The Year of the Flexo Plate

Dry thermal flexo platemaking is the newest technology on the market. The process was first commercialized by Cyrel manufacturer DuPont under the FAST brand name at the turn of this century. DuPont was awarded the prestigious FTA Technical Innovation Award for the technology in 2003.

After digital or film-based exposure, dry thermal plates are processed without the use of wet chemistry. Instead, the non-image areas of the plate are heated, softened, and pulled away by contact with a non-woven synthetic web material in successive passes until the desired relief depth is achieved. By November 2004, DuPont had installed some 300 FAST systems worldwide and the company announced its next generation system—available in a wider 42 x 60 format—was in alpha testing at Flexicon AG, Europe's largest flexo platemaker. In 2004, competitor MacDermid also entered the dry thermal market with its new Lava platemaking line.