March 20100 —
The strength and rigidity of the can makes it an ideal packaging medium for a wide range of products from paint to perishable food and beverage products. Metal cans keep products in a fresh condition and also provide for robust handling and distribution. Moreover, metal cans have an unequalled record for safety in terms of preventing leakage and spillage of contents. They also rank highly with regard to functionality – providing a long shelf life, without the need for refrigeration or chiller cabinet take-up.
Metal packaging may have been around for a long time, indeed, Peter Durand of Britain received a patent for tinplate after devising the sealed cylindrical can as long ago as 1810, nevertheless modern manufacturing techniques and a highly customer focused marketing approach ensures that canning reflects modern values and responsiveness. Current trends in fashion and interior design are indicative of an on-going love affair with all things metallic and have opened up new areas of possibilities for metal packaging, particularly in the marketing of certain luxury items.
Tom Kerchiss of colour communication systems and print/coat technology specialist RK Print Coat Instruments Ltd says:” Promotional metal packaging producers, particularly in mainland Europe have been persuading marketers to either use metal cans as part of a marketing mix or to choose metal in place of other materials. Metal packaging often relies on high quality printing to enhance tinplate and aluminium cans, but recently new shapes, texture and novelty finishes combined with high quality printed filmic labels are providing opportunities for brand differentiation. In some instances the metal tin has achieved collectable status once the product within has been consumed: an example being the decorative ‘belle epoch’ Amaretto Delicato cans of Vialetto S.A”.
While the conventional metal can continues to offer opportunities, the can concept has evolved with the introduction of the composite can or container. The composite container is regarded as a real sales booster, providing a range of benefits including convenience, recyclability and product differentiator capabilities. Composite cans have a paperboard body and end closures made of plastic or metal, with film or foil protective liners or membranes. “Composite cans are widely employed for crisp products, powdered milk, baby formulae, refrigerated dough, bakery items such as croissants and Danish pastries as well as for dry goods including cleaners and coffee granules”, notes RK’s Tom Kerchiss.
Week in week out hundreds of new or re- vitalized products are unveiled, all of which hope to join many thousands of existing products on the shelves of supermarket, general convenience and other types of retail outlets – some of the new products will have what it takes to encourage brand loyalty, others will not. Building brand loyalty is no mean feat!
Produced easily in a range of sizes the composite can is cost efficient to produce and to print on. Tom Kerchiss points out that the paperboard surface is highly receptive to inks and enables brand owners and marketers to display creative graphics and striking colours that make the pack distinctive and original, a catalyst for sales success.
Shelf presence is everything; a poorly printed and poorly matched colour stands out wrecking havoc with a brand’s identity. Hence it’s become critical to ensure that pack colour and graphic fidelity remain consistent run after run, time after time.
With so much riding on colour one can see why marketing departments and product owners are so intent on their suppliers the printers and converters adhering to agreed colour standards. Devices such as the FlexiProof 100 and variant FlexiProof UV were developed by RK Print Coat Instruments to enable printers and converters engaged in the flexo process to more readily achieve quality and colour matching standards, with minimal difficulty and offline.
The FlexiProof colour communication device enables companies of all types involved in some aspect associated with flexography to resolve issues surrounding the representation of colour and graphics on a variety of substrate such as paper, film, foil, etc.
As any printer or converter that prints knows all to well – colour matching, determining printability on differing substrates; running a new job, can be stressful, time consuming and problematic – so many variables to contend with. More than just a drawdown device the FlexiProof minimises on-press waste and helps bring these process variables under control.
In addition to monitoring the performance of inks and substrates over time, computer colour matching, conducting pilot runs and research and developments, the FlexiProof is ideal for the preparation of customer preparation samples – enabling the customer, the brand owner, the marketer, etc, to determine if a colour really works, if it’s a colour that is warm, sophisticated, authoritative or conveys some other quality that is desired. Also, because it only takes up the minimal amount of bench top space it can be sited in a variety of environments, the pressroom, the laboratory, and even if so desired in a marketing department.
Of course flexography is not the only print process, gravure is often utilized for printing directly onto metal canisters or indirectly via labels or decals. High quality proofs using gravure, gravure-offset or flexo inks can be produced in an instant with the K Printing Proofer. Using the gravure head ink is transferred from an electronically engraved printing plate directly onto the substrate, which is attached to the rubber covered impression roller. Doctor blade and roller adjustments are made via micrometers allowing repeatable settings for future settings.
Both wet and dry laminated samples can be produced on this machine by using the gravure head with RK’s K-Lam laminating accessories. For gravure-offset the flexo head is employed, fitted with a plain rubber covered offset roller to transfer ink from the plate to the substrate.
A machine supplied with the flexo head fitted can therefore be used for both printing techniques with the possible addition of an alternative stereo/offset roller and printing plate.
An even more recent development for those engaged in gravure printing is the introduction of the GP100. This compact bench top device enables users of press viscosity gravure ink to generate high quality proofs on any flexible substrate instantly. The device incorporates a microprocessor- controlled servo-drive and employs the same electronically engraved printing plates that are used to great effect on the K Printing Proofer system.
For further information email sales@rkprint.com, www.rkprint.com
Source: RK Print Press Release
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