Toyo Ink has developed two new series of low-energy, UV-curable offset inks under its Flash Dry brand.
The two new products, the Flash Dry LPC EX for ozone-free curing systems and the Flash Dry LED EX for LED-UV curing systems, launch this month to the Japanese market with a phased rollout to other regions to follow. Katsumi Yamazaki, president of Toyo Ink, says, “Developed under rigid field testing requirements, the two latest additions to the flash Dry family demonstrate our commitment and ability to deliver innovative solutions that support the needs of our customers.”
The company says UV ink technology environmental benefits include energy efficiency; elimination of volatile organic compounds; reduction in CO2 emissions; alongside its production advantage of instant curing.
Toyo says the new product series realise an expanded colour gamut, high transparency, and high gloss compared with conventional UV inks, making possible a level of colour reproduction comparable to oil-based inks. It says it achieved these advances by adopting a specialty pigment and a fundamental change in pigment dispersion method.
The company claims new breakthroughs in polymer-structure control technology led to the development of an ink formulation that improved emulsification while exhibiting excellent viscoelastic properties, printability and surface print quality. Toyo believes that these developments make UV inks as easy-to-handle on the shop floor as oil-based inks.
Yamazaki adds, “As early pioneers in the development of UV and LED-UV curable technology, the UV ink market has emerged as a strong growth area for the Toyo Ink Group. Looking to become the leading global brand in the low-energy UV field, we aim to increase production volume for these new ink products by 2.5 times in 2020.”
Toyo claims ink advancements
