What is flexographic printing machine?

Before we understand flexographic printing ma, we need to understand what flexographic printing is. Flexographic printing is a high-speed web printing process. It can reach speeds of up to 2,000 linear feet per minute.

  Flexographic printing is often used to print high-volume labels and flexible packaging. But it can also replace offset printing to produce high-volume folding cartons and corrugated packaging. Gift wrap, tissue paper, napkins, shopping bags, envelopes, ice cream cartons, and specialty items such as disposable plates and cups are also printed using flexographic printing.

  Many flexographic printing companies use digital presses (Sleeve Type Flexographic Printing Machine or Petal Type Flexo Printing Machine) to produce short runs or variable data jobs. This way, they can save prepress and makeready time by only printing the highest-volume jobs on the flexographic press.

Working Principle of flexographic printing presses

Flexo photopolymer plates of each color are wrapped around a rotating cylinder. As with the relief printing process, graphics and text for each color are raised from the plate. Only the raised areas of the plate are inked.

A typical flexographic printing press includes four types of rollers: ink fountain roller, anilox roller, plate cylinder, and impression cylinder. company mainly produces cylinder flexographic printing presses, petal-type flexographic printing presses (anilox rollers), and stacked flexographic printing presses (ink fountain rollers)

The ink fountain roller transfers ink from the ink pan to the steel or ceramic ink metering "anilox roller", and then to the plate cylinder. When the paper passes between the plate cylinder and the polished metal impression cylinder, the ink is applied to the substrate. The impression cylinder applies the pressure required to transfer the ink from the plate to the substrate.

In flexographic printing, the petal-type flexographic printing press is used to transfer a uniform thickness of ink to the flexible plate. Each anilox roller has finely engraved meshes that have a specific ink capacity.

Main features of flexographic printing presses

It can fit tightly onto substrates of various shapes and surfaces, ensuring stability and consistency in print quality.

Flexographic printing usually uses water-based inks or solvent-based inks, which have good drying performance and environmental characteristics, and are suitable for different types of substrates.

Flexographic printing machine adopts cylinder type continuous printing method, printing speed is faster, suitable for high volume, high efficiency production needs.

Flexographic printing presses can print a variety of materials and thicknesses of substrates, including paper, plastic film, aluminum foil, etc., and are widely used in packaging printing, label printing, flexible packaging printing and other fields.

Compared with certain other printing methods, flexographic printing is more environmentally friendly in terms of ink use and waste disposal, in line with the requirements of modern industry for sustainable development.

Technological Advances

In order to meet the consumer demand for packaged goods resulting from population growth, we are developing and installing new high-tech flexographic printing presses.

  The purpose of these new technologies is to (1) increase automation and reduce the need for skilled labor; (2) increase the use of environmentally friendly packaging and printing processes and materials; (3) reduce the time and expertise required for pre-press, plate making and plate changing; (4) minimize the large amounts of waste that result from errors in pre-press or press setups; and (5) enable the addition of variable data and digital watermarks to ensure authenticity.

  When flexographic printing is used in conjunction with digitally printed and offset-produced materials, the Extended Gamut System with its advanced color quality control system helps ensure greater color consistency and color matching.

  As our technology has advanced, our flexographic presses have achieved very high print accuracy and color reproduction compared to two years ago. They are capable of printing fine, clear images and text.