DÜSSELDORF, Germany—In preparation for K 2019 in Germany, SOMA, Marvaco and Flint Group collaborated to create “Tea Bag Designs,” a jointly developed demo print designed to highlight print quality, stable production and increased productivity.
The SOMA Globe technology center and its partners worked jointly to develop and present several new improvements underpinned by a story of sustainability. Visitors of K 2019 can see, firsthand, the quality of the demo prints and the efficiency of the printing process (SOMA’s stand Hall 4 – B 21).
The design is HiQ EGP printed using CMYOGV + silver + white printing with a print resolution of 178 lpi. Attendees are invited to visit SOMA’s stand to see the high speed and fast changeover printrun demonstrated live at the exhibition.
Printing by SOMA
SOMA flexographic printing press Optima is meant to enhance print quality, makeready times and running costs, therefore reducing its ecological impact. Due to bounce control technology, this “bouncing design” could be printed at high speeds with just 10.2-in. print repeat length. Special Eckart ink can be run with minimum leftovers thanks to the ink cartridge technology.
Prepress by Marvaco
Marvaco is a leading prepress production company and one of the biggest flexo plate producers in Northern Europe. The Teado tea bag demo print was printed on the SOMA flexo press to demonstrate the eco-efficiency of the printing with Marvaco EGP (expanded gamut printing). Marvaco’s GreenerPrinting EGP repro–plate technology was used, resulting in a more sustainable printing scenario together with high quality and faster production.
Moving from spot color printing to EGP printing results the reduction of the number of spot colors used and also eliminates the wash-off of the spot color inks. Moreover, as the design was run using high linescreen aniloxes, it reduced total ink consumption and waste of all consumables.
Printing Ink, Printing Plates and Sleeves by Flint Group
Flint Group’s inks, plates and sleeves work seamlessly on the SOMA press to bring the team’s vision to reality. Flint Group addressed this challenge by delivering the nyloflex FTS printing plate with inherent flat top dots, which is suitable for multiple segments and reduces complexity.
Flint Group’s FlexiPrint MV, flexible packaging inks are nitrocellulose-based inks, which have been optimized for high-quality flexographic surface or lamination printing on a wide variety of films. The inks provide excellent rub, water and heat resistance, and printability at high printing speeds, whilst being low in odor. These inks are tested according to the “Seedling” and “OK Compost” label, suitable on a wide variety of compostable packaging films and applications.
The printing on the SOMA flexo press with Flint Group products, together with Marvaco EGP, is meant to reduce the environmental impact and be more sustainable and easy to use, as well as consistent from run to run.