Thermal CTP Doubles Plate Production At Print Firm

By upgrading its violet CTP operation to a thermal system from Screen, Jason Print and Design has doubled plate production at its Hertford (UK) site.

Jason Print and Design said it expects to see a 20 per cent increase in its GBP2million annual turnover in just six month's time, added Screen.

The Screen system, comprising a Platerite 4300S platesetter, Trueflow workflow and PDF Polisher software installed by Litho Supplies, has created a sleeker, more efficient operation at Jason Print and Design, said the company.

By processing 15 B2 and SRA2 plates per hour, the Platerite 4300S keeps the company's three MAN Roland and Heidelberg presses operating to a maximum, which has had an impact on profitability.

Kevin Archard, founder and director of Jason Print and Design, said: "In terms of providing reliable, trusted technology, Screen absolutely deserves its shining reputation in the industry.

Our new Platerite 4300S never lets us down and delivers consistently accurate and high quality results.

It became obvious to us when conducting our market research that no other available platesetter has the same quality of build.

It is truly the Rolls Royce of platesetters." Screen said its Platerite series comes with automated in-line punching fitted as standard, which is an attribute that has had an affect on productivity at Jason Print and Design.

Archard commented: "For me, this is one of the Platerite's principle features.

It gives unsurpassable accuracy on press, as the punches are automatically placed on to the plate to match the requirements of the specific printer.

Another very attractive characteristic of Screen's Platerite technology is that it requires far fewer chemicals during the platemaking process, compared to our preceding violet system.

It is able to operate in a studio environment without air-conditioning, whereby our previous machine required constant temperature control and a dark room." He continued: "We used a lot of resources to power our violet system, which could in no way be classed as a 'green' solution.

In using the Platerite 4300S, we are saving money by reducing both our bills and chemical disposal costs and we are keeping ahead of the times by operating a less wasteful and more energy efficient business." Jason Print and Design, which began trading in 1978 as Trade Plate Makers, now employs 16 people and produces a full range of printing services to a portfolio of UK clients.

In addition to installing the Platerite 4300S, the company has further streamlined its operation by linking each component of the business, such as its design suite, proofing and pre-press department and offset printing facilities, with Screen's Trueflow workflow system, said Screen.

The company has also installed Screen's PDF Polisher software as an optional extra.

PDF Polisher handles file conversion with pre-flight checking to ensure files are outputted correctly with the effect of enhancing image quality.

Archard explained: "Our new software helps us to meet the needs of our public sector customers, who by nature tend to produce a lot of work on PCs.

This caused us problems before we installed Screen's Trueflow workflow with PDF Polisher as we would have to convert data to CMYK standards manually, which was time consuming and complicated to get right." He added: "By checking RGB files as they come in and automatically converting them to PDF format, Screen's software guarantees single file integrity throughout the entire printing process.

That has helped us increase speeds and boost our quality.

We are absolutely thrilled with the results.".

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