UV vs Conventional Printing

[CD102]

I've been a folding carton guy my whole life. The plant where I worked never printed with UV and we rarely printed on anything exotic such as foil or poly-faced board. Recently there was a printer in my area with an opening, but they make gift cards on PVC with UV inks and coatings. Because there are so many printers out of work who have experience with these inks and substrates, I've already been told I will not be offered a job. Why teach an old dog new tricks when you can get dogs that are already trained?

Anyway, I'd like to learn something about printing with UV inks and coatings on PVC and other plastics just out of curiosity, not that I think I'll ever get the chance to use that information on a job. If anyone can suggest some reference material, I'd appreciate it. What are the pitfalls? What are the things you have to watch out for?

Thanks!

[Cornishpastythighs]

Printing on plastic. Watch fors.
Static- Press needs a good anti static system, De-inonized air at the feeder helps as well.
Surface tension- Make sure the dyne level of the stock is withing an acceptable level, this is usually checked using a dyne pen.(poor ink adhesion will result if this is not correct)
ink/water- Plastic wont absorb water the way board or paper does so carrying the minimum(which you should always do anyway) will prevent a lot of headaches. (poor ink cure could happen if the ink is oveloaded with water not to mention all kinds of other print issues)
Press settings- UV has a much smaller operating window than conventional and with plastic its even smaller, monitor your rollers/dampening settings closer, always monitor your Conductivity and keep the fountain solution system extra clean.
Blankets- UV blankets are prone to 'embossing', dont be surprised if you are using more blankets.
Ink- Dont mix anything into UV ink that has not been sanctioned by the ink maker(extender/reducer or your ink cure can be compromised)
press side tests- pratice quality control on your sheet,( tape adhesion tests, scratch tests to ensure ink wont rub off during post press operations)
If you pratice good pressmanship running a conventional press then running UV on plastic is not so bad.
Hope this help get you started, lots of info on the web and in this site so i'm sure you'll get other information.

[CD102]

Thanks for the info!

[A BETTER WAY]

There is no need for UV to print these kind of products.

It is being done with regular offset presses.

BestChem+Supply can help.

[CD102]

Well, as someone who was applying for a job, I wasn't in a position where I could suggest that maybe they should run their work differently. Right now I'm hoping to get a job on the feeder end of the press and then I could learn UV as a course of natural progression of the job.

[Cornishpastythighs]

There is no need for UV to print these kind of products.

It is being done with regular offset presses.

BestChem+Supply can help.

Ok A BETTER WAY so now you have my interest, are you saying that I can print on plastic/Foil stock, full ink coverages/heavy solids, full loads out of the delivery at full press speed and straight into my die cutter without using UV. Please tell me more.

[A BETTER WAY]

Ok A BETTER WAY so now you have my interest, are you saying that I can print on plastic/Foil stock, full ink coverages/heavy solids, full loads out of the delivery at full press speed and straight into my die cutter without using UV. Please tell me more.

Send a purchase order and we can make it happen for you.

[J]

Send a purchase order and we can make it happen for you.

What a load of...

Could you imagine any other industry salesman making all kinds of wild claims and then saying...well, just buy it and then "I'll make it happen for you."

If you make a claim then you should be prepared to back it up. Based on that backup a prospect can make an informed decision as to whether you have a viable solution, or not.

Disgusted, J

[Cornishpastythighs]

Send a purchase order and we can make it happen for you.

A BETTER WAY. Please inform us of the materials and methods you are suggesting to eliminate the need for UV printing on my sheetfed press. If your company can truly do this and you provide me with references along with contacts and phone numbers of companies that have eliminated UV from their process using your materials and still have the same results we can talk further. Looking forward to some interesting information from you.l

[Cold]

Ok A BETTER WAY so now you have my interest, are you saying that I can print on plastic/Foil stock, full ink coverages/heavy solids, full loads out of the delivery at full press speed and straight into my die cutter without using UV. Please tell me more.

"full loads out of the delivery at full press speed and straight into my die cutter without using UV."

This is the difference between UV and conventional. Sure, I can make a conventional ink adhere to anything that UV will adhere to, but full loads straight to finishing is where I balk with oxidative inks. A Better Way has my interest as well.