by Jessica Makrinos, marketing manager, Inkcups In a time when travel is banned, face-to-face contact is limited and the world is put on hold, businesses are working harder than ever to ensure they are positively progressing. For many companies, especially those that manufacture and sell industrial printing equipment and supplies, connecting with customers is key. Many of … [Read more...] about Going Virtual During COVID
2020 Oct/Nov
2021 and Beyond – The Industry Looks Ahead
by Brittany Willes, editor, Plastics Decorating To say the least, 2020 has been a strange and challenging time. The plastics industry, like many others, has suffered its share of setbacks. According to a report by Business Wire, “The global plastic products market is expected to decline from $1008.5 billion in 2019 to $987 billion in 2020 … The decline is mainly due to … [Read more...] about 2021 and Beyond – The Industry Looks Ahead
UV LED Curing for Surface Hardcoats
by Jennifer Heathcote, business development manager, GEW, Inc. Optically transparent UV-cured hardcoats, topcoats, overcoats and clearcoats are utilized in numerous plastics decorating processes. As the descriptors suggest, these coatings tend to be clear but also can be tinted or formulated with other visual additives, are applied to the outermost surface of manufactured … [Read more...] about UV LED Curing for Surface Hardcoats
Improving Polymer Adhesion: Advancements for Low Surface Energy Plastics Applications
by Scott R. Sabreen, president, The Sabreen Group Many polymers are inherently hydrophobic, low-surface energy substrates that do not adhere well to like or dissimilar materials. Surface modification methods are proven to solve most adhesion problems. Traditional methods include electrical (corona) discharge, flame plasma, atmospheric plasma, cold-gas plasma and UV … [Read more...] about Improving Polymer Adhesion: Advancements for Low Surface Energy Plastics Applications
In-Mold Decorating Continues to Expand
Despite its slow growth in the US, in-mold decorating and labeling processes have proven themselves to be popular with plastics decorators and molders. Plastics Decorating recently sat down with Dave Schoofs, business and product development at Central Decal, to discuss the ways in which IMD/IML has made an impact, how molders can best make use of the technology, and how IMD … [Read more...] about In-Mold Decorating Continues to Expand