Many print studios and service providers now run several ink technologies under one roof: an aqueous pigment printer for photo and fine art, a latex or eco-solvent roll printer for signage and wallcoverings, perhaps a UV flatbed for rigid work. Each makes sense on its own. The trouble starts when prints from all of them land on the same coating bench and are treated the same way.
Why one process does not fit all
Different ink types dry, cure and accept a coating differently. Aqueous prints depend on the receiver coating of the media. Eco-solvent and solvent prints need time to release solvent. Latex prints are cured in the printer, but how well a coating bonds still depends on the media and cure settings. UV prints are cured hard and may be harder for a coating to grip. Our page on solvent vs water-based inks sets out the basic differences.
So the same coating, applied the same way, may perform well on one machine’s output and cause problems on another’s. The fix is not a different coating for every printer, but a coating routine that recognises where each print came from.
Practical steps
Label every print
Mark each print or job bag with the printer, ink, media and print time. It sounds obvious, but in a busy studio an eco-solvent banner and a latex banner can look identical on the bench, and they may need different drying times before coating.
Keep a tested combinations list
Record each ink and media combination you have tested, the result, the finish used and any special handling. Treat any combination not on the list as untested, and re-test when a media or ink batch changes.
Separate drying areas
Solvent prints outgassing near freshly coated work, or near aqueous prints waiting to be coated, can cause cross-contamination and confusion about what is ready. A designated drying area for solvent-based output helps.
Standardise the application
Where volumes justify it, a liquid lamination machine gives the same film build whoever is operating it, which removes one variable from the mix. Our coating machines guide explains the options, and the equipment section lists what we supply.
Matching finishes across technologies
Customers ordering a mixed job, say a canvas, some posters and rigid panels for one space, will expect them to look like a set. A common coating finish across all of them can help unify sheen, but test each substrate, since the same coat can look different on different surfaces.
With over 20 years of supplying and installing large format printing systems and RIPs, we are used to multi-printer studios. If you want help setting up a coating routine across yours, call 01252 624 411 or contact us through the contact page.