Kodak, Sun Chemical win 2008 InterTech honors

-- Converting Magazine, 8/4/2008

Flexographic-printing developments by prepress provider Kodak and inkmaker SunChemical have been honored with 2008 InterTech Technology Awards from the Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation.

Kodak was recognized for its FLEXCEL NX Digital Flexographic System, which is said to provide offset-class, gravure quality on a wide variety of substrates—including paper, flexible film, foil, label stock, and folding cartons. The integrated FLEXCEL NX sytem includes FLEXCEL NXH Digital Flexographic Plates, FLEXCEL NX Thermal Imaging Layer, TRENDSETTER NX Narrow Imager or TRENDSETTER NX Mid Imager, FLEXCEL NX Laminator, KODAK SQUARESPOT Imaging Technology, and KODAK PRINERGY POWERPACK Workflow System for Packaging.

Because the Thermal Imaging Layer is laminated directly to the plate, there is no issue with oxygen attack, enabling the formation of stable, full amplitude, flat top dots on the plate. This dot structure significantly reduces dot gain and dramatically improves print consistency and quality while providing repeatable results with a full tonal range.

“The KODAK FLEXCEL NX Digital Flexographic System is a truly innovative solution for the market and was an easy choice for the selection committee,” notes Mark Bohan, vp-research and technology for PIA/GATF. “The print samples were really something to see, proving that this approach to flexographic plate imaging is a positive jump forward for the market.”

In a technology demonstration earlier this year, Williamson Printing Corp. in Dallas used its FLEXCEL NX System to image offset separations using offset angles and zero retouching on FLEXCEL NX digital-flexo plates. Those plates were then mounted on the coating stations of Williamson’s hybrid Heidelberg Speedmaster sheetfed-offset press, and high-quality movie posters were printed at 300 lpi with densities in all colors exceeding 2.0.

Sun Chemical was honored for its Platinum White technology, a UV-flexo white ink that improves the productivity of converters when printing narrow-web labels by delivering increased line speeds, faster changeovers, improved color separations, and reduced costs, the company says.

UV rotary-screen white inks have long provided high opacity and brightness for package printing, however, rotary-screen printers are restricted to low press speeds and sometimes borderline adhesion to many substrates. In addition, flexo or letterpress inks printed over them usually require modification for optimal wetting and adhesion.

Platinum White technology improves on rotary-screen technology by enabling increased press speeds, adhesion to many challenging substrates, overprint ability with standard UV-letterpress, UV- and water-based flexo inks and coatings, better color separations, faster makeready times, and reduced consumable costs.