RICHMOND, Canada—Flexstar Packaging has installed the first MIRAFLEX S flexographic press from Windmoeller & Hoelscher (W&H) in North America.
The MIRAFLEX S has been in full operation since November 2015. Flexstar’s president, Marc Bray, said, “We have wide web presses at Flexstar. The MIRAFLEX S is a narrow to mid web press that complements the machinery we have and is able to reliably tackle any kind of job we need to run, regardless of size or if the job is a PET, OPP or thin gauge PE application.”
Bray added that the company is benefitting from the Flexo ControI Insetter feature, which has increased the productivity on matte finish applications.
W&H designed the MIRAFLEX S to facilitate quick job changes for narrow to mid web jobs. The trusted TURBOCLEAN washup system cleans all decks within three and a half minutes, so changeovers take just minutes. Another benefit of the press is the reduction of waste, with as little as 75 feet of substrate from unwind to rewind. Repeats range from 10-in. to 31.5-in.
The MIRAFLEX S was part of a larger expansion undertaken by Flexstar. The company recently added 32,000 sq. ft. for increased warehousing and specialty converting applications. The new building will also house an innovation center. Other equipment acquired by Flexstar includes a third combi laminator, a third pouch machine and a wide web laser scoring unit.
As a part of Flexstar’s commitment to longterm social responsibility, the company is working on a regenerative thermal oxidizer to eliminate VOC emissions. A heat exchanger will capture energy for plant heating and specialty lamination applications requiring hot room curing. The project is scheduled for completion in fall 2016, making Flexstar the first flexible packaging converter in Western Canada with this technology.