Ink mixing at Pulse Roll Label Products
The developments in flexo ink technology with new product ranges introduced continue unabated. Neel Madsen spoke to the inks manufacturers about the drivers behind their research and developments, and to hear their latest company news.
Technology is a key driver which is continuing to make flexography an attractive option for converters and brand owners,’ commented Jonathan Sexton at Sun Chemical. ‘The impact of this, that quality is improving to the extent that flexo is barely discernible from other techniques, continues to offer new opportunities, as well as challenges.’
‘There is a definite move towards the use of higher specification and decorative materials throughout the industry, but particularly when it comes to high-end products,’ said Fujifilm’s James Whitehead. ‘To ensure the full impact of the final printed product and to complement these higher specification materials, high quality inks should be used as a matter of course.’
Modular system
Stehlin Hostag Ink UK is part of German company the hubergroup, which has more than 3,500 employees worldwide, and facilities not only in Germany, but also Italy and Switzerland. Its Gecko line of solventbased inks for packaging printing is well established in Europe, and it is now set to launch in the UK with two customers already signed up. This coincides with the company expanding its premises and moving into a new facility in Nottingham with a dedicated laboratory, ink dispensing and production.
David Ward, managing director, said, ‘We are very excited to bring the Gecko range to the UK. These are well tested products that have been on the market in Europe since 2004, and the flexible modular system approach ensures that we can offer tailor-made inks for each specific application. We work very closely with every customer offering colour management and control as well as helping take costs out of the process, reduce waste and improve work practices to make a real impact on the business.’
The Gecko range includes a wide range of targeted products for surface and lamination printing on films, paper and aluminium, including shrink films and tobacco packaging.
Each ink in the modular system consists of a base (NC-based concentrate), different additives and solvents, which create its application specific characteristics.
The company launched its Hydro- X range of water-based flexo inks in 2008, and these are today used by 30 customers in the UK. For UV flexo printing, it has the NewV range, which is aimed at shrink sleeves, inmould labels and other labels printed on synthetics.
Mr Ward continued, ‘The feedback we have had from the market in the UK is that the hubergroup is a global player which can give its customers a full range of products, but we go further than that and are renowned on the Continent for our excellent service and holistic philosophy. Furthermore, we have full control of our supply chain with raw materials and pigments being produced at our own production facilities, Micro Inks Ltd, in India, completely eliminating the need for buying from third parties.’
He went on to explain that there are more new developments on the way in both water-based and low migration UV inks, and concluded, ‘All three sectors are seeing a lot of R&D with new products being launched and existing ones being re-engineered.
This is a very exciting time for us.’ Array of solutions Fujifilm offers a comprehensive range of inks and associated products that are ideal for labelling, packaging and narrow web applications.
The first of these, UVivid Flexo JD, is a high gloss UV flexo ink system that incorporates a variety of colours, process inks, and specialist products.
Used especially for narrow web printers, it has been developed to give the highest performance across a wide range of UV flexo machinery, complementary press products and substrates.
It is suitable for numerous types of applications, including selfadhesive labels, sachets and pouches, unsupported films, low shrink sleeves and in-mould labels, and is available as Pantone mixing, process or metallic colours.
Fujifilm’s UVivid inks on Japanese inspired labels
UVivid Flexo JD752 Supernova White is an ultra opaque flexo printable ink that can replace rotary screen white ink, and allows fine text and opaque solids to be combined on the same plate. Among the key benefits this technology offers are fast cure response, exceptional adhesion and excellent overprinting and trapping properties. It also promises significant time and cost savings when compared to rotary screen opaque white, as well as not requiring trapping additives when overprinting rotary screen inks.
James Whitehead, product manager, said, ‘It is natural for printers to want to experiment with high value materials to achieve higher impact packaging, but it is crucial that they fully understand the performance qualities of inks that they are using to ensure optimum results are achieved.
At Fujifilm, we are aware of the many and varied requirements of the market, which is why we aim to provide our customers with practical and appropriate advice, alongside a diverse array of solutions that meet their particular demands.’
He also said, ‘One of the ongoing debates within the labelling and packaging industry is concerned with the merits of standard UV flexo and low migration flexo inks, and what we are noticing is that there is a trade-off between cost and technology. There is a definite interest in low migration inks due to their compatibility with food packaging, but their higher cost is often a deterrent for prospective customers.’
Investing heavily
Pulse Roll Label Products Ltd said that it continues to experience success with its best-selling UV flexo SG ink range. Suitable for a wide range of applications including shrink sleeve, wrap around labels, self-adhesive labels and in-mould labels, the SG ink range offers excellent adhesion to a wide range of substrates and is today a popular choice for narrow web label printers around the world.
The new ultra high strength XS series (CMYK) is a recent product offering developed by the company to meet international demands of today’shigh speed printing presses using HD plates with very fine screen aniloxes.
This ink series has been formulated with a very high level of pigmentation and offers low viscosity as well as an excellent cure response.
Looking to the future, an increased focus on factory efficiency and improvements in production flow, combined with recent heavy investment in new equipment, means that Pulse Roll Label Products also continues to work towards developing new products in response to marketdemands for lower cost consumer packaged goods and as label printers and converters margins continue to be under pricing pressure.
Gary Seward, managing director, said, ‘We continue to focus on new product development and invest heavily in advanced production technologies and R&D as we research what is needed for the future and work towards developing the next generation ink technology. Innovation is a key success factor for us at Pulse Roll Label Products and there are plenty of exciting new developments in the pipeline.’
Solar power
Driving flexo print quality to compete with gravure and offset is a process of continual development for inks, plates, aniloxes and presses. Sun Chemical’s SolarFlex Nova SL Intense Process Set promises to offer the perfect solution for the lower volume, finer screen aniloxes and plates associated with HD UV flexo printing.
Jonathan Sexton, European sales and marketing director for screen and narrow web, said, ‘Today packaging addresses so many different vertical markets, with varying needs, that it is crucial for suppliers to work more closely with customers. That is why market responsiveness is a must, as the development of our new UV flexo white inks demonstrates. SolarFlex Neutron White and SolarFlex Sleeve High Opacity White – launched at last year’s Labelexpo – achieve the high opacity whites favoured in the label market.
‘Market demand will also see us extending our offer in matt and gloss coatings, metallic effects and adhesives where our range of ink and coating solutions support expanding applications in UV and EB (electron beam) printing. As run lengths continue to decrease, UV and EB flexo and offset printing competes with gravure to deliver high quality graphics as a more cost effective solution thanks to lower cost plate options.’
He explained that EB technology is becoming increasingly relevant in an industry where concerns about food safety are rife as it offers potentially the most food safe energy curing inks, making it ideal for sensitive applications such as food and pharmaceutical packaging. He said, ‘We are seeing significant interest, not only in labels, but also sleeves and flexible packaging as well as more ‘traditional’ markets such as folding cartons and liquid packaging.
‘The food packaging safety debate is not going to go away anytime soon, especially as an industry standard for what constitutes low migration ink is not available. As the debate rages on, thankfully our technologies such as WetFlex in EB flexo printing and the SunBeam ELM range of EB offset inks in combination with high performance low migration UV and EB flexo whites, is proving a viable solution.
Expanding our offering in EB and UV products for flexible packaging printing is an important goal for us.’
Another area of growth for Sun Chemical is in UV LED in offset and flexo. The company sees this as a key area and one in which it will develop new technologies and product offerings throughout this year.
Product printed using Paragon Inks new range
Lacquer range
In January this year, Zeller+Gmelin furthered its international presence with the opening of a new office and warehousing facility in Mirkow, Poland, to service the ever increasing demand for its UV inks and coatings in the Polish market.
The UV ink and coating specialist has been expanding its Optiflex range of UV flexo lacquers with several new product introductions, which are already enjoying commercial success.
The range comprises:
The 62 10305 High Gloss Lacquer is a very high performance product with outstandingly high gloss, adhesion and resistance properties and can be used for diverse applications such as direct container printing or as a protection lacquer for digital print.
The 62 10415 Ultra Matt Lacquer is suitable for application on labels, flexible packaging and carton board and gives a very low gloss, smooth finish. The product offers higher press stability when compared with typical UV flexo matt lacquers and is suitable for subsequent processes such as thermal ribbon printing and foil blocking.
The 62 10444 Gloss Wrap Lacquer has been designed for use on wraparound sleeves, eg for PET soft drinks bottles printed on unsupported BOPP. It gives a very high gloss, high slip finish with the necessary resistance and anti-static properties for high-speed packaging lines.
The company has also released a new rotary screen ink to complement its existing UV flexo and offset printing inks for use on combination printing presses. The Optiscreen SR series has been developed using state of the art raw materials and is free of NVinyl Caprolactam, commonly known as NVC, a chemical widely used to promote adhesion in UV screen and digital inks. NVC has recently been re-classified as toxic and now falls under the criteria of the EuPIA Exclusion List according to European Printing Inks Association guidelines, meaning that member ink suppliers are obliged to remove it from all formulations by November 2014.
Two Optiscreen opaque whites (violet tinted and non-tinted) are available. Both show very high opacity, coverage and printability, and allow high image definition for both solid and fine detailed work.
These two products are also silicone free, making them suitable for subsequent overprinting or foiling. A full range of monopigmented colour bases is additionally available to enable the widest possible gamut of colours to be formulated and printed.
New in water
Flint Group has just announced the launch of a new generation of waterbased ink technology, PremoNova, for paper and board applications, which it describes as ‘a significant development providing the highest quality product performance ever seen, raising the bar for the waterbased ink industry.’
PremoNova is the next generation of the well established, high performing, Premo IQ range, further developed and optimised to fulfil the demands of customers, brand owners, and the packaging regulations of today and into the future.
The focus on regulatory compliance and low migration requirements for food packaging has become more important for the industry, and the new range of regulatory compliant products has been developed through a collaboration with raw material suppliers and print machine manufacturers to provide innovative solutions and supporting the increasing demands in the packaging industry.
Kari Raassina, product director paper and board, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said, ‘It is beyond any doubt that a change is coming to the ink industry. New regulations are constantly developing – growing demands to fulfil and deliver products in accordance to Swiss ordinance and prepared for the upcoming German ink ordinance. Furthermore, EuPIA has strict guidelines on GMP and Reach has to be complied with. All these aspects were taken into consideration in the development of PremoNova.’
He continued, ‘To prepare our water-based inks for this ever escalating level of requirements, we made sure that we understood our customers’ and brand owners’ future challenges and needs. The aim was to make a product range that fulfils any current regulatory requirements and also is safeguarded for the future.
PremoNova is developed with a strong focus to deliver these needs within the EMEA, such as enabling low migration, regulatory compliance, full traceability, sustainability and flexibility for each application.’
The new inks are manufactured by using the latest grinding technology, optimised in colour development, providing the best output and uptime in customers’ converting line, maximising productivity.
R&D at hubergroup
Ultra low
Paragon Inks said that it sees 2014 as a ‘springboard’ year for new developments within the UV ink and coatings market.
The company successfully launched its 10 ppb ULM ink and coating ranges last year. Amanda Jones, UK & international sales manager, said, ‘Following the commitment by Chesapeake Bristol to our ULM system, things have been going from strength to strength on a global scale from Europe to Australia, with new application needs and requirements coming to the table from customers every week.’
The ULM range has now also been approved by a leading pharmaceutical brand owner, to complement the existing food and beverage market markets. Ms Jones said, ‘This latest approval gives yet another new direction and portfolio page for the range and comes at an ideal time, as we have developed a system for an ‘UV ink only’ application for aluminium blister packaging, removing the need for conventional primers and over lacquers.’ This new ‘UV ink only’ system has been formulated to work across both the LM and ULM systems for flexo and letterpress applications, thereby minimising costs not only from the printing aspect, but ink stock holdings too.
The company works closely with key OEMs, co-suppliers and customers within the web printing industry to bring the market the next generation of energy curable ink and coating systems. It sees UV LED inks and coatings as the next rung in the ladder with regards to technology and the web printing market, bringing the printer and converter not only cost savings but flexibility of converting both supported and unsupported applications.
‘We are pleased to announce that our 60 ppm UV LED ink range has performed consistently well during intense testing, reaching press speeds of over 180 m/min with good ink strength, adhesion and performance,’ said Ms Jones. ‘These initial successes have paved the way for further R&D work concentrating on an UV LED ULM ink and coating range, which will compliment the existing UV ULM range.’
Capacity expanded
The Doneck Network saw a high volume of orders in the water and solvent- based flexographic and gravure printing ink sectors last year, increasing the company’s market share.
The increased attention from major European packaging manufacturers in these sectors prompted the mediumsized printing ink manufacturer to implement an extensive investment package to expand capacities and raise safety standards.
‘By expanding our production technology, we have increased the capacities in this area by a further 5,000 tonnes a year. Starting up a state of the art CO2 extinguisher system allows us to protect solvent ink production and storage in a special way so as to minimise fire risks. The Doneck Network is working on permanently improving safety standards as part of the OHSAS 18001, focusing on occupational safety.
Further investments are already in the pipeline,’ explained managing director, Arndt Breitbach.
