Stork’s Rotaplate Screen Material a Success for RAKO Etiketten

BOXMEER, Netherlands, and WITZHAVE, Germany—RAKO Etiketten of Witzhave, Germany, announced an increase in productivity and cost savings since it started using Stork Prints’ reusable nickel RotaPlate screen on its presses.

The company switched from stainless steel woven meshes to the new RotaPlate screen early in 2006. The German company has been able to boost printing speeds for rotary screen printing jobs on its new Gallus presses by as much as 20 percent, to about 50 meters per minute. Furthermore, it has reported a greatly increased lifespan—with most screens having no problem in running in excess of 50,000 web-metres.

The RotaPlate screen is based on Stork’s concept of a pure nickel, electroformed mesh, with hexagonal holes. It is a single, non-woven piece of material. This formation gives it optimum strength and stability, to cope with handling and the rigours of printing.

Stefan Behrens, the company’s pre-press manager, says, “The new screen is helping reduce production costs greatly. It’s extremely strong, reliable material that never breaks when being removed or re-inserted on to the press, or when being rinsed after printing. As a result we have no problem reusing the RotaPlate screen—often as many as five times. Following on from this, we no longer need to make a back-up screen because the chances of a mishap during production are virtually nil. We’re also able to print faster because the screen’s single-piece construction makes it more resistant to web impurities like dust or splices.”

The new RotaPlate screen was said to be easier to inspect, because of its green emulsion, which gave a clearer contrast under the light. The screen itself requires a small amount of preparation by the customer. After arriving as a flat, coated mesh from the supplier, it is then cut to the required format by the customer. Following this, the mesh is then exposed and rinsed out, then made into a cylinder with a strong adhesive. The end rings are attached and the screen is ready for the press.

RAKO has faced a great increase in demand for rotary screen printed designs from customers—and in order to remain competitive, the company needs to watch the costs of this process more closely. In the last year, RAKO used 2,500 RotaPlate screens. As a major player in markets such as cosmetics, food and beverage, and security printing, the company uses the rotary screen process extensively. The process can be used to great creative effect because it can print very thick deposits of ink in a single pass. Screen is popular for opaques for extra richness of colour and the no-label look, but there is increased interest in screen-printed varnishes, nowadays, too. These result in raised images that make the underlying graphics stand out. The company is actively promoting this effect under the High & Clear varnish brand.

Behrens adds, “With customers wanting partial deliveries more frequently, we find ourselves dealing with smaller production runs—we’re often coming back to the same job many times. So we need screen cylinders that are sturdy enough to withstand all the handling that goes with job changing. The RotaPlate screen meets these challenges admirably.”

The company has a fleet of 33 Nilpeter and two Gallus presses. On the Stork RSI unit within the Nilpeter presses, RAKO uses Stork’s RotaMesh screens, which can also be re-engraved with different screen images.