Metal FX Colours
 

 

How does the MetalFX® system work?
MetalFX® works on the basis that CMYK inks are transparent - so when printed on top of specially modified silver ink (the MFX® silver) it will allow the silver to show through the CMYK, and thus create the illusion of unlimited metallic colours. The MFX® Base silver has increased trapping qualities on press that allow the CMYK inks to "stick to it".

MFX® colours are implemented at the design stage, where the designer creates artwork using the MetalFX® colour palettes and actions. This will create a 5 colour job (MFX® Base silver + CMYK). When this file is sent to the print house, the printer will output the 5 printing plates and print the job using the MetalFX® ink system, with the silver being printed first and then followed by the CMYK inks on top. Because the CMYK inks are conventional inks, as we already use in the printing industry, you can print a standard CMYK job at the same time as up to 615 metallic colours on the same substrate.

What are the SpecialFX?
When the MetalFX® system was developed, two exciting special effects were also created. These are branded LiteFX™and HoloFX™. LiteFX™ is an illusion of light changing metallic colours that makes the element on the page change from lighter to darker colour hues as the light source angles change. HoloFX™ is the ability to create an area within the metallic to appear and disappear - similar to a holograph. It works by controlling the metallic levels within a design.

How can it help me as a designer?
The MFX® system will enable you to create eye catching designs by enabling you to integrate metallic colours into photographs and create unlimited metallic colours on the same job, by only using one extra colour. Ever wanted to have Gold, Silver and a Bronze on the same job, but never had the budget to use more than one metallic colour? Well now with MFX® you can have all 3 and 612 others as well, just by using the MFX® system and our new silver ink.

The system is seamlessly integrated into your usual design software where you can create metallic colour panels, multi-metallic vector graphics and photographic images.

The MetalFX® process is most effective on Gloss Art Paper. Whilst good results can also be achieved on Silk Art (Business Cards) or Matt Art (Handouts) the results are less predictable.

How can I proof my MetalFX® artwork?
There are currently no economical ways of proofing Metal FX®. We would always recommend a small print run to ‘prove’ the artwork before a large Metal FX® job is printed.

What computer platforms can I use MetalFX® on?
MetalFX® will work on both Mac and PC platforms and is also compatible with the latest OSX software and native programs such as the Adobe CS. New releases of Corel Draw, QuarkXpress, Illustrator etc are planned to incorporate the Metal FX® technology.

If you would like to incorporate Metallic colours in to your next design simply design in CMYK as normal. On the print out accompanying the file, detail the areas to be metallisized and the colours to be used.

Who can print using the MetalFX® process?
Only Printers licensed and approved by us can print MetalFX®. Any printer using our system without a licence would be breaking copywright, patent and IP rights of MetalFX®. A printer that has not run the MetalFX® print trials and been approved, will not know the specification for the print process and the job will not output correctly. Always use a licensed printer.