Videojet Shares Key Tips To Avoid Ink Transfer On Wound Cable And Tubing

Videojet Shares Key Tips To Avoid Ink Transfer On Wound Cable And Tubing

Application-specific Solutions Can Help Eliminate Ink Transfer Altogether

WOOD DALE, Ill. — April 23, 2013 — Codes that are faded, smudged or visually incomplete can cause considerable downtime, excessive waste and a degraded view of a product’s quality. Cable and tubing manufacturers know this all too well.

Directly printed on the surface of wire insulation, cable jacketing and plastic tubing, legible codes provide reliable product identification and traceability of products, batches and lots.  Fortunately, ink transfer is completely preventable with the right application-specific solutions.

Videojet Technologies Inc., a world-leading manufacturer of coding, printing and laser marking products, fluids and accessories for the product identification industry, suggests three key ways to influence the coding process to promote optimum ink adhesion and eliminate transfer from one surface to another on spooled wire or cable.

1. Select the right ink. With so many inks available to choose from, it is imperative to select inks that are designed and formulated to complement the application and operating conditions.
2. Evaluate your materials. Materials containing high amounts of volatile plasticizers (chemical additives) tend to resist good ink adhesion for long periods of time. When coding on these materials, performance must be checked and suitable precautions made. It is essential to select an ink with the appropriate chemistry to obtain good adhesion on the substrate.
3. Survey your processes. Sometimes changing up processes can improve ink adhesion on products.

For example, coding immediately after the wire or cable has exited the extruder, instead of waiting until it exits the cooling bath, can promote rigorous initial adhesion.

“Companies should look for installation expertise, a wide selection of well-tested inks and significant experience and knowledge about extruded product applications. The best coding equipment/ink vendors run tests with actual samples and replicate the production environment as closely as possible,” said Drew Weightman, vertical marketing manager for Videojet. “The good news is that there are solutions available to solve almost any transfer problem; it’s just a matter of finding the right one that will adhere, and stay put.”

For more information or to download materials from Videojet’s library of white papers, case studies, application notes and guides related to the wire, cable, pipe and tubing industry, visit www.videojet.com/extrusion.

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About Videojet
Videojet Technologies Inc. is a world-leading manufacturer of coding, printing and laser marking products, fluids, and accessories for the product identification industry. As experts in continuous inkjet (CIJ), thermal inkjet (TIJ), case coding, thermal transfer overprinting (TTO), and laser marking technologies, Videojet has more than 325,000 units installed worldwide. Sales, service, training, administrative and application support is provided by direct operations worldwide, including Austria, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom, with more than 250 direct sales and service personnel in the United States alone. Videojet’s distribution network includes more than 175 distributors and OEMs, serving 135 countries.

©2013 Videojet Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. Videojet and Uptime Peace of Mind are registered trademarks of Videojet Technologies Inc.