JET Printing Takes Off with Full HD Flexo Plates
JET Printing, located in Dickson, Tennessee, has installed Esko Full HD Flexo plate technology. With the new installation, JET is experiencing improved quality and more efficient production.
JET Printing, founded in 1998 as a small regional printer and converter, has grown to develop a national presence as a printer, laminator and converter of plastic flexible packaging, manufacturing laminated films, pouches and plastic bags.
Until 2011, when the company purchased an Esko CDI 4260, JET Printing relied exclusively on an outside source for all of its flexo plates. Even then, the CDI was only used for line work; process plates were still produced by the outside resource. However, customer demands were changing. "We were spending so much money while moving to process work that we had to make a decision," says Jim Petty, principal and operations manager at JET Printing.
"As far as I could see, all the work done by customers was trending to process artwork," notes Tim Hall, JET principal in charge of sales and marketing. "Even less expensive products were headed to process printing. We started printing 133-lpi work with CDI plates. Although we were happy, we were looking for something even better. We needed to compete. Either we would buy outside plates for process work and get left behind with the evolution of printing, or control our work in-house. Conversations with others, including the 'big guys' in the industry, told us that they liked the quality and productivity of Esko Full HD Flexo. They said it was the easiest way to produce great results. So, in the end we knew that Full HD Flexo would deliver the quality we needed."
One of the first jobs we produced with Full HD Flexo was a very wide 59" job with six images across, at 150 lpi. The press operator was amazed that the job ran completely from beginning to end without needing to clean the plates," adds Hall. "As a cost-conscious owner, that is what I'm looking for--more throughput."
JET Printing also upgraded to Esko Automation Engine when it invested in Full HD Flexo. It conducts its prepress (trapping, preflight, etc.) within Adobe Illustrator using Esko DeskPack tools. Once the jobs are approved, they go through automation, imposing the artwork on the plates and RIPping the files.
JET Printing will apply for Full HD Flexo certification after it has proceeded through the learning curve using water wash plates. "We have progressed in leaps and bounds, says Hall. "What is important to us is our commitment to technology. There are a limited few companies of our size who are producing Full HD Flexo plates in-house. We have built a strong, integrated in-house plate making system. It's a big factor driving our business forward. We're preparing for a groundswell by the third or fourth quarter of this year, making a name for ourselves. It will happen due to the decisions we're making now. The implementation of Esko Full HD Flexo is a huge piece."
