Brad Palmer

Why put imaging systems on every press unit, when a complete set of plates can be made in a single offline CTP system? We asked the experts. by MARK SMITH TAKING STEPS out of a process can increase productivity, reduce variability and lower production costs. That all sounds great, but these gains naturally must be weighed against the investment required to achieve them. Doing such a cost-benefit analysis for the on-press imaging concept might at first seem to be a rather straightforward calculation. The potential variables in the equation quickly prove otherwise, however. Issues such as integration with existing plant capabilities, markets served and

What's the future of offset technology? Find out where direct imaging is taking it—and how presses may eventually shed plates altogether. Look at the trends: Shorter runs. Faster turnaround demands. Digital job data. Cut-throat competition. Many printers won't survive. Those that do will have to use new technology to heed these trends. That's where on-press imaging comes in. It offers everything today's business climate demands: Short-run efficiency, lower costs, faster makereadies and fewer steps. True, direct imaging (DI) is nothing new; Heidelberg introduced its GTO-DI in 1991. But DI quality has improved since then. New imaging systems from Presstek and CreoScitex have paved