Inkjet Inks With Greyscale For Emerging Markets

Sunjet, the inkjet ink division of Sun Chemical, has introduced its Crystal brand UV curing inks with full greyscale printhead capability.

Sunjet, the inkjet ink division of Sun Chemical, has introduced its Crystal brand UV curing inks with full greyscale printhead capability.

The Crystal UOX and UGT inks are designed for use in display graphics and other applications, such as packaging and label printing in digital presses using Xaar's drop-on-demand inkjet printheads.

Sunjet said it aims to be the ink supplier for applications in new and emerging markets making use of the benefits of digital technology.

Greyscale printing offers the potential to expand scope of digital printing, and at Ipex 2006 in Birmingham (UK) Xaar will be demonstrating single pass label printing using the ITI Digital Web Printer (DWP), which uses Xaar's Omnidot 318 printheads and Sunjet ink.

The Crystal UOX UV-inks are approved for Xaar's Omnidot 760 GS8, offering single-pass, multi-pulse, greyscale technology for printing on non-porous substrates.

Crystal UGT UV-inks are approved for the Omnidot 318 printhead to support printing on a variety of non-porous substrates within industrial and packaging applications.

Peter Saunders, Sunjet's sales and marketing manager, said: "As the requirements in digital graphics printing become more demanding of print quality, where variable drop printing is a necessity, it is important that inks match the expectation of the printer and the end graphics buyer.

To maximise the potential of greyscale printheads, Sunjet has worked in conjunction with Xaar to develop ink chemistry specifically tailored to provide excellent printhead running performance and wide ranging substrate suitability." Ink approval in greyscale heads is heavily focused on jetting reliability as an essential feature of ink performance, which is a key requirement for single pass printing, he added.

Dr Jill Woods, Xaar's ink product manager, explained: "The growth of inkjet relies on continuous innovation and component compatibility.

Working closely with ink partners such as Sunjet, enables us to offer comprehensive support to customers adopting this technology and ensure they can capitalise on the opportunities available." Peter Walshe, Sunjet's business development manager, stressed: "The ink approval process with our printheads partners ensures that equipment innovators can employ a proven ink and printhead combination.

This is particularly reassuring in projects aimed at high end printing where new technology, such as variable droplet printing, is employed".

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