Case Study: Fas-Flex™ Flexographic Plate Mounting Tape

Problem

A converter using 3M’s 1115 flexographic plate mounting tape on its Mark Andy 4150 press had to frequently shutdown the press to remount the tape while running at 270 feet per minute. This was causing higher scrap rates due to poorly printed labels and wasted tape.

Solution

The converter agreed to trial the new Avery Dennison Select Solutions Fas-Flex 8615S, the comparable tape to 3M’s 1115, with the following results.

Improved Label Quality

Dampened vibrations reduced chatter defects per label
Less chatter and fewer shutdowns resulted in a noticeably better print quality

Time and Cost Savings

No need for the operator to start over if a mistake is made (saved 30 minutes per application)
Removed added cost of scrapping misapplied mountingtape

Increased Printing Speeds

Press ran 10% faster, adding 30-45 minutes of print time per 8-hour shift
Faster speeds helped the customer turnaround jobs quicker, adding press capacity