Zünd's cutting solution brings polymer plate cutting in-house

Print Solutions

A complete digital cutting solution from Zünd Plotting Systems has been installed at Reproflex 3 for the finishing of polymer printing plates, enabling the company to bring the process in-house.

Reproflex 3 is the first company in the UK to purchase a Zünd G3 digital cutting table for this application in the packaging market. Until its installation, the company was hand cutting or outsourcing die cutting work on a flatbed machine.

With three sites in Cramlington, near Newcastle upon Tyne, plus a facility in Dubai, Reproflex 3 manages the transition of new packaging designs to finished, printed products, in particular flexible packaging.

To manage this sizeable output, the company researched options for a digital cutting system that would hit the ground running and last well into the future.

‘We tested the competition and found that the Zünd's workflow technology was by far the easiest to use,’ explained Andrew Hewitson, managing director of Reproflex 3. ‘It has an open platform meaning our existing systems are able to drive it – the workflow is seamless.

‘Zünd has an amazing reputation and we have found that the quality of our polymer plates has improved for sure. We have more options for our packaging, with specific sizes now possible to make superior end products. It all just makes sense.’

Reproflex 3 also has a department for carton designs, with the G3 being put to use creating mock ups of finished designs in cut carton, board and corrugated materials before full production.