UV Coating

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Print Finishing Considered Secret Weapon for Growth by Commercial Printers
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UV Coating Services

Consult us for the right UV coating for your offset or digital print project

For more than 40 years, Classic Laminations has grown our business by offering print finishing solutions that help you grow your business. Partnering with Classic Laminations allows you to have all our services and equipment available when you need them.  You don’t have to invest in UV coating equipment and supplies so you can invest your dollars in other areas that will better serve your business. Our UV coating services builds on our mission of continuing as Northeast Ohio’s most comprehensive print finishing company.

With the growth of digital printing, the need to protect toner from the vulnerabilities of abrasion and fading has grown. Dry toners, and especially soft liquid toner used on HP Indigo presses, can benefit greatly from this inexpensive added protection.  UV coating is a cost-effective way to add protection to your print collateral. In addition, this special kind of coating is a great way to give your printed piece a high-end look.

Our print finishing professionals can run projects as small as 4” by 6” or as large as 20” by 60” on our UV coating machine. Simply choose from gloss, satin or matte finish to customize the look of your project that best suits your print collateral.

The benefit of choosing the gloss UV coating is that it imparts an almost “wet” look to your printed piece. This makes photographic images in your piece “pop.”

The satin or matte UV coating is ideal for projects where there is a lot of line copy. The matte type of UV coating will add smudge-proof protection to your piece. It also gives your piece a nice, rich feel. The non-glare coating allows your text to be read easily, even in direct sunlight. We can help you choose the right appearance and finishes that best suits your print collateral.

Other reasons to choose our UV coating services include:

  • Capabilities to provide single or double-sided UV coating
  • Automated feeding system that helps improve turnaround times and productivity
  • Ability to UV coat edge to edge, reducing the need for an oversized sheet and trimming which saves you time and money
  • Availability of UV coating for both offset and digitally printed projects
  • Ability to UV coat a wide range of thicknesses of text and cover stocks


    • UV coating has never been easier, faster, or more cost effective.  Classic Laminations, based in Cleveland, OH, is here to help for all types of jobs from as small as postcards to as large as wall posters. Don’t hesitate to call us for those special cases where your project needs to be expedited. Our print finishing professionals have the experience and production equipment to handle all types of needs for the graphic arts community.

    Terminology

    UV Coating

    This term is most frequently used to refer to surface treatments or varnishes which are cured by ultraviolet radiation. A properly cured UV coating is chemically and physically resistant and is used to both protect and decorate substrates it is applied to such as paper. An alternate meaning that is less frequently used is a coating capable of protecting the underlying material from harmful effects of UV radiation.

    UV Curable Inks

    These are inks which cure via treatment with ultraviolet light. These inks produce hard, durable images and are less media sensitive than solvent or aqueous inks.

    UV Curing

    This refers to the polymerization of UV sensitive materials, such as coatings, inks and adhesives, that are formulated to cure when exposed to a specific wavelength of UV radiation, rather than drying through the evaporation of solvents. It is also known as photopolymerization or radiation curing.

    UV Printing Inks

    These are printing inks that are formulated for UV curing, which is activated by exposure to a specific wavelength of UV radiation. They are formulated to contain pigments, a blend of liquid acrylic esters (binders, reactive diluents) or their prepolymers, and photoinitiators.

    Binders (for UV coatings and printing inks)

    These are components of UV coatings and inks which are typically acrylate monomers, oligomers and prepolymers. The oligomer backbone determines properties such as flexibility and hardness. Polyfunctional oligomers control the network density and as a result the mechanical properties. With the help of photoinitiators, the liquid acrylate compounds react under exposure to UV light to crosslink and form a solid plastic film.

    Photoinitiator

    This is the term for a chemical compound that undergoes a photoreaction when it absorbs light, producing reactive species that are capable of initiating or catalyzing chemical reactions, leading to cross-linkage with the molecules in the binder and transforming a soluble liquid formulation into a hard and insoluble crosslinked polymer network. The result is significant changes in the solubility and physical properties of suitable formulations. Most radiation curing is performed using near UV light (300 – 400 nm range), but initiators that extend into the visible, up to the infrared (IR) range, or on the blue side to the deep UV range are also available today.