Asahi Flexo Plates
Our AFP™ family of products includes our CleanPrint out-of-the-box FlatTop plate, AFP™-BFTK, a high-quality solvent-wash plate that improves ink laydown on wide web flexible packaging film, paper and label substrates; as well as AFP™-Leggero for kiss touch pressure on corrugated transport boxes; AFP™-TOP premium hard CleanPrint plates delivering dots to dye for; AFP™-TSP, the perfect plate for sticky inks; and more.
AFP™-TOP
Dots to dye for
Premium hard digital flexo plate
This hard premium digital flexo CleanPrint plate delivers a broad colour gamut and soft tonal shades fading out to zero. Kiss-touch printing pressure facilitates repeatable print quality and fewer cleaning press stops. Compatible with high definition screening and microcell patterning technologies.
AFP™-Leggero
Just Kiss. No Crush.
Excellent ink coverage with reduced flute marks
The Asahi super-soft AFP™-Leggero CleanPrint plates have been specifically designed for printing with a minimal Kiss touch pressure on corrugated transport boxes, delivering minimal washboarding and good ink coverage for the utmost in quality while eliminating board crush to better protect the packaged goods.
Dots to dye for
Premium hard digital flexo plate
This hard premium digital flexo CleanPrint plate delivers a broad colour gamut and soft tonal shades fading out to zero. Kiss-touch printing pressure facilitates repeatable print quality and fewer cleaning press stops. Compatible with high definition screening and microcell patterning technologies.
The flexo plate for paper and film
with Pinning Technology for Clean Transfer
Asahi’s AFP™-TSP is a medium-hard digital flexo plate optimised for a wide range of packaging substrates, from paper, folding carton and corrugated to flexible packaging and foil.
Asahi’s AFP™-TSP plate is designed to deliver homogeneous ink laydown for both printed lines and solids and is perfect for both halftone and solid printing. Combine these plates with AFP™-TOP plates to deliver a fine, smooth gradation towards zero, increasing the range of applications that can be transferred to flexo from other printing technologies.
Benefits:
- Combination plate for halftones and solids with homogeneous ink laydown for both lines and solids.
- Incorporates Pinning Technology for Clean Transfer, enabling superior ink transfer, higher quality and fewer press cleaning stops for improved OEE.
- Ideal for use with solvent- and water-based inks on film and paper substrates
- Strong plate abrasion resistance with good base film lamination strength, excellent for use under aggressive printing conditions.
- System compatibility with recent screening and microcell technologies and fits into existing solvent plate making workflow with no extra equipment investment
Asahi Water Washable Plates
Developed for the next generation
AWP™, Asahi’s latest development and a unique platemaking technology, is a beneficial alternative to conventional flexographic plates. It is a water washable plate technology that eliminates the need for high temperatures or VOC solvents in the washout process, delivering precise plate-to-plate registration with reduced odour in the plate making process. AWP™ plates save time and money, reduce waste and assist in preserving precious energy resources while delivering stunning quality with brilliant images.
Benefits:
- Excellent ink transfer for superlative ink coverage.
- Consistent plate reproduction for precise registration and job-to-job consistency.
- Reduced make-ready with fast run-up to colour due to dot stability and predictability.
- 33% less plate production time required compared to solvent-based platemaking.
- Processes with only five minutes drying time at a low temperature.
- Excellent plate stability due to the low temperature production process.
Solid Photopolymer
Soft type plate available in analogue and digital
The AFP™-DSE flexo plate meets the most demanding criteria of quality in printing corrugated board, solid board and heavy-duty bags. Its ideal shore hardness and resilience characteristics compensate for the surface unevenness of the substrate. Its dimensionally stable polyester base sheet adds to its ability to achieve very high quality, while the wide exposure latitude of the AFP™-SE/DSE plate ensures that image elements like tones and isolated lines are optimally anchored even with a relief depth of 3 mm.
Benefits:
- Low dot gain printing & excellent ink transfer. Optimized plate resilience to minimize a washboard effect.
- Optimized durability for highly aggressive papers.
- Optimum intermediate depths with steep relief shoulders
- Compatible with recent screening and microcell technologies.
Medium hard plate available in analog and digital
Asahi‘s AFP™-SH/DSH is a hard flexo plate available in analogue and digital versions for excellent printing quality and high durability. Its improved mechanical stability and excellent ink transfer behaviour in combination with low highlight dot gain makes the SH/DSH plate of choice for quality printers. The AFP™-SH/DSH plate is primarily used in printing flexible packaging and labels but is also excellent for complex jobs where its quality and durability make the difference.
Benefits:
- Balanced reproduction of large tonal areas, text and halftone elements on film, foil and coated surfaces.
- Short platemaking time and easy handling for improved quality.
- Excellent tonal range improves printing results.
- Excellent resistance to UV and solvent-based inks.
- Steep shoulder relief and very good intermediate depths for minimal dot gain
Medium hard plate available for analog and digital
The AFP™-SF/DSF is Asahi’s medium hard plate that elevates printing results to a new level of quality. It is designed for good highlights combined with excellent ink transfer onto all substrates. Its optimized balance of solid ink laydown and highlight dot printing produces incomparably good ink coverage with low dot gain in the mid tones and brilliant highlights at maximum printing speeds, with particular suitability for flexible packaging printing on film and paper with solvent or water based inks.
Benefits:
- Superbly balanced reproduction of large tonal areas, text and halftone elements.
- Wide exposure latitude enables consistent results.
- Steep relief shoulders and very good intermediate depths result in minimal dot gain.
- Its flexibility makes it possible to print with small-diameter cylinders.
- AFP™-SF/DSF is the perfect choice for solvent- and water-based ink printing applications where solid ink transfer in harmony with fine highlight dots is the focus.