When is comes to different brands of imagesetting film you will see all kinds of names on the private label on the outside of the box, “Comet”, “Dual Spectrum”, “Flex”, “Meteor”, “Monarch”, Premium, and many more. The bottom line, there are only two major manufacturers of film, Agfa and Fuji. There are a couple of Chinese companies manufacturing film but the quality is so inconsistent that most imagesetting film users stay away from it. So when you’re looking at different film suppliers you are either buying Fuji or Agfa regardless of what is says on the private label. Both Agfa and Fuji make excellent film so when looking for a film supplier you should be looking at two things, delivery and cost. Here at DEI Systems our film is some of the most competitively priced film in the industry and in most cases we can ship it to you the same day.
Is Imagesetting Film Going Away?
We are often asked by our customers still using imagesetters “Is imagesetting film going away any time soon? In short NO. Although we have seen LED imagesetting film disappear there is still approximately 1 billion sq.ft. of HN/RLD/VLD imagesetting film and IR Imagesetting film used worldwide each year, with the majority being the HN/RLD/VLD. With only 2 major film manufacturers in the world that would be an awful lot of business for those manufacturers to walk away from. Needless to say there will be ample amounts of imagesetting film available for years to come, especially the HN/RLD/VLD film. So if you are using an imagesetter with either a Helium Neon or Visible Red Laser have no worries you’ll be able to get film.
Film Prices Going Up Again – DEI Absorbing the Increase … Again
Sometime between December 3, 2012 & December 15, 2012 most film suppliers will be raising their imagesetting film prices again. The increase could be as much as 5%, possibly more. We at DEI Systems understand that at this particular time, with the economy like it is, most printers can’t afford even a small price increase on imagesetting film.
Therefore, DEI Systems has decided NOT to pass this increase on to our customers. It is our hope that this will be the last increase we see for awhile, as we most likely won’t be able to absorb another increase.
We are doing it to keep the industry competitive. We know many of you are having to bite the bullet, we will do all we can to help!
Section 179 – Significant Tax Savings For You!
Have you been considering the purchase of a new or refurbished computer to plate system, imagesetter or other equipment?
If so, you may want to purchase before the end of the year. By purchasing equipment in the 2012 calendar year you will be able to take advantage of Section 179 of the Federal Tax Code. Section 179 states that any business in 2012 that has less than $500,000 in taxable income can write off 100% of their new or used equipment purchase with Commercial Finance Agreements.
What this means for you. It gives you the ability to finance the platesetter, imagesetter or other equipment that you need and realize significant tax saving by buying before the end of 2012.
Thermal or Violet Plate – Which is Better? Part 3
Obviously there are pros and cons with both technologies. Thermal offers the user super high quality output, very long run lengths, and a wide variety of plate choices including processless, all with minimal environmental concerns. The downside of thermal is the higher acquisition cost, higher maintenance cost, and less speed compared to similarly priced violet systems.
So the question becomes, is the lower cost of violet technology worth it, given the quality, environmental, and plate choices you will have to make? Can the higher purchase price and maintenance cost of a thermal platesetter be justified? It is up to each buyer to decide which technology is the right choice for their location.
Thermal or Violet Plate – Which is Better? Part 2
What about run length: Thermal plates offer longer run lengths, but to achieve this, they must be baked. Unbaked run lengths can be anywhere from 100,000-350,000, but when baked, thermal plates can exceed 1 million impressions. Processless thermal plates can give run lengths of 100,000 impressions. Violet plate run length varies among manufacturers, from 100,000 to 250,000. Violet plates can also be baked to yield even longer run lengths .
What about plate cost. The most expensive plates are processless thermal plates. We are finding that cost per square foot on plates that require chemistry are about the same with both technologies. You will however find that your chemistry cost may be a little more with violet.
Thermal or Violet Plate – Which is Better? Part 1
Thermal and Violet are the two primary technologies used in computer-to-plate systems. So which is better.
We will give you the pros and cons of each technology to help you decide which is better.
The first concern we all have is quality, although thermal is capable of producing super high quality unless you need line screens well above 200 lpi the quality that violet is capable of producing will be more than expectable.
In this economy we are all very concerned with cost, in most instances violet systems are less expensive.
Need a Spinner Motor for Your Platesetter or Imagesetter? We Have a Solution!
If you’ve ever had to replace a spinner motor in a platesetter or imagesetter you know how expensive it can be. New spinner motors are anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000 or more. Are there cheaper alternatives to replacing a bad spinner motor other than having to buy a new, there actually is. If you have a bad spinner motor in an older imagesetter you may actually be able to find another imagesetter like the one you have for less money than a replacement spinner motor. [Read more…]
Looking for a Less Expensive Way to Buy Prepress Equipment?
This article should help if you are looking to upgrade your prepress equipment but you don’t want to purchase brand new equipment. [Read more…]
Glunz and Jensen Special Edition – We Have a Few In Stock
If you have been considering a Glunz & Jensen iCTP Platewriter 2000 I have good news for you. We have a limited supply of the brand new Glunz & Jensen iCTP Platewriter 2450SE chemfree platesetters, the SE stands for Special Edition. [Read more…]
