Substrate from Avery Dennison used for UV inkjet printed bottle labels
Digital label printing processes have different requirements to those of conventional printing. Neel Madsen looks at substrates.
Avery Dennison has developed different dedicated portfolios for each digital print category. ‘This is to ensure the right print quality and to deliver the full benefits of each technology, with the most suitable services for different applications,’ explained Kunhao Wang, who is the company’s business development manager for digital products. She continued, ‘The HP Indigo product range has a strong foothold in our digital portfolio. However, inkjet is catching up very quickly, and we are reaching a tipping point where inkjet will be the dominant technology.’
The company’s introductions consist of two key portfolios: the UV inkjet range and the water-based inkjet range. Avery Dennison TC7007 top-coated films are described as an excellent choice for UV inkjet printing, with priming recommended for papers to achieve best results. A key product is DIG UV Inkjet MC80 FSC. Various adhesive/liner combinations are available, and can be created via the Mix & Match service.
New Delhi-based Cosmo Films offers products for many different applications in the digital space. For labelling, it has the HPI DP label film, suitable for digitally printed labels on HP Indigo presses. These label films are specially coated for HP Indigo ink reception on the gloss side and have modified matte surface for excellent adhesive anchorage.
The Folex Group has developed a family of label products for digital printing for inkjet, including high-speed Memjet and colour laser technology. The different materials have a special coating to ensure good runnability, adhesion and drying/fixing to the required substrate. Inkjet materials include white face film with permanent and removable adhesives in glossy, nanoporous PP, a matt microporous PP and a Tac PP ‘no glue’ version. Colour laser materials are based on a permanent adhesive with a heat-stabilised PET face film in clear transparent, translucent matt, glossy and matt white as well as silver and gold metallic-look finishes.
UK manufacturer Innovia Films has developed label and packaging films specifically for digital printing. Its original developments were label films for HP Indigo presses: Rayoface CDi and WDi, pre-optimised media for HP Indigo, have been on the market for nearly 15 years. This portfolio was then extended to include a range of technical packaging films.
One of the latest areas of focus is to ensure it has a range of label films that meet the requirements of UV inkjet. ‘Our PA range of coated films, which can be clear or white and one or two side coated, give excellent ink adhesion. And if an end user or brand owner demands a food contact compliant film, then our FA range fits the bill perfectly, with EU and FDA food contact compliance,’ said Patricia Potts, global communications manager.
In-mould labelling (IML) is another area where there have been new introductions. RayoForm ICDi and IWDi are pre-optimised for printing on HP Indigo and Xeikon presses and specifically formulated with anti-static properties to allow them run in IML applications.
Mitsubishi HiTec Paper have introduced a range of products to meet the increasing demand of hand-held thermal printing devices. These include Thermoscript L 6551 and LF 6067 and heat stable thermal paper Thermoscript LF 7056, which is suitable for microwave labels, and Thermoscript I 70 for short run labels, certified and approved by HP Indigo. The Jetscript range of glossy and semi-glossy inkjet papers for high speed label presses includes Jetscript MH 7084, a lightweight matt coated premium inkjet paper that has been developed as a face paper for demanding self-adhesive labels and is especially suited for labelling of small diameter products
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