Watermarx Graphics’ Cliqx system uses a patented magnetic holding device and patent-pending embossing technology to make embossing a simple process with makereadies of only minutes, said co-owner Angela O’Dea.

The male and female die ‘click’ into place because the magnetic flux attracts the steel backing plate on the dies, she said.

“This system is really easy to use. If you can diecut, you can use Cliqx. It’s no longer a black art. This is available for anyone that buys a licence,” she told ProPrint.

“It’s a system that can be totally produced in-house by lithographic or digital printers. What’s so easy about it is the fact that the dies are water washout. There’s nothing new about using photopolymer, but what no one has been using it for until now is embossing like this.”

[Related: Watermarx speaks at embellishment dinner]

O’Dea said Cliqx posed no threat to specialist embossers who traded in high-end work because it would create a new market for printers who had previously found the process too difficult.

“We’re not cheapening embossing; we’re making it available to more people. We’re value-adding – it’s another service that didn’t exist before.”

O’Dea described the patent application process as a lengthy procedure that had taken five years and cost $80,000.

Watermarx is in talks with several local printers and expects to grant the first licences this year, she said. There are also plans to market the licences overseas.

“We’re putting it out that we’re looking for [foreign] partners to co-promote with us. Our approach is to printers and printing groups, because they’re the end users,” she said.

“Once we get the volume of it moving here, Australia will provide a great example to lever off.”

[Related: Tafeda creates ‘linen’ covers for Amex]

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