All good things come in three (1)
17-09-26 - All good things come in three: Flint Group presents its unique product portfolio with three outstanding print samples at Labelexpo Europe 2017
- Labelexpo print samples produced by Flint Group with its unmatched product portfolio and printed at the Global Innovation Centre for Narrow Web at Flint Group in Trelleborg, Sweden.
- In cooperation with Marvaco and St-Luc the print samples illustrate the interplay of Flint Group’s imagers, printing plates, sleeves and printing inks.
- The triple consists of a flexible packaging, pressure sensitive high quality label and shrink sleeve sample.
Stuttgart, Germany, 26 September 2017 – Flint Group is pleased to present the latest print samples, ‘Labelexpo’, demonstrating several ground-breaking technologies to its customers. The samples are the result of the technical cooperation and successful partnership between Flint Group, and its customers Marvaco (Sweden) for design and prepress work and St-Luc labels & packaging (Belgium) for the final printing of the Shrink Sleeve.
The three samples - flexible packaging, PS high quality label and shrink sleeve - represent Flint Group’s unmatched product portfolio and expertise in the printing value chain that allows for innovative and excellent solutions based on our customers’ and their customers’ needs and ensures maximised productivity.
The flexible packaging sample was printed using our latest innovations in Low Migration - with a special focus on the award winning and ground-breaking UV LED low migration technology, EkoCure™ ANCORA, and we printed the pressure sensitive label with our global flagship in conventional UV Flexo - Flexocure® FORCE - at the Global Innovation Centre for Narrow Web at Flint Group in Trelleborg, Sweden.
In detail:
- Flexible packaging: EkoCure® ANCORA - a low migration UV LED flexo ink suitable for the most stringent food label and packaging applications.
- PS high quality label: Flexocure® FORCE - the powerful UV Flexo ink with excellent rheology, high colour strength and superb print and press performance.
- Shrink sleeve: Printed with Flexocure® ANCORA 50 - the versatile low migration UV flexo range of inks for food label and certain packaging applications, using special opaque white ink YFA90101 with low COF, very high opacity and excellent over-printability.
The nyloflex® Thermal plates were the plates of choice for the project due to their outstanding performance in combination with new technologies. The thermal plates offer extraordinary detail with processing times of 15 minutes or less. The first of these plates - nyloflex® XPH and
nyloflex® XPM Digital Printing Plates - offer superior quality. Specially developed to print on paper at high line screens of 200+ lpi, nyloflex® Thermal Plates are capable of printing the finest highlight dots up to 50% smaller in size than the minimum printed dot of the market leading thermal plate. The nyloflex® XVH and nyloflex® XFH - announced at Labelexpo Europe 2017 - are completing the Thermal plate portfolio. Both flat top plates are suitable for a variety of substrates and will be commercially available during the first half of 2018.
The nyloflex® Thermal printing plates have been imaged with the ThermoFlexX® 80-D, a dual-head digital flexo plate imager, offering unique plate handling, splendid quality and impressive productivity. The ThermoFlexX® 80-D provides the ability to output at resolutions of up to 5,080 dpi, allowing the finest detailed work to be produced. The imager is packed with features that enhance productivity and quality while making it easy to operate. For example, the ability to mix resolutions on one plate or to use partial plates and to handle a wide range of hybrid and surface screening technologies, makes the imager extremely flexible and cost effective. The latter has also been enhanced by the use of Flint Group’s nyloflex® plates, which offer a highly competitive option.
The job was printed on a five colour Nilpeter MO-4 combined with FA-4 modules. The press is designed to support new developments and ink tests aimed for the demanding printers in the Narrow Web market. The press is equipped with five printing stations; platforms that can be changed into various print methods, including flexo, screen and offset. With multiple drying systems, Flint Group is able to handle all ink chemistries including water-based and solvent-based that are hot air or IR drying, as well as UV mercury lamps and the latest UV LED lamps.
Furthermore, the just recently launched rotec® Smart Premium sleeve, optimised with easy-mount technology to increase both the ease and speed of mounting was used. The intermediate layer of the sleeve uses the latest advanced polyurethane materials to allow for a weight reduction of up to 15% and easier sleeve handling. The rotec® Smart Premium sleeve has an additional barrier layer which delivers superior dimensional stability. The outer layer of the sleeve uses the same well-known and high-quality polyurethane that has proven its worth in other rotec® products, which boast excellent scratch and solvent resistance to create a long-lasting, value-added product.
With regards to the shrink sleeve, the final printed product was produced in close collaboration with St-Luc labels & packaging. St-Luc is an innovative company with which Flint Group has been in close co-operation for several years. The company is at the forefront of new innovations in labels, flexible packaging and shrink sleeves. The Shrink Sleeve print is a great example of what collaboration and partnership really can bring to the market.
Flint Group is exhibiting a wide range of innovative solutions for labels and packaging at Labelexpo Europe (25 to 28 September in Brussels). Combining industry strengths, the group’s divisions (Flexographic Products, Packaging & Narrow Web, Digital Solutions (Xeikon and ThermoFlexX®)) are showcasing solutions that will enable label printers and converters to be better positioned to address emerging market realities.
For a print sample please get in touch with labelexpo@flintgrp.com.