Comparision of Two Thermal Decomposition Offset Printing Plates

Abstract

The aim of our research was to investigate two digital plates based on the same type of thermal sensitive coating produced by different manufactures and compare their quality, run length, ecological and economical aspects and user experience in the offset press. It was found out that with both plates the same quality of prints was attained according to the measurements of tone values on the plates and prints. The spectrophotometric measurements also showed that the prints were almost identical, except for minor differences in lightness. The microscopic image analysis showed that one plate had finer graining and thereby gave better and more accurate representation of half-tone dot and this plate was also more environmentally–friendly with lower consumption of chemicals for the plate developing, more durable with longer run lengths and as well more economical and user–friendly. The obtained results were useful for the offset printing company in its choosing the better thermal plate with reduced production costs.