Film Free in Fairbanks
When University of Alaska-Fairbanks Printing Services added its new Agfa :Acento II E thermal computer-to-plate device in the fall, it arranged to keep its Agfa SelectSet 7000 imagesetter around for three months, just in case the transition from film to CTP didn’t go well.
“We never turned it on again once we had that platesetter installed,” reports Warren Fraser, manager of Printing Services. Nor has the in-plant looked back fondly even once on the film world it left behind. For one thing, the new platesetter has reduced dot gain and improved quality: “It’s rare that a plate gets rejected,” Fraser testifies. “It’s been really good.”
For another it has allowed the shop to eliminate a position by not replacing a prepress employee who retired: “It basically saved a whole person,” he notes.
The :Acento II E and its inline :Azura C-85 processor can produce about 12 full-size plates per hour for the in-plant’s two-color 20x29˝ MAN Roland, Fraser says. The shop does a lot of four-color jobs on that press, such as annual reports and posters, so operators appreciate the consistency of the plates produced by the :Acento II E.
The in-plant uses :Azura chemistry-free plates. Fraser is glad to be rid of chemistry in his shop, both for environmental and quality reasons: “You don’t have to worry about expired chemistry affecting the plates,” he points out.
The :Acento II E uses a Xitron Xenith RIP, which the in-plant installed a year ago, giving operators time to get familiar with it. Proofs are output on an Epson 9800.
Despite the in-plant’s remote location in northern Alaska, Fraser says delivery and installation were a breeze.
“It’s been a good investment,” Fraser concludes. “Everyone here is pleased with it.”
Next up for the in-plant, says Fraser, is a new cutter. He’s already getting quotes on it.
- Companies:
- Agfa Graphics
Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 180 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.
