After years of production practice, flexographic printing has initially formed a scale on the packaging printing market in China. The range and types of printed products are continuously expanding, and the market share of flexo printing is gradually expanding. Trademark labels, plastic flexible packaging, and folding cartons are the three main aspects of flexographic production in the packaging print market.
In unit type, laminated type, and satellite type flexo printing, unit type and satellite type are the two most important models. Compared with the unit type, the satellite type flexo press has higher overlay accuracy. Because the tape is tightly wrapped on the central impression cylinder, the tension is very stable, without the need for automatic register control system; the structure is simple, the distance between the embossing points is short, and the register control is easy; and the machine's structural rigidity is good. The use of more stable performance. In the European and American markets, the proportion of satellite-based flexo printers in the entire flexo printing machine market is about 70%, and most of them are used for flexible packaging printing, corrugated paper pre-printing, and label printing. At present, only a dozen or more satellite type flexographic presses have been introduced from abroad, but it is foreseeable that as the national environmental protection awareness increases, the quality requirements for printed products will increase day by day. The machine will be the focus of the introduction and production of flexo presses in China.
The application of wide-format satellite flexographic printing presses in China's printing industry mainly focuses on three major areas: first, pre-printing in cartons; second, flexible packaging; and third, printing.
Application of Satellite Type Flexo Printing Machine in Carton Preprinting
In the case of mass production and non-changing, flexo preprinting has the following unique advantages:
Printing speed, high production efficiency. Some satellite flexo presses can print at a speed of up to 300m/min, and are equipped with a quick-change roll-change system for uninterrupted roll unwinding and rewinding systems. It is possible to replace the roll and pattern roll without stopping the machine in order to achieve complete Don't ask about printing.
The preprinted carton is overprinted accurately, resulting in a small color difference, high printing quality, bright color of the finished product, and a rich layer; due to the high-precision printing pressure of the satellite flexographic printing press, it is not affected by the level of the corrugated medium, so no matter what the field, line, text The print quality is very good. Some satellite type flexo presses adopt CC motor independent transmission system and automatic tension control with load sensor. When receiving instructions from the PLC controller, the same tension can be ensured at different speeds and temperatures, so that the printing products are High-speed printing maintains the stability of overprinting, which enables the accurate multi-color overprinting of carton preprints to be perfectly achieved. The closed-type squeegee system ensures that the anilox roller and printing plate get the best ink volume, improves the ink transfer function of the short ink path system, and makes the printing ink layer thick and uniform ink color.
The carton has high strength and good flatness. This is due to the fact that corrugations are not squeezed by the printing pressure. After the roll-to-roll printing, the printed roll can be directly placed on the liner paper station and glued into corrugated cardboard, and then made into a single-piece cardboard box, giving full play to the automatic and high-speed equipment advantages of printing presses and corrugating machines. Unpressed, undistorted, high strength and flatness.
Application of Satellite Flexo Press in Flexible Packaging Printing
At present, China's flexible packaging products printed on satellite flexo presses are mainly concentrated in products such as roof bags, Tetra Pak and thin films. For example, Shanghai International Paper Co., Ltd. and Shandong Quanlin Paper Co., Ltd. have imported medium- and wide-format satellite flexographic presses from Germany for the printing of folding cartons such as roof bags and Tetra Pak. Hainan modern color printing has been imported from Germany. The flexo press is dedicated to the printing of plastic bags. The use of satellite flexo printing soft packaging products has the following advantages: 1. With the use of a soft polymeric resin plate, gravure printing reduces both plate-making costs and plate-making cycles. And due to the improvement of the level of plate manufacturing and plate making technology, the anilox roll has reached the level of 175 lines, enough to meet the needs of general packaging and printing. 2. Using anilox roller to transmit ink, the anilox roller is both an ink transfer roller and an ink metering roller, and can accurately supply ink according to process requirements. At present, the use of laser-engraved cermet anilox roller has reached the level of 1600 lines, providing an advantageous means for precise control of ink color and ink layer thickness. 3. Zero-pressure printing not only reduces the vibration and wear on the machine, but also reduces the wear on the plate, which is particularly beneficial for the printing of soft materials. For example, FEVA flexo presses are equipped with anti-shock and noise devices in the power system. During transmission, they are transmitted through the high-strength belt and synchronous belt of the main motor, which greatly reduces the vibration and noise of the machine.
Satellite flexo press has been developed in the field of newspaper printing
The advantages of flexo printing are summarized as follows: 1. The ink level is clear and the prints are brightly colored. 2. Due to the use of water-based ink printing, the paper is almost dry, the reader's fingers will not be contaminated, and the table cloth on the table will not be soiled. The reader is welcome. 3. Economically advantageous, with flexo printing color newspapers, paper loss, paper weight will be further reduced. 4. Operation is easier than offset printing. If the flexo press adopts a user-friendly operation window, it is equipped with a programmable control system, simple touch technology, and convenient operation. The printing unit adopts a fully automatic control system. The automatic replacement of the printing roller and anilox roller shortens the operation time and improves the utilization rate and economic value of the equipment. According to some information, the percentage of newspapers printed by the European and American countries using satellite type flexographic printing machines has reached as high as 38%. In China, the media industry is also a sunrise industry in the 21st century. It is believed that with the vigorous development of this industry, flexo printing will also occupy a certain market share.
In addition to the above, products suitable for wide-format satellite flexo printers include playing cards, banknotes, napkins, toothpastes, and cosmetic hoses. The technology of the satellite flexo press is quite mature in foreign countries, but it is only at the initial stage in the country, but it shows a strong vitality. With the increasing emphasis on the development of flexo printing technology in the domestic market and the improvement of flexographic printing equipment, inks, plates, and plate making technologies, satellite flexographic printing machines will occupy an important market share in the field of packaging and printing.