Cold foil and cast and cure solution for gloss offset foil transfer
Starfoil Technology has recently installed its first cold foil and cast and cure system; the Starfoil CF110 unit is a simple-to-handle, compact solution for gloss offset foil transfer which will satisfy the needs of users on a tighter budget.
Cold foil sheet-fed printing is a fast and cost-effective finishing process in a conventional offset printing press without the use of heat. During the cast and cure process a holographic film is used in combination with a UV coating on any substrate to ‘cast’ a holographic effect into the UV coating.
The market for gloss foil transfer for stylish product refinement is growing with more and more brand name manufacturers looking for ways to give their products an exclusive appearance – for example through the use of metallic effects. In addition, cold foil transfer is being used for brochures to help them stand out from the crowd. Cold foil is able to provide major advantage over hot-foil stamping as inline production on an offset press is more efficient and thus cost-effective. They run at higher speeds, even shorter runs become profitable, and no expensive tools are required.
This unit is especially designed for the companies who would like to offer gloss foil transfer but do not have enough corresponding jobs to work with cold foil 24/7. This Starfoil CF110 is a compact, space-saving model which offers a first class quality, robustness and reliability and intended for printers whose job structures require occasional production with cold foil refinement.
One important characteristic of the Cold Foil 110 is its compact design. The fact that foil reels are positioned above the printing units makes the module a very practical option for smaller companies with limited floor space. Even so, the Starfoil CF 110 handles reels with up to 16,000 metres of cold foil.
Offset presses with the Cold Foil 110 unit are fitted with a crane for handling of the full and empty reels. This allows reel replacement without physical effort. The remote control unit for opening and closing of the safety chucks renders an additional walkway superfluous; accessibility to the inking units is not restricted in any way.
The low tension friction shafts are driven by a servo motor and are especially simple to handle. The servo drive permits extremely exact synchronisation of the foil web to the running speed of the press. Combined with the modern technology for web tension control, this ensures efficient production.
The use of servo motors precludes the need for dancer rollers which makes the CF110 unit to offer constantly high quality. The sensitive metalised layer of the cold foil never comes into contact with any press parts or rollers, which means there is no risk of damage. The result is outstanding print quality. Annoying contamination of the inking units with aluminium dust is likewise avoided.
With this simple-to-handle and compact system, Starfoil is able to offer their users real added value – an extremely modern, high performance cold foil system.
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