DUSSELDORF, GERMANY, Print service providers can see the host of products being delivered through Kodak's strong R&D investment in prepress solutions in the Kodak Quarter (Hall 5, Stand F09) at drupa 2016.

Breakthrough technologies for offset plates, including longest run process free plate for UV

Kodak is revealing two plates that are expected to set new levels of on-press performance for print service providers.  The KODAK SONORA UV Process Free Plate is a new plate designed to allow printers using UV, including the newer low-energy UV presses, to achieve higher run lengths than with any other process free plate available today. The KODAK SWORD MAXThermal Plate will feature the new, patented Advanced Resin Technology (ART), which delivers high-performance features for printers facing challenging press conditions and strict cost constraints.

SONORA UV Plates will meet the rigorous demands of UV print applications increasingly used by today's packaging and commercial printers. The SONORA UV Plate will enable printers to take advantage of both the environmental and economic benefits of process free plates and the expanded set of opportunities associated with UV technology, including flexibility and durability, high print quality, and faster drying times. Based on technology used in the popular SONORA XJ Process Free Plate available commercially in Japan, the SONORA UV Plate is in early field testing now and will be in controlled sales and beta testing by Q4 2016. Full availability is expected in early 2017.

"With SONORA Plate production facilities now located in the USA, Europe and China, more than 3,000 SONORA Plate customers across the globe already benefit from faster supply, support and customer service," comments Brad Kruchten, President of Kodak's Print Systems Division. "SONORA Plate volume sales grew 50% in 2015, and this continued adoption of SONORA Plates worldwide underscores the industry's demand for more sustainable printing solutions to address new applications and opportunities, all while increasing profitability. With both economic and environmental sustainability at the forefront of more and more printers' strategic investments, we predict this trend to continue and anticipate that 30% of Kodak's plate volume will be process free by 2019 as process free plates are quickly becoming a mainstream industry product."

The Advanced Resin Technology in SWORD MAX Thermal Plates is designed to deliver high-performance features, including strong chemical resistance, excellent handling, high productivity and resolution, and low developer consumption. SWORD MAX Plates will be available for testing in late 2016, initially in Asia only.

The company's most recent plate introductions, KODAK ELECTRA MAX Thermal Plates and KODAK LIBRA VP Digital Plates will be on display in the Plate Gallery. Kodak will also have live imaging demonstrations of SONORA XP and SONORA UV Process Free Plates and ELECTRA MAX Plates.

Visitors to the stand can see the new KODAK AQUA-IMAGE Pressroom Chemicals range, designed to reduce printers' variability and improve performance in the pressroom. The AQUA-IMAGE product range, currently available in the U.S. and Canada, and expanding worldwide throughout 2016, includes over 20 press washes, plate cleaners, ink roller maintenance chemicals and storage gums.

Enhanced CtP Automation Portfolio delivers better efficiency and speed

At drupa, Kodak is introducing an ultra-high speed imaging technology - the new 'W speed' - to the TRENDSETTER Q400 and Q800 Platesetters. The new imaging technology significantly increases throughput to 68 plates per hour on an 8-up plate and 75 plates per hour on a 4-up plate imaging KODAK SONORA XP plates, creating the world's fastest process-free CTP. This configuration will deliver a more efficient, compact and faster plate-making process - all without chemistry or processor use.

Kodak has also responded to a growing demand for higher resolution imaging, mostly triggered by security, lenticular and high resolution art printing applications, by introducing a new 4,800 / 5,080 dpi resolution option to its Trendsetter platesetter ranges. This option can be used to image small features with great details like background patterns or wavy lines of variable width, and for micro printing indiscernible to the naked eye.

A host of new automation options to complement the KODAK TRENDSETTER and KODAK ACHIEVE CTP families is also shown for the first time at drupa. This includes thenew Multi-Cassette Unit (MCU) that features online access to four cassettes of 120 plates each, a total of 480 plates can be imaged without manual intervention.

Brad Kruchten adds: "The Multi-Cassette Unit -  Kodak's third generation CTP automation - requires half the space and uses up to 80% less energy than any other MCU on the market today. It is the perfect addition to Kodak's recently introduced Single Cassette Unit and In-Line Punch System to give PSPs the flexibility and choice that will suit their printing needs."