R&D Testing Capabilities
We offer lab testing for environmental and/or other issues and provide prints and technical information for our customers and their clients. In addition, each of our five manufacturing locations maintains a significant level of testing equipment to meet local customer needs. The following is a list of selected equipment and capabilities available in the Richmond, VA plant for water based flexographic inks, gravure inks, and lithographic inks as well:
We offer lab testing for environmental and/or other issues and provide prints and technical information for our customers and their clients. In addition, each of our five manufacturing locations maintains a significant level of testing equipment to meet local customer needs. The following is a list of selected equipment and capabilities available in the Richmond, VA plant for water based flexographic inks, gravure inks, and lithographic inks as well:
- Hewlett Packard Gas Chromatograph – Measurement of solvent profiles in raw materials and inks.
- Southerland Rub Tester – provides rub testing measurements using different weights and substrates to predict the rub and scuff capabilities of finished containers.
- TMI slide angle and coefficient of friction testers. We have both types to provide measurement for dynamic and static situations.
- Precision Scientific flash tester – Measurement of the flash point for an ink.
- Atlas Fadometer - Measurements to predict the light fastness for printed samples.
- Pamarco Precision Proofer – Capability to produce duplicate flexographic prints using the same specifications for each proof.
- Geiger Flexographic roll to roll press – capability of producing large volume proofs
- American Ultraviolet Curing Oven – capability of curing prints with UV overprint and/or UV inks.
- Mettler – Toledo Halogen Moisture Analyzer – measurement of solid content in raw materials or inks.
- Pamarco and Early Laboratory Proofers – proofers fitted with both blade systems and roll to roll systems with anilox rolls from 150 lpi to 1000 lpi. These proofers are used to print presentation prints for customers and to quality control batches of inks to established specifications.
- X-Rite spectrophotometers. All our plants are fully equipped with the X-Rite 939 and our Richmond facility recently installed the newest system X-Rite Exact and software which was introduced in the fall of 2012.
- Brookfield Viscometers – electronic measurement of viscosity in both digital and analog modes.
- CSC Scientific Tensiometer – measurement of the surface tension of liquids.