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In daily life, we can see acrylic products everywhere such as acrylic displays, acrylic signs, and acrylic keychains, especially acrylic badges that are fond of by young people. In order to cater to the market needs, businesses began to produce various eye-catching acrylic products. UV printing and screen printing are the two most frequently used techniques to produce acrylic products. So, the question is “Which is better for acrylic prints”? This article will give an answer and the reasons.
Acrylic UV Printing vs Screen Printing
Definition
Under the pressure of the screen brush, the ink passes through the screen, so that the acrylic surface is printed with the same pattern as on the screen. This is acrylic screen printing. Due to its easy and fast operation, acrylic screen printing has become one common technique.
As for acrylic UV printing, it utilizes UV printer (mainly UV flatbed printer) to print the images directly to the surface of acrylic. Compared with screen printing, UV printing does not require film plates and the process is easy. What businesses need to do is upload the images to the computer.
Differences
Acrylic screen printing differs from acrylic UV printing mainly in cost, product color and durability.
Cost
Acrylic screen printing needs to make film plates first. Each color and image will require a separate film plate. If there are many color or images, the printing process will cost highly.
UV printer can print on the acrylic surface directly, not limited by colors, without making special film plates for matched colors or images, saving a lot of cost.
Color
Acrylic printing can print one color a time. If businesses want to print images with several colors, that will need to be overprinted. Hence, screen printing is suitable for printing solid color patterns on acrylic surfaces. It will be difficult to do gradient effect or other complicated effects.
UV printer can print images of any color. And the pattern is vibrant and realistic. Therefore, UV printer can print different effects on acrylic products.
Durability
The acrylic screen printing ink contains a curing agent, which can make the ink better adsorbed on the surface of the acrylic product. As long as you don’t use sharp objects to scratch it, the pattern will not fall off under normal use.
Acrylic UV printing uses UV ink, which performs better on adhesion ability or outdoor resistance than screen printing. Also, the special UV coating will make the acrylic products more durable. What’s more, the excellent capability of UV technology makes the acrylic products can last for a long time even in bad outdoor environments.
Acrylic UV Printing is Better
From the above content, it can be seen that acrylic screen printing costs more and is limited by colors. In the long term run, the quality of acrylic screen prints is worse than acrylic UV prints. Therefore, UV printing is more suitable for acrylic products.
Steps to Print on Acrylic Products with UV Printer
Using UV flatbed printer to print on acrylic products is not complicated.
Step 1: Design the patterns on the computer an transform them to the required format with RIP software.
Step 2: Prepare the acrylic product that is to be printed. Clean the surface of the acrylic product to ensure the best printing result.
Step 3: Place the acrylic product on the printing platform of UV flatbed printer.
Step 4: Make ready the UV flatbed printer, and set up all the parameters.
Step 5: Start printing. After printing, you will get an acrylic product with vibrant colors and realistic details.
UV flatbed printer is famous for its wide range of applications, making it widely used in various industries in addition to acrylic products. Check this page to find more applications of UV flatbed printer.
Advantages of UV Printing on Acrylic
- High efficiency. Quick drying and fast printing speed enable the UV printer to finish orders in the appointed time. This feature means that the UV printer is suitable for batch processing.
- Good printing performance. The final acrylic prints are of more vibrant colors and restore the original details, coming out in high resolutions. It can realize some special printing effects too, such as embossed effects, and 3D effects.
- Cost-effective. Acrylic UV printing does not require film plates and other pretreatment. And with one UV printer, businesses can produce different kinds of acrylic products flexibly. It is totally cost-effective.
- Environment friendly. The UV ink contains no harmful chemicals, making it safe to human body or environment. It is a sustainable printing choice.
- Various applications. Acrylic sheets, photos, nails, signs and displays are all printed by UV printer. Businesses can change their business directions flexibly according to the marketing trends.
Applications of Acrylic UV Printing
Acrylic sheets have crystal-like transparency, with a light transmittance of more than 92%. In addition, acrylic sheets have excellent weather resistance, high surface hardness, and good high-temperature resistance. More, acrylic sheets have good processing properties and can be used to produce more exquisite patterns and shapes than traditional methods. With these features, the acrylic UV printing is widely used in the following aspects:
- Home decor. For example, businesses can use UV printer to make acrylic photo prints, which are good home decoration products. People can customize meaningful acrylic photos to hang on the wall.
- Advertising promotion. Thanks to the UV printing technology, acrylic prints are of strong durability, not fading or breaking easily even under extreme weather, allowing the prints to be suitable for advertising promotion.
- Business uses. Companies can make acrylic signs with company name, office name, and room names to guide customers or new employees.
- Personalized gifts. Businesses are able to utilize UV printers to customize acrylic prints for customers. For instance, they can customize personalized acrylic nails, acrylic key chains and acrylic phone cases.
Examples of Acrylic UV Printing from Sublistar
Here are some real examples of acrylic UV printing.
Acrylic Plate
Acrylic LED Painting
Conclusion
UV printing is a completely advanced and potential method for acrylic printing businesses. Business owners can meet customers’ needs and expectations confidently with a UV printer. Actually, not limited by acrylic products, business owners are able to produce other kinds of products too, exploring more business possibilities. Sublistar is a professional factory-direct UV printer supplier and provides good technical support and after-sales services. Contact us for more information freely.
FAQ
How long can acrylic UV prints last?
Acrylic prints can last for a long time without fading or peeling off thanks to the UV printing technology.
Can UV printer print large acrylic signs?
Yes, no matter small signs or large signs, UV printer can print patterns on acrylic signs perfectly.
How does UV printing work on acrylic?
Prepare the acrylic product – place acrylic product on the printing platform – set up the UV printer – start printing- get the final acrylic prints.