Press-Ready Plates
MacDermid’s liquid photopolymer platemaking system can produce a press ready plate in under 90 minutes for even the thickest plates (250ml / 6.35mm). This is less than half of the time for a typical sheet process. If you are using a sheet photopolymer, then MacDermid’s MGC and Digital MCG products will provide the fastest processing/drying time available in the industry.
In-Position Plates
Using liquid photopolymer technology, it is possible to produce a single plate with all of the copy imaged “in-position”, .jpg "LiquidIn_PositionPlate")
meaning no extra work is required to cut and mount individual plates. This improves registration accuracy and reduces the labor and time needed for mounting. Additionally, in-position plates eliminate the floor in between the images. This substantially reduces the amount and cost of photopolymer used to produce this one-piece plate. Through a reclaim process, the platemaker is able to capture the unexposed polymer on the printing plate so that it can be utilized for producing subsequent plates, saving both materials and money through reuse. This will also drop the weight of the plate, reducing shipping costs and easing handling requirements.
Dependability
MacDermid’s liquid and sheet photopolymer product lines are well known for their ability to deliver consistent print results and for running cleanly. Specifically MacDermid LTL liquid resin was formulated to eliminate plate tack and maximize print length in what is often a print environment filled with paper dust. You should see and feel what state-of-the-art liquid photopolymer looks like.
Environmental Footprint Calculator
Liquid photopolymer platemaking has significant environmental advantages. MacDermid recently commissioned the University of Tennessee’s Centre for Clean Products to develop a Life Cycle Assessment tool, called the Environmental Footprint Calculator (EFC), that would enable users to determine the relative environmental impacts of three different platemaking processes: Digital Solvent, Digital Thermal, and Liquid Photopolymer Platemaking. Of the three processes, it was discovered that liquid platemaking, and specifically MacDermid’s own LTL, was the more environmentally friendly method in terms of energy consumption, acidification of water, eutrophication of water, greenhouse gas emissions, and ozone depleting equivalents. To learn more about the EFC, click here.
Reduced Fluting
Fluting is a problem which has plagued the post print corrugated market from the very beginning. MacDermid offers technology in both its liquid and sheet polymer lines which will minimize this problem. For liquid photopolymer, a separate, thin layer of capping resin can be automatically added during the casting process. This thin layer has different mechanical and imaging properties from the base giving it straight side walls and a unique ink transfer capability. This is instrumental in providing the ability to print finer detail as well as screens with lower dot gain.
With the transition from analog to digital sheet technology, the change in dot shape cased fluting to worsen. LUX, MacDermid’s award-winning flat-top dot technology, substantially reduces the amount of fluting by changing the profile of the dot, effectively delivering the best of both analog and digital formats.