We're fired up to reveal the best can yet for digital printing, and it’s only available at Hart Print. Check out this video to see our cans in action!

Conceived in partnership with our parent company Ardagh Metal Packaging (AMP), the IFC (Incredible F*cking Can) is a game changer for printing directly on aluminum cans, offering abrasion resistance, fluid mobility and superior adhesion.

“Our cans look outstanding when they come off our production line,” says JP Paradis, Hart Print’s co-founder and co-CEO. “That said, since we launched Hart Print, a huge thorn in our side has been ink adhesion on metallic cans once they’re shipped out. We’ve found ways to improve, but we wanted to go further. 

“We also couldn’t send our cans to customers who pasteurize. This is crucial for our larger customers and non-alcoholic beverage producers, who rely on pasteurization to give their products a longer shelf life. So, we set out to do something about it.”

Since Hart Print partnered with AMP in 2021, it’s been our obsession to create a digitally printed can that would be pasteurization-ready, that could handle the journey from our facilities to the retailer and that would survive the scenarios that our end users put them through. 

To improve adhesion and with the support of AMP, we developed a superior can for digital printing that is proprietary to Hart Print. We also reduced the coefficient of friction of the digital overvarnish on our cans (as in, we made them a little slippier), which gave them more mobility and fewer abrasion issues.

The end result? “We have cans that are pasteurization-ready because of their improved adhesion, that pass through our customers’ high-speed lines because of their increased mobility and that travel better in transport because they’re abrasion resistant,” says JP. “And they’re metallic, so customers can take advantage of that design element.”

Hart Print sent the IFCs out for standard wet adhesion tests, which came back with phenomenal results. But before introducing them to the market, we had to find out if they could survive 'going through hell' first.

Hart Print sent four pallets of printed cans to beverage producer and distributor Geloso Group. They ran the filled cans on their 2,000-cans-per-minute high-speed line and through a pasteurization process reaching temperatures of 140 °F. We then shipped the cans to our other Hart Print locations, and they passed with flying colors. 

We'll let the video do the talking: click here to watch our IFCs conquer their trip through "hell." So metal!

The development of this next-level IFC wouldn’t have been possible without the support and collaboration of AMP. 

JP explains: “Having a joint-technological partnership with AMP is critical because asking a can manufacturer to change their processes is no easy feat, especially if you’re a relatively small player, like all digital can printers are. So, getting them to listen to us and collaborate with us and change the way they do things is something we would never, ever have dreamed of without our partnership with AMP.

“Our digitally-printed cans are delivering at the highest-quality level, which is something that the AMP brand represents.”

This is not the last stop for our Incredible F*cking Can. Our next mission is to see how these cans will perform in retort environments, which consist of temperatures and pressures that are higher than in pasteurization. We are also exploring ways to produce pasteurization-ready cans that feature selective varnishes. 

“We want to continue to be at the forefront of printing technology,” says JP. “We want to continue to validate and ensure that these claims remain true and we’ll make any adjustments necessary.”

While the IFC will fully launch in summer 2024, these cans are currently available for customers who require pasteurization. And great news! Our new and improved cans will be available to Hart Print customers at no additional cost. 

“We’ve invested our time and energy into developing the best can on the market at no expense to our customers,” JP notes. “No other digital printers can offer what we’re offering.”

For more information about our IFC or to request a sample, contact your Account Manager or send us an email.