Agfa Graphics is launching a new chemistry-free plate – the Azura TU – which it says will bring chemistry-free printing to virtually every commercial sheetfed printing business.

Chemistry-free plates: New Agfa Azura TU

Aimed squarely at the conventional thermal plate segment Agfa says its new Azura TU offers significant benefits over conventional in sustainability, throughput, durability, image quality, stability and ease of use. Launching the new plate at an exclusive press conference at Agfa’s HQ in Belgium Dirk Debusscher, vice president prepress for Agfa, told Australian Printer, “The Azura TU is aimed at industrial commercial sheetfed printers using more than 10,000sqm of plates per year. “It provides a 95 per cent water saving over conventional thermal plates, will print up to 150,000 sheets, will enable virtually every CTP to run at maximum speed, has a dot range of 1-99 per cent with up to 240lpi, uses no developer, no replenisher and no rinse water.” The Azura TU has a clean out unit that has a bath life of 7000 sqm of plates, in contrast with the 300 sqm bath life of the existing Azura TS plate series. The Azura TS will continue to be manufactured, aimed at printers using less than 10,000 sqm of plates a year. Ralph Hilsdon, head of product marketing prepress at Agfa says, “The Azura TU is the first chemistry-free plate in the industrial scale commercial sheetfed segment. It provides major productivity and sustainability benefits. “Switching from a conventional plate to Azura TU means less waste, less disposal costs, less maintainence and a safer working environment. It saves 95 per cent of water. It is more reliable, more consistent and environmentally friendly compared to any conventional plate making.”  

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