By Jeff Peterson, editor-in-chief, PostPress

How Does Cast and Cure Work?

The Cast and Cure process embosses a UV varnish so that it bends light, creating a holographic effect. While Cast and Cure film is temporarily ‘laminated’ to the varnish, UV light is cast through the film, curing the image into the UV varnish. The Cast and Cure film then is lifted off the substrate and rewound for reuse, leaving no film behind. The Cast and Cure material can be embossed with a variety of standard patterns and can support customized designs. It is compatible with clear label, wet label, coated paper, paperboard, film, heat-sensitive material and shrink film.

Cast and Cure creates affordable, sustainable and stunning visual and tactile effects. Since Cast and Cure leaves no material on the substrate, it does not obscure the underlying design. It’s easy to enhance existing designs without creating new artwork. Cast and Cure’s reusability reduces the cost of embellishment and dramatically reduces waste compared to the 1:1 application of other embellishments.

As stated earlier, Cast and Cure is reusable – reducing the cost and waste. With proper use, the films have been reused five or more times for certain applications. Breit Technologies offers dedicated Cast and Cure equipment for both sheet-fed and wide and narrow flexographic presses. There are several machinery options in the marketplace, including digital equipment that can apply Cast and Cure inline, as well as many popular cold foil systems. This flexibility in application methods allows for affordable embellishment regardless of print process or run size.

Applications

Cast and Cure commonly is used to embellish direct marketing pieces, prime labels, paper and flexible packaging, gift wrap, trading cards and other collectibles. Cast and Cure can be used either in spot or flood coat applications without obscuring designs. It typically is chosen in cases where dynamic brand differentiation is required, but cost efficiency and speed-to-shelf are key. It also can be advantageous for shorter-run projects. The subtle light diffraction of UV film casting looks particularly striking on dark or vivid colors; it does not reflect as well on lighter backgrounds. With custom designs, Cast and Cure can provide additional security features for brand protection as well.

Sustainability

Cast and Cure can be reused multiple times, reducing the amount of material waste and the carbon footprint of transportation of both raw materials and finished product. Cast and Cure film also is recyclable, reducing the embellishment waste stream. With UV and EB curing, Cast and Cure embellishment produces no VOCs and significantly reduces energy use in processing. Since no additional material is laminated to the substrate, Cast and Cure embellishment has no impact on the recyclability or compostibility of the product.

Breit Technologies inventories a variety of stock patterns and finishes. This includes 30 standard holographic patterns, scuff resistant matte, soft touch matte, Clear Super Gloss and non-holographic textures, such as brush stroke, canvas, linen and leather effects.

For more information on Breit Technologies’ Cast and Cure films and equipment, visit www.breit-tech.com or call 913.492.8081.