Photopolymer plates: optimization for the production of printing plates thanks to the latest release of our Flexo24 software suitable for the online flexographic prepress.

Flexo24 released the new software for flexo pre-press to produce photopolymer plates and to receive the analysis of your PDF files online in real time. The 2.0.1 rel 22 version adds new, improved features to the existing functions, see this article: Flexo pre-press for the PDF: how to optimizing?

Save your configuration in real-time.

Once the features from the configurator are selected, you can save them for a quicker response next time. Here is a video explaining the new SAVE function:Flexo24 improved the analysis of your PDF files by detecting additional features through the new release of the real time software for flexo pre-press.

All these features DO NOT prevent the file from being valid for production in case of mismatch. Here are some suggestions on how to improve the result of your pre-press:

• processing steps’ inside the PDF
• Dot gain compensation curves (DGC) already applied
• overprinting white: fine lines
• overprinting white: filling, graphic elements
• JPG images

ProcessingSteps.

Thanks to the new software release, these processing steps for the production of plates are detected if they are already contained in the PDF file uploaded through our configurator.

Here is the message that you get:

ATTENTION: PDF contains Processing Steps according to ISO 19593-1:2019.

To avoid undesired results, these are not processed by our RIP systems. If you need these features to be processed, we suggest to apply them to your job before uploading the file: it’s up to you.

NOTE: you can always ask for a consultation with one of our Flexo24 experts to optimize your PDF file, just order the PDF check.

Dot gain compensation curves (DGC).

DGC is specific for flexo direct printing. The compensation curves optimize the sharpness of the printed results by adjusting the engraving values of every single dot on the printing plate.

The dot gain created by the printing machine can be compensated with a DGC value from our Flexo24 configurator. Some PDF files might already be set with this value, i.e. with a dot gain compensation curve already applied.

If curves are already applied, the analysis of the file will display this message:

ATTENTION: PDF contains dot gain compensation curves.

To avoid undesired results, these are not processed by our RIP systems. If you need a DGC to be processed, we suggest to apply this to your job before uploading the file: it’s up to you.

Fine lines OVERPRINTING WHITE.

‘White print’, non-printing white area, or overprinting white creates some misunderstanding even among flexo experts in the field of the packaging design.

It is usually intended as::

• ‘non-printing area’ to make the color of the substrate (usually white) pop up,
• fine lines or graphic elements to be printed in white: this is a typical feature of flexo printing (white overprinting).

NOTE: in more complex flexo projects both solutions can be applied.

The new 2.0.1 rel. 22 version of the online Flexo24PDF software helps to optimize pre-press and displays the following message if any white line is detected::

ATTENTION: Fine lines OVERPRINTING WHITE detected in the PDF: these will not pierce through the other color separations/channels into the elements printed beneath.

As this feature might produce undesired results, it’s up to you to ensure that it is correctly managed.

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OVERPRINTING WHITE: filling, graphic elements.

Our latest release enables the flexo pre-press operator to be warned about those graphic elements that are "white" filled. These graphic elements are most of all unexpected to produce correct photopolymer plates.

For the production of flexo plates on flexo systems it is required to be well aware of the ‘overprinting white’. To avoid any misunderstanding the following non-binding message will be displayed:

ATTENTION: Graphic elements filled in OVERPRINTING WHITE detected in the PDF: these will not pierce through the other color separations/channels into the elements printed beneath.

As this feature might produce undesired results, it’s up to you to ensure that it is correctly managed.

Embedded JPG images.

The PDF file that you want to upload can also contain rasterized, non-vector, JPG images. For flessography, we suggest to use images in other vector formats..

If the analysis of your PDF file finds any JPG images, the following message will be displayed:

ATTENTION: JPG images detected in the PDF.

As this is a compression format that makes images loose their quality, ensure that these are saved with a compression factor that does not affect the final quality of the printing plate.

Flexo printing systems are always improving by Flexo24.

“Innovating today means offering human technology, with solutions and tangible advantages for the packaging industry. The digital era is in full swing, and having just an original intuition is not enough. Expertise and professionalism helped Flexo24 to create the first B2B e-commerce for the flexo field, introducing constantly innovation and raising the service level.”

Livio Simionato, R&D Flexo 24.

ARE YOU READY?

Order your Plates now!

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Flexo plate distortion: How to calculate it and get high quality flexographic printing?

Most flexo digital plates are exposed on a flat surface.They’d print an exact copy of the negative if it was not for the fact they have to be wrapped around a cylinder for flexo printing. When the flexo rubber plates are mounted on these cylinders:

• Flexo machines print the longest image in the printing direction following the negative, causing flexographic elongation or distortion.
• The results do not match the desired ones, and the packaging or label printing are not satisfying.

PRO TIP

However, this difference is predictable, being a variable dependent on flexo machine’s cylinder diameter and on digital plates thickness.

Images must be reduced in the printing direction and with the table for calculating the flexo plate distortion it is possible to do it quickly, following a few and intuitive steps.

Buy now flexo readymade plates.

ORDER NOW THE FLEXO PRINTING PLATES, THE PHOTOPOLYMER FOR FLEXO PRINTING.

How to get photopolymer plates for flexography?

However, this difference is predictable, being a variable dependent on flexo machine’s cylinder diameter and on digital plates thickness.

Images must be reduced in the printing direction and with the table for calculating the flexo plate distortion it is possible to do it quickly, following a few and intuitive steps.

The guide to using flexo plate distortion calculator.

How to calculate flexo plate distortion?
Before loading the PDF for the realization of your digital plate with Flexo 24, you can calculate the negative distortion to apply to the file, by filling out the form you will find below. Follow these practical instructions:

1. Choose the unit of measurement.
2. Enter the value of the printing cylinder circumference.
3. Select the thickness of the digital plate you want to realize.
4. You immediately get the results in the table for calculating the flexo plate distortion.
5. Apply the reduction to the graphics of your file using graphic softwares..

Flexographic tutorial: learn more about with Flexo 24 Web Series.

Need a help for your flexo prepress? Here a tutorial about the management of the PDF file with the application of the reduction. Visit our Youtube channel for more useful videos.

Start now and become a Flexo 24 customer: create your own plate!

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Packaging design, flexo printing events: the complete guide to all next packaging exhibitions.

In Italy, Europe and beyond our continent, the events linked to the world of the flexographic printing increase from year to year and now are very numerous. Staying updated about each of them is certainly not easy, because of myriad of different sites and unclear or misleading information. Flexo 24 proposes a guide to fairs, exhibitions and seminars concerning the world of the flexographic press and makes available to each user an useful and easy to consult calendar about the flexible packaging and labeling trade fairs.

Start now and become
the next Flexo 24 customer: create your own plate!

Read now the Flexo 24 Fairs Calendar 2023, 2024 and some more and in a few steps you can know all Packaging events, trade fairs, shows & conferences.

The Flexo 24 Calendar 2023/'24: a useful guide for all flexographic professionals.

Creative managers, graphic designers, packaging printing, flexo printers: any professional can use this practical tool to stay updated constantly on flexo events concerning:

• packaging printing
• labeling
• converting
• flexible packaging
• flexo photopolymer plates and flexo printing
• Kodak plates, customize now your KODAK FLEXCEL NX plate with Flexo 24.

Try today the Kodak NX plate with Calibration Test for Kodak!

What can I do with Flexo 24 Fairs Calendar?

Thanks to this flexographic Calendar, you can be up to date about every event with useful and accurate information:

• Check out the news
• You can check when the event is held and learn official dates
• You will get information about the location of the printing trade fairs
• A useful link will allow you to acquire even more details directly from the official website.

By signing up to flexo 24’s newsletter you will only receive helpful information and an immediate €20,00 discount for your first order above € 199,00! Sign Up:

Here is the Calendar.

Following the complete list of more than 200 fairs analyzed by the Flexo 24 professional team:

Start now and become
next Flexo 24 customer: create your own plate!

1 Bit TIFF is the basic encoding of the graphic elements encapsulated in the PDF file. Such encoding must be set correctly as it disinhibits all the information set by our Flexo 24 configurator. Only for professionals in the flexographic prepress.

Flexo 24 is online, agile service for the flexo industry, read this article, the next step in innovation is already here: it is the 1-bit TIFF, called “LEN file” by Esko, the leading company for flexo software and hardware.

PRO TIP

1-bit TIFF is the file format that:
• describes an image in the binary code. This file is suitable to image the plates directly from the RIP with Flexo 24’s technology.
• essential decodification, which is transferred to the laser for the ablation of the digital flexo plate.

ESKO IMAGING, the RIP from Esko.

Once the PDF file is uploaded in the configurator, all the graphic elements are read by the RIP.

1-bit TIFF or Esko LEN are formats that represent the image’s pixels (the elements to engrave on the plates) in the binary code, with 2 information only: on/off. These files are generated by a RIP and used for the imaging of flexo plates.

PRO TIP

The Raster Image Processor (RIP) analyses the PDF file and generates the encapsulated file for a direct transfer to ESKO’s ablation machines available in Flexo 24’s equipment. This file will be then reproduced on the plates.

What is the encapsulated 1 Bit TIFF?

These are files encapsulated inside the PDF:

• they are made up only from black and white information. They contain rastered graphic elements, with dot shape, angles and different compensation curves (DGC) that must be necessarily considered, and any other technology from the RIP that generated them.
• they can be considered as a digital “film”. Graphic elements and screened objects are reproduced on the digital flexo plates exactly as they are incorporated in the PDF file.

In order to be used with the Flexo 24 tools they:

• should be encapsulated in PDF files
• should be one file for each color separation
• should not be multi-page.

This file encoding must be set correctly, as it might disinhibit the options set in our Flexo 24 configurator while the order is being processed:

1. screen ruling,
2. engraving angle
3. compensation curve (DGC).

Some parameters should always be set from the configurators::

• resolution (selected value in the configurator and set value in your RIP must be the same)
• printing direction: front or reverse.

PRO TIP

Default values of the RIP Imaging Engine are also disinhibited:

1) screened dots shape, preset as “circular”.

2) minimum bump-up value, essential to avoid smallest dots from dropping. This depends from type of substrate, substrate-ink combination and screen count.

Why using a 1-bit TIFF file?

The main benefit of using this format is that it enables Flexo 24 to image flexo plates with the RIP and the values from the customer’s printing system while:

• reducing time for realization of the PDF.
• granting an exact combination of the values from the customer’s printing system.

Encapsulated files should be managed by flexo pre-press professionals.

How to set Esko Imaging Engine to create files encapsulated in PDF?

Various RIP computer software are available to manage and create LEN files, Flexo 24 uses Esko Imaging Engine. This system is specific for flexo and generates the PDF file with 1-bit TIFF and LEN already encapsulated.

Here follow the instructions if you are using this RIP and want to generate a 1-bit TIFF or LEN encapsulated in PDF.

In case of other RIP systems, please check the matching featuresi.

PRO TIP

The PDF output features – compensation curves (DGC), dot shape, and others – are usually available in all the most advanced RIP systems, though some of these features may vary according to the companies that produce them. To set the correct parameters please contact your reference person

1. “Right reading” print.

Film or paper image should be read normally, from left to right and top to bottom, as we indicate here:

2. Output format.

Flexo 24 only accepts PDF files, so compression must be CCCIT4 with a maximum value.

3. Resolution.

In case of a plate with resolution 2540 or 4000 dpi, the value set in our Flexo 24 configurator must absolutely match the value that was set in Imaging Engine or in the RIP system.

PRO TIP

If the resolution value set in the 1-bit TIFF does not match the one you set in the configurator, some moiré patterns or strange effects may occur.

When uploading to the Flexo 24 system the 1-bit TIFF files encapsulated in PDF, all the features in the configurator, though they can be still selected, are dishinhibited:

• screen ruling,
• engraving angle,
• dot gain compensation curve (DGC) value,
• type of dot,
• bump-up value.

PRO TIP

Only print type (reverse/front) and resolution will be conserved. So when your file is generated, its settings must consider all the above mentioned parameters.

>> We suggest that the LEN files should be managed only by experts in the flexo pre-press field. <<

Advanced technology features for skilled professionals under their responsibility.

If you decide to use a file encapsulated in PDF, we remind you that you are responsible for:

• wrong bump-up values (small dots dropping),
• unsuitable DGC values,
• screened dots shape and angles not suitable for flexo,
• mismatch of the rastered file resolution encapsulated in PDF,
• resolution selected in the Flexo 24 configurator.

Flexo 24’s service is completely digital and adds new features to improve the quality of the technology offered to customers.

Start now and place your order with the encapsulated file: get your plates!

Flexographic plates by Flexo 24 because it is the first B2B e-commerce site for flexo market. Order your flexo plates online with the most complete and easy to use service for printers and packaging professionals.

Sets of plates are easy to purchase from Flexo 24! This is possible thanks to the new improvements designed and implemented by the team of professionals in our field. Today you can complete your order using the safest payment methods available from Stripe.

Do you design your packaging for the flexo market?

Packaging has an extremely vast market which is constantly increasing. A fast evolution is expected for some new materials employed in the ever-growing demand for sustainable strategies. Flexo 24 is the right partner in this evolution.

Delivery time and anonymous shipping.

Ordering by Flexo 24 and your plates are delivered in 24 hours directly to the printer. If you do not want your end customer to know who produced the plates for packaging, then select the option “anonymous shipping”.

Prices with no comparison.

If your business is to design packaging you will certainly have already chosen flexo among the various printing techniques. Flexo is more competitive in prices by the same production volume than rotogravure, offset and digital printing because Flexo 24 processes plates with lower costs in comparison with those by the other printing techniques.

No trouble for your customers.

Thanks to two Vianord modular systems, Flexo 24 guarantees the same high quality for all your projects and your plates..

Shrink label.

Plates from Flexo 24 enable to print in flexo and to achieve a much wider color range (GAMUT) thanks to their excellent ink transfer to the substrate that was selected for your packaging. The shrink labels that you design will result in extremely vivid colors..

PRO TIP

To enhance contrast and improve print results you can include in your pdf files reinforcing colours: 2 flexo plates printing together, e.g. blue overprinting cyan.

That’s why Flexo 24 is ready for printers, too!

Flexo printing can be set for various applications in the packaging market:

• paper,
• paperboard,
• aluminium,
• adhesive paper,,
• plastic film and
• tissue.

With Flexo 24 you can order all the plates for these substrate!

PRO TIP

Our standard and Kodak calibration test is needed to set the compensation curve of the printed dot, for your printing system. Order your test now with Flexo 24, you will get a refund.

Delivery time: choose what suits you best.

Flexo 24 delivers your flexo plates in 24 hours if you place your order by 10.00 am(*). Otherwise you can save around 15% and receive them in 72 hours(**).

Cost optimization.

You can use your continuous tone plate ordered from Flexo 24 to print different projects designed with the same flexo systems. You can thus optimize your production costs.

Your customers’ satisfaction always guaranteed.

You will always know where your plates are because Flexo 24 provides the tracking number of your shipment. This will be useful to keep your customer always up to date about the delivery.

Pre-press suppliers order plates from Flexo 24.

Pre-press companies execute the projects from graphic studios and transform them into printing plates. Many customers of Flexo 24 are pre-press companies and, thanks to our technology, they can offer printing plates in all thicknesses available in the market:

• HD,
• Kodak Flexcel NX and
• water-processed AWP

without investing in new machines and with no need of keeping a stock.

Fine-tune delivery time for your own production.

Why is Flexo 24 suitable for flexographic prepress companies? Because these are equipped to upload the files and plan production choosing between 24 (*) and 72 hours (**).

Costs in real time.

All customers can control the costs for their plates independently. At Flexo 24 a tool is always available to calculate an immediate offer for your plates:

(*) delivered within 1 working day according to the courier’s availability. (**) VAT and shipping cost are not included.

You can supply your customers with the best market brands.

Today, pre-press companies can offer their customers also the materials that they have not include in their portfolio jet:

• without any costs for extra equipment,
• without any extra-budget material stocking and machine servicing.

PRO TIP

Flexo 24 offers only materials from the major plate producers:
• ASAHI
• DUPONT
• Flint Group
• Mac Dermid
• KODAK

Today, solutions for digital flexo plates are within your reach thanks to Flexo 24.

Because Flexo24 offers digital photopolymer to print with:

• water-based inks,
• solvent-based inks
• UV-inks or
• Electron Beam,

on all substrates for packaging. Here an infographic summing up the main steps::

WARRANTY & INSTRUCTIONS.

There are no such online services because Flexo24, thanks to a more than 40-years’ experience in the field of flexo pre-press inherited by the founder company Nu-Maber, can give you the best instructions on how to handle your plates..

Secure transactions with a dedicated SSL proxy.

A dedicated SSL proxy (security level) renders the previews from the software for the PDF files analysis. For end-to-end secure and confidential connections..

24/7 Customer support. Flexo 24 is always available for you and your company.

We have a dedicated customer service department supporting our customers through all the steps until the delivery. Our service is available by:

• email,
• dedicated phone number,,
• live chat,
• social media.

It’s time to create your account and order your plates.

Flexo 24 is a flexographic prepress online system unique in its field that aims to become the perfect partner for your company in the flexo market. Sign up to our newsletter and receive your € 20 voucher:

Start now and become a Flexo 24 customer: create your own plate!

Flexo dots, minimum dot and new 2022 functions to support the experience of the professionals in the market of flexo printing and packaging.

Starting from the customers’ requirements, Flexo24 keeps constantly up-to-date to prove the best choice for their projects to print packaging. Flexo technology is demanding skilled support for solving any problems during the printing process, as we also explained in the article Flexo printing: the top 12 mistakes and their solutions.

Application of the minimum dot.

The engraved dots should have a minimum size according to the specifications of the plate material. The “bump-up curve” function ensures that all the engraved dots have the same minimum dimension allowed; below these dimensions flexo plates might be unstable and show non-printing areas.

Especially by projects with a high dotgain value, we can have in rare cases an undesired effect of interruption of the shade, commonly known as “crusty” or “ripping” effect. One strategy to overcome this limit is the use of hybrid screening.

PRO TIP

Using hybrid screen helps avoiding the “ripping” effect. The percentages below the minimum printable dot are created through a dot with the same dimension as the minimum printable, but displayed randomly like in a stochastic screen.

Thus, we can have an optical effect of transition to 0%, but still keeping the minimum printable dot for that specific plate.

The transition spot from conventional to stochastic is directly proportional to the line count. The higher the screen count, the higher will be the transition spot positioned.

Flexo angle, circular and hybrid dot.

After the PDF file is processed by Flexo24’s software, the file preview will be loaded and the operator will be enabled to set angle, dot type and Digicap as shown in the image below.

Angle.

The engraving direction of the screen dots in flexo should have an angle of 7°, 67°, 82° or 37°. The difference between the angle of the screened areas of each color should be 30°. Yellow deviates by 15° from Cyan and Black to avoid the moiré effect that we already described in this article.

Protip

When using the 82° angle, the best choice would be to apply it to the lightest color. As from the ISO 12647-6:2012 standard for flexo, the nominal difference between the angles of Cyan, Magenta and Black should be 30°, while 15° for Yellow, the lightest color.

Circular dot (Esko Euclidean).

The circular flexo dots are the most popular type in flexo printing: the shape is continuously circular..

The image shows how the dots are engraved. Right, the cooler density is 100%, that is full color. Left, 0% means no engraving, no color from the PDF file.

From no color, i.e. engraving density 0% (left), the dimension of the circular dot increases up to a 100% density (right). From around 75% the circular dots start to intersect: they will gradually merge until 100%

Protip

The circular dot is a default setting in Flexo24: to change this, the operator must select other choices. For more information check Esko’s official documents.

Hybrid dot (Esko Autoblend).

The engraved flexo dots are scattered on the plate. Such layout starts from a color density that varies according to the screen count and the type of plate. Below 5% color density, dots are displayed unevenly (unlike the circular dot which is randomly displayed instead).

The red line in the image above indicates the transition between:

• circular layout (right),
• hybrid layout (left).

All dots have the same size but they are displayed randomly: as the color density tends to 0%, the dot frequency in the layout gets lower. On the right of the red line the screen count remains the same while the thickness of the dots increases together with the color percentage.

The hybrid zone is only from 0% to the transition spot: the red line. The minimum, smallest printable dot depends from the plate specifications. For example, for the Asahi DEF 1.14 mm plate the minimum printable dot at 4000dpi is 50 microns large.

Protip

Using 59 lcm / 149 lpi screen, the transition point from hybrid to circular is about 7%. While, if the screen is 34 lcm / 87 lpi, the dot becomes circular at about 2.4%. This is because at lower screen rulings, the circular screen dots are larger than those engraved with higher rulings.

Kodak Digicap NX algorithm patterns.

As soon as the pdf is loaded, the exclusive Flexo 24 software gives you back the previews. And, if the resolution is set to "Kodak NX dpi", the type of Digicap technology will be requested. ("No pattern" sets by default). This is the type of pattern to use, derived from the Kodak calibration test.

Selectable from the following:

• No pattern.
• Standard.
• Advanced01.
• Advanced02.
• Advanced03.
• Advanced04.
• Advanced05.

** ONLY WITH FLEXO24 ** it’s possible to choose the possibility of NOT engraving the points according to the Kodak Digicap, with "NO PATTERN" option, also used to print with UV inks. In this way no pattern will be applied Kodak.

Protip

The screens, or Circular or Hybrid type of point, have no relation with Kodak patterns. We have published an article about it.

You can consult the following table which indicates the type of Kodak pattern recommended in relation to the anilox roll. It is depending on the volume of ink carried by the roll:

Duplicate the single order by the Shopping cart.

On the shopping cart page, the “+” sign duplicates the plate, or groups of plates. With the same specifications and the same graphics as the PDF. Saving time with the same reliability.

On the shopping cart page, the “+” sign duplicates the plate or groups of plates. With the same specifications and the same graphics as the PDF. Saving time with the same reliability. #Flexo24 #Packaging #label #Digital pic.twitter.com/vQsgGGN0bz
— Flexo24 (@theFLEXO24) April 19, 2022

Save the settings.

It’s the possibility to recall the configuration with a click instead of setting it at each loading.

Flexo 24 is technology to the next flexo printing.

Flexo 24 is always being updated and 2021 was also an excellent time to develop new functions from the feedback of the market from packaging printing professionals, making the service more affordable:

• Order your plate now!
• Book a call with one of our professionals.

Agile work is strongly requested for today’s packaging business, which had to fine-tune to the new pandemic phase. Flexo24 is the ready, online solution to optimize the workflow for printing packaging on different materials.

Flexo24 is born digital in order to make flexo-market professionals’ work totally digital – from file check to plate-making, including administration. Many important companies in the field are going on with their searches to offer customers their best product as shown in the last FOOD Mag contest.

HOW COVID CHANGED PACKAGING INDUSTRY.

Economic system is adapting to a new business phase forced by Covid, a phase called “new normal”. The same is happening for the whole packaging industry, which is adapting to an extremely unstable situation – but still very intense for consumption of commodities and their packagings.i.

During the Covid period the lack of raw material for packaging contributed to the use of traditional materials. Moreover, the deferral of orders together with the practice of social distancing boosted companies’ need for activating digital, automatic processes for both working and supplying – agile work indeed.

“NEW NORMAL” PHASE: DATA AND ANALYSIS.

DS Smith, a packaging multinational corporation, conducted a survey which shows that 65% of their clients bought online more than usual – almost 2 million people during the first months in 2020, according to the evaluation from NetComm, the European and Italian group for online commerce.

PRO TIP

From the 700 thousand people who usually join online commerce during the first 4 months of the year, in 2020 1,3 million client added up to the usual amount. This process of digitalization, due to lockdown, increased the total of users up to 2 million. (Data from NetComm)

“Online transactions shown a significant boom which almost lead to a stop of traditional sales”, declared Ted Doheny, CEO of Sealed Air, during an interview released to an important specialized magazine.

Packaging tendencies to monitor are:

• packaging of ready-to-eat meals, food and take-away packaging;
• beauty and hygiene products,
• clothing and consumer electronics

and more broadly:

• packaging adaptable to different usages
• use of raw materials easy to source and more sustainable

LET’S FIND OUT SOME SMART SOLUTIONS FLEXO24 OFFERS TO THE NEW FLEXO MARKET.

Ready solutions included in Flexo24 services, allowing agile work now!!

Business reinvented itself and is now ready for companies which wants to employ digital tools such as Flexo24. We are now in the “new normal” phase and goods’ consumption is adapting to it – but also goods’ production must react properly, so here are the digital solutions by Flexo24:

1. PDF file check and certified quality.
2. Production using the best materials available in the market, Kodak Flexcel NX and additional supplies, print tests, all you need for flexo printing.
3. Express delivery by DHL or by your courier account.
4. Smart administration, all the available payment methods and invoices instantly available on your account.

1. PDF file check and certified quality.

Flexo 24 is the online service available 24/7. A ISO 9001:2015 quality certification for the business processes was recently obtained. Flexo 24’s professional service is always available through the live chat in office hours.

• More than 25 features of the PDF file are automatically and confidentially screened.
• You can request a PDF file check from one of our graphic operators to dispel any doubts.

And more:

• you can access our service from any device, thanks to a multi-device control.
• The software for the PDF analysis makes a real time screening of more than 25 PDF features and generates an immediate quote.
• Once the PDF file is analyzed you will receive an e-mail that the file is uploaded and ready for processing.

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2. Production using the best materials available in the market, Kodak and additional supplies.

Flexo 24’s production process is backed by Nu-Maber Srl, the founding company with over 40 years of flexographic technology experience. The best materials in the market are available for the professionals of the flexo field. You can order the Kodak NX digital flexo plates, and also the following additional flexo supplies:

• the plate ordered online, among the leading supplies in the market, can be selected according to the printing substrate through the configurator.
• Calibration test to get the exact DGC, dot gain compensation value for your printing system.
• Kodak NX calibration test for the 6+1 patterns for each printing system.
• PDF file check, including an extra service that offers the PDF creation.
• Digital loupe, a pocket 30x optical zoom digital magnifying lens.
• Plotter Colour print, high quality plotter print of the composite file.

3. Express delivery by DHL Express.

Once the order is complete, you will get an express delivery.

• tracking code. Your shipment will be traceable immediately after your order’s confirmation.
• Hold for pick-up. Collect your package from the destination hub.

Flexo 24 also offers the solution ON SITE COLLECTION using the customer’s courier account. Writing "NOSHIPPING" in the COUPON fields on the CART page.

PRO TIP

Before finalizing your order, complete the order NOTE and write: "Onsite collection by (name of your courier and your client code)". Fundamental to have your courier delivered to Flexo 24.

4. Administration, all the suitable payment methods, and invoices.

Administration gets smart! You can take advantage of Flexo 24’s services using all the payment methods available from the Stripe platform. Invoices are also available from your board when you log into your account.

• We are using the Stripe payment platform because it accepts all credit cards and more other Regional's payment methods.
• Many functions are available from your profile board; such as:
  • update order status,
  • quick order button
  • and you're invoices from the area “My orders”

Flexo 24 is born digital to allow the professionals in the packaging market to manage actively the pre-press flexo workflow, it's a necessity in today’s increasingly digital market.

Order now your flexo plate.

Click here and create your own plate!

Flexo printing mistakes, and here are the most effective solutions to solve them that printers might experience at various stages while printing for packaging.

The commonest mistakes, the most effective solutions for flexo printing. Here some other common mistakes from the 24 that we already presented in our previous article and the related suggestions to check and solve them.

These are the 12 mistakes and the related solutions that might be useful for flexo printing:

1. INK DRYING TOO SLOWLY
2. INK DRYING TOO QUICKLY
3. MISREGISTER
4. MOIRÈ EFFECT
5. MOTTLED PRINT
6. PIN HOLING
7. SKIP OUT
8. STRIKETHROUGH
9. HALOS
10. BRIDGING EFFECT
11. TRAPPING
12. EMPTY POINTS

PRO TIP

Digital flexo plates supplied by Flexo 24 comply with the precautions given by the photopolymer producer. Read carefully the precautions and the compatibility of inks with solvents.

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PRO TIP

As from prescriptions of the ISO standard 12647-6:2012 for flexo, the nominal difference between the screen angles of Cyan, Magenta and Black must be of 30°. While the deviation of Yellow is of 15°. No colours must have the same angle of the anilox. This is a moiré example: 65 lcm anilox used with a 33 lcm plate, because 33 x 2 = 66, which is too close to the anilox screen.

PRO TIP

If you need to try new materials, we suggest to run a CALIBRATION TEST. This is useful to set the compensation curve for the dot gain.

PRO TIP

The plate hardness is measured in Shore degrees: °Shore. With Flexo 24 you can order from 1.14 mm flexo plates with hardness about 74° - 77° Shore to 5.50 mm plates with hardness 33° Shore. Even the Calibration tests for flexo. Please contact our customer service for further information.

Buy your flexo printing plates now with Flexo 24.

1. Flexo 24 has a pre-flight software that prepares files for producing your flexo plate.

To generate pdf files for the production of photopolymer plates, different types of programs are available. Some of these are:

ArtPro, a software distributed by Esko and designed to generate pdf files for flexo. Esko is a leading company in the creation and distribution of software and hardware in the field of flexo printing.

The most popular is Adobe Illustrator by Adobe System, the mother company of the PDF file format. Unlike ArtPro, Illustrator does not have built-in tools for generating high-precision pdf files. CorelDRAW Technical Suite 2017 is a very sophisticated professional platform for creating pdf files. A free trial version is available.

2. In the pdf for flexo printing, objects and images with some tonal range are screened.

The pdf file for flexo printing should be prepared correctly and accurately in order to avoid unexpected and undesirable print results. We recommend that a pdf file for flexo printing should include objects and images as vectors (converted into curves) and not rasterized.
The main difference between vector and raster:

• the rasterized format is made up of a series of pixels and is re-processed by the output device.
• If the file uploaded contains full-tone images (greyscale, CMYK or RGB), these will be screened.

PRO TIP

If the file contains full-tone images, these will be screened. Please note: RGB or LAB images will be converted into CMYK with a standard ISO Fogra39 profile, therefore print results cannot be predicted.
Convert images before including them. We also recommend that the resolution of images added to pdf documents be created according to the following equation: Resolution (DPI) = LPI x 2 LPI. Screen ruling in inches used to process the plates/prints.
Example. If you print at 150 LPI (60 LCM), the equation will be: 150 x 2 = 300 DPI i.e., your 1:1 image must have a 300 DPI resolution.
If the LPI/DPI ratio is much higher than 0.5, the printed result will be very "blurred” because the RIP will make an interpolation of the image to obtain the missing information. Only CMYK or Pantone colors images are allowed.
Before exporting, place onto the art board the images that will be rasterized at Resolution (DPI) = LPI x 2.

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3. Minimum dimension of texts in the pdf files for flexo plates.

According to the current regulations, the minimum size of text allowed on the smallest packages is 0.9 mm referred to the lowercase "x". This dimension is independent of the points of the font size, because every font family is different even if they have the same size in points.

PRO TIP

The dimension of the smallest text should be increased to larger than that prescribed by the current regulations if it is printed in reverse and with colour because it will tend to "close up".
Printing texts in reverse with a plate thickness of 1.14 mm with UV inks on film allows very fine texts and details to be reproduced.
For example, the same result is not granted by printing with a 2.84 mm thickness plate with water-based inks on paper or cardboard. This is because the liquid ink and the absorbent material together with the printing pressure generate some friction with the final substrate and cause the ink to overflow.

4. The pdf contains fonts: we recommend converting them.

If your artwork contains some texts, we recommend converting them into curves before exporting the pdf to achieve reliable plate processing. In the workflow, the RIP will check the exact match of the fonts and if a match is lacking, the fonts will not be replaced and the pdf will be blocked.

To avoid re-generating the files due to any mismatches, the system only accepts the pdf format:

• with fonts included,
• or, if this is not possible, with fonts converted into curves.

As indicated in the post for the pre-flight software.

5. Texts and objects must be overprinted to avoid a wrong trapping and undesirable print results.

To generate the pdf files to process your flexo plates, we also recommend setting the trappings. Trappings are trims created around each color to avoid blank outlines in the event of mis-registration. According to the type of printing press and to the thickness of the plate used, the lightest colour should be extended inside the darkest colour.

PRO TIP

When possible, we recommend overprinting texts and objects onto the background to avoid mis-registration issues.

6. Imposition to increase production volume.

Through the online software, you can upload pdf files up to 123 x 203 cm, 50” x 80”. Inside this area, you can include more repetitions to increase your production volume.

PRO TIP

Staggered repetitions/lanes allow a smooth cylinder rotation and avoid bumps and related unprinted areas.

7. Compensate normal plate distortion.

Asymmetric scaling is useful to process a plate for flexo printing. If you know the direction the plate will be mounted onto the press drum, scaling can compensate for normal plate distortion. Scaling does not affect the size of the pages in the document, it merely changes the scale at which the pdf to upload onto online software is generated.

PRO TIP

It may be useful to use the online calculation sheet.

8. Exporting your pdf to create a flexo plate.

The exported pdf must always include all the colors used in the original file, in your project file:

• the Pantone colors, if any,
• any special colors, for example white or varnish
• in addition to the CMYK colors, if used.

PRO TIP

Once you have uploaded your pdf into the configurator, the online software analysis will generate the previews with the ink/channel name. If your project does not need it, you can disable the color already when exporting: this will increase the response speed.

Start now and become a Flexo 24 customer: create your own plate!

Sustainable product is a fully water-washable label. This is new from Coveris that fits perfectly in the PET recycling chain.

Taking care of the environment is a growing need and consumers are getting more and more aware about it, read this article. Firms already commit to offering new technical solutions, like this non-permanent adhesive label that can be washed off.

For the #newnormal sustainability is a must.

The drive to sustainability invites consumers and companies to adopt eco-friendly materials. This was explained in the 14th edition of the yearly survey by Finat, the European association for the self-adhesive label industry, and also in some other articles that we issued.

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WHAT ABOUT THE RESULTS?

• 75% of the companies confirmed that when they select suppliers, it is very important to know what kind of environmental certifications they have. The remaining 25% only demands certified suppliers.
• Avery Dennison, a multinational manufacturer of packaging specialized in medical products, highlighted in their last webinar how the new generations are even willing to spend 25% more to buy products with a sustainable packaging.

COMPANIES MUST SHOW THEIR COMMITMENT TO THE ETHIC VALUES AND THE ENVIRONMENT.

Customers and suppliers are mostly attracted to firms because of the values that these hold. Such values are always transferred by firms to their reference market through products, services and marketing instruments.

We recently heard about terms like “respect for the environment” and “pollution reduction”. These are the goals that firms must aim to for their social responsibility.

For these reasons, and for a clear communication, Flexo 24 chose the ISO 9001:2015 certification.

PRO TIP

The certification is an efficient system that helps Flexo 24 with the customer’s satisfaction. All processes are improved: from the tools in our website, to the supply of our products in compliance with the law and legal requirements.

Coveris PRESENTS THE WASH-OFF LABEL, THE ECO-FRIENDLY, SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT FOR THE CONSUMERS.

The wash-off label helps the PET recycling system, as it is designed to be included in this system contributing to the goals of a sustainable, zero waste production.

#RossanaOrlandi presents Guiltless Plastic at Milan Design Week 2021

Read here >> https://t.co/8fz4zKpT1J@wallpapermag #MilanoDesignWeek#Flexo24 #WeAreFlexo #Flexo
— Flexo24 (@theFLEXO24) September 13, 2021

The wash-off label is particularly suitable for flexo printing with high-quality plates. It is available in the following materials:

• paper
• PE o PP (plastic film).

All these substrates can be printed with digital flexo plate, the HD Flexo 24 plates. From our configurator (link), when choosing substrate, select either “Paper and paperboard” or “Plastic film” to order the most suitable plates for printing on wash-off labels.

PRO TIP

PET (polyethylene terephthalate) is a polymer resin of the polyester family and is made from natural gas or vegetal raw materials and oil. The main feature is that it’s 100% recyclable.

Benefits from using a wash-off label are:

• Technology that integrates in the recycling system.
• Suitable for the DRS (deposit return system) especially popular in Germany.
• Can be easily separated from its container at low temperatures during the PET recycling process.
• Available both in paper and plastic film (PE, PP).Suitable for the flexo printing system, ennobling even possible.
• Suitable for the standard application processes.
• Suitable for the flexo printing system, ennobling even possible.
• Sustainability without compromise: touching it the consumer doesn’t feel the difference.

So, order now with Flexo 24 the right plates to print on the eco-friendly labels, on sustainable packaging that consumers are looking for!