Esko proudly announces the first installation
in South Asia of a CDI Advance Cantilever 1450 with HD Flexo technology at
Numex Blocks. Armed with the most advanced digital flexo imaging solution on
the market, Numex Blocks will be able to provide flexo printers across India
the high quality level that was originally only achievable in offset or
gravure. With the capability of the CDI Cantilever to image both plates and
sleeves, the company is gearing up for the requirements of tomorrow's flexo
market.
“India is an emerging market for packaging
print and we notice a significant growth in the quality of flexo printing as it
has to meet gravure and offset standards,” says Hoshi Deboo, VP Asia Pacific
& Japan at Esko. “Numex was the first to set the trend in 2002 by moving
from analog to digital and has continuously invested in the latest technologies
ever since. When looking for their next technology investment, Numex of course
had several options to choose from. We are delighted that they considered the
Esko CDI as the best platform to address the demanding quality requirements of
the Indian market.”
Leading
the Indian flexo market with long-term technology investments
Founded in 1985, Numex Blocks (Mumbai, India)
is a well-established Indian prepress trade shop specialized in flexo and
letterpress plate production for the flexible packaging, labels and corrugated markets
across India. The company always had a strong strategy of investing in the most
advanced technology - in 2002, it was the first trade shop to offer digital
flexo plate making in India. After ten years of successfully producing digital
flexo plates, the company again takes the lead in the Indian flexo market with
the investment in Esko's CDI Advance Cantilever 1450 with HD Flexo - guaranteeing
its clients the highest quality print results they demand. Over the years, Numex
Blocks also continuously upgraded its workflow software and works today with
Esko's Suite 10 preproduction software. The company is looking forward to the
new Suite 12 that Esko will be launching at drupa 2012 in May.
“Flexo
is moving towards new levels of quality and there are significant growth
opportunities across all markets in India. Since the latest generation of
presses deliver a quality not seen before, we need to gear up to match the
market demand for this high quality plate imaging,” says Nitin Patil, Director of
Numex Blocks. “We have a long standing partnership with Esko that spans back
over 10 years. All through this time our experience with Esko has always been
excellent. Now that we need to add more capacity and meet the demand for higher
quality, we didn’t look anywhere else. Esko’s CDIs are robust and reliable –
and combined with HD Flexo technology they deliver the best quality. These
solutions are the de facto standard in today's flexo world.”
Imaging
sleeves: Gearing up for the future
While
the CDI Cantilever enables Numex Blocks to meet the today’s demand for higher
quality plate imaging, it's the capability of the unit to also image sleeves
which offers the company the greatest opportunity for new business growth in
the future.
“Sleeves
offer many advantages to print service providers. Faster change over time,
perfect registration and they last longer than plates,” explains Patil. “Since
digital flexo sleeves can now compete with gravure for flexible packaging, we
see a growing demand for flexo sleeves. Until now, no one in India could supply
them. With the CDI Advance Cantilever 1450 we are the first. It allows us to
develop a whole new line of business supplying flexo sleeves for the flexible
packaging market.”
Highest
quality imagery on both plates and sleeves
The
Esko CDI Advance Cantilever series are specifically designed to deliver the
highest quality imaging on both plates and sleeves. The 1450 model images
digital flexo sleeves up to a sleeve length of 57" / 1450 mm. It comes
equipped with a plate loading table, and a vacuum drum-sleeve with Easy Clamp
to securely hold down flexo plates of a size up to 42" x 60" / 1067 x
1524 mm, at a speed of up to 8.0 m² per hour.
With
Esko's HD Flexo technology, the CDI Advance Cantilever offers the highest
quality level, comparable to offset and gravure. Combining HighRes optics of
4,000 ppi with unique finely tuned screens specifically designed for higher
imaging resolutions on flexo plates, HD flexo delivers extended color gamut and
improved solid densities, smooth vignettes and reduction of correction and
retouching of CT images.
Esko is the worldwide market leader with
software for artwork creation, structural design, preproduction, workflow
automation, quality assurance and online collaboration. Esko solutions support and
manage the packaging and print processes at brand owners, retailers, designers
and packaging manufacturers.
