Flexographic Printing Innovation (I)

The market share of flexographic printing in Europe and the United States is expanding, and it is undoubtedly the leading position in all printing methods in the future. In Japan, the expansion of flexo printing is slow because users are too demanding about quality.
The steady expansion of the flexographic printing market has recently reported that the market share of flexographic printing in various countries has expanded significantly. In the United States in recent years, the output value of flexographic printing has grown at an annual rate of 7%. At present, 70% of the packaging printing market uses flexographic printing (see "GATF World" 2001-5~6). The market share of flexographic printing in Europe has also increased. Its market share in the total printed matter market is 27%. In terms of packaging materials alone, it has a market share of about 50%.
In the future, in Europe and the United States, it is expected that the market share of flexographic printing will further expand. For example, in the US full-print market including general printing, the market share of flexographic printing is expected to increase from 18% in 2000 to 20% in 2010 (see “TAGA2001 News letter” No, 137. ). In the ten years, from 18% to 20%, it seems that there will not be much change. However, in the same forecast, digital printing will increase from 8% in 2000 to 20% in 2010. The other side of the market share has increased dramatically. Offset printing has been reduced from 46% to 37%, gravure printing has been reduced from 18% to 15%, and letterpress printing has decreased from 7% to 5%.
Contrary to the expansion of market share in the flexographic printing market in Europe and the United States, the Japanese market has been stagnant for the past 20 years due to the user's demand for quality, and has even been reduced. However, due to technological innovation in recent years, attention has been given to the area from prepress to printing.
Not long ago in May, at the 7th World Printing Conference held in Beijing, Robert Rees, vice president of Cyrel Corporation, also spoke of the fact that flexographic printing will surely have great development in the future. Because its quality is not inferior to lithography and gravure, and the production speed has been improved, the biggest advantage is that digital proofing improves the production environment.
The quality, price, and delivery of quality flexo printing, not inferior to lithographic and gravure, are always superior to those of lithographic and gravure printing in terms of labor price, and the equipment is cheap and the reject rate is low. Recently, environmental concerns have attracted attention. In this regard, the practicality of water-based inks and UV inks is considered to be superior to gravure printing.
The biggest issue for flexographic printing is its quality. In the past, the quality of flexographic prints was indeed inferior to offset prints and gravure prints. However, since the digital photosensitive plate (Digit alplate) was developed and introduced in 1995, the quality distance that can be achieved with other formats has been reduced. In the past, flexographic printing has not reached the level of high-level reproduction and tone reproduction, and now digital printing plates can completely achieve a certain quality of printing. Moreover, the quality of overprinting or gravure prints can sometimes be printed. The food sector recognized by IoPP (Institute of Packaging Professionals) every year (Ameri Star Packaging Award). Flexo-printed finished products often receive the best prize. Of course, digital printing plates are used for the printing of such printed products.
The focus of competition is that the quality of production speed flexographic printing has finally improved to the level of lithographic and gravure printing. Therefore, the next topic before the flexographic printing is to increase production speed. Various technological improvements have emerged in this area. (To be continued)

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