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Whether it is a snack pouch, coffee bag, pet food packaging or a cosmetics product, flexible packaging has become one of the most important packaging solutions worldwide. It reliably protects products, extends shelf life and offers maximum design flexibility for brands.
At the same time, the demands placed on modern packaging continue to grow. Consumers expect sustainable solutions, brand owners require premium shelf appeal, and regulatory requirements are placing increasing emphasis on product safety and recyclability.
For packaging manufacturers and converters, this means that the combination of quality, efficiency and sustainability has become a key competitive advantage.
In retail environments, purchasing decisions are often made within seconds. Packaging therefore serves as a silent salesperson at the point of sale.
Brilliant colours, premium coatings and unique tactile effects attract attention and strengthen brand perception. Particularly for premium products, packaging plays a crucial role in communicating quality and value.
Modern UV printing processes enable a wide range of sophisticated finishing effects, including:
These capabilities help brands create packaging that clearly stands out from competing products on the shelf.
The demands on print quality and productivity are constantly rising. At the same time, energy consumption and production costs play a significant role.
This is precisely where modern UV and LED UV systems come into their own. Thanks to the rapid curing of suitable inks and varnishes, printed products can be processed immediately. This facilitates short processing times and high productivity.
LED UV technologies, in particular, are becoming increasingly important in packaging printing. They are ready for use immediately after being switched on and can be switched on and off as required to suit the production process. Compared with conventional UV lamp systems, LED-UV systems also emit a lower proportion of infrared radiation. This helps to reduce the thermal stress on sensitive substrates. Modern systems such as LEDcure NX from IST METZ have been developed to meet a range of requirements in printing and industry, combining high UV output with a modular system design.
A key issue in packaging printing is the migration of substances from inks and varnishes into food.
Consequently, low-migration concepts and specialised UV curing processes are becoming increasingly important. Inerted UV systems, amongst others, are already being used in packaging applications; in these systems, the oxygen content is reduced during curing by the introduction of nitrogen. This helps to minimise oxygen inhibition and promotes the cross-linking of suitable inks and varnishes.
In addition, the industry is working on new technologies that can further reduce the use of substances relevant to migration.
A recent development in the field of UV curing is FREEcure from IST METZ.
When used with suitable formulations, this technology enables the curing of inks and coatings with no, or reduced, use of photoinitiators. This helps to minimise potential sources of migration and opens up new application possibilities, particularly in packaging printing. The actual properties of the end product depend, amongst other things, on the formulation used, the substrate, the film thickness, the production speed and the relevant process parameters.
For manufacturers of flexible packaging in particular, this opens up new prospects for applications where migration and regulatory requirements play a significant role.
In addition to the curing process itself, the focus is increasingly shifting towards the intelligent control of production processes.
With SMARTcure, IST METZ is pursuing a data-driven approach to support LED-UV curing processes. The AI-powered assistance system takes the relevant production conditions into account and, on this basis, suggests a recommended UV power setting. The aim is to provide the power required for the curing process whilst avoiding unnecessarily high power consumption.
Depending on the application, system configuration and process parameters, SMARTcure can help to reduce energy consumption and minimise the strain on the LED components.
The flexible packaging market is undergoing change. Product safety, production costs, material properties, regulatory requirements and brand impact must all be taken into account equally today.
Modern UV, LED UV and Excimer technologies offer various options for tailoring curing and surface treatment processes to these requirements. Developments such as FREEcure, LEDcure NX and SMARTcure expand the possibilities for flexible and application-specific production processes.
For packaging manufacturers, this presents an opportunity to gain a competitive edge through high-quality printing, innovative finishes and production processes tailored to the specific application.
