Silicone pad printing: solutions for all shapes and surfaces

Precision and Versatility

Printing is essentially done with rollers for continuous runs on flat surfaces or by stamping with flexible pad printers for use on curved, uneven or multiple-face surfaces made from an endless number of materials. For example, toymakers use pad printing to imprint very fine details on everything from plastic dolls to metal models. Cosmetics and skin care makers need to reproduce their logos and stylish images on everything from sophisticated perfume bottles to curved plastic tubes via ceramic cream jars. Quality pad printing is therefore an essential differentiator for manufacturers of consumer products to create distinctive and desirable items. 

Beyond that, pad printing is essential for manufacturers of high-precision components for professional applications, such as electronic products, automotive, aeronautical and railway parts or machine-tools. Pad printing enables not only aesthetic enhancement, but also the stamping of reference numbers, bar codes and other processing information on any surface of any size and shape.

Pad printing is especially critical for manufacturers of medical and pharmaceutical products, who must print various containers, such as glass or plastic sampling flasks, with indelible inks of various colors that ensure proper processing and traceability and that are safe for human contact. At times, pad printing is also used directly on edible products, such as food and the medicines people take orally, requiring special equipment that is food and medical grade compliant. 

To respond to the demanding and changing needs of this high-growth market, Elkem has developed a wide range of dedicated products and services for manufacturers of pad printing machines and end-users.

Why are Elkem pad printing solutions the material of choice for the world’s leading specialist printers?

Working with hundreds of manufacturers and end-users worldwide in all areas of industry, Elkem has developed customizable formulations for pad printing that include RTV-2 elastomers, oils, RTF-2 foams, gels, additives with specific features, such as adhesion promoters, accelerators and the entire array of equipment and consumables needed to ensure the highest quality printing on all surfaces. 

 The BLUESIL™ range of products for pad printing includes:

• RTV 3130 A&B, RTV 3131 A&B, RTV 3131 A&B SC and RTV 3132 A&B, two-component silicone elastomers using a polyaddition reaction, are specifically formulated for printing pads. They offer outstanding mechanical properties, excellent solvent resistance, adjustable hardness when diluted with varying amounts of silicone oils, to achieve adjustable working times and customizable pad colors. 
• RTV 3128, when diluted with SILBIONE™ FLD 70047V100, is used to make pads that comply with food regulations, and can thus be used to print or mark edible products.

To complement our line of specially formulated liquid silicones, we provide pad printing specialists with dilution oils at different viscosities and additives, including accelerators, retarders, primers and adhesives to produce ready-to-use high performance pads for multiple applications.

Why choose Elkem as your partner for silicone-based solutions for pad printing manufacturing and processing?

Elkem Silicone expert teams have been serving the specific printing needs of a wide range of industries for several decades. Our R&D departments are constantly monitoring market trends and changes in regulatory standards. Our process experts work closely with manufacturers and end-users on continuous improvement to optimize all stages of printing and to contribute to the overall printing value chain. Our specialists can also call upon the wider resources and expertise of the entire Elkem Technology Group, to respond to the most demanding or complex challenges.  

Other services also include regulatory support, assistance to roll out productivity programs, training for teams and collaborative work on new developments. The ultimate goal is to provide all industries that require high-level printing solutions with the best tailor-made products and services to sustain their efforts to satisfy their own customers and end users.