Flexo Technology
Unlocking efficiencies in pre- press to survive and thrive
By Andrew Hewitson, co-founder of pre-press packaging specialists Reproflex3.
I
n the face global competition, it is widely acknowledged that changing consumer tastes and preferences for bright interactive packaging, means brands must continually adapt their packaging designs to stand out, and it’s largely been innovation within the pre-press industry which is enabling them to track changes across international markets to deliver this creativity.
Now that the industry is experiencing rising costs in energy, raw materials, production and labour, I firmly believe that pre-press holds the key to helping printers and converters meet these latest challenges, whilst crucially continuing to meet, or better still, surpass their customer’s expectations.
There is no escaping the fact that the pre- press industry exists to remove cost for printers. Whether you have an in-house team or outsource to a trusted industry specialist like Reproflex3, the key to success is a stable pre-press platform which is optimised to consistently deliver a high-quality output, whilst stripping out waste and driving efficiency throughout the process. I recently attended the FTA conference in the US, where market intelligence suggested there is currently more than 600 new CI flexo presses scheduled for delivery worldwide over the next two years. This is great news for OEMs, but for buyers to truly capitalise on the efficiency advantages their investments offer, each machine must run on a stable pre-press platform. This presents a big challenge for flexo printers in having to navigate today’s complex pre- press and plate making technologies. If press operations and manufacturing capability is your strength, the advantages of outsourcing pre-press are clear. Costs are high for pre-press hardware and software and it is difficult to recruit skilled staff and also stay up to speed with changes in technology. If you outsource the work to a service provider, they have the expertise and resources to look after all this for you and will always choose the best solution specific to your needs. This is fundamentally why we have invested substantially in providing a fast, efficient, and unique model for pre-press delivery which is suited to meet the highest standards required from the global premium packaging market.
companies likeminded to Reproflex3 that exist to enhance the capabilities of the print shop floor, to maximise the quality of their outputs and increase productivity. For example, we’ve recently developed our ProjectBlue and Vortex screening technologies to help printers match flexo print results to a customer supplied proof swiftly and cost effectively.
At Reproflex3 we are totally focused on delivering high performance pre-press services to the flexo community that provide real and sustainable print efficiencies and industry leading print quality. Traditionally, the business model for key players in the pre-press industry was to significantly reduce print quality dependence by making as many colour separations as the press could manage.
At R3 we began a journey to build sustainability into our business model more than a decade ago. The aim was to develop a system that increased print quality and took cost out of production. Essentially saving printers substantial amounts of time, money and irritation.
The plate technology we invested in allowed us to get ahead of the curve, move away from multi spot colours and start rationalising colours. This has reduced the number of plates and lowered the total cost of the job for our customers. Colour rationalisation and advances in print technology have been a journey for all printers. From our point of view, solutions providers like us are driving sustainability and optimisation in the value chain by providing a stable platform that reduces the total cost of pre-press without compromising the print quality of the end product.
Brands want to work with sustainable solutions more than ever, and there’s an ecosystem of
ProjectBlue works within traditional flexographic print methods to deliver Ultra High Definition (UHD) print in one step. Benefits include outstanding print quality, enhanced speed to market and multiple cost and time efficiencies. The system has been engineered from the ground up to unite best-in-class pre- press technologies with an exclusive patented plate surface cell pattern and anilox cell format for optimised ink transfer. It is a proven technology in bringing UHD to the market, receiving multiple international awards through our Reproflex3 Global Partnership Network.
Following the success of ProjectBlue, we developed Vortex to provide a soft impact, lower cost solution for flexo printing on paper, corrugated cardboard and plastic film. The system uses a unique set of tools to stabilise the print process and create superior print consistently and efficiently. The technology is designed to integrate with existing print workflows to optimise processes and deliver fast and efficient precision printing which is backed by 360 certified colour management. The result is gravure-quality print with an extended colour space potential, ink savings and a significantly reduced dot gain. Its advanced ink transfer system doesn’t need a specific anilox. Vortex can work with high volume aniloxes whilst metering the dot gain. The added value includes high impact graphics, minimal plate and ink changeovers, reduced press set-up time, reduced waste and less downtime between print runs.
In today’s world, for printers and converters to survive, thrive and meet the challenges of rising production costs and rapidly evolving consumer expectations - greater efficiency and a fast turnaround is essential and what makes pre-press a crucial part of the packaging process.
Xwww.reproflex3.com
www.convertermag.com
June 2022
27
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
