Delivers Significant Sustainability and Performance Improvements for Newspapers

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Kodak is announcing the launch of its new thermal printing plate for newspapers in the Americas, the KODAK THERMALNEWS PT Digital Plate. The THERMALNEWS PT Plate lets newspaper printers remove the preheat and prewash steps from processing, saving energy, water, and time. The THERMALNEWS PT Plate is the industry’s only processed plate available for newspapers that removes both of these steps and reduces power consumption of processing by up to 60% and water consumption by up to 50%. With the same stability, quality, run lengths, and imaging speed as KODAK THERMALNEWS GOLD Digital Plates, the THERMALNEWS PT Plate lets printers cut costs and reduce impact on the environment.

The THERMALNEWS PT Plate is one of the most robust thermal plates available today. Up to 200,000 impressions are possible with the THERMALNEWS PT Plate without preheating while newspapers that require long run lengths have the added flexibility of preheating the plate for runs of up to 350,000 impressions. Printers can decide how they want to process the plate, with preheat or without, and are rewarded with the stability of thermal imaging, high resolutions for AM and FM newspaper printing, and low chemistry consumption. The plate delivers resolutions suitable for premium newspaper printing as well as color printing of flyers, inserts, and related commercial pieces.

The THERMALNEWS PT Plate joins the KODAK SONORA NEWS Process Free Plate in Kodak's portfolio of plates that offer newspaper printers the opportunity to reduce environmental impact and related costs. SONORA NEWS Plates let newspapers completely eliminate the processing step, including all related chemistry, water, energy, and time, and are ideal for newspapers that want the most streamlined plate line with the most cost and environmental benefits. The THERMALNEWS PT Plate was designed for those newspaper printers that want the features of a processed plate plus reduced environmental impact and costs.  Violet plates, including “chemistry free” violet plates, always require a preheat step, so the ability to remove the preheat step gives newspaper printers one more reason to choose thermal technology, in addition to the excellent quality and stability of thermal.

The THERMALNEWS PT Plate was first introduced in Europe in 2012 and due to its advantages, Kodak is making it commercially available in the Americas. Production will be expanded to Kodak’s Columbus, GA facility this year in order to meet customer demands.