Labelexpo Day 2: Fujifilm unveils five new flexo products

A new Flenex water-washable plate, processor and water treatment system; a new LED UV curing system and inks; and a new imprinting system are all being showcased by Fujifilm at Labelexpo.

Fujifilm says its range of new products is designed to help label converters optimise their existing flexo presses, under the slogan Protect the planet and your profits. Consisting of enhancements to the company’s water-washable flexo plate and processing systems, together with new LED UV curing and imprinting solutions, Fujifilm says it is highlighting just how efficient and eco-friendly the production of high-quality labels can be.

On show for the first time is Flenex FW-FP, Fujifilm’s new water-washable plate for flexible packaging, joined by the upgraded SB-938 FLW water-washable plate processor and the new Aquarius Water Treatment System. New Sericol JJ LED UV flexo ink and JF indirect food packaging compliant UV cured inks are also being displayed alongside Fujifilm's established Illumina cold cure LED UV system and additional new Activ LED UV system, while a new industrial imprinting system is also being showcased.

Fujifilm says its new Flenex FW-FP plate features all the quality benefits of the established FW-L2 plate as well as added solvent resistance, reduced curling effect and a thicker polyester base of 188µm.

SB-938 FLW is Fujifilm’s easy access, all-in-one, semi-automatic water-washable plate processor designed to provide efficient plate handling. In combination with Fujifilm’s Flenex FW plates, the SB-938 FLW processor offers the fastest platemaking times in the industry – under 40 minutes.

According to Fujifilm, this is three times faster than leading solvent systems and 1.5 times faster than current thermal and water technologies.

Rounding off Fujifilm’s new flexographic equipment is the new Aquarius water treatment system. Used in combination with either the C-Touch or SB-938 water-wash flexo plate processors, Aquarius reduces water usage, prolongs the bath life and reduces waste water and processor cleaning times.

Fujifilm says that in combination its newest Flenex plate, processor and water treatment system can help label converters reduce water use while also ensuring that their equipment functions effectively for as long as possible.

Fujifilm is also launching a new LED UV retrofit curing system called Activ, which it says allows any traditional UV flexo press to be converted to LED UV curing, bringing major improvements to label production.

Launched in tandem with Activ is Fujifilm’s new high performance, Sericol JJ LED UV flexo ink and Sericol JF indirect food packaging compliant UV cured ink. Both are designed for use with the Illumina and Activ LED UV curing systems, as well as most other LED UV curing systems.The Sericol JF flexo UV ink is formulated to comply with Swiss Ordinance SR 817.023.21 and Nestle Guidance Note on Packaging Inks 02-2014 and EC Regulation on GMP 2003/2006, making it suitable for indirect food packaging, in accordance with EuPIA guidelines.

Finally, as a technical preview, Fujifilm’s new Industrial Imprinting System offers variable data printing at industrial production speeds. Fujifilm says that imprinting provides a great opportunity to add value and help to increase the range of solutions companies can offer.

The new imprinting solution can be fully integrated easily into existing packing or filling line equipment. Using Fujifilm’s inkjet technology, the imprinting system can print images or information as text, logos, QR or barcodes, or any other customised data.