What is flexo printing machine?
Flexographic – abbreviated to flexo – printing is a form of rotary printing in which quick-drying inks are transferred from flexible printing plates to a substrate. This is primarily used for large-scale printing of text and images on a variety of materials such as plastic, metallic film, paper and nonwovens.
What is the difference between Flexographic and lithography?
Flexographic printing, or Flexo, is a technique for bulk printing using flexible relief plates. Lithographic printing or Litho is a method of printing, initially based on the unmixable materials of oil and water. Lithography is used for anything that needs vibrant colours and is printed in large quantities.
Why is it called flexographic printing?
Flexography (often abbreviated to flexo) is a form of printing process which utilizes a flexible relief plate.
What is flexo gravure printing?
Flexographic printing, also known as flexo printing, is a relief printing technique, similar to letterpress whereby the ink is transferred from a raised printing plate using fast drying inks onto the chosen substrate.
What is lithographic ink?
Lithographic printing uses thick paste inks that are highly viscous; these inks are made using a pigment and an oil-based vehicle, which allows the ink to be positioned correctly (in the oil receptive image areas) and to dry quickly through a combination of absorption, oxidation, and polymerisation.
How are flexographic plates made?
A flexographic print is made by creating a positive mirrored master of the required image as a 3D relief in a rubber or polymer material. Flexographic plates can be created with analog and digital platemaking processes. The image areas are raised above the non image areas on the rubber or polymer plate.
Who invented flexographic printing?
History. In 1890, the first such patented press was built in Liverpool, England by Bibby, Baron and Sons. The water-based ink smeared easily, leading the device to be known as “Bibby’s Folly”. In the early 1900s, other European presses using rubber printing plates and aniline oil-based ink were developed.
What is rotogravure printing used for?
The process, also commonly called gravure printing, is used in the manufacturing of food and non-food packaging, as well as labels, wall coverings, transfer printing, and has a variety of further applications in the security printing, industrial, and tobacco segments of industry.
What are flexo labels?
Flexographic printing is a popular method for printing large orders of custom labels at rapid speeds by transferring ink onto the paper or film material using flexible printing plates mounted on fast-rotating cylinders.
What is the difference between offset and flexo printing?
The main difference with both processes is that offset printing is only done on flat surface while Flexographic printing can be used on almost any substrate with a flexible surface.