Digital Print CIC's mission is to enhance the competitive nature of the digital print industry regionally, nationally and internationally.

It achieves this by bringing together world-class R&D resources for printing to provide services including technology transfer, consultancy and training. It also seeks to maximise collaboration with other government initiatives to establish brand new areas of business development.

...Having attended the Colour Masters Course in December 2006 we now have the necessary knowledge and techniques to control colour calibration and profiling within all areas of our company. This is a valuable addition to our skill base and gives us the vital confidence we require in both our input and output results...

Andrew Rodgers, Pre-press Manager, ProCo

The Centre has been created to make the commercial applications of research more accessible to business. The benefits of collaboration have been proved time and again: Higher profits and improved company health.

Specialist Areas

Security

Security is a major issue in print technology. The Centre offers expertise in the development of secure printing techniques such as unique brand protection labels to prevent the sale of counterfeit goods. Safety specialisms include the development of thermochromic and photochromic materials for anti-counterfeit applications such as banknotes, as well as inks designed for anti-counterfeit applications such as cheques and IDs.

Development of New Printing Applications

New technologies are being developed at the Centre governing the substrate, pigments/dyes and inks with the aim of increasing efficiency by ensuring that processes are consistently achieved to the highest standards. These include:

Pigment and Dye Chemistry
Synthesis of high quality, specialty dyes and pigments for digital imaging applications

Surface Chemistry
Optimisation of the properties of pigments, pigment/binder interactions and ink/substrate

Interactions to improve image quality

Polymer Materials
Development of specialty polymeric materials for use in printing ink formulations

Inks/Coatings Formulation
Development of customer specified digital printing ink formulations

Colour Management
Advice on and software for ensuring consistent colour reproduction across different media including digital photography, scanning, digital graphic files, graphic display units, printing plates, printing presses and colour measurement instruments.

Effective Collaboration

As with any successful collaboration, it is vital that both parties work together effectively. From day one you will work with a dedicated Commercial Manager whose role is to act as a bridge between your business and the services provided by the Centre. This ensures that the right expertise is on hand to achieve a successful outcome.

Testament to this is the Centres track record of successful collaboration with companies such as Field Group, European Colour, ICI, Coates, Abbott Laboratory, GE Plastics, P&G, Samsung, Akzo-Nobel, Asahi, Benjamin Moore, DigiEye, Customs & Excise, DuPont, Masterfoods and Pitney-Bowes.

Ink Characterisation