Material set-up waste slashed
12 February 2007AVT inspection modules prove profitable for French flexibles converter
French converter Saint Andre´ Plastique has boosted efficiency and quality with AVT's press controls, reports the Israeli web inspection and control specialist. Its Presco and pRegister add-on modules are helping Saint Andre´ to reduce set-up waste by over 50 per cent while improving print quality, claims AVT.
The Presco module for pressure control and pRegister module for register control have been successfully implemented at many packaging printing sites worldwide, and have now been installed for over a year at Saint Andre´ Plastique. The company specializes in flexible packaging for fresh produce for leading food retail chains. Its converted products include patented technologies such as perforated materials that open automatically during microwave cooking, and packaging that prolongs the life of fresh produce. In order to keep its quality up and costs down, Saint Andre´ Plastique was looking for a complete on-press answer to reduce waste and improve quality and consistency, both during press setup and run time.
The Presco and pRegister are add-on modules to AVT's PrintVision/Jupiter Automatic Inspection System, which is claimed to reduce both waste and valuable press time dramatically during set-up for flexo central impression presses. Set-up for Presco and pRegister is simple, fast and easy to use, reports AVT. These modules work automatically and simultaneously for up to 10 colour stations, using small colour targets and a communication link to the press.
First, pRegister automatically sets the colour plates into registration, both along and across the web. pRegister's range of operation can bring a very large initial mis-register error to a fine accuracy down to 15 micron quickly, while reducing set-up time and related waste. Then Presco automatically brings plate and anilox to optimal pressure for all colours in parallel. In addition to set-up savings of up to 70 per cent, printers greatly appreciate the improved quality and repeatability these press controls offer them, points out AVT.
"The implementation into our production environment was immediate," says Jean Michel Levoy, technical materials manager at Saint Andre´, "since the system's software is very intuitive and easy to use. Within a few days we were able to reduce waste by over 50 per cent and cut set-up time to less than a half. In addition, we saw an improvement in the quality of our final product, due to the accuracy and repeatability of AVT's Presco and pRegister modules.”
He reports: “Sixteen months later we are using the AVT systems on most of our jobs, to help maintain our competitiveness."
"Current market trends toward short runs make it even more critical to save on set-up time and increase printers' profitability," adds AVT's vice president marketing Gal Shamri. “High quality and consistency of job set-up is also a major issue as printers are aiming to have the same high quality results regardless of operator skill. AVT Presco and pRegister press control solutions have proven to be easy to implement and have resulted in dramatic waste and time reduction during set-up. Our press control package has become a required solution for our customers, as it allows them to keep their competitive edge," he concludes.
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