GEW is highlighting its full product range at Labelexpo Europe, with a focus on its air-cooled UV LED system AeroLED, which was unveiled in 2022.

AeroLED’s simplicity of design, reliability and energy efficiency are hallmarks of the new technology. Its “ArcLED” compatibility, enabling it to operate side by side with UV arc lamps on a press, has resulted in AeroLED providing valuable options to label and narrow web printers. Furthermore, AeroLED has been nominated as a Finalist for the Innovation Award at the 2023 Label Industry Global Awards.

This early success has been heightened by the All4Labels Group, which has partnered with GEW in a global sustainability initiative that will see 74 presses retrofitted with UV LED curing systems across 13 sites in Europe and the UK. In all, over 600 lampheads will be upgraded from mercury arc to UV LED, and approximately 90% of all the lampheads used will be energy-saving AeroLED models, enabling All4Labels to achieve a CO2 reduction of  approximately 2,000 tons per year. This upgrade program began in late 2022 and will be completed by the end of 2023.

AeroLED is a high power system for full cure, printing, coating and converting applications up to 60cm wide. Using the same fan and ducting arrangement as GEW’s industry standard E2C system, printers can have total flexibility to switch between arc and LED curing on any station. This arc and LED compatibility makes an AeroLED retrofit more cost effective than ever before and customers with GEW’s RHINO/RLT power supply platform can upgrade to LED in under an hour, by simply changing the cassettes and running a software upgrade.

Jochen Christiaens, product manager for Digital Printing, Narrow Web and Rigid Plastics, Zeller & Gmelin, comments on the simplicity of installation: “I witnessed GEW upgrade an 8-color, 45cm machine fitted with E2C arc lamps to full AeroLED in less than one hour. This included the installation, software upgrade and testing. I did not believe it was possible in such a short space of time, until I saw it.”

In an AeroLED system, air is extracted by a single centralized fan sited away from the press. There is no need for integrated fans or electronics in the individual lampheads, which eliminates the high-pitched noise and risk of failure that these bring. AeroLED features the same LED chassis and core components as GEW’s established LeoLED lamphead, for proven reliability. Every aspect of the design has been carefully considered to deliver robust performance and long-term reliability.

AeroLED’s efficient optical design enables the lowest energy usage of all GEW products. This delivers energy savings of up to 70% when compared to a conventional UV arc system. In addition to offering greatly reduced operating costs, printers upgrading to LED can free up a significant level of mains capacity, which can then be used to install new machinery and subsequently increase production capability. Two AeroLED systems have a lower electrical supply requirement than just one conventional UV arc system.

GEW introduces ExciRay, the latest in Excimer technology
GEW is also introducing ExciRay at Labelexpo Europe, which is GEW’s latest development in Excimer technology. ExciRay systems utilize dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) lamps to produce quasi-monochromatic vacuum ultraviolet radiation, typically at 172nm. This radiation is commonly used for mattification of surface coatings, modification of surface tension for improved adhesion or surface cleaning for semiconductor and medical industries.

GEW ExciRay lamps, which are incorporated into the familiar NUVA2 cassette design, can be produced up to 255cm in length and can be custom integrated for specific applications, including provision for all required nitrogen inerting and control. They are also seamlessly integrated into the wider GEW UV system which may be required for gelling or final cure, so that GEW can provide a turnkey mattification solution for any process. GEW’s experienced engineers also ensure rigorous adherence to international safety standards.