LED Curing

This technology has grown in popularity as converters seek cost savings, increased productivity, and sustainability.

As market demand increases for sustainability, efficiency, and quality, label and package printing converters are seeking UV LED solutions for their curing needs. This technology is no longer niche, either. LEDs have emerged as a mainstream curing technology across numerous printing applications.

LED curing has been associated with other benefits, too, including cost savings and reliability. Many converters who have spoken to L&NW have touted the savings and environmental friendliness of making the switch to LED.

“UV LED brings significant operational cost savings due to in- creased productivity, higher uptime, no bulb replacements, and extremely long product lifetime,” states Stacy Hoge, Phoseon marketing manager, Excelitas Technologies. “With the adoption of UV LED, companies can reduce their carbon footprint by decreasing energy consumption, preventing pollution, and reducing waste while increasing profits. Upgrading to UV LED curing can reduce energy bills by 50-80% overnight with return on investment in well under one year. “In addition to energy consumption savings, there are utility rebates and state incentives available that can significantly reduce the cost of upgrading to sustainable LED equipment,” adds Hoge.

The evolution of LED technology has prompted adoption, as well. The products are far more effective than previous generations, and printers in a range of markets – from digital inkjet to screen and flexography to offset – have driven installations. The advancements extend to inks and substrates, too.

…

Meanwhile, Phoseon is now part of Excelitas’ commercial business unit and will continue to operate from its headquarters in Hillsboro, OR, USA, extending Excelitas’ geographic footprint into the Pacific Northwest.

According to Excelitas, Phoseon’s market strength in UV curing for the printing, coatings, and finishing sectors fits seamlessly with Excelitas’ leadership in UV curing for the medical device and electron- ics manufacturing space.

The company offers multiple LED products, too. The Phoseon Nexus ONE air- and water-cooled UV LED curing systems are ide- ally suited for flexographic printing applications.“Nexus ONE products deliver the highest total UV power output to achieve increased print speeds, increased press uptime, and double the product lifetime,” says Excelitas’ Hoge. “New ValidCure Technology validates the curing power delivered to the material surface, ensuring process compliance and optimum performance. Nexus ONE is the first UV LED curing system available with a five-year warranty for the entire system, offering investment protection for customers.”

The company has also designed the Phoseon FireJet UV LED air-cooled system for digital inkjet and screen printing. It is capable of curing at high speeds for small, medium and large format digital printing systems. It’s also suitable for many large single pass UV inkjet applications. Excelitas also offers the Phoseon FireEdge UV LED air-cooled system and FireLine UV LED water-cooled system. “Plus, the OmniCure AC Series small area air-cooled UV LED curing systems are designed with high-power LEDs and advanced front- end optics to deliver high peak irradiance for fast, uniform curing,” adds Hoge.

Tags: Label & Narrow Web Magazine
Categories: Printing, Flexo