Post – Breit Tech

Congratulations 2023 FSEA Gold Leaf Award Winners

Innovative card and label designs showcase Cast & Cure

Breit Technologies is excited to congratulate three of our clients on their 2023 FSEA Gold Leaf Awards in the Best Use of Film Casting category. Visions, Inc. of Brooklyn Park, MN took the Gold, Rose City Label of Portland, OR earned Silver and Cursive in Mason, OH came home with the Bronze. Each of their applications showcased the unique capabilities and design attributes of Cast & Cure.

“We’re proud that each of these clients were honored for their creative, elegant, and innovative use of Cast & Cure in their submissions, noted Tim Cain, Breit Technologies President. Their unique applications took great advantage of Cast & Cure’s visual impact.”

Gold

“Indian Life” greeting card by David White

Printer: Visions, Inc., Brooklyn Park, MN

Process: Digitally printed on HP Indigo 12000 with Scodix offline Cast and Cure embellishment

Silver

Great Nations Freaky Friday – Vapor Ringz

Printer: Rose City Label, Portland, OR

Process: Printed on Mark Andy Evolution E5 press with inline Cast and Cure embellishment.

Bronze

Perennial Artisan Ales – Double Entendre

Printer: Cursive, Mason, OH

Process: Digitally printed on HP 6000 with offline Cast and Cure embellishment on ABG Series 3.

Making a statement easily and cost-effectively

The 2023 Gold award winner from Visions, Inc. delivered dramatic impact with Cast and Cure on these Native American-designed greeting cards. “We love the visual impact and texture we achieved with Cast and Cure on this project. We proved again that it doesn’t take much Cast and Cure to make a major statement, said Visions, Inc. CEO, Jon Otto. “We love the way Cast and Cure imparts a premium impression to greeting cards like these, playing cards or high-end packaging.”

A season of firsts

Cast and Cure lends itself to a wide variety of applications and is extremely easy to work with, even with little prior experience with the technology. Two of these award winners, Rose City Label and Cursive, submitted labels from their very first Cast and Cure runs. With a few phone calls, we were able to guide both talented teams to their award-winning results. Not only was this project a first for Rose City Label, it was run on a newly-installed Mark Andy Evolution series press. “With a little guidance from Breit Technologies both companies produced award winning labels on their first attempt at running Cast and Cure. This speaks volumes to the ease of operation and the talent at these companies,” noted Dan Plash, Breit Technologies Sales Manager.

About the FSEA Gold Leaf Awards

The annual FSEA Gold Leaf Awards showcase the decorative sparkle and design in 47 specialty print effects and binding categories. The 2023 awards mark the 30^th Anniversary of the Gold Leaf Awards. A record number of entries were received from countries around the world, including the US, Canada, India, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, Denmark, Japan, South Africa and Taiwan. Gold, Silver and Bronze winners were honored during a reception held on Tuesday, June 6, at The Print Embellishment Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana.

“Our FSEA Gold Leaf Awards Competition showcases how embellishments have become a catalyst in the printing industry,” stated FSEA Executive Director Jeff Peterson. “The creativity and technology used in the pieces we receive continue to amaze us every year, from greeting cards and book covers to folding cartons and wine labels.”

Learn more about the Gold Leaf Awards

6 New Eco-Friendly Holographic Patterns Add Punch to Packaging

In December 2022, Breit Technologies released six new cast-and-cure patterns to the print and packaging industry. The new eco-friendly patterns increase the total number of patterns manufactured by Breit to over 35.

Five of the patterns are holographic and one simulates a leather pattern. The new patterns include:

LS32 Holographic Stars

LS33 Holographic Circles

LS34 Holographic Hearts

LS36 Holographic Stars2

LS37 Holographic Hearts2

LS Patterned Leather

“Our customers have been super excited about these new patterns,” says Tim Cain, President of Breit Technologies. “I can’t wait to see how packaging pros and graphic designers utilize them over the coming year.”

Eco-friendly cast-and-cure holography and textures can be applied to just about any printed substrate, from paperboard and paper to labels and flexible pouches.

The application process is quite simple. First, a UV coating is applied and then the cast-and-cure film is laminated to the wet surface. A UV lamp then cures the coating sandwiched between the film and the printed web. The film is then delaminated from the printed web and carefully re-wound onto a new core so it can be used again.

Unlike laminated holographic board or cold and hot foil print applications, cast-and-cure holographic film can be reused multiple times. Since less film is needed to complete a job, shipping and warehousing fees are kept to a minimum. Additionally, the cast-and-cure process does not use any adhesives or metals, so it doesn’t affect the recyclability of the substrate.

Breit is currently working on a number of additional cast-and-cure holographic patterns, which they hope to release in early 2023.

Applying Cast and Cure™ to Labels Super Easy, Says Commercial Printer

In 2021, Sercost Inc., a long-time commercial printer in Canada, decided to add a labels to their offerings so they could turn around orders more quickly and better control the printing quality. So earlier this past year they purchased and installed a new label printer and a GM Compact Mini label finisher.

The install went seamlessly, and within weeks they were up and running, printing labels for customers. But since Sercost’s press managers were new to label printing, the team was nervous about trying out the finisher’s holography feature.

In September, with some downtime on his hands, owner Marco Côté decided to reach out to us for installation and printing tips. After a 15-minute call with our sales manager Dan Plash, who instructed them to just use a standard UV gloss coating, they loaded up the sample holographic film roll that was included with the equipment purchase and then fed through the finisher a roll of promotional stickers they had printed earlier that week. Within minutes the press team had successfully applied the holography to the labels.

“It was as if we had been printing with Cast and Cure™ films for 50 years,” said owner Marco Côté. “We were shocked; we were able to hit the ground running, even though our team had never printed with holographic film before. Most surprising was that our initial test run generated zero waste; not one of the pre-printed labels had to be scrapped.”

Sercost’s simple test run has since turned into a paying job. When their sales team showed the holographic stickers to a customer a few weeks later, they were so impressed that they placed an order for holographic labels that very day.

“Printing labels with holographic cast-and-cure film is far easier than I ever imagined,” mused Côté. “I’m not sure why every label printer or packaging company is not utilizing it to gain new customers or expand business with existing customers. It’s an obvious win-win.”

Crooked Water Spirits Creates a Humdinger of a Label with Cast and Cure Holography

Midwest-based Crooked Water Spirits achieved a great deal of critical acclaim over the last few years by introducing a variety of distilled liquors, including vodka, gin, brandy, and bourbons, as well ready-to-pour cocktails, based off of vintage recipes from the Roaring ‘20s. With the initial success of the cocktail mixes, it was a logical next step to release to CWS fans one of the key ingredients of the cocktails: a bitter orange liqueur.

So in 2021, CWS owner Heather Manley and Creative Director Rhett Ambrose started work on the design of the bottle label for the new liqueur, which they called El Dorado. They designed the label to reflect the retro aesthetic while emphasizing the extraordinary nature of the liqueur’s namesake: the 16^th-century lost city of gold, just waiting to be found in the mountain mists by an adventurous conquistador.

When Ambrose presented Manley with the orange, teal, and burgundy Art Deco label design, she knew immediately that it reflected the spirit of the liqueur’s appellation. But she wanted a little “something extra”—an embellishment that would set the label apart from the rest of the bottles on the liquor store shelf. So she was pleased that when they asked the production team at Viking Label and Packaging for some ideas, they suggested utilizing holography.

Although CWS had printed their earlier labels on metallic paper, they had never used holography. Yet Manley was intrigued. “I’ve always loved the eye-catching look of holography but had yet to find an opportunity to use it… until now,” explains Manley.

What sealed the deal was when they learned that they wouldn’t have to print on an expensive holographic laminate if they chose instead to utilize an eco-friendlier option: holographic cast-and-cure film.

“Although finding a sustainable option for holography was not at top of mind when designing the label,” says Ambrose, “we were stoked to learn that our customers would be able to easily recycle the label… and that the film waste was not only recyclable but also minimal, due to the fact that it can be reused multiple times on press.”

After reviewing the 25+ holographic patterns available to them, they decided on a geometric square pattern as it was eye-catching and created a surprising contrast to the curving lines on the rest of the label.

“I’m always pushing for a little extra and the cast-and-cure holography on our El Dorado label allowed us to dial it up all the way… to 11!”
Heather Manley, Owner, Crooked Water Spirits

To complete the design, Ambrose set up the print file as 4/c + opaque white, with non-text areas masked for the holography. They finished off the label with a matte overlay to protect it against scuffing. Since Viking Label printed the project on a flexo label press, they were able to apply the colors, holography and protective overlay all in one pass. The result was, as a Juice Joint owner from the ‘20s would have proclaimed, one “humdinger” of a label.

Customers (as well as design experts) seem to agree. Not only have Manley and her creative team received an incredible initial response from their fans since the liqueur’s release in 2021, but the label design has also won multiple awards, including first place at the TLMI annual printing awards competition and third place in the cast-and-cure category at the 2022 FSEA Gold Leaf awards competition.

*Viking Label’s Steve Wetrosky proudly shows off the award-winning label after its win at the 2022 FSEA Gold Leaf awards.*

3 Types of Soft-Touch Coatings to Make Your Packaging Fly off the Store Shelf

An elegant matte appearance with a rich, suede-like feel, soft-touch coatings have become popular with print and packaging designers over the last decade. Soft touch coatings allow luxury and beauty brands to emphasize their high-end status while making the unboxing experience a pleasurable—and even memorable—tactile event. Coatings also help protect packaging against damage in high-traffic retail environments.

Even more importantly, soft touch coatings increase sales. In fact, one study shows that consumers are willing to pay 5% more for a product in a soft-feeling package!

But to complicate things, there are numerous ways to achieve this effect, each of which has its own benefits.

Below is a summary of the most common ways to apply a soft touch coating so when you’re ready, you can request from your printer the method that best meets your needs.

How Soft Touch is Applied to Packaging

1. Lamination

The most durable way to achieve a soft touch feel is to laminate bi-oriented polypropylene film (BoPP) during the finishing process. Since soft-touch laminates provide a moisture barrier, they tend to make printing appear more muted. Soft touch laminates tend to also be the most expensive option and the plasticized film makes the packaging difficult to recycle. But lamination provides excellent scuff resistance, will prevent corners from curling over time, and will add thickness to the packaging’s structure, thereby making it ideal for e-commerce packaging.

2. Coatings

Due to the cost savings, many designers prefer applying soft touch coatings. Since it does not require an extra press pass, it’s a less expensive process than lamination. And if the coating is aqueous (water-based), this process will not affect the recyclability of the underlying substrate. It will also not mute the printed inks as much as a laminate. Coatings are usually used on paper-based packaging.

3. Cast-and-Cure

The most cost-effective option is Cast and Cure™, which can be applied to just about any type of packaging, from flexible pouches to plastics, paperboard, paper, and labels. With Cast and Cure™, a standard UV varnish is applied inline, after which a special film is “cast” or overlaid onto the varnish, transferring the soft-touch pattern. The varnish is then cured and the film rolled back onto a new core, to be used again. This can be further combined with other types of varnishes to enhance the soft-touch feel.

The cast and cure process has myriad benefits. Since the coefficient of friction (CoF) of standard UV varnish is typically better than aqueous coatings, a cast and cure soft touch coating will make your package more scuff resistant than a standard aqueous offering. Moreover, Cast and Cure™ requires no extra press wash-up, so production time is less. Even more importantly, since the film can be reused numerous times, it is one of the most cost-effective and eco-friendly processes on the market.

Finally, since UV varnishes are recyclable, cast and cure coatings won’t affect the recyclability of your packaging.

This label was printed on PS label stock on a single-color press in three passes: 100%K spot, a holographic cast-and-cure spot coating to the swoosh and text, and a soft touch INX coating along with Breit Tech’s LS-10 matte film.

Getting Started

When you’re ready to apply a soft touch coating to your next design project, first identify the challenges you’re trying to overcome. If recyclability and cost savings is a priority, then you’ll want to use Cast and Cure™. If it’s more important that your packaging remain scuff free on-shelf or during shipping, then a more expensive soft-touch laminate may be your best option.

In either case, you’ll never go wrong by applying a velvet-like coating to a label, printed piece, or package. Not only will your customers find it almost impossible to put down, but it will increase the lifespan of the piece AND improve sales.

Cast and Cure Finds Niche for Many Applications

Originally published in PostPress Magazine, March 2022

Although film casting, known as Cast and Cure™, is not a new print technology, many industry veterans still misunderstand how the process actually works. PostPress sat down with Tim Cain, President of Breit Technologies, to discuss Cast and Cure™, the best applications, and the advantages and disadvantages of the process.

How does Cast and Cure work?

The Cast and Cure is a process in which you can create a decorative, clear holographic pattern on all types of printed substrates. First, a UV coating is applied to the substrate (labels, paper, paperboard, or flexible plastic). Then the casting film is nipped in contact with the wet varnish. UV light passes through the casting film and cures the varnish while the film holds the varnish in the desired shape, much like a mold. The film is then delaminated and separated from the printed web or sheet and is carefully re-wound so it can be used again. The Cast and Cure process leaves behind a beautifully micro-embossed shape in the coating’s surface that can be holographic, matte, or a texture.

What are some of the most popular applications for Cast and Cure?

We see Cast and Cure used in everything from liquor and beverage labels, printed collateral and direct mail, magazine and book covers, and even food and pharmaceutical cartons. Brand owners find Cast and Cure clear holographic patterns are an excellent way to grab the consumer’s attention when it is applied to a carton or label. Since it is clear and transparent, the printed graphics and text is not affected and remains readable by the consumer.

What is the best way to design for Cast and Cure?

Designing for holography in general can be tricky. For instance, when a holographic metalized PET (H-MPET) substrate is used for a carton or label, it most commonly requires designing multiple opaque ink layers to mask those areas where the holography should not bleed through. Since Cast and Cure is applied over the UV varnish, masking specific areas is not needed. Rather, the designer can create a spot varnish layer on the artwork where they want it applied.

Although bold, solid color backgrounds showcase Cast and Cure holographic effects the best, it can also be used to create the illusion of movement over photographs and more busy backgrounds. Ultimately, however, there is no wrong way to use Cast and Cure holography or textured effects.

For most applications, Cast and Cure works best with a full coverage of the clear pattern over the printed image. It can be used in specific areas of a design, but full coverage provides the most impact and attention. In those cases, the designer needs to create a separate layer of solid black where the UV coating and casting film should be applied.

What are some of the benefits of this process?

As discussed earlier, the Cast and Cure micro-embossed film works as a type of mold for the cured UV coating; as such, the film is not actually applied to the substrate so can be reused up to a dozen times (and sometimes even more). This provides a significant cost savings in terms of the amount of film needed for any given job. There is less spent on shipping fees, warehousing, and waste disposal compared to other decorating methods, such as hot and cold foil. Moreover, since the film can be reused over and over, it is more sustainable than other processes.

What are the disadvantages?

Since Cast and Cure is applied to the surface of a UV coating, it reduces the effectiveness of any desired security features. Traditional security holograms are imbedded sub-surface to make it difficult to copy, so Cast and Cure is usually not used solely for security.

There are also limitations to the type of substrates it can be applied to. Since it’s applied to a coating of UV ink, a coated, smooth stock works best. An uncoated or textured stock will absorb the coating and not allow the process to work as well.

What can some of the on-press challenges be overcome?

The most common on-press challenge is poor tension control when winding the film back onto its roll. Once a wrinkle is introduced to the roll, it’s almost impossible to eliminate. Fortunately, if the press operator follows proper tension guidelines, they will be able to start and splice the film without wrinkles, ensuring that the film can be reused over and over again.

Applying the UV coating correctly before the casting film is introduced is also essential for the successful application of Cast and Cure.

Are there any new applications in the works?

Recently the shrink sleeve and gift-wrap market has started to embrace Cast and Cure, which is truly exciting. Brand owners with long-run jobs are also starting to use the technique, as the process can be applied now at close to 1,000 feet per minute.

We are also working to combine Cast and Cure with a monochrome inkjet system so a variable varnish application can be applied (such as unique security features, names, etc.) to individual printed pieces.

Metallic and Special Effects Labels Help Brands Stand Out

Excerpted from Label and Narrow Web magazine, March 2022

*Cast-and-cure holography applied to a basic spray bottle label elevates the design and adds eye-catching elements.*

With SKU proliferation and an explosion of new brands now reaching the marketplace, metallic and special effects lead the way in the high stakes game of standing out on the store shelf.

According to Tim Cain, President of Breit Technologies, before using any type of specialty effects, brand owners and designers should ask themselves which effect will most likely attract their target market, what enhancements are being used by competitors, and if the enhancement will engage their target audience or just confuse them.

Of course, utilizing illuminating graphics does not mean sacrificing recyclability.

“Since casting film can be reused up to a dozen times (and sometimes even more), there’s a significant cost savings in terms of the amount of film needed for any given job. Less film means less money spent on shipping fees and warehousing,” explains Cain.

“Moreover, the cast-and-cure process does not use any adhesives or metals, so it won’t affect the recyclability of the label,” says Cain. “That’s great news for brand owners following a corporate sustainability strategy.”

How to Begin

When brand owners approach Breit with a project, the company first asks them to describe what they are hoping to achieve. If their needs can be met with one of their many stock patterns, then Breit will supply them with proofs that showcase a few different patterns so they can visualize how the pattern will appear on the printed label.

If instead they’re looking for a unique holographic design or wish to embed an invisible security feature into a hologram to protect the product against counterfeiting, “we’ll work with them to develop the custom design,” says Cain. Once the design is approved, Breit provides a sample mockup that shows how the label will appear once printed.

When first working with Cast and Cure™, making sure that the presses can run the film is also important, so Breit provides customers with sample film rolls so label printers can test it on their presses before starting the job.

No Wrong Way to Use Holography

Of course, designing for holography can be tricky. Holographic metallized PET (H-MPET) requires designing multiple opaque ink layers to mask those areas of the printed piece where the holography should not bleed through. Since Cast and Cure™ is applied as a clear varnish, the designer needs to only create a spot varnish layer.

“Although bold, solid color backgrounds showcase cast-and-cure holographic effects the best, it can also be used to create the illusion of movement over photographs and busy backgrounds,” says Cain. “Ultimately, however, there is no wrong way to use cast-and-cure holography or textured effects.”

Product Selection

As well as offering more than 30 stock holographic patterns, including matte, high gloss, leather, and linen textures, Breit offers a wide range of cast-and-cure equipment. Breit can also create custom holograms or can modify an existing pattern to meet a customer’s needs.

Breit is also collaborating with another company to develop Cast and Cure™ for monochrome inkjet printers. According to Cain, this will allow for a variable varnish application so unique security features, names, etc. can be applied to individual printed pieces.

Whatever type of special effects a brand owner or designer chooses to apply, rest assured that specialty coating suppliers such as Breit Technologies will be there to provide the resources needed to better convey brand messaging and help increase in-store sales.

To read the unedited LNW article, click here.

Case Study: Cannabis Company Embraces Cast and Cure

By Kim Guarnaccia, Huzzah Marketing

For decades, holographic special effects have been used to enhance design elements, so a package can stand apart from competitors on the store shelf. The cannabis industry is now starting to utilize holography to achieve these goals; case in point is the holography applied to Inflorescence’s flexible pouch.

When Inflorescence first introduced their product line, they approached Ross Print and Packaging for assistance in developing an attention-grabbing short-run package. With an eye towards cost savings, they selected an inexpensive flexible pouch that could hold varying sizes and shapes of small glass jars. The designers then recommended emphasizing the curving abstract design with a waterfall cast-and-cure holographic pattern from Breit Technologies. This design, they believed, would also set apart the pouch from others hanging on a dispensary store rack.

Although the print team encountered a learning curve on how to align the cast-and-cure rolls as the film moved from the press to the finishing station, they quickly overcame the challenge and have successfully used this technique on other jobs since then.

“But what’s most amazing about cast and cure film,” says Eric Sandstrom, Digital Press Lead at Ross Print, “is that the same film can be reused multiple times, thereby reducing waste and repurchasing costs.”

Inflorescence loved the holographic effect so much that they now use cast and cure on their jar labels as well.

Excerpted from Post Press magazine’s Nov/Dec 2021 issue. To read the entire article, click here.

Cast and Cure Holographic Finishes Earn Recognition at FSEA

The Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA) recently revealed the honorees in the 25th Annual FSEA Gold Leaf Awards Competition, held during the FSEA•IADD Joint Conference in Franklin, TN.

In the category of Best Use of Film Casting, three entries were recognized, each of which cited Breit Technologies as the supplier of their cast and cure films.

Label Impressions of Orange, CA earned a Gold Leaf award for its Lalicious Birthday Cake label. According to CEO Jeff Salisbury, “The client wanted the label to ‘pop’” without detracting from the overall design so a cast and cure holographic finish was the ideal choice.”

MCD of Madison, WI, earned a Silver Leaf for the Schutt Sports catalog covers, using the cast and cure rainbow holographic pattern. According to MDC owner Glenn Gauger, “Cast and cure was a great design solution that reflected the growing trend of decorating football helmets in the college market.”

The Bertelsmann Printing Group, along with Dynamic Graphic Finishing, both from New York, NY, earned a Bronze Leaf award for its “Celebration of Hope” entry, a unique invite to a gala celebration. Dynamic Graphic Finishing’s Coating Manager shared, “It was a great choice for this project and less costly that foiling.”

Nearly 300 entries were received from around the world for this year’s Gold Leaf Awards competition. Judged on design, execution and level of difficulty, the competition assesses submissions utilizing specialty finishing techniques, from foil stamping and embossing to specialty coating, film laminating, laser cutting, diecutting, cold foils, and more.

The competition celebrates the quality, added value, shelf presence, security, and brand recognition these finishing processes lend to the printed sheet.