Gent (Belgium), September 27, 2007 - EskoArtwork, the market leader in packaging pre-production solutions, introduces the Esko Digital Flexo Suite for Labels and Tags, a software solution targeted at the flexo plate room operations and aiming for complete automation of flexo plate production. The solution is part of the recently introduced Esko Software Suite 7. The collection of EskoArtwork's plate making software, designed specifically for the imaging requirements of the label and tag industry, offers significant cost savings through automated flexo plate optimization, particularly when used along with a Cyrel Digital Imager (CDI) flexo plate setter and an Esko Kongsberg cutting table.
The Digital Flexo Suite delivers a unique information flow to plate making hardware. While a job is sent to the imager, concurrently, automatically, and instantly files are created for accurate cutting by the Esko Kongsberg table, and even data files can be sent to a digital or analog mounter. Thus, with very little human intervention, a plate is prepared, ready for the press.
With Esko Digital Flexo Suite for Labels and Tags, label and tag printers, converters and trade shops can dramatically boost profits and increase productivity by eliminating unnecessary plate waste and by reducing human errors. For example, cross marks are automatically added, with job IDs, so the jobs are not misidentified or lost. The system always asks for missing elements so no plate is produced incorrectly, requiring a remake. With the automated process, labor costs are also significantly reduced.
Standard components that are delivered with the Esko Digital Flexo Suite for
Labels and Tags include:
- PlatePrep, used to prepare multiple jobs simultaneously. It allows for last minute changes, imposes files, and delivers cost reducing features such as plate usage optimization, cut marks and customizable register marks.
- Hotfolder Plus is used for an automated workflow, it reduces the time needed to output plates significantly.
- PlatePatcher minimizes plate consumption by automatically reducing and repositioning full-format jobs into plate-optimized patches.
- XL-Cut is intelligent software for Kongsberg XL cutting tables supports ID plotting.
Optional components of the Esko Digital Flexo Suite include an Esko Kongsberg XL table for flexo plate cutting, auto mounting filters for certain digital plate mounters, and the Esko BackStage Server to manage a complete, end-to-end workflow.
"Over the years EskoArtwork developed a number of products to face and overcome our customers' challenges. Our experience has enabled us to develop very specific solutions for flexo imaging that are particularly complete," comments Jan Buchweitz, Product Manager Digital Flexo EskoArtwork. "At EskoArtwork we go far beyond plate imaging. We ensure that our customers are conserving as much of a plate as possible, and that every step can be taken to deliver an automated process direct to the press. These solutions allow our customers to produce high quality digital flexo plates as economically as possible."
Besides the Esko Digital Flexo Suite for Labels and Tags, there are also two other specialized versions for different applications available: corrugated and flexible packaging.