Flexo Plate Mounters
Heaford, the global leader in prepress efficiency
Our range of flexo plate mounters offers unmatched precision, speed, and reliability, allowing our global customers to elevate their printing operations to new heights.
We have an extensive range available, including manual, semi-automatic and fully automatic plate mounters, with a wide range of additional options to help operators with their pre-press mounting workflow.
Markets
Our flexo plate mounting machines are perfect for an extensive range of applications.
Envelope Printing
Flexibles
Corrugated Printing
Flexo Plate Mounting Machine
Our flexo plate mounters are sophisticated machines designed to mount flexographic plates onto printing cylinders, sleeves or corrugated carrier sheets up to web widths of 3600mm(142″), ideal for a multitude of markets, including labels, envelopes, flexible packaging and corrugated applications. They are an essential tool in the prepress stage of the flexographic printing process, where accurate plate alignment is fundamental to achieving superior print quality.
The Heaford range of plate mounters employs advanced technology that is easy to use and operate, enabling fast and accurate plate mounting. Our machines have high-resolution HD digital cameras that show the register marks in a clear, highly magnified display for precise plate positioning.
The user-friendly user interface enables operators to make necessary adjustments quickly and accurately. Our technology significantly reduces setup time, minimises errors, and ensures consistent and reliable print registration.
Benefits for our Customers
Unparalleled Accuracy
Our flexographic plate mounters ensure precise plate alignment, resulting in excellent print registration and minimising the risk of print defects. With our machines, you can achieve consistent mount accuracy, enhancing your print quality and satisfying your most demanding customer requirements.
Increased Efficiency
By automating the plate mounting process, our machines eliminate time-consuming manual adjustments and reduces the risk of human error. This efficiency boost translates into reduced setup times, increased productivity, and improved profitability for your business.
Enhanced Flexibility
Our flexographic plate mounters are designed with the flexibility that allows our mounting machines to accommodate cylinders and sleeves from different press manufactures, often in a single mounter.
Streamlined Workflow
With their intuitive interfaces and intelligent software, our plate mounters simplify the plate mounting process, enabling operators to work easily and efficiently. This streamlined workflow saves time, reduces operator fatigue, and allows your team to focus on other critical aspects of the production process.
Future-Ready Technology
Heaford is committed to staying at the forefront of technological advancements. Our plate mounters incorporate the latest innovations, ensuring you are equipped with a future-ready solution that can meet the evolving needs of the flexographic printing industry. Our extensive aftermarket upgrades allow our customers to extend the lifetime of their mounters and ensure maximum returns on investment.
Flexo Plate Mounter FAQs
Please see below the most common questions we’re asked about our flexographic plate mounting machines from our customers, if you need to know anymore, then please get in touch with our friendly team using the form below.
What is a flexographic plate mounter?
Flexographic plate mounters are used to accurately position photopolymer printing plates on either cylinders, sleeves or carrier sheets prior to being loaded in the printing press. To deliver the every increasing print quality demands of toady’s consumers requires each individual print plate in a design (typically 6-10 colours) to be precisely positioned to each other in tight register to enable the printing of high quality images.
Here are some common types of flexo plate mounters.
Narrow Web Plate Mounters;
- They are designed for narrow web applications such as labels, tags, and envelope.
- These plate mounters are typically suitable for web widths up to 850mm(33″).
- Available in different configurations to mount on to cylinders or sleeves .
Medium Web Plate Mounters;
- Ideal for medium-sized web applications, such as medium format flexible packaging.
- These plate mounters can handle web widths ranging from 910mm(35”) to 1500mm(59”).
Wide Web Plate Mounters;
- They are specifically designed for wide web applications, such as large-format flexible packaging, paper, tissue and corrugated printing.
- Wide web plate mounters can handle widths exceeding 3600mm(142 inches).
- They are engineered to handle the demands of large-format printing.
Corrugated Post and Pre Print Mounters;
- They are specifically designed for the corrugated packaging industry.
- These plate mounters are designed to handle large carrier sheets used in post-print corrugated applications or large repeat cylinders associated with corrugated pre print.
- They can accommodate carrier sheet sizes up to 3600mm(142″) in width.
What factors should be considered when choosing a flexographic plate mounter?
When choosing a flexographic plate mounter, several factors should be considered to ensure the selection aligns with your specific printing needs. Here are some essential factors to consider;
Plate Size and Compatibility;
- Assess the range of plate sizes your printing operation requires. Choose a plate mounter that can accommodate the plate sizes you commonly use. Consider the maximum and minimum plate dimensions supported by the machine.
- Ensure that the plate mounter is compatible with the type of plates you use, such as photopolymer plates, elastomer plates, or others specific to your application.
Web Width;
- Consider the maximum face/web width of your printing presses.
- Allow for any future press purchases that may arise from market changes resulting in a wider print width or different cylinder or sleeve types.
Automation and Technology;
- Consider the level of automation and technology required within a plate mounter. Advanced features such as accurate pre-setting , image recognition, automatic plate positioning and user-friendly interfaces can enhance efficiency and accuracy in the plate mounting process.
- Evaluate the degree of automation that suits matches the demands of your operation, skill level of operators and budget.
Application-Specific Requirements;
- Identify the specific needs of your printing application. Different industries have unique requirements, such as label printing, flexible packaging, corrugated post-print, etc. Ensure the plate mounter you choose is suitable for your specific application.
Speed and Productivity;
- Assess the speed and productivity capabilities of the plate mounter. Consider the setup time required for plate mounting and the machine’s overall production capacity.
- Choose a plate mounter that aligns with your desired production output and meets the demands of your printing operations now and in the near future.
Integration with Existing Workflow;
- Determine whether the plate mounter can seamlessly integrate with your existing prepress workflow, including compatibility with file formats and integration with other equipment or software you use for example those available from Esko, Hybrid, Cern and other industry suppliers.
After-Sales Support and Maintenance;
- Evaluate the after-sales support and maintenance services provided by the manufacturer. Consider factors such as technical support availability, training resources, and maintenance agreements to ensure the long-term performance and reliability of the plate mounter.