Why I Believe Modern Flexo Presses with Integrated UV Curing Are the Smartest Investment for Label Printers

Here's the thing: the old way of drying ink is holding you back.

I've spent the last eight years managing rush orders for label manufacturers. In my role coordinating emergency production for clients who need 48-hour turnarounds, I've seen what works and what doesn't. And I'm convinced: if you're still relying on conventional hot-air drying for flexographic printing—or worse, using an outdated press that can't handle UV cure—you're losing money, time, and quality. Period.

Now, this isn't another sales pitch. It's a reality check based on more than 200 rush jobs I've personally overseen. Let me walk you through why the move to integrated UV ink drying systems—like Mark Andy's Mercury system—isn't just a trend. It's a survival move.

My argument: UV curing is the single biggest efficiency upgrade you can make.

Speed that saves contracts

In March 2024, a client called at 10 AM needing 5,000 labels for a trade show the next morning. Normal turnaround for a conventional press with hot-air drying: 4 days. We ran that job on a Mark Andy ProSeries press with UV curing. The ink was dry instantly—no waiting for solvents to evaporate, no offsetting on the rewinder. We shipped by 6 PM. That client's alternative was a $50,000 penalty clause. Not ideal, but workable? Actually, it was exactly what we needed. And we've repeated that scenario 30+ times this year alone.

Quality you can measure

Here's the surprise: UV curing doesn't just speed things up. It actually improves print quality. With conventional drying, you fight dot gain and inconsistent adhesion on non-porous substrates like films. With UV, the ink polymerizes instantly, holding sharp edges and hitting Delta E < 2 on Pantone colors consistently (industry standard for brand-critical work). I've tested this—the difference is visible to the naked eye on fine text and gradients. Worse than expected? The cost of reprints due to smudging or variable density. We cut our reprint rate from 8% to under 1% after switching to UV.

Total cost? Lower than you think

Now, the elephant in the room: Mark Andy ProSeries press price. It's not cheap. But here's what the sticker price doesn't tell you:

• No drying tunnels needed (save floor space and energy)
• Faster setups (changeovers in 12 minutes vs. 30+ with old gear)
• Less waste (UV ink doesn't dry on the plate or anilox roller)
• Higher throughput (average 30% more labels per shift)

Think of it like this: a Brother printer toner cartridge costs $60 for 3,000 pages. That's cheap per page. But if you're running an industrial press, the cost of a single wasted job can be $2,000 in materials and labor. The Mark Andy Mercury UV curing system slashes that risk. I'd rather spend $150,000 on a press that runs reliably than $80,000 on one that causes headaches—surprise, surprise, cheap often costs more in the long run.

What about objections? I've heard them all.

“Screen printing is cheaper for short runs.” Sure, if you're printing T-shirts or rigid substrates. But what is a screen printing machine doing on a label production floor? Screen requires separate screens, longer setup, and can't handle fine halftones like flexo with UV. For labels up to 20,000 feet, modern flexo is faster and more consistent. The fundamentals of print haven't changed, but the execution—especially with UV—has transformed. Five-year-old advice about “screen is best for spot colors” doesn't hold up anymore.

“My operator can just clear a printer queue when there's a jam.” True for office printers. In industrial printing, you don't have a queue to clear—you have a production bottleneck. A press that runs at 400 feet per minute but requires 20 minutes of cleanup between jobs because of drying residue? That's the bottleneck. Integrated UV curing eliminates those stops. So yes, you might have to clear printer queue on your deskjet, but on the shop floor, you need to clear the workflow.

My experience is based on about 200 rush orders with mid-to-high-end label runs. If you're working with ultra-budget segments or only paper labels, your experience might differ. I can't speak to how this applies to narrow-web vs. wide-web—I've only used narrow-web (10 to 16 inches). But the principles hold.

Final call: embrace the evolution

Look, I'm not saying every shop should drop $1M on a new press tomorrow. But if you're evaluating your next capital investment, consider this: the industry is moving toward integrated UV drying for a reason. It's faster, cleaner, and more reliable. And when a client calls with an emergency, you want to be the shop that says “We can deliver by tomorrow” without sweating the drying time.

The Mark Andy ProSeries press with the Mercury UV system isn't perfect—nothing is. But in my experience, it's the closest thing to a “set and forget” solution for high-quality, short-deadline label work. Stop relying on what worked in 2020. The market has moved. So should your pressroom.