FoilStar: Brilliant Times
"Buy me!" Metallic effects rank among the most
effective eye-catchers in print products. But up until now, they
were also among the most costly. With FoilStar, the cold foil
module from Heidelberg, labels, packaging, and commercial jobs can
be finished easily with stunning high quality - all inline.
What catches the eye will stop you in your tracks. This is often the case with metallic effects. Up until now, what fascinates consumers - or the audience of print products generally - was considered a big, expansive hassle. For many print shops, metallic effects simply weren't worth it, particularly for short runs. For these businesses, brilliant times are arriving. "With our cold foil technology FoilStar, metallic and hologram foils can be applied to the most varied printing stocks - both on entire surfaces and on spots - in order to add brilliant accents," explains Martin Mainka, product manager at Heidelberg. What is particularly special is that finishing takes place inline: The foil is applied in one pass with the printing inks on the Speedmaster models CD 74, CD 102 and XL 105. Print shops, therefore, don't have to invest in completely new technology. In addition, both of the printing units are available again for offset printing immediately following the cold foil application.
Economically Brilliant Processing
Thanks to FoilStar, print shops applying cold foil benefit from the same advantages as offset production. For example, they have short makeready times, fast job changes and low costs for printing forms, since only the printing plates have to be changed with each job. In addition, businesses can take advantage of the Speedmaster's high production speeds and finish up to 15,000 sheets with cold foil per hour. And, even then, only the necessary amount of foil is used, because the number of foil reels (one to a maximum of six) and the roll width can be adjusted to fit exactly the amount of cold foil needed for a job. Mainka considers the carrier foil application to be yet another plus: "Because the foil is applied without heat, the printing stock doesn't get distorted. This helps to produce an extremely precise register."
Who Should Use FoilStar?
Because of the financial and qualitative advantages discussed above, FoilStar would be of interest to the following businesses:
"With the help of FoilStar, print shops can tap into a unique spectrum of applications like finishing heat-sensitive materials such as thin propylene film which is used for in-mould labels," Mainka says. Furthermore, fine details and lines (0.02 inches/0.5 mm), screens (63 lpi) and fonts (dot size 6) can be displayed cleanly and clearly with cold foil. "Afterwards, the cold foil can be preserved with a gloss coating or toned down with a matte coating, in order to increase the desired effect. Chrome parts, such as car bumpers or delicate jewelry, for example, gain brilliance and plasticity, which makes them catch the eye. Print shops should take advantage of these possibilities to differentiate themselves," recommends Mainka.
What catches the eye will stop you in your tracks. This is often the case with metallic effects. Up until now, what fascinates consumers - or the audience of print products generally - was considered a big, expansive hassle. For many print shops, metallic effects simply weren't worth it, particularly for short runs. For these businesses, brilliant times are arriving. "With our cold foil technology FoilStar, metallic and hologram foils can be applied to the most varied printing stocks - both on entire surfaces and on spots - in order to add brilliant accents," explains Martin Mainka, product manager at Heidelberg. What is particularly special is that finishing takes place inline: The foil is applied in one pass with the printing inks on the Speedmaster models CD 74, CD 102 and XL 105. Print shops, therefore, don't have to invest in completely new technology. In addition, both of the printing units are available again for offset printing immediately following the cold foil application.
Economically Brilliant Processing
Thanks to FoilStar, print shops applying cold foil benefit from the same advantages as offset production. For example, they have short makeready times, fast job changes and low costs for printing forms, since only the printing plates have to be changed with each job. In addition, businesses can take advantage of the Speedmaster's high production speeds and finish up to 15,000 sheets with cold foil per hour. And, even then, only the necessary amount of foil is used, because the number of foil reels (one to a maximum of six) and the roll width can be adjusted to fit exactly the amount of cold foil needed for a job. Mainka considers the carrier foil application to be yet another plus: "Because the foil is applied without heat, the printing stock doesn't get distorted. This helps to produce an extremely precise register."
Who Should Use FoilStar?
Because of the financial and qualitative advantages discussed above, FoilStar would be of interest to the following businesses:
- Label and packaging printers that print a lot of hybrids or short runs (i.e. those working in the drink, cosmetic, tobacco or candy industries).
- Businesses that want to react fast and sometimes have to process foil finishing within 24 hours.
- Label, packaging and commercial printers that want to replace opaque white applications on aluminized paper. These printers can save time and money with the partial application of cold foil, and they benefit from higher quality or better readability of the overprint (i.e. a cold foil application makes a barcode much sharper).
- Commercial printers that offer quality from one source and want to expand their offerings.
"With the help of FoilStar, print shops can tap into a unique spectrum of applications like finishing heat-sensitive materials such as thin propylene film which is used for in-mould labels," Mainka says. Furthermore, fine details and lines (0.02 inches/0.5 mm), screens (63 lpi) and fonts (dot size 6) can be displayed cleanly and clearly with cold foil. "Afterwards, the cold foil can be preserved with a gloss coating or toned down with a matte coating, in order to increase the desired effect. Chrome parts, such as car bumpers or delicate jewelry, for example, gain brilliance and plasticity, which makes them catch the eye. Print shops should take advantage of these possibilities to differentiate themselves," recommends Mainka.
How Does FoilStar Work?
Cold foil application is applied using two conventional printing units on the Speedmaster models CD 74, CD 102 or XL 105.
Cold foil application is applied using two conventional printing units on the Speedmaster models CD 74, CD 102 or XL 105.
Step 1
In the first printing unit, adhesive is applied using the offset inking unit and offset printing plate - either on the entire sheet or partially.
In the first printing unit, adhesive is applied using the offset inking unit and offset printing plate - either on the entire sheet or partially.
Step 2
The second unit is equipped with take-up and take-off units for applying the foil which is fed together with the sheet to the printing nip between the blanket and impression cylinder. There it is pressed onto the areas of the printing stock covered with adhesive.
The second unit is equipped with take-up and take-off units for applying the foil which is fed together with the sheet to the printing nip between the blanket and impression cylinder. There it is pressed onto the areas of the printing stock covered with adhesive.
Step 3
The carrier foil is removed and a metal layer remains on the areas where adhesive was applied. This is done with extremely precise results: Both thin lines as well as entire surfaces can be covered using the same offset printing plate.
The carrier foil is removed and a metal layer remains on the areas where adhesive was applied. This is done with extremely precise results: Both thin lines as well as entire surfaces can be covered using the same offset printing plate.
