The special process of combining two substances has been used to create a rich mixture of metallic colours that altered in differing light angles.
Format factory manager Damian Fleming says the five-colour MetalFx process is very new to New Zealand and has won the company a gold for innovation at the recent Pride In Print awards.
“Iriodine coating with colour-changing effect is a New Zealand-first for a conventional sheet-fed printer.”
“We had to come up with the right combinations of process and technology to produce the ultimate in metallic printing,” he says.
“We incorporated Spekta screening, specially matched inks and Image Control technology. Together with Cue Design and the printer’s patience and skill — the result has been stunning.”
Mr Fleming says Format worked hard to master Iriodine Aqueous Coating, which he first spotted at the 2004 Drupa show.
“We met with the product developer and found that our current machinery would not produce the desired result. However, following the installation of a new Heidelberg CD equipped with a Flexokit coater and Tri-Helical application roller, the idea was revisited.
“We took a gamble when we imported some Iriodine coating, not knowing if it would be workable, but after some trials – and there were some disasters – we finally found the right combination to get the job done.”
