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Conference Report: Print UV, Las Vegas
April 9, 2008

Print UV 2008, held last month in Las Vegas and sponsored by Air Motion Systems, lived up to its billing as the first peer-oriented conference designed to help UV printers explore new ways to implement and profit from UV printing. Read more in GAM's April issue.

Sparking Controversy?
Chris Travis, technology director for KBA North America, provoked a bit of controversy by announcing that Heidelberg, MAN Roland and KBA have agreed to spearhead an effort to develop universally applicable public standards for the certification and accreditation of UV inks, printing aids, consumables, proofing forms and other specifics for UV inks. Standards for consumables vendors would be approved through the Fogra group in Europe, Travis said, adding that the use of North American fountain solutions and solvents that are not approved could affect press warranties. 

This elicited a sharp response from some North American ink, coating and consumable suppliers in the attendance, who wondered why equipment manufacturers should determine what inks and coatings are UV-curable. “I wouldn’t presume to tell you how to build your presses,” one said. Another suggested that just as conventional inks are said to be “dry” when they meet the performance characteristics of the job, the same also could be said of UV-curable variety.

At the end of the day, however, “The creation of standards won’t resolve all the difficulties associated with printing UV,” said UV master printer Greg Ross, a manager at Fort Dearborn Co., near Chicago. “It’s best to go in with your eyes open and learn to manage the process. Take the initiative with UV. Once you demonstrate the possibilities and show your samples, 'Joe 6-color' is out of the picture.”

Posted by Mark Vruno on April 9, 2008 | Comments (0)