Drytac SpotOn SynPaper speeds into the future at Shell Eco-marathon

Drytac’s SpotOn SynPaper experienced the need for speed at Shell’s eco-marathon in London last month. The SpotOn SynPaper was used for attention-grabbing vehicle graphics on innovative racing car designs.

The Shell eco-marathon had 143 teams of young engineers from 24 different countries at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from 5^th July to 8^th July 2018. The young engineers put their skills to the test in an effort to attain record-breaking levels of energy efficiency in one-seater cars. The marathon was featured live on social media channels where viewers across the world could see the drivers and technicians’ skills close-up.
HP who were a main sponsor of the event, provided all the PC and printing equipment for the student teams to produce their own graphics which featured a HP PageWide XL large-format printer which ran Drytac’s SpotOn SynPaper. This product was designed specifically for this HP system and was the ideal material for the vehicle decals speeding around the track.

SpotOn SynPaper is a printable, matte white, self-adhesive film that has been produced to be very easy to apply with a bubble-free finish. This meant that the eco-marathon teams could install their graphics themselves. The cars were made from a wide range of materials that included polystyrene and silk fibres to attain the highest speeds with the lowest amount of energy.

The SpotOn SynPaper is recyclable and is in keeping with the sustainability ethos of Shell’s eco-marathon programme.

The SpotOn SynPaper can be used for one-off uses like car stickers, however it is suitable for vibrant short-term wall and window applications such as seasonal retail promotions and trade show graphics. It is easy to remove thanks to its smart dot pattern and pressure-sensitive polyacrylate adhesive.

Drytac’s Global Product Manager, Shaun Holdom commented: “The Shell eco-marathon was a very exciting event with the innovation of the teams matched by the speed of the cars. We enjoy seeing unusual applications for our products and Drytac SpotOn SynPaper graphics that were printed on HP PageWide XL technology, worked fantastically on the track. The marathon was centred around the energy-efficient cars of the future, which makes it a superb setting for our advanced graphics media.”

Drytac SpotOn SynPaper delivers excellent results with aqueous and UV inkjet printers and delivers 12 months’ durability for interior applications. The 120 micron-thick material is available in 1,016mm-wide rolls.