Make Your Package Pop!

Our company undertakes three tests that help ensure all our UV-coated packages match or exceed demanding expectations.

• Sutherland Rub Test—UV coatings must be able to withstand frequent handling without scuffing or rubbing off. To ensure our coatings are scuff- and rub-resistant, we administer the industry-standard Sutherland Rub Test to a sample of every UV-coated project we produce. Samples must be able to withstand at least 200-300 rubs before we begin a full production run.
• Gloss Testing—Gloss testing is a critically important quality control procedure. An excessively glossy coating can hurt a package's readability and overall appearance, and gloss testing helps finishers know when to adjust the glossiness of a UV coating during production.
• Energy monitoring and testing—Testing, monitoring, and recording the precise energy output of UV coating equipment may seem like an arcane endeavor. Actually, it's an excellent way to determine the appropriate levels these machines should be set at to ensure accurate and efficient UV coating application.

About the author—Kevin Cullen is president of Apex Die, a print finisher located in Northern California. pP