DE4206194A1 - Two-stage process for printing information on sausage skins - uses flexographic first stage and a letter press second stage - Google Patents

Abstract

Information is printed on the surface of food covering material, in particular on sausage skins, by means of a two stage process. The first stage is formed by a flexographic printing process. In this process ink contained in a trough (1) is applied to the surface of a transfer roller (3) by a first roller (2) partly immersed in the ink. The transfer roller transfers the ink to cliches (4) mounted on the third roller (5). The cliches (4) then print the information over a large area of the covering material which passes around the fourth roller (6). The second printing stage is a conventional letterpress method which prints individual pieces of information on the food covering. USE/ADVANTAGE - General information is printed in the first stage with detailed information being printed in the second stage.

Description

The invention relates to a two-stage process for printing food medium casings, especially sausage casings.

It is known to provide food casings by a suitable method pressure. The applied printed images contribute to the advertising effectiveness of the packaging at or can also be required by food law rations or other useful information.

Various standard methods for printing on are in the prior art Food casings known. In practice, the so-called called flexographic printing and rotogravure printing. Both procedures are liable however, the disadvantage is that the use of these printing processes only from one certain minimum quantity is profitable. The process is related to flexographic printing a minimum amount of ink is required. Grant this minimum quantity provides a sufficient fill level in the paint tray and must be finished discarded print series because the color does not last longer Period is durable. Therefore, smaller quantities of printed sausage casings can not produced economically with individual print images using flexographic printing will.

Another standard process is printing using the letterpress process known, which is a rather subordinate in today's production processes Role play. This printing process leads to a print with a relatively rough hen surface, which entails powdering the freshly applied paint stands. However, this rough surface is annoying when filling the sausage casings, since this large-scale roughness affects the machine's ability to move Damage to the brake or faster wear of the brake leads.

There was therefore the task of a process for printing food to develop medium-sized casings that are also available in small quantities economic aspects is worthwhile and the creation of individual enables printing and at the same time the disadvantages of be in the prior art avoided written procedures.

This object is achieved by a method of the type mentioned at the beginning, which is characterized in that in a first stage of the process large flat overprints are printed using flexographic printing and in a second Process stage an individual part of the imprints applied by means of letterpress is brought.

For the first part of the process, a flexographic printing arrangement, as shown in Fig. 1, is used. The liquid printing ink is located in the ink fountain 1 and is transferred to the transfer roller 3 by means of an immersion roller 2 . This transfer roller 3 wets the raised portions of the rubber blocks 4 , which are glued to the roller 5 . The food casing running off a roll is guided over a roller 6 , the counter-pressure cylinder, and the raised ink-wetted parts of the plate transfer the color onto the surface of the food casing.

So-called reaction inks are mainly used as printing inks consist of two components, namely the color itself and the hardener. These two components are in a certain right before the start of printing Ratio mixed together and printed in a given time be so that the reaction - the cross-linking - take place on the intestinal surface can. Once the paint has been applied, the solvent used must be used can be removed by drying in an air stream or by heating. Then The printed artificial intestine can immediately be wound up and assembled will.  

With this first process step, a large print, which is rather contains general information, applied. This includes information about the sausage type and its quality level, information on storage, preparation and Consumption or information on the nutritional value and composition of the sausage or product-related advertising prints that are already successful in the market as successful motifs are introduced. This non-individual part of the print is large Numbers produced, so that the use of the flexographic printing economy is worthwhile.

In a second process step, the individual part of the print is made using Letterpress applied. Color systems are used in letterpress printing applies to oxidatively drying binders with a negligible low solvent content are built up. Because of the higher solid content can apply more color to the intestinal surface than with flexo print. The color transfer takes place like with flexo printing by means of rubber or art clichés. After applying the printing ink, the print must go through Solidify the action of atmospheric oxygen, for which purpose a certain storage of the loose stacked blanks is required. Not to blur it yet to avoid solidified print image and to ensure sufficient air access perform, the print image is mainly powder during the printing process pollinated. Only when the printing ink has solidified can the further assembly work tion.

Letterpress is particularly suitable for the second process step, since here to also produce smaller quantities economically to the required extent are. In addition, letterpress printing enables the exact arrangement of the second part of the print. This makes complex positioning devices gene or similar not required.  

This second individual part of the print enables personal advertising effective packaging design. For example, references to Awards of the product or name and address of the manufacturer or other personal design features are applied.

By combining two independently known A printing process is made available which processes the respective Obtains advantages of the individual methods, but successfully ver their disadvantages avoids. This combination enables well-known large-scale advertising To complement designs with individual personal components. In order to is a free design of the sleeve prints to a much greater extent enables.

The disadvantageous surface roughness of letterpress printing is avoided because the large-area print images can be applied using flexographic printing. At the same time but it is possible through the additions to book printing, small quantities to produce economically.

Claims (1)

Two-stage process for printing on food casings, in particular sausage casings, characterized in that large-area prints are printed on by means of flexographic printing in a first process stage and an individual part of the prints is applied by letterpress printing in a second process stage.