Kodak introduces SWORD MAX Thermal Plates to boost growth for printers with high performance processed plate technology

For printers looking to boost growth and performance with processed plate technology, Kodak today announced the commercial availability of the new KODAK SWORD MAX Thermal Plates in Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. The SWORD MAX Plate is a no-preheat, positive-working, wet processed plate offering high-speed imaging, high productivity, and excellent resolution.

Featuring patented Advanced Resin Technology (ART), SWORD MAX Thermal Plates deliver high-performance features to help printers grow their business while keeping production costs low. On press, SWORD MAX Plates offer robustness and chemical resistance, especially with aggressive inks such as opaque UV white, matte agents, and metallic and many more. They deliver long unbaked run lengths of up to 350,000 impressions and support reprinting without the need for post-baking. The plates are ideal for UV or low-energy UV applications, with unbaked run lengths in those applications of up to 160,000 impressions.

TARA TPS, a South Korean printer specializing in books, catalogs and general commercial print, was an early beta customer for SWORD MAX Plates and is now using the plate exclusively. Young-ho Park, Production Director of TARA TPS, reports, “We used KODAK ACHIEVE EM Plates for two and a half years, and they are terrific plates that served our needs at the time. But, when we installed our new UV press to expand our business, we would have had to divide our production line into two parts, which would have impacted our productivity. The introduction of SWORD MAX Plates has eliminated that challenge, as we can now run all our print applications using the one plate. We’ve now converted all our plates to SWORD MAX Plates. We could not be happier with our decision as the plates deliver excellent performance across multiple applications, with no compromises in quality. With SWORD MAX Plates, we can print faster and meet our customers’ deadlines easily, even as our business grows.”

SWORD MAX Plates are flexible enough to be used for commercial print, offset packaging, web, publication, book, and have superior output quality on many different substrates, such as metal, PET, heavy-duty card, and more. The high-quality resolution capabilities of SWORD MAX Plates, up to AM 1-99% @ 300 lpi and FM20 on certain KODAK Platesetters and fast imaging with laser energy of 100 – 120 mJ/cm² enable printers to provide their customers with high-quality print, consistency, great color, and stability at peak plate productivity levels.

“Kodak is committed to helping printers profitably grow their business while equipping them for the future with new technology,” said John O’Grady, President, Print Systems Division, Kodak. “The new SWORD MAX Plates deliver a step change in performance over other processed plates, so our customers can confidently say ‘yes’ to more business.”

About Kodak
Kodak is a technology company focused on imaging. We provide – directly and through partnerships with other innovative companies – hardware, software, consumables and services to customers in graphic arts, commercial print, publishing, packaging, entertainment and commercial films, and consumer products markets. With our world-class R&D capabilities, innovative solutions portfolio and highly trusted brand, Kodak is helping customers around the globe to sustainably grow their own businesses and enjoy their lives. For additional information on Kodak, visit us at kodak.com, follow us on Twitter @KodakPrint, or like us on Facebook at Kodak.

Kodak, Sword Max, and Achieve are trademarks of Kodak.