Executive Outlook Flexo Market News

Mario Mucciacciaro
Executive Vice President

The world in which we live is rapidly changing. Flex­ible packaging has been brought to a whole new level through globalization. Uteco has listened to what marketers and end­ users are asking—and de­manding—from the flexible packaging industry. Some of these demands include eco friendliness, re­duction of carbon footprint and reduction of energy consumption, recyclable material, increased safety in food packaging and manufacturing plants and lastly, efficiency for short print runs. Uteco has and will continue to meet consumers’ demands and expecta­tions by offering them products that will optimize their growth in this industry. Our focus this year is on promoting the EB flexo press, which is a more Eco Friendly printing process. Uteco will also continue to work toward increased productivity, decreased run­ning costs and presenting innovative technology op­portunity that will enhance the future of printing. Flexo EB has a multitude of advantages over tradi­tional flexo solvent inks. Advantages such as :

• Excellent resistance to abrasion, aging, chemical agents, humidity and light,
• No element will migrate through the substrate and/or by contact setoff, and
• Flexo EB will not alter the characteristics of the food packed, gives no smells in cured inks and does not release volatile organic compounds or other aeri­al pollutants, thus presenting itself as eco-­friendly.

It has been forecasted the installation base will grow larger, due to the pressure of environmental constraints for pollution and energy reduction.
Therefore, Uteco’s Flexo EB press is the right move for environmentally aware consumers.
Another area consumers should be aware of is our continuous commitment building presses to increase productivity and decreasing waste. A growing demand has been placed on companies to produce a more diverse packaging with high quality standards. We can make this possible with our Kiss & Go and SmartMatch printing presses.

Automatic Impression Setup

The Kiss & Go performs automac impression setting at the startup of every new job. It works by directly reading the printed color on the substrate. This allows the end user to use any type of printing sleeve and anilox sleeve, and without the need of printed marks, which can considerably reduce material wastes. The sophisticated software of the Kiss & Go then scans the print of all the colors and sends the collected data to calculate the optimal printed dot.

Automatic Color Matching

At the start of every new job, it’s necessary to find the correspondence between the reference color and the printed color, within given tolerances. In order to cut cost me and generate less waste, we have come up with a more ideal and faster solution. The SmartMatch, is an automatic coloring matching systems that will reduce the me for onpress color correction and at the same time set the right color from the portable kitchen, the SmartKitch.

Global Imaging Management

Uteco is committed to the concept of integration of the production process with the transfer of data through using the G.I.M. The end result of incorporating the G.I.M. is opmizaon of ink usage, the selection of sleeves and aniloxs, and a correct guideline for the operator to prepare jobs.

Uteco stands by several goals to offer our customers. Among them are reducing changeover times, decreasing waste, increasing productivity and most importantly, investing in future technology to enhance the printing industry.