The European PET Bottle Platform (EPBP) has certified the digital Direct Print Powered by KHS printing process for PET bottles.

The technology has been developed by KHS and its wholly owned subsidiary NMP Systems based in Düsseldorf, Germany.

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Initially in 2013, EPBP certified the recyclability of the direct print process.

The approval signifies that the PET bottles processed by Direct Print Powered by KHS have no negative impact on the rPET and enable the company to carry out bottle-to-bottle PET recycling.

During production, KHS developed a digital printing process with low-migration, LED UV-curing inks for the food-safe decoration of PET bottles where the print on the bottles falls off during the recycling process.

Random laboratory tests conducted on the recycled PET bottles for the Belgian market confirmed the safety of the whole process.

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In 2015, Belgian brewery Martens Brouwerij was the first company to introduce printed PET bottles with Direct Print Powered by KHS in the market.

The technology has been further upgraded in these two years to provide a better print quality to the bottles and enable new forms of decoration.

"Costs for production will fall in the long-term as there’s no longer any need for labels and the storage thereof and no more adhesive is needed."

KHS Printing Technology Department head Martin Schach said: “Costs for production will fall in the long-term as there’s no longer any need for labels and the storage thereof and no more adhesive is needed.

“Direct Print Powered by KHS stands for revolutionary technological advance and is also a step forward when it comes to environmental issues.”

Alongside Direct Print, Nature MultiPack developed by KHS and NMP Systems also received interim approval.

Nature MultiPack eliminates the need for secondary packing of film on PET bottles as they are attached by specially developed and certified dots of adhesive.

Image: The digital Direct Print Powered by KHS printing process for PET bottles has been certified by the EPBP. Photo: courtesy of KHS.