Intelligent brand protection

The number of breaches of intellectual property rights has increased drastically worldwide during the past few years. According to estimates published by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), counterfeit goods currently occupy a share of between 5% and 9% of the world market. This equates to around €450-billion and counterfeit goods cause the loss of an estimated 125 000 jobs throughout the EU.

The problem can only be tackled with a clear and determined business strategy. Targeted anti-counterfeit preventative measures, ideally put in place before the new goods are on the market, may prevent large-scale losses. While the cost of developing a quality product is high, the cost of intelligent brand protection is comparatively low.

A combination of security features offers the best means of protection against plagiarism and abuse. This includes, for example, the use of specialised paper, advanced printing methods, special security inks, covert information and images, and diffractive optically-variable security features.
To provide an optimum level of protection Kurz, locally represented by Synchron, offers a comprehensive range of security features at varying levels of sophistication and, just as
importantly, a high level of expertise at the project initiation stage.
Depending on the level of sophistication required, the manufacture and packaging of genuine goods
may need to incorporate security techniques at the limits of what is achievable from a technical point
of view.

How to beat the counterfeiters
Diffractive authentication features from Kurz and, in particular, those in its Trustseal range offer a high level of counterfeit protection. These OVDs (Optically Variable Devices) are eye-catching features which enhance the value of the product and are easily recognised and remembered.

The high level of recognition and the impressive appearance achievable with an OVD are reached through a combination of optical brilliance and dynamic design. An OVD can be incorporated into a product or its packaging in a number of ways and can be designed to enhance and differentiate the brand’s profile, as well as heightening consumer trust in the product’s authenticity.
Kurz’s patented Trustseal technology is a proprietary procedure, which places a high barrier in the way of criminals.

The diffractive structures of a Trustseal image are especially difficult to reproduce. They are generated by computer before being embossed into a polymer foil material. The distinctive naked-eye effects achieved using Trustseal diffractive structures are easily recognisable even in poor lighting conditions.
Trustseal’s new features include Latent Mirror, an element that appears as a simple, mirrored metallic surface under normal viewing conditions. When the Trustseal is viewed at an extremely flat viewing angle, rather than front-on, a blue-green design can be seen. When the same oblique viewing angle is maintained and the Trustseal is rotated through 90º, a dark-bright contrast inversion occurs between the design and the background. The Latent Flip works on the same principle, but when the same viewing image is maintained, the image transforms into another design.

Another new feature is the Anticopy Dynakey that, viewed with the naked eye, appears as a matt, patterned field that’s distinguishable at almost all viewing angles. However, when a special filter is placed over the field a high-resolution image becomes visible.
Finally, the ConTrust with Channeling exhibits a special combination of image switches. When the Trustseal is viewed front-on a particular design can be seen. When it is tilted to the left a second design appears and when tilted to the right a variation of the second design appears. When the Trustseal is rotated through 90º, a dark-bright contrast inversion of the first image appears.

Triggering impulse purchases
Image for Shelving is a new optical feature designed as an eye-catcher for the retail industry. It exhibits dynamic variations in movements and colours as the viewing angle changes.
These movements become visible at various oblique viewing angles as the consumer passes supermarket shelves. This special effect is particularly advantageous for product presentation. As the consumer strolls through the aisles, the fluid design changes attract attention and send out a suggestive ‘buy me’ message.
This effect provides a specific illustration of how security and marketing aspects can be combined. Trustseal can be employed as a label for protecting and identifying a product and as an effective marketing instrument.
A label incorporating the Image for Shelving feature offers high visual quality, brilliant optical effects, artful designs and striking colour, plus image switches that visually enhance the product and turn it into a point-of-sale eye-catcher.

Combinations for protection
Other new effects, which may be used in combination, offer further levels of protection against fraudulent imitation.
For instance, Nano Image Raster presents the possibility of making up an image from motifs that are just a few microns high and differ in size and line width. Invisible to the naked eye, such motifs can only be recognised under high magnification. Other hidden or semi-covert features can be incorporated for further security. Special naked-eye effects include lensing, special tilting or strong contrasts.
ColorGuard is partially-demetallised foil in a reddish-gold colour where the optical design and the foil demetallisation are aligned. BiColor can be used to achieve silver and reddish-gold two-tone metallisation of OVDs.
DuoProtect is a combination of a partially-demetallised optical security feature and a colour flip effect in the demetallised areas. The Dynakey effect produces a dynamic image as soon as a special filter is passed over the security feature.

What all Kurz’s new optical security components have in common is their easy recognisability, even for unskilled observers, and the high level of protection they offer against copying.
The increasing complexity of global supply chains demands technologies that allow goods to be traceable. An ODMS (Online Data Management System) provides a means of creating transparency in supply chain management enabling goods to be traceable. In addition it enables detection of unauthorised overproduction and parallel trading.
To improve the way authenticity of goods can be checked, Kurz has introduced its SecuTrace security4brand – a combination of a security feature with an ODMS that offers a particularly high level of control and protection.
Not only do the most up-to-date technologies raise the barriers for counterfeit goods, they also offer maximum protection and authenticity for brands.

Syncrhon
T +27 021 5277100
www.synchron.co.za
Kurz
www.kurz.de