Page 46 - Packaging News magazine Jul-Aug 2021

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PACK & LABEL PRINTING www.packagingnews.com.au | July-August 2021
Digital finishing on demand
We take a closer look at digital finishing for packaging, asking Stephen Pratt, MD of Kurz Australia, to weigh in on trends and technology advances.
TWENTY years ago the printing and finishing industry was much simpler than today – rigid print- ing cycles, little flexibility in production times and the requirement to adhere to mini- mum print runs so that printing is economical. This was when
Stephen Pratt, MD of Kurz Australia, joined the industry and he reflects that much has changed since then, as the rapid adoption of printing tech- nologies has changed the framework conditions.
Kurz Australia is a subsidiary of the German company Leonhard Kurz, a system provider for thin-film technology and stamping transfer solutions in general, with particular expertise in digital finishing.
Pratt believes digital finishing is the answer to some of the most important questions in the printing industry.
“Today, the focus with product packaging and labels is increasingly on flexibility, smaller and individual print runs, speed and sustainability. Manufacturers and processors must be able to react fast to trends. Anyone
who wants to deliver a strong result to their customers now and in the future under enormous cost and time pressure cannot avoid using digital printing and finishing systems,” Pratt says.
Digital finishing fulfills an emo- tional component, especially for packaging, which should not be underestimated, Pratt believes. Printed materials are usually only seen as what they are: goods. But to stand out from the competition, brand owners need to add value to the product, often by enhancing or personalising the packaging. Pratt explains that this is still a separate process that often needs to be carried out offline and, in many cases, assigned to a third party.
“Digital finishing enables our cus- tomers to do this quickly, cost-effec- tively and right from the first print sheet. Let’s take a perfume that I want to give my wife. If, for example, the packaging bears her name or our wed- ding anniversary, the product remains the same, but the value for my wife has increased significantly.”
ABOVE: Digital finishing can answer printing’s most important questions...
BELOW: ...and it can fulfil an emotional component, especially in packaging.
Kurz’s digital finishing portfolio, which it uses to apply its Digital Metal transfer metallisation, also includes the product lines and machines of Kurz subsidiary Steinemann. For example, the DM-Maxliner can be used for inline printing and finishing of sheets at appropriate production speeds to quickly and easily achieve high quality results. The digital print- ing and finishing system produces spot-coating, relief coating with haptic effect and metallisation in a single operation. The DM-Maxliner delivers high-quality finishing products on an industrial scale in a shorter time frame and sets new benchmarks in terms of flexibility, quality, and efficiency.
Asked what is meant by the haptic effect, Pratt says “With the haptic effect, we mean digital printing that can be felt. At its core, it is about applying foil and spot coat in differ- ent thicknesses in a single pass. This is what we call ‘elevated 3D’. The machine applies the spot coating and the adhesive to the surfaces to be painted or finished using two differ- ent printing stations. After curing, we only reactivate the adhesive before applying the metal effect in the right place, while also saving on consumables thanks to our innova- tive transfer film saving technology,” Pratt explains, noting that person- alised and variable data can also be incorporated into the design.
Of course, individuality is all well and good. But can this also be reflected on an industrial scale? Pratt says it can. Digital finishing can be applied flexibly and from the first sheet depending on the number of units. There are almost no upwards limits.
“The start-up times of the machines are minimal. They enable high media flexibility and fast order throughput, which in turn reduces production costs and can have a significant impact on the processor’s competitiveness.” ■