LONG BEACH, CALIF. - California's debate over the environmental impact of inks has not hit companies that do pad printing, at least for now. Suppliers of pad printing equipment, exhibiting at the Western Plastics Exposition, held Feb. 14-16 in Long Beach, said they are monitoring the issue. Pad printing uses a much smaller surface area of ink - and therefore, a much smaller amount of solvent evaporates into the air - than does printing on film, said John Marshall, California-based sales engineer for Trans Tech America Inc. of Carol Stream, Ill.
Technological advances, especially the so-called closed-cup or seal-cup design, also have helped the industry minimize the problem. The ink is contained in a closed container that only releases a tiny amount needed for each impression.
German machine supplier Tampoprint International Corp., with U.S. headquarters in Vero Beach, Fla., uses the closed-cup design on all its machines, said Philip Figueroa, a West Coast representative for the company.
