The Time and Money Saving Guide for the Flexographic Printer FlexoGuide is a free service of All Printing Resources, Inc. (APR). It is intended to keep our customers informed of new solution-oriented products, technical tips, saving opportunities, and APR services. Previous issues of FlexoGuide are available here.   Tech Tip 1 - Common Practices To Minimize Dust In The Plateroom Tech Tip 2 - Combating Persistent Ink Micro-Foaming APR and Six Sigma Resources have formed an alliance to offer the flexo industry customized Lean, Six Sigma, and Lean Sigma training and contract services to help solve problems relating to productivity, yield, quality, and customer satisfaction. Flint Printing Plate (formerly BASF) introduces the new ACT plate specifically designed for excellence in combination printing Enviroxi's Automatic Rewinder Reel Handling Unit for increased productivity Rick Mix returns to APR as VP of Business Development BTG's Ceramic-Tipped Doctor Blades GretagMacbeth's ProfileMaker 5 Graymills Peristaltic Ink Pump  Tech Tip 1 Common Practices To Minimize Dust In The Plateroom One of the main causes of plate defects in the exposure process is pinholes. These pinholes appear in conventional platemaking when dust particles are trapped between the film negative and plate. The static charge apparent in the film negative attracts dust particles to both the film negative and the photopolymer material. The same static charge is also apparent in digital platemaking through the removal of the protective coversheet of the raw photopolymer. Therefore it is safe to say that dust particles pose a threat to both conventional and digital plates. Minimizing this static charge can be addressed through... Tech Tip 2 Combating Persistent Ink Micro-Foaming Although improvements in inks have reduced many ink foaming issues, continued increases in press speeds have worked against the elimination of this as a consideration press-side, especially with many process and metallic inks. Analysis as to the cause of this microfoam formation suggests that the air bubbles become entrapped as the anilox roll comes in contact with the ink inside the chambered doctor blade assembly. The microfoam formation may be due to...  APR and Six Sigma Resources Have Formed an Alliance Also offered are training programs and specific task related analysis services for use in instances where an organization may require support beyond their current resources. Some of the services available individually such as Process Mapping, Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Design of Experiments, Measurement System Analysis, SPC Charting and Analysis, Capability Analysis  Flint Printing Plate (formerly BASF) introduces the new ACT plate specifically designed for excellence in combination printing
ACT nyloflex® digital technology allows for unsurpassed quality and repeatability allowing for:
For more information on this product, please call us at 1-800-445-4017, or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. Enviroxi's Automatic Rewinder Reel Handling Unit for increased productivity and improved operator safety 
Enviroxi, a European leader in innovative technology for package printers, has introduced the automatic rewinder reel handling unit that can be adapted to any flexo printing press or film extruder's turret rewinderÉold or new. This unit automatically:
This equipment allows for very fast cycle times (under 3 minutes) thus increasing overall productivity. The unit also increases safety as the operator will be free from handling heavy shafts as often. This equipment is applicable for all types of turret rewinders, whether on printing presses or extruders, new units or older machines, and for all manufacturer types. It is suitable for all types of shafts handles easily solid or slit rolls with large or small diameters. For more information on this product, please call us at 1-800-445-4017, or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. Rick Mix returns to APR as VP of Business Development Rick Mix, previously with APR and most recently the Technical Director for the Flexographic Technical Association, has re-joined APR as its new VP of Business Development. Rick's knowledge of the challenges that the flexo printing industry faces make him uniquely qualified for this new position, where the main focus will be to assist APR customers in becoming more efficient and profitable organizations by helping them overcome their challenges through APR's innovative resources and collaborative assessment process. This process, using state-of-the-art equipment and flexo specialists from prepress to the pressroom, will identify opportunities for increased productivity and reduced waste resulting in comprehensive business improvements that deliver actionable & measurable results. Rick and the APR Tech Team have a proven track record of delivering profitability enhancements in such areas as:
With Rick's strategic leadership and an increase in investments, APR intends to develop new innovative resources for the flexo printing industry.  BTG's Ceramic-Tipped Doctor Blades are Proven to Improve Productivity and Print Consistency 
In flexography, wear from abrasive pigment particles and friction between the blade and the engraved roll leads to short lifetimes for standard metal blades. Ceramic blades last longer and maintain printing quality over long periods of time. BTG's ceramic-tipped flexo blade is a steel blade with an enhanced working edge. It requires no run-in time and provides constant quality through-out its lifetime. Although the blade tip ceramic material has a different, softer, composition than the ceramic coating of the anilox cylinder, the two are perfectly compatible. As the blade tip is protected, there is no risk for metallic slivers or shavings off the blade mixing with the ink and causing scoring lines. Result in productivity increases from less blade changes and improved print quality from more consistent printing quality. APR has a proven track record in determining the right blades needed to reduce total costs and improve print quality. We also offer extensive analysis to diagnose possible causes of premature blade wear and / or anilox scoring issues. For more information on this product, please call us at 1-800-445-4017, or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. GretagMacbeth's ProfileMaker 5 for Packaging for Significant Prepress Time Savings 
ProfileMaker 5 Packaging solution is tailored to meet the color management needs of the imaging workflow in the packaging market for flexo, gravure, offset and inkjet printing environments. It introduces the open ICC standard to complex multicolor scenarios and leads to reliable color communication. Now producing an ICC color managed workflow has never been easier for the packaging printer. PM5 Packaging can dramatically accelerate your time-to-market and significantly reduce your production costs with these key features:
Featuring modules to manage all of your color imaging devices and processes:
Add color measurement that meets your budget and automation needs
GretagMacbeth offers a ROI tool to help calculate how quickly you'll get your Return-on-Investment from PM5. To use this tool, click ont the following link: http://www.gretagmacbeth.com/pm5packaging_roi_calculator.html For more information on this product, please call us at 1-800-445-4017, or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. Graymills Peristaltic Ink Pump Combines Two Removable Heads 
Graymills has developed a new dual head peristaltic ink pump, which combined two removable heads powered by a single motor that allows quick press changeovers that increase productivity. The pump allows users both to supply ink and draw it back from one deck, supply the same ink, to two decks or supply two different inks to two different decks. The variable speed facilitates a variety of flow conditions. For fast job changeovers, the heads can be removed from the pump by pushing a quick release bar. New pump heads, with tubing already installed, can be placed on the pump, and within seconds the pump is ready for the next print run. The unique design also allows pump heads to be rotated quickly to accommodate individual press configurations. Also available now is the new Splash-Resistant Peristaltic Ink Pump with a sealed speed control and reverse switch, protecting electrical components from splashes and spills in the pressroom environment. Due to the pump's specially designed outer cover, there is no need to worry about fluids entering the pump during wipe-downs. In addition, the Pump's design assures ideal air flow throughout the pump, keeping the internal parts running at a cooler temperature. The new design retains the many standard features found in Graymills Peristaltic Pumps, such as, Dual-roller technology, Straight-thru tubing design, Reversible speed control, and Swivel-lock fasteners for quick tube change. These features make the pumps especially valuable in the pressroom where dependability and quick turnarounds count. The Splash Resistant is ideal for all print applications, light to heavy viscosity inks (including UV and EB), coatings and adhesives. For more information on this product, please call us at 1-800-445-4017, or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. For more information, literature, pricing, or any other assistance, please call us at 1-800-445-4017 or e-mail us at info@teamflexo.com. Privacy Policy We want to let you know that to protect your privacy, we will never release your e-mail address to a third party. In all cases, every message we send will be clearly identified as coming to you from All Printing Resources, Inc.. And with every message, you will be given an opportunity to opt out from receiving future messages. Even if you have previously submitted e-mail preferences, you may use the link below to check or add to your profile. This will allow us in the future to better select specials, tech tips, featured products, and training updates products and services targeted to your more specific business needs. Thank you for being a FlexoGuide subscriber and for aiding us in the process of making this a continually improving time and money saving guide for the Flexographic printing industry. © 2006, All Printing Resources, Inc.  |
