European firms make DigiFlex investments

Italian repro house EGI and Cypriot printer Comulti Platforms - MasterLabel have invested in DigiFlex’s FlexoJet 1725 as they both pursue higher quality plate production.

Socrates Hadjikyriacos, managing director of Comulti Platforms - MasterLabel

FlexoJet 1725 is an inkjet-based computer-to-plate (CtP) system for photopolymer flexographic, letterpress, dry-offset and rotary silk screen printing technologies that allows analog plate materials to be imaged digitally.

EGI owner Egidio Fedele said: ‘We used to process film with a Dolev imagesetter, and to enhance the quality, we needed to look for alternatives in the market.

‘We have found in the FlexoJet a great combination of price and quality. We are now able to give a fast and efficient service to our customer base while improving the quality of our product offering.’

For Socrates Hadjikyriacos, managing director of Comulti Platforms - MasterLabel, the move to digital platemaking was also driven by the need to achieve a higher quality. ‘We used to process films in-house using our own CtF but we had to move to digital platemaking in order to enhance the quality we provide our customers with as we strive for continuous perfection.

‘We were contemplating for quite some time to find the right solution for us. We wanted a simple but high quality and high yield solution.

‘Before purchasing the system, I traveled to Belgium to see the system working at a customer site. This customer was working with the DigiFlex system for two years and told me he is very satisfied with it. He showed me labels they made for similar industries such as pharmaceutical and health care, and I liked what I saw.

‘When examining the available options in the market, DigiFlex showed very high quality at a very attractive cost of operation.

‘We managed to save a lot of money using the FlexoJet 1725. Aside of the low investment, we are no longer using films, and still keep using the analog plates. Moreover, very low maintenance is needed.’

‘We are still using analog plates and we didn’t need to change anything in the materials and process we use’ added EGI’s Fedele. ‘There is no ablation system therefore no expensive filters or smell in the working room.

‘There is no more waste of chemicals, so not only am I saving money but I also keep a green environment, which is extremely important in the Italian market.

‘We have better control now in all preparation phases of the plate processing. This is a very easy to use system and we can produce plates fast.

‘Lastly, we have managed to save a lot of money on consumables, comparing to the consumables used with the imagesetter.’