller says are commonly selected in print facilities not only for their natural cooling effect, but also for their ability to humidify different zones independently—allowing the feeder, print deck, drying section, and stacking area to each receive the required conditions.
Facilities now place humidity and temperature sensors at key points along the production line, as well as in supply and return air ducts. Schwaller points out that this strategy of more sensors in more places helps operators capture small climate differences caused by airflow, heat from the equipment, and seasonal changes, which are important for optimizing localized adiabatic mist absorption.
It also offers better visibility into water quality and system health. Performance in high-pressure atomizing systems depends heavily on water quality. “By monitoring factors such as filtration condition, scale potential, and water purity, operators can prevent nozzle wear or clogging, maintain fine droplet quality for fast absorption, and reduce unexpected maintenance,” states Schwaller.
Additionally, modern high-pressure atomizing humidification systems modulate output gradually and precisely and can communicate with building management systems for centralized monitoring and control. “This prevents sudden humidity swings that cause issues such as print banding, paper curl, or loss of board strength,” says Schwaller.
Beyond sensors, several important challenges are related to digital printing on corrugated paper, including the challenge of maintaining the optimum level of humidity to avoid the potential for board warping and poor ink transfer/adhesion. “As corrugated paper is absorbent, the ink can soak in too deeply, resulting in the dulling of colors and prints that lack vibrance,” notes Thomas Mee III, CEO, Mee Industries Inc.
Predictive Maintenance
A key factor in maintaining a constant level of humidity in a printing environment is proper distribution of the humidification system throughout the facility.
Compressed air, electric steam, and ultrasonic humidification systems typically provide humidification control in certain parts of the room. “This causes some areas to be too dry and others to be too humid. MeeFog addresses this problem by evenly spacing humification nozzles throughout the room to deliver uniform humidity,” offers Mee.
The industry is steadily moving toward closed-loop control where the humidification system adjusts based on real conditions at the press, not just a single room average. This helps maintain more stable board moisture levels, supporting consistent color, reducing warp, and improving stacking performance. “Over time, humidification will become fully integrated with plant building and production management systems, enabling the system to anticipate changes, make proactive adjustments, and signal maintenance needs before issues occur,” predicts Schwaller.
Mee feels that the digital corrugated or hybrid print environment of the future will also take advantage of high-pressure fogging to accurately control humidity levels across the entire room. This is achieved via nozzle distribution tailored to the space and the needs of the printing equipment and through the use of the right kind of nozzles.
“Such a system has a humidity setpoint ideal for that production line and can hold closely to that setpoint regardless of bay doors being left open or other factors that might influence building humidification,” offers Mee.
Latest Advancements
Humidification systems for corrugate print environments adjust to demands.
Adiabatic humidifiers are an efficient option for digitally printed corrugated environments. “These systems use the heat already in the air to evaporate a fine mist of water. As the droplets absorb and evaporate they add humidity and produce a natural cooling effect. This can reduce the load on mechanical cooling equipment, resulting in energy savings while maintaining stable printing conditions,” shares Schwaller.
DriSteem’s Adiatec high-pressure atomizing system is designed for facilities that need different humidity levels in separate parts of the production area. Each zone—such as the print deck, feeder, or stacking area—can be controlled independently. This targeted approach helps maintain consistent print quality, avoid board warp, and support smooth stacking and handling.
The Adiatec high-pressure atomizing system works with DriSteem’s Vapor-logic controller, which continuously monitors conditions and adjusts the output so the mist is absorbed quickly and effectively. It can also connect to building and production control systems through Modbus, with optional BACnet or LonTalk integration, allowing quick adjustments and centralized supervision. The result is efficient, stable humidity control that supports consistent print quality and reduces cooling energy demand.
Schwaller says water treatment is also key to keeping humidification systems running reliably. Minerals in untreated water can lead to scale buildup, clogged nozzles, and inconsistent performance—issues that are especially problematic in digital printing areas where cleanliness and stability matter.
DriSteem offers integrated water treatment solutions, including reverse osmosis and filtration, to ensure a clean, consistent water supply. This helps protect equipment, reduce maintenance, and prevent mineral residue in the production environment, ultimately supporting both uptime and print quality.
The MeeFog system delivers filtered water at 1,000 psi via a ceiling-mounted piping network. Fog nozzles convert water into fine mist for accurate humidity control. Each MeeFog impaction-pin nozzle is made from high-grade stainless steel.
Mee says the standard nozzle features a 0.006 inch—150 micrometer—diameter orifice that produces billions of ultra-fine droplets per second. Droplet size averages around 20 micrometers, or one tenth the diameter of a single strand of human hair. This system uses one horsepower of energy for every 500 pounds of water dispersed.
“This is roughly eight percent of the energy usage of ultrasonic systems and about five percent of the energy required by compressed air systems. Thus, the nozzles use a tiny fraction of the water compared to alternative systems,” offers Mee.
Case Study
Dixie Consumer Products opened a new 6,300 square foot printing facility in Lexington, KY. The company specified that 45 percent relative humidity be maintained at all times to prevent paper distortion and assure that production targets would be met by minimizing rejects.
MeeFog ceiling-mounted nozzle lines were strategically distributed for best coverage across four plant zones. The result was precise, evenly distributed humidity, improved product quality, and better press consistency and ink transfer. Tight humidity control proved especially important during the colder and drier winter months as this helped the company to maintain board moisture and avoid distortion.
The system consisted of a MeeFog 2500 MFP rack with a pump that outputs up to five gallons per minute, supplying high-pressure fog to four zones at the facility through independent valves. An onboard variable frequency drive conserves energy by adjusting power output based on active zones, reducing operational costs. Each of the four production zones in the plant can operate independently, allowing precise humidity control tailored to specific processes.
On the Market
Carel Industries offers a range of steam as well as adiabatic humidifiers. Its adiabatic systems are designed to control humidity and cool the air simultaneously, ensuring minimum energy consumption.
Condair Inc. has a comprehensive range of products to meet printers’ needs. It offers full service expert advice, design, supply, installation, commissioning, maintenance, and spare parts. Products are available as isothermal or adiabatic systems.
DriSteem’s Adiatec high-pressure system is designed to offer both evaporative cooling and humidification for multiple zones. This allows for the customization of humidity levels in different areas, providing precise control and comfort throughout the entire space.
Finestfog produces high-pressure humidification systems as well as reverse osmosis systems.
GoFog, Inc.’s in-house experts can design, engineer, and install one of its humidification systems, which offer the highest levels of performance.
Humidifirst Inc. manufactures ultrasonic humidifiers like its patented Mist-Free series. They are ideal for humidification needs where visible mist is objectionable, such as laboratories, small hospital equipment rooms, computer rooms, office areas, and low ceiling printing rooms.
Hydrofogger has sold to commercial printers since 2005. It offers affordability, ease in installation, and an overall simple operation, which means a long lifetime of service.
MeeFog systems utilize a network of FogStat humidity sensors to ensure desired humidification levels. According to Mee, a MeeFog system designed for 1,000 pounds per hour output, running 3,500 hours per year, costs around $700 per year to operate, compared to $14,350 for compressed air atomizers and $128,800 for electric steam humidifiers. “That’s up to 180 times less energy use while delivering the same humidity output,” says Mee.
Merlin Technology Inc. offers customized humidification solutions in the print space. All Merlin humidification systems are designed to be integrated into existing climate systems as well as to be implemented as standalone solutions.
Smart Fog’s signature ES100 is touted as an efficient solution for direct space humidification, while the TS100 integrates self-evaporative technology into new constructions and existing duct systems, and the ES100M puts all the benefits of its signature ES100 on wheels.
Success with Sensors
Integrated humidification systems help print providers maintain a consistent level of humidity based on real-time data. This is essential to ensuring the environment is ideal for corrugated print in digital and hybrid operations.
Feb2026, DPS Magazine
