Zincografia Empolese, an Italian repro house based in Tuscany, has installed an Asahi AWP 4835 P flexographic plate processor and Asahi AWP-DEW CleanPrint water-washable plates.
The company, which has been in business since 1985 and is part of the ZE Group, provides flexo plates for a variety of sectors, including labels, flexible and corrugated packaging.
‘Prior to acquiring our Asahi plate processor using AWP-DEW CleanPrint plates, we used a variety of different products,’ explained managing partner Noemi Bisoli. ‘We made the switch for a number of reasons, including the excellent support we get from Asahi, the faster processing time for plates in prepress, and the reduced downtime in the press room for plate changes or press stops for plate cleaning at our customer sites. We also appreciate how sustainable the entire platemaking process is with Asahi AWP-DEW water-washable plates, a factor that is more and more important to our customers.’
The managing partner went on to note that her company already uses a significant amount of flexo plate material annually, but that the efficiency of the new Asahi configuration should see that total grow significantly.
Asahi says that its AWP CleanPrint water-washable plates are processed without VOC-based washout solvents. The production process therefore uses less energy and provides a faster time to press than VOC solvent-wash alternatives.
The company’s water-wash technology also incorporates a low-surface energy plate. This means that there are fewer press stops for plate cleaning and less press waste created. The company says that all of the above combine to make the plates the most sustainable in the industry.
