SELL

14 | L&L
NEWS
HOT OFF THE PRESS
A ROUND-UP OF THE LATEST
GLOBAL LABEL STORIES
NISSHA SIGNS EXCLUSIVE
AGREEMENT WITH APPLIED DNA
Nissha Printing, a label and packaging printer
and a half-billion-dollar company based in
Japan, will use APDN technology in a project
to protect the brands of highly valued fish and
other products, recently victims of rampant
counterfeiting. The new printing system uses
‘DNA ink’, derived from plant DNA, to mark
and authenticate labels on high-value fish and
other food products.
The company signed an exclusive
agreement with APDN on October 31,
becoming the sole provider of DNA ink
products in publications and foods (fish and
fruit) in Asia. This agreement complements
the existing deal between Nissha and APDN
and further strengthens the relationship
between the two companies.
Using the new printing system, foods
can be instantly verified as genuine in the
field, using a special handheld detector to
identify the anti-counterfeiting ink. This could
happen at the point of sale, or at any point
along the supply chain. As is typical of APDN
DNA markers, a second, forensic level of
authentication is also available by sending
the suspect product to a secure lab. The
system is safe and non-invasive; foods are
not altered.
Branded foods from particular and often
well-known waters off Japan, and sometimes
preserved with traditional, labor-intensive
methods, are becoming popular, profitable and
necessary in Asia. For example, sushi bars
have become ever more discriminating, while
ocean contamination and other issues beset
the fishing industry.
Counterfeiters and diverters have moved
in with force, selling common foods as the
high-value brand, destroying markets and
reputation of the real item.
‘No product is safe from the threat of
counterfeiting, and this threatens public health
and safety, especially in relation to food and
other consumer products,’ commented Takao
Hashimoto, director and chief technology
officer of Nissha.
The new system, developed by Nissha in
conjunction with APDN, can also package a
wide variety of products with its forgery-proof,
high security layer. The anti-counterfeiting
DNA ink on labels can be delivered by various
printing technologies, such as offset, gravure
and inkjet printing.
Headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, Nissha has
more than 4,000 employees, 11 locations in
Japan and 27 bases located throughout Asia,
North America and Europe.
LABELS&LABELING
GEW HITS UV LANDMARK
UV supplier delivers 10,000th system
Production at the AB Graphic
International factory in Bridlington, East
Yorkshire was temporarily suspended
to celebrate the arrival of the 10,000th
UV curing system manufactured by UV
supplier GEW (EC).
The arrival of the 10,000th UV curing
system in November marked a milestone
in the business relationship between
the two companies with 140 AB Graphic
International employees gathered
in attendance as GEW managing
director, Malcolm Rae made the official
announcement and hand over. ‘Over the
years our two companies have worked
together on many projects that required
a UV solution,’ said Rae. ‘This delivery is
especially significant for us'.
GEW started production in 1991 and
AB Graphic International was our first
customer. We supplied them with our first
UV system for installation on a Kopak
170 rotary letterpress printing machine
and since that time we have sold
them over 600 units for digital printing
applications and in excess of 100 for the
flexo, semi-rotary and rotary letterpress
processes’.
Commenting on the reasons for the
first purchase, Tony Bell, sales director
at AB Graphic International explained,
‘We decided on the GEW UV system
because we recognized the benefits of
FLINT LAUNCHES NEXT
UV EXPOSURE SYSTEM
SYSTEM produces precisely defined surfaces on flat top dots’
Customer events in November signaled
the market launch of Flint Group
Flexographic Products’ nyloflex Next UV
exposure technology.
nyloflex Next produces precisely defined
surfaces on flat top dots. It also provides
a precise image reproduction to ensure
the highest print quality with excellent
ink laydown, even with long print runs,
says the company. Printing plates are
exposed with high-intensity UV-LEDs
(> 800 mW/cm²), which are claimed to
allow a consistent UV emission and the
using an air cooled design and GEW
were pioneers in developing this type of
technology. Most other companies at that
time supplied only water cooled systems
which are high maintenance. The air
cooled system from GEW was unrivalled
and not only minimized installation, but
also lowered investment costs.’
GEW presented a commemorative
plaque and provided celebratory wine for
all AB Graphic International personnel
and in thanking them for their business,
Rae commented, ‘What stands out is that
both GEW and AB Graphic International
have grown and developed products
that have enabled our businesses
and the label industry to expand. This
could not have happened without good
management and people. Without
the right people and work ethic there
would be no business, no suppliers and
no industry.’ Mike Burton, managing
director of AB Graphic International
endorsed this ethos and took the
opportunity to thank his employees for
their efforts in bringing new products to
market in time for launch at the recent
Labelexpo Europe show.
Dave Kirkham, director, AB Graphic
International confirmed the new UV
system will be fitted on an Omega
Digicon label converting line destined for
its Brazilian customer, Mack Color.
reproduction of even the finest detail.
nyloflex Next is suitable for all digital
plates regardless of type, thickness and
format and can easily be implemented
into existing digital workflows. No
additional consumables are needed.
Two types of nyloflex Next exposure
units are now available: nyloflex Next
Exposure F III, the mid-size exposure
unit with format 920 x 1200 mm (36 x 47
in); nyloflex Next Exposure F V, the large
exposure unit with format 1320 x 2032
mm (52 x 80 in).