Sun Chemical offers brighter ideas for low energy printing at Ipex

Packaging Solutions

At Ipex 2017, Sun Chemical (stand G220C) is presenting its latest innovations in the field of low energy printing for the sheetfed commercial and packaging and the narrow web label markets.

Under the theme of ‘Brighter Ideas for Low Energy Printing’, Sun Chemical is demonstrating its commitment to innovation by showcasing for the first time in the UK its high performance, low energy (LE) UV curing offset ink set, SunCure StarLite. Expanding the capabilities of SunCure StarLite, the company is also launching a new range of inks for LED UV curing systems at the show.

Using the latest generation, low energy metal doped UV curing lamp and LED technologies, the SunCure StarLite range is designed for printing on paper, board and certain plastics as well as in non food packaging applications. While offering the ‘instantly dry and finish ready print’ benefit of standard UV curing, LE-UV systems use iron doped mercury lamps, so they don't emit the shorter, ozone mgenerating UV wavelengths that require ozone extraction.

LED-UV curing systems, although requiring higher initial capital investment, have significantly longer lamp lifetimes and, as they emit no heat onto the substrate, are ideal for the production of print on a wide range of substrates, including synthetics and low weight materials.

Specifically developed for high productivity lithographic production, the SunCure StarLite range offers excellent dot gain and trapping properties to ensure the highest print quality output and produces low odour, a benefit for press operators and production staff.

As well as standard process inks, the SunCure StarLite portfolio also includes a full range of products for added value printing on LE-UV and LED-UV curing presses. These include overprint varnishes and coatings to enhance print reproduction and increase gloss as well as improving physical and chemical resistance. Specially adapted matt and gloss drip off effect finishes and gold and silver metallic inks are also available, as well as special and Pantone SunCure Lite blend colours on demand.

Richard Kemp, business director of UKI and Nordic, commented: ‘While Sun Chemical offers a full range of inks and consumables for all aspects of printing in all application areas, for Ipex 2017 we have decided to focus on our low energy technology. With the benefits that LE-UV and LED-UV presses offer – significantly lower energy costs, an increased range of applications and a smaller footprint – it ss not surprising that there has been a relatively rapid uptake of low energy presses. However, to ensure that print service providers are able to extract the best possible print quality and return on their investment in these presses, we have developed and are showing at Ipex our SunCure Starlite range of inks, which now includes our brand new inkset for LED-UV presses.’

Visitors to the Sun Chemical stand will also be able to take away samples printed with a variety of SunCure coatings for sheetfed packaging.