Creo VLF puts Montage & Carter Holt Harvey in the picture

As Carter Holt Harvey’s Australian “centre of prepress competence,” Montage Graphics, a wholly-owned subsidiary, took extreme care when making its move to very large format CTP.

Under the knowledgeable management of Peter Allison, the prepress centre services eight of the company’s packaging sites throughout Australia with a variety of film and plates for offset, corrugated carton and flexo printing. Being an integral part of CCH’s strategic vision, part of Montage Graphics’ purpose is to develop a wide range of imaging knowledge and processes for use throughout the group.

As a dedicated packaging house it operates a Barco front-end digital system – Allison came to Montage from Barco, Singapore 18 months ago. He says the decision to install the first Creo Quantum VLF (pictured above) system in Australia was based partly on the ease with which the Creo can link into the company’s existing Barco DFE, widely recognised as the de facto benchmark packaging prepress system. The Creo screening technology was also a decisive part in his decision.

Since early this year Montage Graphics is supplying CTP plates to the Victorian CHH plants, while continuing to deliver film to the company’s interstate locations. Already the results of the CTP plates are starting to filter back in, with unanimous approval for the stability and quality of the pates from the printers.

According to Peter Allison the challenges of remote prepress have all but been solved completely. Montage uses a system of soft proofing, in combination with digital proofs, but finds clients are becoming increasing comfortable with signing off on screen images.

As for the notion that printers require platemaking close to the press in case a plate is thrown during the midnight shift, he says this has not proved an issue.

“You don’t come across this happening,” he said. “It’s the type of objection people put up as a last attempt to halt progress. Plates need to be remade very infrequently, especially CTP plates.”

As a part of the move to gain greater quality control throughout the CHH group, Montage Graphics fingerprinted all the presses, including Man Roland 900 large format press. The project covered a wide spectrum of presses, not only the MAN Rolands in Victoria and Sydney but also Komoris in Adelaide. The end result is greater accuracy in outputting film & plate for each press, while also preparing the ground for whenever the company decides to extend its CTP process nationwide.

The Creo Quantum VLF was chosen not only for the imaging quality but because the size of its imaging surface provides greater flexibility in outputting. The thermal plates for the Man Roland 900 measure 1610 cm x 1245 cm.

“It’s important to control the variables when you are outputting to so many different types of presses with so many plates sizes and substrates,” says Peter Allison. “Since we have started CTP we have being able to push the bar with technology and quality especially in the areas of screening and lines per inch and we are very happy with the results.”

Montage Graphics works very closely with Sicpa, CHH ink provider, and the substrate manufacturers to ensure reliability in production.

Although it is part of one of the largest packaging groups in the Australia and New Zealand, Montage Graphics does not only supply CHH plants it also works with some of Victoria’s other largest printers.

“We see ourselves as a forward thinking, innovative company that is serious about what we do. Looking further down the track I see us growing and going from strength to strength, in line with our strategic goals” said Peter Allison.