10 things to avoid in flexography to prevent from troubles

A totally arbitrary and incomplete list of things to avoid when approaching flexography in order to prevent from troubles in production

[@Pilek01]

We have a new W&H Novoflex II and when printing with 400-500 m/min (1300-1650 Feet per minute) the plates get dirty fast so i have to clean them every 4-5 rolls. When cleaning plates i loose a lot of time and produce less. I worked on a Soma machine before and had no such issues with the same ink, plates and paper. We use water based ink (flint group) and only print on paper. The viscosity is all right and the machine has a very good drying system. Like i said before on the Some there were no issues and could print 3 shifts without any need to clean plates, drying temperature is set to 60 Celsius on both machines. Any idea how to prevent the plates to get dirty so quick?

[@flexoexpert]

Hello @Pilek01, if I understand correctly, the 2 presses that you mention are not working side-by-side now. There could be different variables involved, but I would start checking the blade metering angle and tip contact area: if ink is flooding over the anilox walls due to hydroplaning it might build up on plate shoulders. There are indeed other aspects to check, including anilox engraving balance, plate surface texture, plate package compression and impression settings... that would require a more analytical approach. Feel free to contact me directly on [e-mail]: I can provide measurements and troubleshooting also on site.

[@ravishrivastava1448]

Hi, I am operating a press. The press is running and it is printing on the paper aluminium foil lamination. Being a water based ink, on some of the prints, the ink after drying is getting removed and in the same scenario on some of the samples, it is not getting removed. What could be the possible reasons.

[@flexoexpert]

Hi Ravi, I see you also sent me an email with more details, I will reply to that, thank you

[@danw8153]

I operate a press and I am supplied ink plates that are to large in in area for the material we print on. This usually results in dotting and wrapping. Do u have any recommendations.

[@flexoexpert]

Hi Dan, sorry I believe I do not understand your question correctly, can you explain in more details? Maybe you can write to me to [e-mail]

[@iqbaliyat7599]

​@@flexoexpertwe are facing too much fast drying only in one ink (black) and overlapping color.please guide us how we can eliminate such defects

[@flexoexpert]

@@iqbaliyat7599 too little information here. Short reply (and for sure 100% useless): if the ink dries fast, add retarder. If inks have problems when overprinting each others, check ink volumes and drying. Of course it would require a more detailed analysis of all variables involved. We can connect via email on this: [e-mail]