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1 Kodak s Graphic Communications Group 343 State Street Rochester, NY USA Internal: STAB_02 Release date: September 9, 2010 White Paper Contact Name Kevin Cazabon, Global Plates Portfolio Director kevin.cazabon@kodak.com Stability Equals Success There certainly are a lot of cool technologies in the printing industry today - all kinds of lasers, computers, interconnected systems, mechanical wonders - but all a printer actually needs is to be able to deliver predictable, stable quality print in an economical and efficient manner. But how he achieves this is changing constantly to reflect the latest technology and market trends as well as customer demands. In the late 1990s the printing industry embarked on a radical shift towards digital direct-to-plate prepress production, which promised (and delivered) a huge leap forward in terms of quality, consistency, simplicity and efficiency. Eliminating film and analogue plate exposure resulted in huge savings in materials and labour costs, and provided dramatic improvements in pressroom efficiency and quality. Ten years on, CTP and fully digital prepress systems are the norm across most of the printing industry. Printers are more efficient, producing a wider range of products, faster, cheaper and with better quality than ever before. However, during this period costs for raw materials (paper, ink, plates, energy, fuel) have skyrocketed and competition has forced print prices ever downwards. Printers have few choices. They can continually become more efficient, diversify their product and service range into higher-margin offerings, or slowly watch their business wither away under margin pressures. The advent of CTP in prepress was truly a revolution for the printing industry, one that achieved a step-change in the way print was produced. That kind of industry shift is rare, and although technologies such as offset class inkjet may herald the next wave, they re probably still a few years off from being mainstream. In the meantime, we have to learn to squeeze all we can out of what we ve got something that printers and manufacturers alike have become pretty inventive at over the years. Page 1 of 6

2 If you consider printing as a manufacturing industry, the process of maximizing efficiency centres around industrialization removing as many stages as possible, and automating the rest essentially turning what was once a custom craft into a process that can be repeated day after day without constantly fine-tuning production. Doing this, while meeting the ever-increasing demands for higher quality and a wider range of product offerings, is a daunting challenge. Most often people talk about workflow when looking at industrializing print today and Kodak is no exception with our industry-leading open systems that can interconnect your business from order quoting right through to delivery. However, quite often the role of plates and plate making is overlooked or trivialized as a commoditized business. It s far from that, and your choice of products and partners can have a significant impact on your pressroom efficiency and productivity and hence your business profit (or even survival). The key word here is stability. When you automate a process, you need to be confident that it will achieve the same results every time, without the need for manual intervention and correction. Stability is reliability trust confidence. Without that, you don t get any improvement in efficiency. Between your workflow and your press, there are four key areas of stability to consider: Stability in Imaging Stability in Imaging is reliable and robust imaging of the plate in your CTP device, using technology that tolerates and/or automatically corrects for the normal day-to-day variability in a printing environment, ensures consistent and robust dot reproduction on the plate that will hold up on press, through the full print run. At the same time, the system must be flexible enough so that it adjusts easily to the production variations and demands of your business. Within this arena firmly sits Kodak SQUAREspot Imaging Technology, which employs a 10,000 dpi laser swath - four times finer than a pixel. This unique sub-pixel resolution ensures the edge of the dot on the plate is accurately and consistently imaged, resulting in a clear and consistent boundary between imaged and nonimaged areas and excellent latitude to handle the normal (or even abnormal) variations in plates, plate coatings, processing, laser power, and even your prepress room environment with no noticeable variation on the printed sheet. The design of the laser array in the Kodak SQUAREspot Thermal Imaging Heads means that quality and speed continue even if several laser emitters fail ensuring long, trouble-free operation and minimal Page 2 of 6

3 interruption to a printer s operation. Customers are often unaware a failure has occurred until it is revealed during the normal service inspection by a Kodak engineer. Dynamic Autofocus, a standard feature on all of Kodak s imaging devices using SQUAREspot Technology, enables consistent quality to be achieved even if there are changes in the distance between the laser and the plate surface (a common problem often caused by dirt or dust), eliminating hot spots and other artefacts that may not show up until the plates are on press. Stability in Prepress (consumables and processing) Plates, chemistry and processing all have inherent variability but the best systems reduce the number of variables and the range of variation, or ideally have the tolerance and latitude to absorb those variations without impacting upon the results on press. There are several ways to achieve stability in consumables. The market is focused today mostly on removing the developer used in making plates, which is of course one of the larger variables in the system. However impressive some of these developer-free and non process technologies are, it s only one way of addressing the problem and today s products typically have some limitations elsewhere, making them great solutions for some customers, but non-applicable for others. Kodak s own true non process plate, Kodak Thermal Direct Non Process Plate, has been extremely successful in the B2 market and is growing in the B1 market now as well. Even as non process technology expands up-market, it will likely be a few more years before non process plates make economical and practical sense for daily production in larger printing sites. In the meantime, there is renewed focus on delivering more efficient, stable and cost-effective plates and chemical processing systems. New generation plates such as the Kodak Trillian SP Thermal Plate and the Kodak Electra XD Thermal Plate have pretty impressive specifications; high exposure speeds, extremely fine resolution, long run lengths and good chemical resistance for today s challenging press conditions. But the real value to the average printer is in the latitude or forgiveness of the system - both in prepress (imaging and processing), and more importantly on press. Page 3 of 6

4 Latitude in prepress means the ability to cope with day-to-day plate production variations without any impact on your pressroom, including: plate manufacturing consistency, aging characteristics, tolerance to storage and working conditions, humidity, temperature, processing variables, and so forth. Products that can provide better stability due to this forgiveness allow printers to shorten make-ready times, reduce pressroom waste and remakes, and increase quality and consistency making it easier to produce demanding jobs and match reprint requests. The results are cost savings combined with higher stability, productivity and quality. Even in the seemingly mundane world of plate developers, modern processing systems like the Kodak Trillian SP Neutral Plate Solution, Kodak 300 Thermal Developer for Electra XD Plates, and the Kodak Goldstar Plus Plate Developer and Regenerator system offer significant improvements over previous chemistries. Printers who switch to one of the newer developer systems can simplify their plate making process considerably by using a system that offers extended bath life with reduced chemistry usage and greater stability throughout the cycle, while also keeping the machine clean and easy to maintain. This brings improved efficiency, stability and quality, plus reduced maintenance to both current and new generations of plates (even conventional plates!). Stability On Press Perhaps the most valuable to a printer, but the hardest to quantify is Stability on Press: the ability to easily produce the same result from the first press sheet to the last, minimizing the need to constantly adjust ink key settings to maintain quality and colour, while having good working latitude for ink/water balance and avoiding toning, scumming, picture framing, ghosting etc. Press minders are resistant to any changes on press or the products they use with the press, generally with good reason. If they can t rely on the many fine-tuned and balanced pieces of the mechanical and chemical puzzle that makes lithographic systems work, it can turn a printer s most expensive asset into an anchor, dragging their whole business down with it. But if vendors can provide a product that can make a press minder s job easier achieving as good or better quality quicker, more consistently, or through less effort and waste press minders are often the first ones telling management where change is needed. Products with a wider ink/water balance latitude, resistance to toning and other common press problems, and resistance to modern press chemistry (such as alcohol replacement founts, and harsh blanket washes for UV and EB inks) all reduce the amount of effort and cost required to achieve the desired quality on press. Page 4 of 6

5 All plate manufacturers claim they re better in this category than each other, and it is often difficult to objectively quantify plate performance in these areas. In reality it s up to the printer to decide what really delivers on the promises made and what doesn t in their own unique pressroom environment. However, as quality expectations rise and customers increase their demands for industry colour standards (eg ISO, Fogra, Gracol), a more challenging issue comes up - the need to reduce dot sharpening and achieve stability from the beginning to the end of the print run. Plates wear over the course of a print run, due both to mechanical and chemical action. This is normally compensated for by adjusting the ink keys on press throwing more ink at smaller dots on the plate, which increases the effective dot gain on the press. While this generally works in the midtones of a job, it can t compensate for worn-out highlight dots, gradations or tints. The net effect is that printers either have to stop the press and change plates, with all the associated costs and wasted time and materials, or live with deteriorating quality through the run. This effect is more apparent in long run jobs, but even on short runs with finer line screens or especially FM screening it can be a real obstacle to obtaining consistent colour and quality. Up until now, the only way to avoid this was to postbake plates, which involves considerable investment in capital equipment, space, electricity etc. However, the introduction of the new Kodak Trillian SP and Kodak Electra XD Thermal Plates with their exceptional on-press durability changes the rules here significantly. Trials with these new plates have revealed an amazing and unique ability to resist normal mechanical and chemical wear through short and long runs, giving even small commercial printers the on-press benefits of a postbaked plate without the cost or complexity. This robustness enables the industrialization of colour control, FM screening, spot colour replacement and other high-value offerings key not only to saving costs, but also expanding the range of products and services that a printer is able to offer! Stability for the Environment Although reducing or eliminating chemicals that are used in the plate production process is a worthy goal, one has to look at the total production cycle of a print shop to evaluate what system features will have the largest positive impact for both the environment and your business. Improvements on press that deliver a more stable and consistent printing system can significantly improve environmental impact, reduce waste generation in both prepress and the pressroom, and increase overall efficiency arguably having a much larger effect on both a printer s business and environmental goals than the simple elimination of plate developer. Page 5 of 6

6 Environmental benefits that reap the fastest business benefits are the most likely to be implemented and sustained and those benefits must be quantified to ensure the real value is recognized. Make sure you look carefully at the benefits of each technology across the full production cycle before determining which technology is right for you. In summary, although the glitz and glamour is usually on more exciting topics than plates and chemistry, there is a great deal of true value to be obtained by choosing the right plate partner and products. This is the basis of the Kodak is Stability Program, highlighting the value we can deliver now and in the future through our unique technologies and services in each of those four key areas: Imaging, Prepress, On Press and Environment. Make sure that you take care of today s business on press to ensure you ll be around long enough for the next revolution in the pressroom when it comes. Kodak will be there with you, leading the way. About Kodak As the world s foremost imaging innovator, Kodak helps consumers, businesses, and creative professionals unleash the power of pictures and printing to enrich their lives. To learn more, visit and follow our blogs and more at In the graphic communications market, Kodak offers the broadest portfolio of integrated solutions to help customers grow their business. Kodak, Kodak, Electra, Goldstar Plus, SQUAREspot, Thermal Direct, and Trillian are trademarks of Kodak. Page 6 of 6