Rivendell used UPTIME to buy a DuPont Cyrel Fast system and a Cyrel Digital Imager with icertification for the production of its photopolymer and flexo plates, used predominantly in the corrugated packaging and label market.

Rivendell sales director Mike Blackshaw said: The decision to move to FAST was an easy one. We already knew the quality of DuPont plates and proofing systems and to be the first repro company to offer a completely solventless process in producing flexo plates was extremely appealing.

Blackshaw claimed the CDI and FAST system produced plates 80% faster than conventional processing with the production of a flexo plate in less than half an hour.

The CDI is equipped with sophisticated software to expose multiple jobs on the same plate with individual separations positioned by an operator on a monitor before images are exposed onto the plate using a laser.

After exposure, plates are hardened using a UV light before being processed by the Cyrel FAST system.

Blackshaw said: Laser exposure produces sharper dots and clean reverses enabling us to capture much more detail on the print, especially in highlight and shadow areas.

Story by Tony Brown