With over 15 years of experience in flexo printing, BEMA BV has built a reputation for delivering exceptional packaging solutions. Early on, the company recognized the superior quality and brightness of Resino’s printing ink, which met their stringent standards. Together with IST INTECH, which supplied BEMA BV with a superior UV LED curing system, it became a three-way partnership that lays down a foundation for a more efficient and effective production process.
As the volume of orders grew over the years, BEMA BV found that Resino’s fast delivery and high-quality inks in combination with good UV curing system (manufactured, delivered by IST INTECH and Installed by IST Benelux BV) did not only allow them to meet their customers’ needs but also led them to an environmentally friendly, cost-efficient printing process.
“Sustainability and proven technology are definitely most important for BEMA BV. Together with Resino inks we have accomplished this task. It is nice to see how easy and quick the printer’s set-up the system for a production” Koen Santegoeds, Global Sales Director.
The journey towards UV LED Curing Systems
BEMA BV was not content with their achievements and sought continuous improvements in their production efficiency and product quality. The printing department, operating 24/7, played a critical role in the production of printed casings. Through careful monitoring, they identified a bottleneck in their UV-curing systems (Mercury lamp systems), which limited their production capacity. To address this issue, BEMA BV made the decision to invest in a new upgraded curing system.
At the time of this decision, the company faced additional challenges, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Ukrainian war. These factors led to increased energy prices, making it essential for BEMA BV to explore alternative options for reducing their energy consumption and overall production costs. In their pursuit of a more sustainable solution, they became aware of Resino’s ongoing development of an LED curing system paired with LED inks for printing on sausage casings and food packaging.
Recognizing the potential benefits of this innovative system, BEMA BV, Resino and IST INTECH collaborated on a series of tests in BEMA BV’s production facility. The results were promising, and the UV LED system from IST INTECH with LED inks proved to be the right solution for their needs. This breakthrough not only significantly reduced their energy consumption but also increased production speeds and significantly reduced make-ready time. The modularity and efficiency of the IST INTECH UV LED curing system in combination with Resino’s UV Led inks aligned perfectly with BEMA BV’s commitment to environmental sustainability.
Tom De Booij, Change Manager at BEMA BV describes the successful outcomes: “Due to the curing of the LED inks with UV LED lamps supplied by IST INTECH our energy consumption has decreased by over 40% on this machine, our production speeds have doubled, and the quality and colors of our prints have significantly improved due to better ink curing”.
BEMA BV is currently running with 1 LED system in their printing facility and has been working with LED inks for over 3 months. For that reason, BEMA BV recently made the decision to implement the LED system on their other printing machines as well, enabling them to work exclusively with LED inks and further enhance their production efficiency and with the satisfactory result on the first installation returned to its tried and tested partners Resino and IST INTECH.
“One of our long-term goals is that our production facility is production for 100% on self-generated energy. By reducing the energy consumption of our printing machine with 40%, this contributes a lot!” Tom de Booij, Change Manager at BEMA BV
Ensuring food safety and consistent quality for customers
For Bema BV’s customers, consistent product quality and food safety were the most important things, assuring that their products were food-safe and had no negative side effects in their production processes. The UV LED system underwent rigorous internal testing with LED inks before production runs for customers and clients.
New migration tests were conducted to ensure that the LED inks, in combination with casings were food safe. Once BEMA BV was completely satisfied with the results of the LED inks, they informed their main customers about the implementation of UV LED systems in their printing facility. Customers responded positively to the fact that Bema could now deliver the same high-quality product in a more environmentally friendly manner which frames Resino’s objective.
“Our aim is to help more printers to switch to UV LED – thereby heading towards a more sustainable environment and a healthier work environment” Kristian Karlsen, R&D Director at Resino Inks.
Why IST INTECH?
Bema BV selected IST INTECH to meet their high-quality standards. Because of the modularity, high efficiency, and user friendliness of the UV LED curing system, it allows Bema BV to gain an extra energy saving within their production process above the normal savings you will have when you adapt from Mercury systems to UV LED.
