Consumables-General - Plates

LUXEMBOURG—Flint Group announced the formation of its new global business unit, Flint Group Flexographic Products. It combines the Flint Group Printing Plates activities with the rotec sleeve business, which was included in the Flint Group acquisition of Day International in 2007. Flint Group Printing Plates supplies photopolymer plates for flexography and letterpress. rotec is a supplier of sleeves and adapter systems for flexo applications. “The new business unit is a logical step following the acquisition of Day International in 2007 in order to create real added value from the combined businesses,” commented Charles Knott, CEO of Flint Group. “This is what our customers expect

Challenged with shorter lead times, smaller order quantity, and tighter registration, forest products giant, Weyerhaeuser, increased prepress production by 100 percent, cut downtime between runs, reduced prepress waste, and improved safety with new digital Vision Plate Mounter/Proofer system from Leader Engineering by Jim McMahon Flexographic printing had long been considered a low-quality printing system, but a mainstay for the printing of packaging containers, such as corrugated boxes and flexible packaging like food bags, shopping bags, and self-adhesive labels. Technical developments over the past few decades in the flexo printing process have improved print quality, such as by enhancing the ability to reproduce highlight

Brand recognition and integrity depend on packaging. The need for faster makeready, on-time delivery, and reductions in cost and waste places a premium on predictable results and comparable quality independent of location, substrate, or printing process. The primary goal of color management, therefore, is to reproduce predictable, repeatable, consistent color across a range of devices and media from the time a file enters the workflow until it is reproduced on press. Because proof, plate, and print must deliver identical results, color management touches every part of the print or packaging workflow. As such, it relies on a range of tools including calibration devices, prepress

Walking a tight rope is tricky business; one slip of the foot can cause a whole mess of problems. Plate mounting is much the same. It is an intricate part of the printing process, and requires much attention. As market manager of paper, print, and film for tesa tape, Joe Prunier is familiar with converters’ plate-mounting nightmares. “I can give literally dozens of examples of when we have received calls from our customers (who say they are) having problems with edge-lift, bubbling, poor print, registration problems, adhesive delamination, and foam splitting,” he says. As a result of these drawbacks, materials are wasted and money

What hath computer-to-plate (CTP) wrought? Consider “in-the-round” imaging or ITR. The term refers to digitally imaged, continuous polymer printing sleeves that arguably are the future of flexography, and that already are opening up a number of attractive opportunities to printers and end users. Flexo sleeves not only work well with less expensive substrates, such as tissue, napkins, and paper towels, but provide excellent lay-down of solid and metallic inks. Advances in flexo sleeve technology are yielding similar opportunities in markets traditionally dominated by other processes—paper or foil gift-wrap (rubber flexo or gravure), folding cartons (offset or gravure), and shrink sleeves (gravure). In compiling

CINCINNATI, Ohio—Phototype, a leader in packaging lifecycle management for many of the world’s most recognized brands, announces the installation of two Esko-Graphics Advance flexo plate setters. The CDI Advance 5080 has a large exposure size (50in. x 80in.), and features advanced multi-beam fiber laser optics with a record imaging speed of up to 8.0 m2/hr., effectively matching the fastest plate processing equipment in the industry. The enhanced quality and increased productivity of these bigger, faster plate setters will allow Phototype to respond to an uptake in print tool sales to converters and manufacturers of consumer packaged goods. Bill Hounshell, Phototype’s VP of printing services

“All the Woulda-Coulda-Shouldas/Layin’ in the sun,/Talkin’ ‘bout the things/They woulda coulda shoulda done….” The beloved Shel Silverstein poem is a cautionary tale for flexographic trade shops still on the fence about implementing a digital plate workflow. Said to eliminate many of the variables associated with its analog counterpart, digital flexographic platemaking has matured, and a growing number of trade shops and their customers are wondering why it took them so long to “come around.” NPP Packaging Graphics Specialists is one such company. Although the $7 million, Indianapolis-based prepress house serving the corrugated, wide and narrow web, and tag and label markets has had digital

GENT, Belgium—Esko, a world leader in packaging pre-production solutions, announced that its Web site has been completely redesigned and will offer new content and an intuitive, stylish format. The new site reflects a graphical style that is consistent with Esko’s corporate branding and puts a focus on the company’s system integration, its software, and solutions. It stands for straight-forward digital communication in an efficient environment. The Web site supports a number of innovative new features. The new navigational path displays Esko’s products, solutions, and markets. Its user-friendly page format allows visitors to easily go from the home page to the information they need. The

ROCHESTER, N.Y.—A new Kodak Trendsetter 400 II Quantum Platesetter at Fox Valley Technical College (FVTC) will serve dual purposes, hands-on training for the next generation of graphic communications providers, and improved turnaround time for customers of the school’s in-plant print shop. “It was natural for us to expand our relationship with Kodak. As an industry leader, Kodak solutions allow us to give our students an education of the highest quality while providing local not for profits with affordable, high-quality print,” said Dale Drake, department chair, printing and publishing program. “In our eight-year relationship with Kodak, we have attracted some of the best students

FFTA/Clemson Workflow Seminar Series: OPTIMIZING THE DIGITAL PLATE PACKAGE FOR FLEXOGRAPHY January 16-17, 2007 Clemson University, Clemson SC WHY A DIGITAL PLATE SEMINAR? Because in today’s environment, digital workflow processes such as platemaking should be SIMPLER not more complicated. Find out how to uncomplicate the digital plate process from “Prepress to RIP to Final Plate Production” while achieving optimal results from your investment. Working with industry leaders, you will learn to recognize the pitfalls, avoid common mistakes and develop procedures to achieve consistent and repeatable results on every plate, every press run. This seminar is appropriate for all segments of flexography whether currently using