CTP--Still Testing the Waters
Visible-light technology only allows exposure of plates. It is also a mature technology and only minimal improvements can be anticipated. Thermal is the key to the future—the future being the processless plate.
Presstek on On-press Thermal Imaging
Efrem Lieber, director of sales and marketing at Presstek, forecasts great competition and quality advancements for the on-press thermal imaging market.
"On-press CTP, with more than 4,000 thermal imagers in place, is the No. 1 CTP implementation in the world. And why not? Today, owners of Heidelberg Quickmaster DI, GTO-DI and Adast 705C DI presses are getting litho quality output at low costs per page, in real time. And all of those implementations use Presstek thermal ablation waterless plates and ablation imaging.
"The best is yet to come. In 1999, the Scitex-KBA 74 Karat and Heidelberg Speedmaster 74 DI presses—along with the Adast 705C DI—will add four-page formats to the advantages of on-press thermal imaging with Presstek technology. And in 2000 and beyond, other press manufacturers will add DI presses to their repertoire to provide high-value, high-return, high-tech thermal CTP products to their customers."
