Best Practices: Anilox Care and Maintenance

There’s a sign on the wall in one of Ryan Potter’s customer’s facilities that he says he is particularly fond of.

It serves as a simple reminder, but Potter, VP of sales for Flexo Wash, says the sign’s message goes a long way. All it shows is an anilox roll with the text, “This costs $1,500.”

“I think if an operations manager or a production manager just let everyone know how valuable those things are, the damage would be decreased,” Potter says. “People would take their time in caring for them, handling them and transporting them.

Handle with Care

While proper cleaning of anilox rolls is essential in maintaining a quality print job, in many instances anilox rolls become damaged solely through improper handling. Mickey Bower, technical manager for Interflex Laser Engravers, says that one of the most common problems he sees when he performs anilox roll audits is chipping in the radiuses of the rolls. “Unfortunately, ceramic is very hard and doesn’t take impact very well,” he says. “Once you get a chip on your radius, it can cause all kinds of problems. Protecting the ends of these rolls and sleeves is critical to your operation.”

Engraving an anilox roll. Photo courtesy of Interflex Laser Engravers.

One of the major issues that can occur from this type of chipping, Bower says, is the doctor blade catching that chip on each rotation, leading to a leaking roll. Oftentimes, he says, operators will increase the doctor blade pressure to reduce the leaking, exacerbating the problem by prematurely wearing down the doctor blade and scoring the anilox roll.

Similarly, he says converters often make the mistake of running the anilox roll dry, believing it is the best way for the doctor blade to seat, adapting to the contours of the roll. However, Bower says controlling the seat, using the ink as a lubricant to reduce wear and scoring on both the anilox roll and doctor blades, is a far better approach.

Potter explains that implementing a sense of ownership among employees often leads them to exercise more caution with anilox rolls. For example, he says he finds it effective for each press to have its own aniloxes.

“That pressman, whether it’s one person or two or three people who work that press on multiple shifts, those people are the ones who are responsible for those anilox rolls,” Potter says. “It makes for accountability. People take ownership when they know that it’s theirs. They’ll take better care of it.”

Capturing Data

The key to ensuring maximum performance from anilox rolls is implementing a preventative maintenance program, says Pete Mulheran, president of Eaglewood Technologies. For Mulheran, that means not only ensuring rolls are thoroughly cleaned after each use but also tracking their essential data points.

For example, he says that before a job even starts, converters need to know if their anilox rolls meet the criteria they logged the last time that job was successfully produced. This includes measuring the volume of the anilox roll using products like a Capatch strip from Steinhart BV or the Troika AniCam, which photographs anilox cells and can provide more detailed data on their conditions.

Mulheran also states that it is imperative that when an anilox roll is returned to storage that any chips or scoring lines have been documented.

“The volume should be measured and the data should be captured so the prepress department knows that roll is 100% ready to run the next job,” he says. “That’s critical.”

Keeping Clean

Without proper care, anilox cells can become plugged with dried ink, leading to insufficient ink being transferred to the substrate. Not only does this impact print quality, it can also severely impact a converter’s bottom line.

Flexo Wash offers anilox
roll cleaning systems.

“Without proper maintenance of your anilox roll, quite frankly it can cost the converter a lot of money,” Mulheran says. “If the anilox roll is plugged and they don’t understand that it’s plugged, they might be running that very expensive material that they’re printing on
right into the garbage can until they figure it out.”

Potter explains that implementing a maintenance and cleaning schedule, sticking to it and tracking it will put a converter ahead of the pack. The Flexo Wash systems, he says, provide a heated chemical solution that breaks down and softens the ink, followed by a high pressure water rinse that completely flushes the cells clean without hitting the roll with particles or sound waves.

“As long as you’re cleaning all of your anilox on a regular maintenance schedule, then you’re better off than 70% of the people out there,” Potter says. “Every anilox has a number to it and you can do a simple spreadsheet where you’re just inputting the anilox number, the date of the cleaning and the expected date of the next cleaning.”

Josh Kiser, technical OEM account manager for Harper Corp. of America, explains that by implementing a cleaning schedule, converters can prevent anilox cells from becoming plugged with ink.

“Establish a maintenance cleaning schedule for all aniloxes,” he says. “Establish correct procedures and provide training. Perform anilox inventory audits using a measurement system to determine the current condition of the anilox cell volume. Document results and set an audit schedule to go by.”

In addition to having deep cleaning systems in house, converters can also make use of cleaning services that visit their facilities or send their rolls off site to be cleaned. Mulheran explains that Eaglewood Technologies can provide crews that bring its Sanilox cleaning system to the converter, or the converter can send rolls to Eaglewood to be cleaned there.

“The advantage there is they don’t have any of their people operating the equipment,” he says. “They can focus on doing what they do best, which is converting product and printing.”

Bower explains there are measures converters can take to maintain anilox cleanliness while the rolls are in the press as well. He says keeping rolls covered in the press when they’re not being used is important to ensure no unwanted particles find their way to the roll surface.

“Because there’s so much dust and debris and all kinds of things that can land on the anilox roll, once that gets in your inks and ink systems, your ink systems can get clogged up very quickly.”

Bower says that much of the damage and wear he sees on anilox rolls is preventable. By taking the proper precautionary measures and maintaining a strict cleaning regimen, converters are likely to see vast improvements in how long their anilox rolls remain viable.

“An anilox roll is hard to wear out if you take care of it and you run it properly,” he says. “We have many customers that have Interflex engravings that run for several years. With a proper anilox management program, a higher return on anilox investment will be achieved. Converters should have their preferred anilox supplier help implement this program.”