Wide format inkjet printer manufacturer Mutoh Belgium nv announces immediate availability of its new Bio-Lactite™ inks, which were first presented at the past Fespa 2010 show in Munich, Germany. Mutoh’s new Bio-Lactite™ ink is a renewable resource based ink – made from corn – capable of printing on both flexible and rigid materials.
“Our new organic Bio-Lactite inks are the result of Mutoh’s ongoing commitment to develop sustainable and environmentally friendly printing solutions for both installed base Mutoh users and new users”, says Arthur Vanhoutte, President of Mutoh’s European operations.
“The inks will offer print providers a sustainable print solution that will enable them to reduce the entire environmental footprint of their daily production. The new Bio-Lactite inks will enable users to explore green output on recyclable media whilst keeping the performance features of typical solvent-based inks and keeping an efficient energy consumption. The ink’s attractive price setting will furthermore enable printer users to reduce their cost for print figures. Last but not least, Mutoh’s award-winning and so far unrivalled Intelligent Interweaving print technology will avoid trial and error printing and therefore reduce media waste”, Vanhoutte concludes.
The new Bio-Lactite™ ink is compatible with Mutoh Rockhopper 3 Extreme roll printers and the Mutoh ValueJet Hybrid roll to roll and rigid printer. Available in 220 & 440 ml cassettes, 880 ml bags and in litre bottles, the inks will be marketed all over Europe, the Middle East and Africa through Mutoh’s authorised distributor channel.
Key Characteristics of Mutoh Bio-Lactite™ Inks
Ink Composition & Safety Aspects
- Mutoh’s Bio Lactite™ inks are non-petrochemical based inks. 50 % of the inks is ethyl-lactate, a component which is derived from corn.
- The inks do not spread any harmful VOCs (volatile organic compounds) in the working environment and therefore do not require any forced or special ventilation.
- Non ODP inks (non Ozone DePleting), meaning the inks do not contain products which are considered as harmful to the earth's protective ozone layer.
- Rapid drying; no external drying equipment is required to dry the inks.
- Inks are fixed and dried at regular heating temperatures. For roll printing, only 600 W is consumed during printing.
- Wide colour gamut with unique media gloss preservation.
- Low maintenance – same ease of use as Mutoh Eco Ultra inks.
Unique Ink Fixation Process
- Selected binders contained in the Bio-Lactite™ inks ensure an optimized chemical interaction among the pigments and the media surface.
- For roll media, the ink is fixed and dried by the printer’s conventional integrated heating elements.
- For rigid media printing and for insulating roll media such as polypropylene, Mutoh proprietary rapid response heated air knives (ValueJet Hybrid only) deliver instant heating from the top, fixing and drying the ink.
Multi-Purpose Ink
- Mutoh Bio-Lactite™ inks are suited for both roll and rigid printing.
- Unlike other “green” inks, the unique ink formulation of Mutoh Bio-Lactite™ inks, specifically tuned to piezo drop-on-demand inkjet head technology, will enable printing on a wide range of conventional solvent-compatible media.
- The inks will also be the obvious choice for customers demanding “green output” on recyclable media and for high quality direct printing on “exotic” media not typically intended for inkjet printing.
- Unrivalled media compatibility range - Uncoated rigid materials : Acrylic glass - PMMA, aluminium sandwich board, foam board, cardboard, ABS, polycarbonate - PC, polypropylene - PP, etc… Uncoated flexible substrates : Non-PVC & PVC based self-adhesive media, recyclable fibre-based paper, banner, polyethylene - PET, polypropylene - PP, etc....
Performance
- Suitable for indoor and outdoor applications.
- Suited for 3D wrap applications and for unique thermo-deformation applications.
- For high quality prints for close viewing distances (< 1 meter), typical production speeds of 9 m² per hour at 720 x 720 dpi can be reached on flexible substrates. For rigid substrates, speeds of 8 m²/h at 720 x 720 dpi can be reached.
- Outdoor durability of up to two years, without lamination. For fleet, floor graphics or other applications where prints are exposed to intensive mechanical stress or abrasion, lamination is recommended.
Availability
- 220 ml cassettes
- 440 ml cassettes
- 880 ml bags (for ValueJet Hybrid only)
- 1 litre bottles (for use in combination with Mutoh’s bulk ink system).
About Mutoh’s Bulk Ink System (BIS)
Mutoh’s BIS system was developed for speed-intensive, volume oriented users that require a high-volume ink delivery and refill system. The bulk ink system can be easily mounted on top of the printer.
