A few years ago, I wrote a blog post declaring UV printing would be the future of commercial printing. UV printing has indeed become a staple in commercial printing. With all the Fuji Acuity, Oce Arizona and Vutek printers out there, UV printing has reached a new level.
Why is UV printing so popular?
Let’s review some of the reasons for this
Flexibility
Do you have a flatbed or roll to roll printer? You know that you can pretty much run any substrate through your flatbed. If the surface is absorbent or not, your UV printer can print pretty much anything. We have even run a door through ours.
That flexibility has translated to hundreds of uses for a local print shop – small retail items, book covers, clings, cards, large banners, the list is almost endless. There is demand for traditionally nonporous surfaces like styrene and hard boards. Customers want the flexibility too.
Quality Print Finish
With your UV printer, there are no more double passes or re-runs. The print job is done with one pass through with high-gloss levels, vibrant colors with a nice finished look. UV inks sit on top of the printed surface and is not being absorbed into the surface.
Durability
Time shows UV printing is resistant to scratches, wear and tear, and sun exposure than its traditional printing counterparts. Customers love that a large promotional piece isn’t going to become tired and sun-worn after a few weeks.
It Cures Fast
The UV lamps ensure that the ink is dry the moment it is applied to the surface. You literally print, pull off the printer and do not have to wait for the ink to dry. No more waiting for the ink to dry, no more waiting to do proofs, no more ghosting of images on the page above it. Instead, press checks are quick and you can move on to binding and finishing faster. Not only is it faster for your clients, it saves you time too.
With a large number of UV printers that have been on the market for quite some time, these machines are the new workhorse for your print shop. If you are out of your warranty or service agreement and want to lower your cost of operation, consider switching to Bordeaux’s new line of UV Curable inks. Bordeaux produces high quality of inks that are OEM quality.
