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AMS puts spotlight on LED UV systems for flexo

09.13.16

The LED UV curing systems are designed to provide significant improvements in quality, speed, efficiency and sustainability.

Air Motion Systems is showcasing its high-­speed Flexo XP Series LED UV system for flexographic presses at Labelexpo Americas 2016 in Hall C, Booth 3801. The company is also unveiling its new Label XD Series system for flexo label presses, featuring a super-­compact form factor.

AMS’s LED UV curing systems are designed to provide significant improvements in quality, speed, efficiency and environmental impact to press operations of all sizes.

“LED UV curing obviously has dramatic advantages over conventional drying methods when it comes to flexo printing,” notes AMS president Steve Metcalf, “from the ability to use more stable inks and achieve a higher print quality, to drastic reductions in heat on the press and in the web, to greatly reduced energy costs. At this point, LED UV has bypassed traditional UV curing, too; it makes
press rooms safer by eliminating mercury and ozone from the environment, bulbs don’t need to be replaced every 500 to 1,500 hours like with standard UV systems, and maintenance and
downtime are significantly reduced.”

AMS director of business development Joel O’Leary adds to this comment, pointing out that the main reasons to install LED UV systems are economically straightforward. “At Labelexpo, we’ll be focusing on the message ‘Go fast. Stay cool.’ The fact that flexo presses equipped with the AMS LED UV system can run significantly faster, while maintaining notably lower temperatures, is one of the main benefits to printers,” he explains. “For example, printers who mainly run shrink film can potentially double their productivity just by switching to LED curing. And thanks to the elimination of heat to the press and in the substrate, printers can use thinner substrates than were possible before. We anticipate huge growth with the adoption of LED UV curing for shrink-­film presses, as printers come to realize how impactful LED curing can be to their bottom lines.”

In addition to having its Flexo XP and Label XD LED UV modules on display, AMS is providing samples of LED UV-­cured films and labels, printed by Seattle-­based packaging experts RevereFlexpak (a division of The RevereGroup), at its booth (3801). Additionally, printers  have a chance to see the AMS LED UV system in action at Bobst’s exhibit (booths 5721/5722/5726/5728), where it is installed on a Bobst M6 10-­color 530mm press.