IST Metz 2015 calendar showcases UV printing

The IST Metz 2015 calendar, TourIST, features the standard 12 individual calendar pages pushed into a deep picture frame which in turn is protected by a book cover. When the book cover is opened, the calendar can be hung from two eyes. The viewer has the choice of using TourIST as a calendar in which the illustrations and calendar can be clearly seen, or use the enclosed mount to cover the calendar part, resulting in a gallery of high-quality prints which can be switched around at will. IST Metz said this means the calendar can continue to be used once 2015 is over.

The calendar features, in addition to 4C process inks and special inks, a particularly bright, highly-pigmented silver, while in-line embossing has been used on two pages of the calendar.

Numerous different varnish finishes have also been used to decorate the 12 pages of the calendar, including soft-touch, gloss, Iriodin and structured varnishes. These were printed on the flexographic unit of the in-house seven-colour sheet-fed offset printing press at IST Metz. This creates slightly raised areas.

Full-surface matte varnish and another gloss varnish were used in the offset printing units. These are applied very thinly.

The subjects of the pictures, impressions of travel from all over the world, originate from five IST Metz group employees who are enthusiastic amateur photographers in their spare time. In combination with modern illustrations, each picture tells the story of a journey made by each of the five photographers.

Andreas Bosse, head of marketing and communications at IST Metz, said: ‘Multifunctionality and sustainability are becoming more and more important in printed products, so in our products, we concentrate not just on the printing technology, but also on implementing holistic concepts to set an example – just as our customers would do, too.

‘The initial aim of our printed products is to inspire. But of course we also want to demonstrate to print shops in very practical terms what can be achieved using UV technology.’