Comparison between conventional flexo and digital plate making process. They are elastomeric in nature in contrast with hard letterpress plates. Study of digital plate making process, equipment and materials. With more than five decades of research and development while supplying the packaging industry, we have become experts in flexo and letterpress printing. Cleaning flexo plates timing is everything anderson. Mumbaibased label converter kem cards has invested in integrated esko hardware and software solutions in order to bring its flexographic platemaking. Apply to press operator, operator, technician and more.
Kodak is now announcing another revolutionary innovation its kodak flexcel nx ultra solution. For most purposes, the minimum size is 4 point to 10 point type, but that is a wide range. Lux platemaking technology allows both platemakers and printers to achieve higher quality, consistency, and versatility in their operations while enhancing the value of their existing investment in digital flexo hardware and software. Given the relevance of plate making to print quality and consistency, there are significant economic benefits to operations that apply this mindset of optimizing, controlling and continuously improving the process. Esko is keeping its promises to bring flexo platemaking to new levels of quality and consistency. The technology is currently the biggest trend in digital flexo plate printing industry. Save up to 50% on waste, 40% on ink, 30% on paper, 40% on makeready time and 95% on water.
Platemaking for flexo shrink sleeves and label printing. Macdermid printing solutions has created an enabling technology for better and more consistent flexo print quality. Originally, flexographic printing was rudimentary in quality with its limitations in ink control and rubber printing plates. The second method of flexo plate making is relief plates. All of these advancements, affirms anderson, are making flexo printing viable for jobs that have historically been handled by gravure presses. Kongsberg cutting table connection enables plate cutting information to be sent to. Esko is a leading company in the creation and distribution of.
Flexo printing requires a great deal of skill not to mention a good dose of patience. Solid printout with standard plate surface solid printout with micro screening on plate surface ink laydown improved but still far from ideal too low solid ink density sid with fine anilox rollers only marginally improvement with spot colorswhite. The most advanced flexo printers are now matching the print quality of rotogravure, offset and digital printand winning on cost effectiveness and turnaround time, he said. With high quality considered a precondition, the one of a kind program looks beyond the print sample and recognizes innovations that. With esko inline uv2 the uv main exposure is done inline, after the imaging of the flexo plate, without any operator intervention. Back exposure establishes the plate relief by using uva light sets the relief. The esko solutions consist of an extensive suite of software and two hardware product lines. The software can then be used to control very accurately automatic cutting of the plate and repositioning of the parts on to a plastic carrier. Print control wizard software combined with cdi crystal xps.
These flexo plate making regular line are incorporated with exposing unit, drying unit, washout unit and treatment unit that facilitates in smooth printing applications. With presstune and inktune, we save 30 to 50 sheets during makeready, and around 15% of ink. Simplifying flexo platemaking at schur star systems 2019. This not only takes time, it also offers ample opportunity for human errors. The digital flexo suite offers significant cost savings through automated flexo plate optimization. It also helps address the problem of platecleaning procrastination by making it easy to clean flexo plates. Flint group flexographic combines experience and the latest trends in technology. Firmly committed to the continued manufacture of high quality matte films, fujifilm can support your analog plate. Over the past decade, the kodak flexcel nx system has revolutionized the flexo industry, bringing an unprecedented level of quality and performance to flexo printing for the benefit of everyone involved in the packaging value chain. Prepress and printing solutions from agfa for commercial. Washing flexo plates automatically reduces plate damage and offers superior performance in. The digital flexo suite offers significant cost savings through the automation of the flexo plate production. Hamillroad software names peret as approved bellissima dms.
A complete line of plate mounting machines for narrow web web and labels, for sleeves or cylinders shaftless or shafted. It is a collection of eskos plate making software, designed especially for the needs of the packaging industry. The first flexo type printing presses were patented in the late 19th century. Unfortunately, traditional multistep flexo plate making processes can hinder productivity. Artpro, a software distributed by esko and designed to generate pdf files for flexo. Future scope this research focuses on critical analysis and comparison between conventional flexo plate making process and digital flexo plate making. The digital flexo suite adds a flow of information to plate making. Mounting machines for printing on paper and corrugated cardboard.
This highdefinition technology for flexographic printing sets new standards for the. A wide variety of used flexo plate making machine options are available to. Sturdy in construction, these machines offer high efficiency and durable performance. Flexographic plates have a shore a durometer hardness of 2555 versus durometer readings. Large diameter bearings on cutting head, and springloaded retractable blade holders for vertical and beveled cuts. Desktop flexo plate reader for transparent flexo plates.
Our powerful software and equipment, along with over 40 years of experience as flexo plate manufacturers, means that we can take on the most challenging jobs with confidence. Dupont also offers uncapped analogue solvent plates for a broad range of printing applications. It is part of the team responsible for creating and patenting project blue, an innovation in flexo plate technology. Plate consistency is one of the keys to achieve and maintain optimal print quality.
To be more precise, there are at least 4 factors all highquality flexo plates have in common 1. A complete integration of flexo platemaking and workflow software with the new automation engine device manager delivers full control over the flexo platemaking process. Apply to press operator, technician, operator and more. The device manager moves operational control upstream to the prepress department. This allows us to achieve the highest quality printing possible in the industry. The certification serves as evidence to our customers that the company utilizes best practices in flexo platemaking, and it conveys to printers that they can count on fpd to reliably provide consistent, highquality printing plates. Platecrafters is an industry leading flexo trade shop with multiple locations. Presstune enables us to comply with the process standard offset regulations, and to analyze and control the consistency and quality of our print jobs. In summary, forward flexo is the ideal choice of plate maker for all your flexo stereo making requirements. Flexo plates are very expensive and anyone operating in a prepress department will immediately see the attraction of patchplanner. The most significant difference between the types of plates is the technology used to produce them.
Platecrafters is committed to customer satisfaction by providing the best products and services to printers and packagers. What is flexography printing and what is it used for. Flexo platemaker supervisor pioneerplates is most known for the highquality platemaking and quick delivery to their customers. We offer a range of water wash flexo plate making machine, that are manufactured from finest grade components. The production of flexographic plates consists of many complex and manual steps. For this reason, we have a high standard when hiring a new supervisor to manage the production of our plate dept.
To further promote hd flexo, eskoartwork sets up a certification program. Genflex takes pride in staying current on the latest technological advances in flexographic printing plate software and equipment. They are used in rotary presses and with low viscosity inks. Automatic adjustment of the plate to the target position automatic fixing of the plates on the stickyback with the pressing roll. Plates for flexographic printing, flexographic plates. Fujifilm has the products you need today and tommorow. Join the fppa our mission education educational programs are focused on ceos, managers and employees. The process of making full hd flexo printing plates i. The machine exposure,washing,dry we all supply also sully photopolymer plate any request contact me tina skype. Flexographic printing plates, processing equipment. The result is the most advanced yet easiest way to produce flexo plates that deliver astounding results. Specific characteristics are evaluated and verified to confirm a successful minimum dot. Ideal for flexible packaging and other largeformat package printing applications, cyrel 3000 series equipment is designed to accommodate flexo plates up to 52 in.
Flexographic prepress platemakers association fppa. Esko simplifies flexo platemaking packaging europe. Flexo platemaking and digital finishing operations are better integrated with the prepress workflow. New solventfree and vocfree flexo plate making solution. There are many ways to produce flexo plates, but the digital flexo plates are by far the most common and time efficient. Flint group flexographic is currently the largest global supplier offering both flexographic and letterpress printing plates and is a leader in sleeve and adapter supply. A full range of digital and analog cyrel flexo plates and sleeves are available for both thermal and solvent workflows. Flexo plate digital southeast asias best flexo repro house. Flexo plate digital is proud to announce its participation in the invitationonly kodak certification program. We guarantee our flexcel plates print better or well help cover your costs. Flexo platemaking, in most cases today, is a process with many manual. Flexographic plates, like letterpress plates, are relief plates with image elements raised above open areas. Equally important, fppa will give you the tools to educate customers and suppliers to get you what you need when you need it. Automatically, instantly and with computerized accuracy a job is sent to the continue reading esko digital.
The inaugural global flexo innovation awards, launched in 2018, received over 200 entries spanning across 26 countries. Plate and print diagnostic services using the stateofart technology such as the flexo ias device, apr can conduct in depth plate and print analysis to identify possible opportunities for improvement or to diagnose and trouble shoot print problems. Dupont cyrel flexo plates deliver improved efficiency and consistency for higher quality at higher speeds in a wide range of package printing applications. Hd flexo solids and shadows hd flexo microcess in flexible packaging printing. In 2009, we made the transition from film, analog plates, and solvent processing, to a fully integrated digital plate workflow. The cdi crystal xps flexo plate maker integrates the cdi crystal imager with the xps crystal exposure unit. The cdi crystal xps turns flexo plate making finally into a coordinated, linear process. The lowstress way to find your next flexo plate making job opportunity is on simplyhired. Plateprep allows to merge bitmap files onto one plate and to simultaneously drive several cdis. For example, the minimum font sizes used for both positive and reversed serif or sans serif type is based on the type of web press and whether you are printing to corrugated coated paper, uncoated newsprint, a polyester film or other substrates. Automating the plate washing function facilitates longlasting and consistent flexo plate performance. One of the main factors influencing plate stability is the plates uv exposure.
Software options to help automate the platemaking process into a simplified, streamlined method. Macdermid flexo lux platemaking technology printing. The unexposed areas are then washed away with solvent or water wash. The new automated flexo platemaking module for automation engine allows running a fully automated workflow. The sheet of photopolymer is exposed to light through a negative. About 35% of these are prepress equipment, 30% are flexographic printers, and 11% are paper product making machinery. All digital flexo suite bundles include following modules. Flexo plate making, flexographic printing plates esko. With new flexo technologies, we are able to expand flexo and move jobs from competing technologies such as offset, gravure, and digital. Clearly, the methodology and mindset can be applied to flexo plate making as well. Our flexo platemaking department maintains the latest highend plating equipment. The accuracy of the dot and the formation of the minimum dot is inspected with a microscope 100x and a flexo plate analyzer.