Esko and German supplier of diecutting tools Wink have combined their respective expertise to create "a highly-efficient staggered label solution that enables label converters to optimize label production, increase production speeds, enjoy material savings and produce highly accurate print and diecutting results".
The partnership combines Wink's diecutting technology with Esko's 'staggered cut' software and Kongsberg cutting tables in the new ProShift technology. ProShift enables impressions to be arranged more flexibly and make full use of the entire printing area. This is done using Wink's modern laser technology to arrange the upper and lower edge of the flexible dies in steps.
Esko's Plato sheet layout software creates the staggered label layout "at the touch of a button". Perfect alignment between the printing and cutting plate is guaranteed, the companies state, as the data is exported simultaneously to create the staggered flexo plate and to order the shifted die at Wink.
"This type of shifted printing and diecutting has many advantages," explains Fransz Verbeek, Wink's product manager. "In most cases, labels are arranged symmetrically to save space and keep the consumption of materials to a minimum. However, this configuration is less beneficial for the rotary die cutting process because vertical lines tend to cut more forcefully than horizontal lines, and high contact pressure causes the vertical lines to cut even deeper. This can also damage the liner material and result in wear and lasting damage to all components in the cutting unit."
ProShift is claimed to counteract these negative effects by vertically shifting the impressions in the machine's running direction, which significantly reduces the number of horizontal lines and evenly distributes cutting pressure.
When coupled with the tools in Esko's Digital Flexo Suite, efficiency in producing printing plates and control processes is increased at the prepress stage. The software uses intelligent algorithms and is connected to Esko Kongsberg systems, so that plate cutting becomes fully automated.
