Crane Currency introduced Breeze, a new micro-optic security thread specifically designed to protect low denomination, high-demand notes on July 1.

The company said Breeze provides central banks with an alternative to older security features such as colorshifting threads, by taking advantage of features such as three-dimensional movement, high-contrast colors, durable sealed lenses and machine readability.

It explained that colorshifting films, exotic when they first appeared on currency more than 20 years ago, are now common on an industrial scale.

They are so easily available in decorative and industrial products, such as commercial metallic foils, films, and inks, that they are no longer an effective counterfeit deterrent. Breeze, on the other hand, has no commercial imitations, the company claims.

The 3-millimeter wide thread is offered in four high-contrast colors — red, green, blue, and violet. It offers a choice of three moving 3D effects labeled Cubic, Ripple, and Stellar that can be seen in all lighting conditions.

Crane’s press release emphasizes the characteristics: the ultra-secure micro-optic technology is not commercially available, it has high speed and fluid movement that is easy to see and easy to verify, and no shiny metallic films or foils. The sealed micro-lenses it uses are durable, soil resistant and can be over-varnished. Machine-reading is possible with secure, infrared materials.

Crane Currency is best known as the supplier of paper to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, but the BEP does its own security feature research and development in-house.

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