The FINANCIAL — Kufstein, Austria-based commercial printing company Druckerei Aschenbrenner GmbH has enhanced its eco-conscious reputation after switching its printing plate production and print process to the new Kodak Sonora XP Process Free Plate.
According to Kodak, the adoption of the KODAK SONORA XP Plate is Druckerei Aschenbrenner’s latest step towards creating a highly sustainable production process. The FSC- and PEFC-certified sheet-fed offset printer only uses eco-conscious print additives, mineral oil-free printing inks and water-based enhancement coatings. Such initiatives helped Druckerei Aschenbrenner win the Austrian Environmental Label in November 2011.
Reducing footprint and improving efficiency — For the past five years, Druckerei Aschenbrenner had been using a simple process plate made by a Kodak competitor, which required a separate clean-out process after the CTP imaging. “The motivation for switching to the Sonora XP Plate was to further reduce the environmental footprint of plate production,” explains Peter Aschenbrenner, Managing Director. “The new KODAK Plate means we no longer need a rinse unit or rinse solution. And we’re saving the energy that would be required for this rinse process.”
The switch to imaging the Sonora XP Plate on the existing Heidelberg Thermal Platesetter proved simple. Druckerei Aschenbrenner even managed to reduce the laser power of the CTP system by 15 percent after changing to the SONORA XP Process Free Plate, which the company purchases from Kodak’s trading partner Druma in Innsbruck.
The new Kodak Sonora XP Process Free Plate is negative working and non-ablative, and delivers impressive resolution and imaging quality. Compared with the Kodak Thermal Direct Non Process Plate, the Sonora XP Plate offers a higher imaging speed and improved plate image contrast.
Image, mount on press and start printing—the switch to the new plate was just as easy in the print room as it was in the prepress department. Druckerei Aschenbrenner prints on four sheet-fed offset presses with two to five colors plus finish, and in formats between 33 x 50 cm and 52 x 74 cm. From printing inks based on rapeseed oil to fountain solutions and key machine settings, no adjustments were needed when introducing the Kodak Sonora XP Plate.
When the press is started, the non-image area cleans out very quickly, and the plate has exceptionally wide operating latitude. Another advantage of the Sonora XP Plate is its improved on-press stability—it delivers higher print run performance compared with Druckerei Aschenbrenner’s previous plate. Druckerei Aschenbrenner has already used the new plate to produce print runs of 85,000 impressions with consistently high quality. However, most orders are for between 10,000 and 20,000 prints.
“The new KODAK SONORA Process Free Plate is exactly what we’d expect from a modern, eco-conscious printing plate,” adds Aschenbrenner. “As an environmentally-focused business, this switch is undoubtedly a very positive step for us.”
