Clear printing of brand, industrial codes, dates and other information on, for instance, PVC pipe surface, helps builders differentiate pipes and indicates that the manufacturer certifies the product has been created, inspected, and tested in accordance with the requirements of the product standard.
Ink jet printing offers a solution to manufacturers who mark their PVC building applications accordingly. However, ink can be easily removed by unauthorized parties.As an alternative, PVC brand owners can use a fiber laser to create permanent marks. The result is either “ablation”, when the heat removes the top layer of multilayer material or “melting”, when the material absorbs laser light. The surface transforms to a different appearance and shows the code. In both cases, the material looks somewhat burned.
To avoid this burning effect, converters could add laser marking additives to the compound or resin, but this is usually a costly option. Besides, laser marking additives may contaminate the recycling stream.
But, the use of laser marking additives is no longer a requirement. High quality laser marking effects can be obtained when using Holland Colours MarkIt. We used our 40 years of PVC coloring experience to develop colorants based on pigments that naturally react at a certain wavelength of the fiber laser. The line contains no laser marking additives, making it an economic, high quality, laser marking solution. It is a validated technology that has been approved by a number of global brand owners in the packaging industry. Optimal polymer laser marking results are obtained by using Holland Colours’ MarkIt range in combination with Videojet’s 7000 Fiber Series.
If you would like to receive more information about MarkIt, please download the leaflet by clicking here.
