Solventless Lamination and UV Flexo Printing
During flexiable packaging production, the combination of UV Flexo technology and solvent lamination has been applicated for working over many years. Overcome obstacle of using UV flexo ink in food packaging will not be a tough thing. We can install a solventless laminator in line with UV flexo printing press, ink will be effectively protected by a transparent film layer, somehow like a kind of laminated off line. UV Flexo ink is trapped between two layers and simply can not migrate to any surface of food package. This is good for aiming at double advantages of both process. Low cost, high printing quality.
So far, CI Flexo or gravure printing machines is the main application for food packaging, by means of combing off-line solventless laminating machine after the reel of packaging is printed. The solventlss laminator applies to the surface of the printed substrate and then make a second layer of an alternative substracte with adding high gloss, scuff tear resistance, protection from ink contamination, plus other mechanical and functional properties to find packaging. With the features of good bonding properties, solventless lamination is the predominant packaing laminated technology, no VOCs, reduce set up waste and investment cost. 1 person operation, low energy consumption and flexibility to laminate most of the available packaging substrates.
Solventless laminator will be added at the end of the printing press for in line solventless laminating with a UV flexo printing press. The packaging web is printed, then a transparent film layer is laminated on top of the printed surface before rewinding the reel. Additional film layer will act as a protection layer, trapping ink side into 2 layers as printed web and laminated web. Ink will not contact with the inside web while rewinding. Hence no set off ink migration is possible to reach. Ink will not contact with any food as it is trapped in the food of the 2 layers.
To aim at converting process profitable, printing press plant should produce highly automatically digital operations both on printing and laminating processes to allow the waste saving, fast set up time with less skilled operator. But still now, only NUOVA GIDUE has such system.
Eidt by Vikas
Print Series Team
6 March, 2012
