Most converters would not consider bypassing an annual Preventative Maintenance (PM) of their flexographic press. While day to day good housekeeping practices and lubrication are key to a well performing printing press, nothing can take the place of a press shut down where proper dryer balance is achieved, rollers aligned, electrical systems checked, tension and braking systems checked and heating and cooling systems maintained. No one likes to see a press sitting idle during this time, after all if the press isn't running quality product, then it isn't making the company money. So why do we perform (at very least) an annual press PM? First to insure the press is capable of operating at peak performance. Equally as important is that PM's help identify areas of potential mechanical or electrical failure. Dealing with scheduled downtime is one thing, equipment failure which could result in personal injury, substandard product, or product delays are unacceptable. So given the importance of annual press PM's, how is it that we can completely right off the importance of equipment processes preceding the press? Mounting is one of these key areas. Imagine the disruption to the daily schedule when a single press goes down. Now multiply that by the number of presses each mounter supplies and keeps running.
Unlike a press PM that can take a significant amount of man-hours, a typical annual mounter PM generally takes about 4-6 hours. Key components of a successful mounter PM include proper leveling, lubrication, measuring impression drum and gear run out if applicable, inspection of electrical and computer systems, calibration to camera and monitoring systems or setting mirrors and inspection of gear boxes and other mechanical parts that are susceptible to wear.
In the case of optical mounter proofers proper cleaning of the semi-reflective mirrors along with proper adjustment of the mirrors are among the most important key elements of the PM. In many cases, setting the mirrors requires the attention of a certified technician. Improper adjustments to the mirrors can result in furthering inaccuracies of registration, or even breaking the mirrors. Nevertheless, a properly adjusted set of mirrors can result in much greater accuracy to registration along with increased throughput.
Mounting systems utilizing cameras for video mounting in place of, or in addition to mirrors also require proper annual maintenance. Proper tracking of cameras and calibration must be maintained to insure registration accuracy and parallelism of plate and print cylinder.
All Printing Resources offers a variety of equipment services, including annual and semi-annual preventative maintenance programs for optical, video, and table mounting systems. To obtain information on these programs contact Sr. Equipment Service Technician, C.J. Marriner at [email protected] or call (800)445-4017.