Drying, Curing & UV Likora upgrades gravure press with new UV system
Germany company, Likora, upgraded one of its existing gravure printing lines in order to save energy and to improve the efficiency of its operation
founded in 1983 and was originally located in Detmold. In 1991 it moved to its current production site and over the years, with its emphasis on quality, reliability and flexibility, the company became a major international partner for the furniture and interior design industry, manufacturing mainly finish foils and decor paper for the furniture industry and interior design applications. In 2016 Likora upgraded the final
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varnishing station on one of its gravure printing lines with a new UV-curing system replacing an older system. For this purpose the company integrated three GEW-made 240cm-wide NUVA2 UV lampheads with RHINO power supply. The three UV lampheads are positioned vertically one after the other so as to achieve the maximum UV-curing effect. The UV system is mounted in a custom designed aluminium frame that integrates a retractable cooling panel and water-cooled quartz window to prevent the heat transfer onto the substrate. The installation is based on a Cerutti
machine with five print stations using water-based inks with IR drying. The configuration is now able to print and varnish substrates up to 2,250mm wide with speeds up to 120m/min and mainly produces finish foils intended for wrapping and laminating on wood-based materials.
ikora is a family-run business based in Horn-Bad Meinberg in Westphalia. The company was
Managing director of Likora, Christian
Bungard, explains: “On our previous system we certainly had issues with excessive heat radiation and the extremely short life cycles of the UV lamps. Our clients demand a quality product and expect us to be an absolutely dependable supplier. For this reason it was one of our main objectives to convert to a low maintenance operation with the highest reliability.”
HIGH-PERFORMANCE TECHNOLOGIES The decision in favour of the GEW UV system was due to the requirement that major investments go only into reliable high-performance technologies. “GEW was able to offer us a comprehensive package of eficiency and reliability with UV lamp life cycles of several thousand hours.” For complete peace of mind the GEW
package comes with the security of a five- year warranty. Embedded Service, which is part of GEW’s package, enables engineers to remotely access performance data and proactively detect parameters outside the permitted tolerances and immediately take the necessary maintenance steps even before a fault can develop. This type of preventive remote
maintenance ensures that the entire UV system works at its peak performance at all times thus avoiding unplanned machine stoppages and waste of resources.
SAVING TIME AND MONEY The new UV system based on GEW’s highly eficient NUVA2 lampheads boasts
particularly fast switch-on and cool-down cycles achieving considerable electricity and time savings. Bungard concludes: “The NUVA2 UV
lampheads together with the RHINO power supply reduce our electricity consumption by some 50 per cent, allowing us at the same time to further increase our capacity and enjoy faster, more stable production.” Since the initial installation Likora has already invested in another two systems to harmonise its UV technology across its site.
MEETING CHALLENGING CONDITIONS GEW is one of the world-leading manufacturers of robust, energy-eficient UV curing systems for printing and coating applications. Its systems are designed for operation in the most challenging conditions. Besides its headquarters and factory in England, the company owns subsidiaries in the USA, Germany and India, and operates a network of international distributors worldwide.
The Cerutti machine at Likora with GEW’s NUVA2 UV system installed on top 14 February 2017
uwww.gewuv.com www.convertermag.co.uk
Above, the cooling panel facing the three NUVA2 UV lampheads. Below, the lampheads, water-cooled quartz window frame and retractable cooling panel (on the right of the image)
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