Pulse Roll Label Products Launches Unique UV PureFX Soft Touch Varnish

Published: August 18, 2021

Pulse Roll Label Products Ltd has announced the launch of its latest product innovation, PureFX Soft Touch Varnish, extending its special effects range to offer a unique UV tactile coating in response to market demands.

The company believes in making products that create time and simplicity in every print room and is focused on delivering unique and sustainable solutions. Demand for tactile finishes is increasing with brand owners seeking haptic coatings that add a premium touch and feel to a consumer package or label. However, achieving a UV soft touch effect has historically presented challenges for narrow web printers due to the nature of UV free radical curing.

With this new development, Pulse Roll Label Products has formulated a product to overcome this and offer an alternative for companies choosing to move away from film or water-based coatings.

Testing of the new PureFX Soft Touch Varnish took place at selected label printing sites and yielded results that provided a soft touch effect the company believes is comparable to soft touch lamination films and water-based flexo.

Demonstrating excellent adhesion, overprintability, press stability, and chemical resistance properties, the PureFX Soft Touch Varnish is reportedly suitable for a range of substrates including coated PE and PP, aluminium foils and paper.

The product is also food packaging compliant, formulated for non-direct food contact packaging applications, and is particularly well-suited for end-use markets including, but not limited to, cosmetics, beauty, personal care, baby care and beverages. As well as conventional UV flexo printing, the new varnish is also suitable for finishing over digital inks to create a soft, smooth effect.

“The very nature of UV is that it is hard which is why it is difficult to achieve a soft touch coating with both the haptic properties and the high resistance properties required to protect product packaging from scuffs, rubs and chemicals,” said Simon Windle, technical manager, Pulse Roll Labels. “Our R&D team challenged themselves to come up with a high-performance UV soft touch varnish that could be a real alternative for companies currently using soft touch lamination films or water-based lacquers.”

For more information, visit https://www.pulserl.com.