Food & Beverage Asia June/July 2022

FIRST LOOKS 57
Italian repro house Zincografia Empolese
installs Asahi Photoproducts CleanPrint
flexo plates
Asahi Photoproducts has reported that
Italian repro house Zincografia Empolese
has installed an Asahi AWP 4835 P
flexographic plate processor and Asahi
AWP-DEW CleanPrint water-washable
plates to its production platform. The
company, which has been in business
since 1985 and is a business unit of
ZE Group, is located in San Miniato, Italy.
Zincografia Empolese provides high
-quality flexo plates to its customers, who
produce labels, flexible and corrugated
packaging.
“Prior to acquiring our Asahi plate processor
using AWP-DEW CleanPrint plates, we
used a variety of different products,”
said Noemi Bisoli, managing partner. “We
made the switch for a number of reasons,
including the 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 waterwashable
plates, a factor that is more
and more important to our customers.”
Bisoli noted that the company uses a
significant amount of flexo plate material
annually, and with the new efficiencies
offered by the Asahi configuration,
expects that number to grow.
Asahi AWP CleanPrint water-washable
flexographic plates are processed
without VOC-based washout solvents,
use less energy in the production process
and deliver a faster time to press than VOC
solvent-wash plates. The ability of Asahi´s
CleanPrint water-washable flexographic
photopolymer plate technology to deliver
effective print performance results from
its engineered photopolymer chemistry
design. The water-wash technology also
features a low-surface energy plate,
resulting in fewer press stops for plate
cleaning, improved OEE in the pressroom,
and reduced press waste. In addition,
AWP-DEW CleanPrint plates deliver
precise registration and a printing balance
between highlights and solids. ■
Small plug-in energy chain from igus saves
80% assembly time
The plug-in energy chain system readychain
speed from igus connects harnessed
e-chain systems quickly and without the
use of tools. This reduces throughput times
in assembly and machine downtimes, and
also minimises planned maintenance work.
The ready-to-connect e-chain system thus
saves 80% installation time. With the new
readychain micro-speed, this is now also
possible for very small applications and
in particularly tight installation spaces.
With the readychain speed from igus, the
e-chain system can be replaced easily
and quickly, and the machine can start
operation again immediately. For very
narrow installation spaces, igus offers
the readychain micro-speed model.
At a width and inner height of 20mm each,
the readychain micro-speed is suitable for
small spaces, such as door interlocks in
machine tools. There is no need to separate
cores from the terminal strips using tools
before changing a cable, due to the fact
that the connectors are integrated in the
energy chain, and the cable is already
connected on both sides. Thus, the entire
assembly is designed to be pluggable.
The counterpart, an add-on housing with
bushing, can be flanged to the machine
housing. If a change is required, the
e-chain can be replaced using the plugin
principle without tools, knowledge, and
technicians. Any employee can perform this
task without worry of making mistakes.
The readychain micro-speed is the smallest
version of the pre-assembled, ready-to-connect
e-chain systems from igus (Image: igus)
With the readychain micro-speed,
customers receive an interface solution
meeting their needs. It is mostly
configurable and, like the larger readychain
speed, can be combined with cables
from the wide range of chainflex cables
from igus, including power cables, bus
cables, Ethernet cables and fibre optic
cables. The cables are protected from
mechanical damage with the e-chain. ■
FOOD & BEVERAGE ASIA JUNE / JULY 2022