PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2016

PRODUCTS 49 PET planet insider Vol. 17 No. 06/16 www.petpla.net PreWatcher I I I . Essent ial when you use rec yc l ed mater ial . W W W . I N T R A V I S . C O M / P R E W A T C H E R Replacing of paper labels by Direct Print technology For the launch of its beer brand “Dagschotel”, Martens Brouwerij based in Bocholt, Belgium, decided to inject some fun in the digitally printed PET bottles. Using a specially-designed smartphone beer application, the characters printed on the bot- tles deliver a rather special performance when brought together. The PET bottles filled with “Dagschotel” beer show a well-known group of Belgian TV sitcom actors, “F.C. Kampioenen”. When two bottles are brought together, a smartphone app sets off a dialogue between the characters. The bottles appear to “talk” to each other. It was the KHS Direct Print process that made this possible. The process prints all information straight onto the bottle in true colour. It was the first industrial-scale intro- duction of this digital printing process where low-migration UV cure inks provide a food-safe solution for PET bottles. Recently, Martens is again leveraging this printing technology by eliminating labels altogether, this time to renovate the look and feel of their Pils beer. The required print image is transferred straight from the com- puter to the labeller’s control unit. The cloud-based Direct Print software platform links a headquarters-based sample printer for 1-to-1 proofing and artworks design approvals, linked via the cloud with the workflow of the production site based Direct Print industrial printer. The industrial scale Direct Print equipment is capable of printing variable, high quality images on each bottle in PET filling and packaging lines running at 12,000 / 24,000 / 36,000bph. As no time-consuming label printing processes or shipping distances for label materials are necessary, the pro- cess offers a high level of flexibility. Graphics can be changed in hours instead of weeks. One crucial aspect of this process is that PET bottles printed on the KHS-Innoprint are suitable for bottle-to-bottle recycling. Hardened inks can be completely removed from the flakes. The Direct Print team at KHS will soon be bringing new tech- nical features to their next version equipment – bringing even higher quality decorations and the capability to individualise each bottle with variable image capability. www.khs.com