Lehner Sensor Systeme GmbH, the German manufacturer based in Kirchheim/Teck, has developed new automatic assembly and workflow technology for label production that is designed to improve accuracy and increase productivity in the narrow web sector of the market.  Called FlexoMatrix, this comprehensive platform has been designed for today’s label market, which is seeing shorter run lengths, more frequent job changes, and the use of unskilled employees on the production floor.

Speaking for the company, CEO Lars Lehner says, “Today’s narrow web sector needs to be flexible enough to cater for a variety of substrates that test the creativity of those responsible for production. This often requires special solutions and changes to familiar work patterns and processes that challenge even the most experienced press and prepress staff.  To maintain commercial viability in such a challenging environment demands more use of automation to keep quality standards high. We see FlexoMatrix as the missing link in today’s production environment.”

Lehner’s FlexoMatrix is refocusing the target for investment on the workflow itself.  By analyzing the process and identifying the weak points in make-ready and job changeover, Lehner realized that few print shops have the experience and skills required to handle today’s increasingly complex and competitive market conditions. FlexoMatrix is designed to complement and improve the efficiency of existing technology and operator skills.

FlexoMatrix provides a 21st-century solution to issues involved with industrial label production by automating many of the processes associated with job preparation. One of the key areas is the accuracy of plate registration on the print cylinder or sleeve. 

FlexoMatrix offers its own smart adapter solution and air axes that allow all sizes and types of cylinder and sleeve to be processed quickly and accurately.  This includes a 360° register setting that not only aligns the plate when its mounted but also measures and automatically adjusts it all around the cylinder from leading to tail edge to improve quality and reduce make-ready time, without any intervention by the operator.  The accuracy offered by the FlexoMatrix system also provides for a higher production levels as many existing customers testify, the company says.

Lars Lehner adds, “We have identified areas of the production workflow that offer previously unseen possibilities for profit potential.  FlexoMatrix matches registration in prepress and printing and automates key steps in the workflow to set a new benchmark in industrial standards for label production. It allows the workforce to be integrated into the change and the print shop to benefit immediately from additional productivity and process transparency every time there is a job change. I’d say that’s a positive use of automation and an essential investment for those narrow web flexo converters looking to future-proof their business.”