Although Bath-based Emtone started off as a general jobbing printer in the 1960s, and more or less remained one until the turn of the millennium, the company’s current managing director John Coward and his sales director Chris Heathcote are steeped in what they describe as the "higher quality" print market. Because of this background, the company started to change direction when Coward came on board in 2001. Since that time he has been steering the company towards the quality end of the print market and, as a result, today Emtone provides a vast array of work for art galleries and artists.

In addition to producing high-quality work, the company also prides itself on its attitude towards environmental matters, providing all manner of printed collateral for organisations such as The Soil Association and The International Institute for Environment. But the ‘greenness’ doesn’t stop there. A large number of its 16-staff are based locally and either walk or cycle to work, plus Emtone has also achieved a number of different environmental accreditations

New beginnings
So, when it came to purchasing a new platesetter in the spring of 2010, quality and environmental sensibilities had to be taken into account. The machine to be replaced was an Agfa Palladio with violet laser and, after eyeing up the different options on the market, the company eventually opted for the Agfa Avalon N4 Platesetter operating in tandem with Agfa’s Azura TS chemistry-free plates to produce up to 16 plates per hour at 2,400dpi.

Emtone also opted for Agfa’s Sublima screening option, which combines the benefits of AM screening and FM screening to achieve line-screen rulings of up to double what was previously achievable, according to Agfa.

According to Agfa Graphics systems specialist John Wood, the machine, which is an evolution of the Acento range, "combines extreme reliability with a productivity level range suitable for most B2 printers, in an affordable package". He says: "It features multiple levels of productivity and automation so that customers can align the cost and size of the system to particular requirements."

Designed to integrate
Agfa launched the Acento and Azura simultaneously at Drupa 2004. The two products were designed to go hand-in-hand with one another – indeed the plates alone were seen at the time to be a major technological step forward for Agfa, so much so that the general perception was that the company needed a new platesetter to image them. On the Acento’s launch – to a huge fanfare of publicity – Agfa said that it was drawing a line in the sand and launching an assault on the commercial sheetfed section. At the time the market was moving towards thermal and while Agfa had a four-up visible machine, there was no equivalent thermal option.

The Acento was eventually renamed the Avalon N4 to coincide with the launch of a revised model, although Agfa maintains that the difference in spec between the two is minimal. One big difference was the step up in speed, but that was largely facilitated by the launch of the faster Azura TS plate.

When used in conjunction with the Azura TS plates and clean-out unit, Agfa believes that the machine is particularly useful for B2 printers, forming a complete pre-press package with the Apogee Workflow, Avalon platesetter and Azura TS plates. The oversize B2 plate size enables coverage of nearly all presses in this category and Agfa says that the majority of machines are now sold to image the Azura TS plate, which requires no development, complementing the Avalon N4’s reliable imaging of the plate and giving consistent results on press, according to Agfa.

Options
The machine is available in two versions, the Avalon N4-10E and the faster Avalon N4-10S. Both models can image plates up to 660x830mm. The N4-10E can image 11 4-up plates per hour, while the N4-10S, to which it can be upgraded, can image up to 21 4-up plates per hour. Emtone has taken the faster option.

The Avalon N4 series comes with an optional in-line punching system and can be extended with a range of plate loaders for maximum convenience and automation. When the N4 was launched in mid-2009, rival manufacturer Fujifilm caused a stir, claiming that chemistry-free plates were not a reality and rebranding its own plates as "low-chemistry". Agfa maintains that "chemistry free" is a realistic term and claims that anyone who has any doubts that ‘chemistry-free’ is achievable, should speak to its customers who "really understand what chemistry-free means".

Step forward one of Agfa’s greatest advocates in the form of Emtone’s Coward. The printer has a long-standing relationship with the supplier, but the main reason it chose to buy a new platesetter from Agfa was because it wanted to boost throughput and take advantage of its new green plates.

"Chemistry-free means we save about £900 a month on chemicals and also we save approximately eight hours a month on cleaning," he explains.

Although environmental concerns, cost savings and indeed time savings were the main reasons for buying the new machine, following its installation, Coward quickly discovered that it offered a great deal many more advantages. Its footprint is relatively small, which is always a good selling point in a busy boutique printer, and the machine is also quiet.
Ease-of-use is another positive, although that isn’t something that Coward himself could tell you about. "It’s simple to operate and has a good reliability record. The pre-press guys tell me it’s simplicity itself. The press minders can access it and run a plate out in the middle of the night if they get a scratch or damage a plate."

Varied throughput
The 16 plates an hour mark is crucial for Emtone, as the company handles a varied amount of work. No single client accounts for more than 8% of its turnover and last year it had 184 active accounts, so it is unlikely to ever find itself doing one or two long run jobs in a day.

"We print for approximately 50% end-users, 30% designers and 20% print management," explains Coward. "About half of our work comes from London with the rest coming from the West Country."

Installation of the machine went without a hitch, thanks to Agfa’s hands on project manager and a site visit. However, Coward concedes that there were one or two "teething problems". "We had a problem with a bearing on the gum unit and a small problem with vibration. Agfa dealt with these promptly and efficiently."

Despite the success of the machine, Coward is a hard man to please and as a result he’s already looking to improve on the initial set-up. "I would like to upgrade to the 100 cassette plate feed as we have recently installed a Heidelberg XL 75 which we are running continuously. Because of the quick makeready times on this press, we need to be able to output plates throughout the night."

And Coward intends to use his array of new toys to continue providing quality print to even more customers. "We have no doubt whatsoever that we can now compete with the best this industry has to offer. We produce superb work to tight deadlines at economical prices – delivering the right product at the right time."

As for Agfa, it is obviously fighting the fallout of the recession, as most kit manufacturers are, but the company’s Wood believes that the Avalon N4 is one machine that it can rely on in leaner times. He says: "We are confident that despite the downturn in machine sales activity caused by the credit squeeze, we will achieve this year’s targets."

SPECIFICATIONS
Max speed
16 plates an hour
Max resolution
240dpi
Min plate size
324x370mm
Max plate size
830x660mm
Price
£40,000-£80,000
depending on spec
Contact
Agfa UK 020 8231 4983

COMPANY PROFILE
Emtone was launched in December 1963 with three founding directors in London.

The company moved to Bath in June 1979 when its major customer Cow & Gate moved to Wiltshire. In 1996 ownership of the business passed to Brian Hewitt, who had worked for the company from the age of 17, and even relocated to Bath when the business moved out of London.

The current managing director John Coward took a 50% stake in the company and became joint managing director in June 2001. In his first year in the role, the company’s turnover jumped from £500,000 to £1m. Having taken over as sole managing director in August 2004, Coward has seen the company’s turnover grow to £1.8m in the last seven years. Emtone employs 16 staff.

Why I bought it…
It replaced a Palladio with violet laser imaging. A combination of the machine and Agfa Azura plates saves on downtime in processor maintenance and chemistry. The machine also increases throughput and takes advantage of chemistry-free plates.

How it has performed…
According to Coward’s pre-press staff the machine is very simple to use. While press minders are able to access the machine and run a plate in the middle of the night if one of the pre-prepared plates are damaged. Overall Coward has been very pleased with his investment.