Techkon introduces Spectroplate plate reader at PrintPack

Albin Baranauskas, managing director, Techkon, met clients and visitors during the PrintPack show to understand the market needs and explain the importance of quality measurement and quality control in print production.

One of the new products at Squaredot stand was Techkon’s offset plate meter Spectroplate. “This is one of the first shows we presented the new device,” said Baranauskas.

He added, “It's a new generation of the instrument. In order to check the quality of the plate one has to check the dot percentage values and the curves. The new Spectroplate does it in a few seconds. It is a high-resolution digital microscope that measures dot percentage, screen angles, lines per inch/cm, dot gain and AM, FM or hybrid screens of traditional offset or process-less, chemistry-free printing plates. It has a high-resolution video chip with smart 1 micro-metre resolution and it has inductive charging, colour display and software integration that can deliver the information to the RIP to make corrections in the CTP system.”

Squaredots has been representing Techkon in India since 2000. It is also Techkon’s exclusive service partner for India. It handles local recalibration and basic repairs of the devices.

Highlighting the maintenance-free nature of Techkon devices, E Neelakandan, director, Squaredots, said, “The USP of Techkon’s devices are its accuracy, repeatability, and ease of use. Secondly, the devices are made of aluminium body and that makes them robust and sturdy for use on shopfloors.”

Talking about the Indian market, Baranauskas, said, “The mindset of an Indian printer has changed over the last few years. We have seen that print quality has become a significant parameter for the printers as they have realised that print quality makes the difference. When there’s intense competition in the market, measuring and enhancing print quality helps avoid customer complaints and as a result, the printer is in a position to demand a higher price for its services. Plus it gives the print firm the confidence to tap new jobs of high quality.”

Baranauskas felt that every print house must use Spectrodense, which is a universal spectrodesnitometer. “And based on the needs of the customer, we offer it in three different versions. So one can start with the basic version. And later if the needs improvement, or get higher then one can update the version.”

Baranauskas pointed out that when print quality is subjective to the eyes of the observer and therefore it is necessary to have an instrument that can give a number to the quality. However, just having an instrument is not sufficient. “It is important that the customers have the knowledge of using the instruments perfectly. And therefore, we also provide training, we have videos on YouTube. Then there is a company offering a subscription model where you can do tests online, where you can learn how to use the instrument in the right way and get certificates once you pass the test. So that makes sure that you know how to use it correctly and get the most benefit out of it.”

Techkon devices are equipped with functions that provide recommendations to the press operator when there’s a deviation in print quality.

Baranauskas explained, “We have implemented functions in our instruments that give a recommendation to the press operator, you know, in a way that he understands what to do. Say, if the delta E value is too high, the instrument tells the user that if you decrease the density, about 20 points, the delta E will be perfect. This makes it an extremely user-friendly kit.”