MinusNine Technologies

MinusNine Technologies formulates and manufactures UV/EB curable coatings, adhesives, primers, and specialty products for graphic arts and industrial applications

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Tips for UV coating applications

With the increasing popularity and use of UV cured coatings, it is important to monitor and understand the potential for problems. Owing to extremely high gloss of UV Coating, off-line UV coating can enhance the surface of anything it is applied to. Besides, it is environmentally-friendly and if cured properly, it polymerizes to form a hard layer, which then delivers an excellent protective surface for a large number of applications.

For printers to properly prepare printed sheets for UV curable coating, there are a few guidelines that have to be followed. Following are certain tips that will help ensure that finished products serve the expectations of printer as well as the customers.

Preparation

In order to ensure that the product gets off on the right foot, UV coater should be provided with a layout sheet that indicates guide as well as gripper sides with final trim marks. In addition, areas that are to be left uncoated should be marked.

If you are opting for spot coating, a film positive with registration marks should be supplied. Make sure to tape the film on a press sheet pulled from the center of the load, and then strip it into position.

Inks

UV-compatible inks must be used together with UV coatings. Earlier, inks were only required to be wax free. However, since chemicals and solvents are used in them today, there are three requirements that have to be met.

Primarily, inks must be free of silicones, paraffin waxes and teflon additives. Although the use of additives in inks is to resist scuffing, they reduce the adhesion of UV coating to the inks.

Second, UV compatible pigments must be used. Now-a-days, all UV coatings consist of brighteners, which together with the alkalines in pigments can cause particular colors to bleach to a lighter shade.

The third requirement is that the inks must be hard-drying, in order to resist heat that the UV curing lamps produce. This prevents the inks from softening under the heat. Regardless of the inks that are used, sufficient drying time should be planned during the production process, generally 24-48 hours, depending on the coverage.

Varnish and aqueous coating

Although aqueous coatings and varnishes can be UV coated, special attention should be paid to determine which coatings are UV-compatible. Varnishes and aqueous coatings seal in wet inks and slow down the drying process. Furthermore, when the product is UV coated, it leads to unacceptable adhesion.

Additives

In order to reduce Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and enhance air quality, printers are required to eliminate the use of Isopropyl Alcohol when it comes to dampening. Alcohol was used to enhance the rheological properties of ink and aid in faster ink setting and drying. Use of alcohol substitutes in place of Isopropyl alcohol lead to certain problems in UV coating process. After the aqueous coating is applied on the sheets when they are printed, wet ink is sealed between aqueous coating and the sheet, further slowing the drying process. Use of glycol and glycol ethers result into poor adhesion. To eliminate these issues, ensure to use lowest levels of glycol and glycol ethers.

For best adhesion results, varnishes, inks and aqueous coatings must be free of silicones, waxes and additives.

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EB Technology: Its future in Graphic Arts

Radiation-curing technologies have seen stable growth over the years. Particularly, UV curing has gained significant attention and made strong inroads in graphic arts industry in a wide range of applications. Although less popular than UV, Electron Beam (EB) curing has grown over the years. Particularly, EB coatings and inks have found huge acceptance in food packaging applications, where immediate cure as well as dearth of extractables have made Electron Beam a preferred option for converters.

The size and cost of equipments have been a major barricade in the growth of EB over the years. Although equipment costs are reducing, many graphic art printers are still unable to switch to EB due to the slowdown in the economy.

In the past years, Electron Beam coating was utilized on chosen applications in manufacturing and graphic arts. However, on the technology front, where UV coatings have certain limitations in terms of conversion rate, cure speed, odor of photo-initiators and adherence to FDA regulations, EB offered better solutions and hence opportunities for growth.

A large part of growth that EB witnessed came from the folding carton market. Higher quality, timely printing and most importantly, low odor as well as low extractables essential for food and pharmaceutical packaging are a few reasons that led to its growth.

Technical matters related to EB Coating

Various advancements and the cost of equipment coming down, have contributed in the growth of EB sector. On the chemistry front, availability of a wide range of raw materials has helped in expansion of EB applications. Apart from lower equipment costs, lower operating costs as well as portable equipments have helped in the growth of EB sector. With the laboratories being able to measure the purity of a finished product at current levels, EB has become a preferred application in packaging. This holds true for perishable items like orange juice, whose flavor is affected by the impurities present in inks and coatings.

In addition, EB coatings have found acceptance in certain flexible packaging areas where a large number of new applications have pioneered. EB cured laminating adhesives eliminate solvent-based adhesives that might consist of potentially harmful materials like aromatic amines. Additionally, unlike solvent-based adhesive laminations, EB offers immediate cure.

The future of EB coating

The answer to what will be the future of EB coating depends on equipment advances in diverse energy-curable areas. Besides, the future also depends on energy prices as well as environmental pressures. Reducing operating costs while making the Electron Beam units more portable will indubitably attract greater interest.

EB might find opportunities on diverse overprint applications on porous and non-porous substrates, where Electron Beam offers improved cure consistency, less odor and predictability for physical as well as chemical needs. Apart from this, packaging lamination adhesives is another sector where EB will witness growth. The current packaging industry explores the opportunities to use EB curing adhesives for laminated packages and this offers instant cure, value for speed, low inventories of finished products over solvent.

Equipment advances will allow use of EB coating in areas that do not use the technology at present and this will add more value to the existing process.

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UV Coating: What it is and what are its benefits?

Your printed marketing materials are your opportunity to attract your customers' attention in today's highly competitive era. Making them really shine can be advantageous. This is when you should know the benefits of UV coating.

Also known as Ultraviolet Coating, UV coating is a glossy, shiny coating that is applied to the surface of printed paper and dried on a special machine using UV light. UV coating makes your printed piece attractive and is ideal for products like hand-out sheets, postcards, business cards and catalogs, presentation folders or any product that can be given glossy, rich and dramatic look.

What are the benefits of UV Coating?

UV coating has plenty of benefits compared to other coatings, some of which are mentioned below:

High shine finish

When UV coating is applied on deep, rich colors such as rich blacks and blues, it results in almost wet appearance. This is extremely effective for image-rich projects such as catalogs. Owing to the stunning shine that Ultraviolet coating creates, it is highly popular for specific designs and products.

Good abrasion resistance

If your printed piece- be it a postcard, a business card or a brochure, has to be handed or it has to travel through the mail, you need to ensure durability in addition to exquisiteness. UV coating enables the mailed piece to resist marking and smudging, allowing it to maintain high quality, professional appearance because of an extremely hard finish, which is both abrasion and chemical resistant.

Eco-friendly

Since UV coatings are free of solvents, they do not emit VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) when dried and are thus environmentally friendly.

High clarity

UV coating offers high clarity and make the details pop and stand out. This type of coating makes a perfect option for photographic images as well as company logos.

Quick drying time

When exposed to UV light, ultraviolet coating dries quickly. This reduces shipping time, allowing earlier shipping and delivery times.

When should you not opt for UV coating?

Although UV coating works well for a large number of printed pieces, there are a few instances where this type of coating is not a good option, including:

   >> When using metallic inks   >> When the piece has foil stamping   >> When something needs to be written on the piece   >> The addressed part of a mailing piece

Make your pieces shine

Coatings help you make your printed piece stand out. They work to improve the desired outcome, depending on the end result you wish to achieve. Use them to make those full color pictures and pieces look more attractive, allowing your graphic elements to stand out and showcase your products.

Besides, UV curable coating products are known to offer protection to marketing materials, enabling them to last longer. The longer your materials last, the more they will be able to get response for you. This ultimately increases your return on investment. Moreover, UV coating is cheap, so you can save money while the products are being coated and even after they have been coated, owing to its durability.

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Tips On Choosing The Best Graphic Products

There are a number of ways to take your business to new heights. One way is by having the best graphic art products and accommodating them in the right spots. There are numerous graphic art suppliers available in the world today, which are making blue-chip products and considering the needs of the environment as well. The graphic art products are of many types, and primer coating is one of the most important products that is used by a countless number of customers throughout the world. Some of the hot selling primer coatings are high gloss, non-yellowing, bonding to metal, weather resistant, dry erase, optically clear, white primer and more. Moreover, a large number of adhesives are also used in making all the above mentioned graphic arts products. Customers can avail a number of advantages by implementing the best graphic product technology in their premises. I have mentioned some of the advantages to give all the customers a better idea about these products.

1. These products will consume less power. 2. Customers will get faster line speeds. 3. The Carbon emissions will also be regulated and controlled. 4. Utility bills will be reduced by these products. 5. The employees will get a healthier work environment.

These companies offer efficient and effective services, so that their products can act as a catalyst in taking your business to new heights. You will find a number of companies that have full focus on EB coatings, so that there is less accumulation of waste and you can recycle the maximum amount of products. The technology used in the entire process is highly advanced and environment friendly.

There is a simple way to choose the right graphic art supplies Pennsylvania. All you have to do is, search on the web and you will find several companies along with their offers on the graphic product technology. After choosing the top companies, you can visit their websites one by one and read all the necessary information. You will find a number of applications related to this technology, which is perhaps the reason why so many companies are making use of it.

It is imperative to compare the services, materials and products they use, as it will create a rough picture in your mind regarding the quality and working standards of the company. The firm you are about to choose must have huge experience in the field. You can also check the reviews given by other customers, so as to get a better idea about the company. The market for industrial UV products is quite large, which also attracts many businessmen, thus creating a tough competition. Therefore, it is up to you to decide the company you want to go with.

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100% Sustainable EB And UV Technologies

Graphic arts are getting popular day by day because this leads to achieve your business the best printing material. A best company will also offer you with high quality material which is important for the reputation of your business. These products are also ideal to grab the attention of your potential clients. There are companies who can provide you with cationic, renewable content and much more. You just have to tell them your requirement and everything is reliably fulfilled.  Products and technology they offer   Professionals are bound to provide their customers with the quality and plethora of options. They have technologies and huge variety of products such as realize coatings   >> Tactile coatings >> UV metallic’s and glitter metallics >> BisA and BP free products >> Low odor and low migration etc   What is EB technology?   EB coatings are popular among the businesses of the relative fields. They use electron beam and UV technology to create products. This technology is also environmental friendly and can provide customers with the best converters and printers with the quality. There are several benefits of this technology and must be implemented because it is important to go green when our mother planet is already standing at stake due to pollutants which comes from industrial waste and other harmful factors.   Benefits of this technology   >> Low energy consumption is required >> Safe and healthier work atmosphere >> No or very little emission >> Reduce carbon dioxide emissions >> Renewable content can be produced >> Can reduce utility cost >> Fast speed >> Economic     There are many other benefits which you can get from this technology. To avail all of them it is important to get associated with the best company. No, doubt there are many, but not all of them are worthy. Look online, where you can explore out some of the best options. These companies are following high standard and are offering value for your money products.   The Best Company   Minus9 is one of the best companies you can go for. They are having huge products and use state of the art technology to make graphic art products like industrial UV products, they also have the best technologies to offer which is definitely going to raise your productivity. They offer hundred percent sustainable technologies on which you can rely on.

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Why Choose Graphic Products And UE Coating Technology?

Graphic art products have a huge importance and can take your business to new levels.  There are some best companies in the market offering environmental friendly products that can meet all the needs of converters and printers.  There are some quality primer coatings.>> Imprintable>> High gloss>> Optically clear>> Non- yellowing>> Bonding to metal>> Solvent >> Weather  resistant >> Low fingerprint >> Dry erase>> White primer>> Bonding to metal>> LED There are different types of adhesive involved in making these graphic arts products. There are plenty of advantages which you can avail from implementing graphic product technology.  Here are some of them mentioned >> These products have no harmful effects   >> Low consumption of energy >> Faster line speeds >> Reduce hefty utility bills >> Smaller manufacturing foot print >> Reduced Co2 emissions >> Healthier work environment The services of these companies are also effective and can take your business to new heights. There are companies which are having a hundred percent focuses on the EB coatings and sustainable UV technologies which means there is less waste and you get fully recycle products. This technology is so advanced that implementing itself is a great achievement. Choosing a company When you will visit online you will see that there are many companies in your areas offering graphic product technology. You can easily choose them and visit their websites on the internet. There are a variety of applications of this technology so a wide range of organizations are going to get benefits from this technology. Choose the best one. You can even compare their services, products, material they use and much more. A professional company is transparent and offers you with the best services. Make sure that the company is having huge experience so that you can rely on them. These companies are having well designed websites from where you can get all the information you want. It is important that you choose exciting UV adhesive curing and technologies such as release coatings, UV metallic, tactile coatings, Low Odor and many others.  To get custom formulation you can also contact these companies.  They are having best customer services and can help you over the phone as well.

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How To Get High Quality UV Curing Adhesive Products?

UV curing adhesives have been utilized for various years in different industrial applications or processes. These adhesives have many benefits to offer. Due to its exceptional stability and high transparency, UV adhesive curing is especially beneficial in the form of a glass adhesive. It is perfect for the production of glass furniture, glassware and acrylic glass. If you are dealing with the medical technology and optical industry, then it is also best suited for these products. The products include medical devices bonding. There are many companies, which offer high quality supplies made up of this technology. What Are The Benefits? UV adhesives solidify when they come in contact with the right intensity and wavelength of ultraviolet light. These products provide with a number of distinct processing advantages over other methods, which include quality assurance, cure on demand, speed of cure, one part systems, invisible bonds and many others. The companies, dealing with graphic arts products, provides unique and innovative. These products are comprised of EB or UV coatings, which can easily grab the attention of customers up to a great extent. These companies also provide with the cationic, renewable content, LED curable and many others, like products. Some of the products offered by these companies include tactile coatings, UV metallic, release coatings, laminating adhesives, pressure sensitive adhesives, BP and BisA free and so on. You need to choose the company, which offers superior performance, high quality, quick order turnaround, competitive pricing and many benefits for the products. You can check out the features and benefits of products offered by these companies. Prices And High Quality You have to take care of the quality and prices of products made up of EB coatings and many other types of coatings. If you own an industry or business, needs printing applications to be designed and created, you need to take the help of professionals. There are many companies and suppliers, which only provide with the high quality and durable products at affordable rates. You need to consider your budget and needs. After the proper evaluation of your needs and preferences, you can find the best and affordable company online. On the internet, you can find a wide range of suppliers and manufacturers, which provides with high quality graphic art supplies at different prices. Researching about the companies is an easy way of choosing the best company.

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Why Prefer To Buy UV Coated Products?

If you have a business, in which the printing task needs to be done, then it is important to make sure the quality of the materials you are going to choose. If you have something in the press now, or even something to print, you must make sure that the printed materials or technology are of good quality so that you can offer the best products to your company. There are so many reasons for choosing the graphic arts products made of UV coat from a reputed company than others. Let’s explore the importance of these types of products for your printing stuff, mentioned below: Solvent And Scratch Resistance Right from the manufacturing, printing and many others, a printed product needs to pass from various levels such as packaging, transporting and distributing levels. These levels place a great impact on the real look and feel of the deliverables. If you are seeking for the best material that can take care of the wear and tear issues, then the UV is a good option. It has solvent resistant features to provide protection to your products from scratches or solvents up to a great extent. You can easily wipe any scratch from the product with the water or acetone. There are no modifications in coatings or colors, if you have products of UV coating in your hands. Rise In The Production Speed UV adhesive curing is generally liquid plastic at its initial stage. It becomes waterless almost immediately under UV light. From the context, it means that the procedure keeps out all those manual labor and hours of managing wet sheets prior to getting ready for packaging. You are capable of getting the order delivered in relatively lesser time at only a fewer prices. Non-Yellowing Features The UV coatings have non-yellowing features. If the printed material will remain and experience often handling, such as brochures, catalogs, menus, sample books, and many others might form a better option as compared to UV coats. These coatings are not only high gloss in nature, but as well assure tat the print, whiteness of the paper and remaining colors never yellows or fades even over a large period of time of multiple handling or product life.

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EB Products: - Gift Of Technology

To get a healthy workforce and customer base you can use EB Products. It is completely natural and free from chemicals. There are many ways by which you can attract your customers. One way is to attract them with your attracting looking products. Graphic art is very popular these days but it requires plenty of material to get ready with one simple art. There are several chemicals, adhesives and coatings used to give that product with a beautiful look. These are the chemicals and coatings such EB Products. These coatings provide the item with shine and adhesive make sure that they remain compact. Variety of applications These are the coatings and chemicals that are used in many industries such as automobile, pipes, printing, glass and many others. These days there are companies that are suing environmental friendly products. It will be better that you choose them too because they are safe to use and affordable as well. These chemicals are used in variety of applications such as making furniture, circuit boards, musical instruments, printing materials like banners and holdings, steel pipes and much more.  It is better that you choose reputable company that can provide you with all the solutions. With their help they can build any rigid structure effectively from aluminum, steel, plastic, glass, wood and others. Properties The technology is advanced so as the coatings, chemicals and adhesive that is highly being used in many industries. These days’ people go for the chemicals that produce less harm like CO2 emission.  They want a material that can withstand different weather conditions, hardness, resistant to corrosion and others. You are going to get all these properties with TMPTA coating. There are some other amazing products that you will get from the company such as release coating, BP and BisA free coating, UV metallic’s, tactile coatings and others. These are unique formulations of the technology and it was a great need of sorting out the problems that was associated with these chemicals. Earlier adhesive, coatings and other related chemicals were dangerous to use. Workers used to find a lot of difficulty in working with coatings and adhesive because of the chemicals used in it. Now you can easily get Low odor Coating, carbon dioxide and other gases free chemicals. They are totally environmental friendly.  There are some best companies that are offering you with high quality and less harmful chemicals like coatings and adhesive.

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Advantage of UV coatings

Most of us have seen those 1960s long-copy infomercials only tagged under #vintage on tumblr. We do not see them anymore. Could you spot the difference between print ads then, and print ads now? Back then, they were long, black-and-white and hazily printed against today’s minimal, color-intensive, high-gloss coating, laser printed ones; and yet sold better. But there is no way they would have worked in the twenty-first century, for this is the century of images. Images attract. Images interest. Images create desire, and images inspire us to act. If you cannot portray your business’s strengths, qualities, USPs and competitive benefits in your image, you might as well drift into obscurity in no time. So, when you hand out that business card of yours, the first four seconds of holding that card will set the tone of another person’s perception of your company. So, do you realise how dreadful it would be for your business if you hand out a slightly faded, smudged, corner curled, yellowed, dull business card, or for that matter, any other corporate stationery? That prospective customer, business partner, stakeholder, beneficiary would see your company as everything bad your card is. To avoid such a scenario, make sure that your corporate stationery is treated with UV adhesive curing with only industrial UV products. Because now you understand how important that one little piece of paper you hand out to an associate can be. I mean, who wants to be an old newspaper infomercial when you can be an elite magazine ad, right!

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Selecting An Accurate Primer For Painting Project

There are different types of Top Coatings and Primers available in different parts of the world. Selecting an accurate primer for your painting and coating venture depends on the kind and the situation of the exterior. If you want to get long lasting, beautiful and professional quality results, there are so many things you must understand and consider, while choosing the primer. It is important to realize all the essential features linked to a particular primer, prior to proceeding with your project. Need of a primer Why you utilize a primer for your project? A primer assists you in enhancing the adhesion of the top coat to the exterior, offering a uniform, quality finish, which lasts up to a large interval of time. Primer is an initial coat of the painting unit and must be applied once the exterior has not at all been painted. In fact, it is also important whenever painting an exterior, which has been slipped, is badly deteriorated or uneven, or is worn down to the unique substrate. Whilst primers are a crucial element of the painting procedure, it is essential to make use of a complete finish and primer system. This is due to the fact that the primers are not projected in the form of topcoats, as these are not proposed to grasp to a regular wear and tear condition. You need to also choose a primer that offers Weather Resistant Coating, water resistant features and many others. Why primers are important? Primers are essential for below mentioned things, take a look: 1. Seal and fill porous surfaces like masonry or bare wood. 2. Offer an even, smooth exterior for the finish coat, particularly for enamel topcoats. 3. Bond to shiny, slick and many other hard to paint exteriors and make an exterior to which the top coatings can be adhered. 4. Cover an exterior so that the top coatings can be hidden in a better and secure way. 5. Seal staining woods, like redwood and cedar, and cover blemishes from knots, water damage and sap streaks. 6. Give corrosion resistance feature for metal exteriors, like steel, iron, galvanized and aluminum metal. It is important to understand the thing that normally, if you are repainting an exterior, which is in a good situation, a primer may not be required. If you want to buy a primer for your painting project, you need to consider some characteristics in it, like UV curable adhesive, glue and stamp receptive, thermal and laser print receptive, high scuff resistance and much more.