Page 68 - Print 21 July-August 2019

Offset
Shining a light on UV sheetfed
UV printing is on the rise for offset, with printers attracted to its instant curing that eliminates the need for hot air dryers. Jake Nelson examines what potential UV printers should consider before making the switch.
Peter Sage bringing in GEW UV with Pressology
Industry identity Peter Sage is back in the game with a new business, Pressology, promoting retrofittable UV LED technology for sheetfed presses.
The amiable Sage reckons he’s got his first sale for the innovative system, although cautions against counting chickens too early. He claims UK-based GEW is the largest manufacturer of
UV systems in the world and is set to revolutionise printing.
“It is like what occurred between standard flexographic printing and UV flexo. Once printers saw the advantage of UV they never went back, and this can also be seen particularly on narrow-web presses for label printers,” he said.
“GEW’s Rhino power supply is more efficient and robust than anything else on the market in this category, and paired with the LED output system, is much more power efficient. The reason is that LED heads don’t have to warm up and cool down like older arc lamp systems. Unlike the older systems, water-cooled LED lamp heads produce little heat.”
Each drying unit is connected through the internet to GEW. This allows the company to continually monitor the performance of the system. Sage claims it not only gives GEW
a trouble-shooting window for the printer, but delivers each customer a monthly report on the unit’s performance.
“Sheetfed printers have a lot more to gain than web printers and that includes no set off; no distortion; no powder spraying required; instant drying before perfecting; and no need to coat for protection, as the ink dries as a polymer and resists scratching and marking. Overseas reports show that printers are achieving a reduction of up to 20 per cent in wastage, while achieving a brighter job with more vivid colours. Some printers who also run digital presses are also reporting that they’re able to achieved a closer match to their digital presses, which becomes an advantage in today’s digital world.”
Sage maintains flat sheet printers are reporting a payback period of around two years, and with the ability to be able to go straight to the bindery or reprinting when finished, the GEW sheetfed unit makes a great deal of sense. Pressology has retained Australian Graphic Servicing to do the installation nationwide, and all GEW units can be retrofitted to any existing press.
Unlike with traditional oil and solvent-based inks, which must be dried through heat or left to evaporate, UV inks use
chemical processes to cure instantly under ultraviolet light provided by mercury or LED lamps. According to Mitch Mulligan, managing director of Bottcher Australia, which supplies consumables for UV printing, the market is ticking upwards.
“Conventional UV print is steady and growing in all forms of UV and LED-UV applications, both in the commercial and packaging sectors,” he says. “It seems like a logical progression for many, especially given the new low energy solutions being offered by press manufacturers.”
Mulligan estimates that in terms of print volume, the UV offset market is around five to 10 per cent.
“Globally the trend seems to
be towards the introduction of increasing numbers of presses being made and sold with new iterations of UV technologies,” he says.
Rob Mollee, sales director at Kodak’s printing systems division,
also sees UV gaining ground on traditional oil and solvent-based offset print.
“We’re seeing a growth in the implementation of UV curable inks as an alternative to solvent-based products to provide improved print quality and higher speed to a dry print,” he says. “It’s always been there for packaging, but it’s expanding
to more applications in commercial sheetfed and cold-set web. It’s primarily things like covers, colour- fast inks that don’t fade over time.”
Like all printing technologies, UV has its pros and cons. According to David Gunn, national sales manager for print at Komori supplier Print
and Pack, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. “You’d go for UV to deal with short run quick turn around jobs; to cancel out the dry time of conventional inks; and to print on metallised
paper and synthetics without the lost time for drying,” he says. “You’d go traditional ink to reduce press costs and for extremely large print runs.”
UV is particularly attractive for packaging printers, he adds. “At this stage conventional UV is the only
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