It is a thin-walled sleeve with a precision ceramic coating and laser-engraved micro-pores on its surface, commonly referred to as the "heart of flexographic printing".

Cell Shape

Structure and Process

*Multi-layer composite structure: To strike a balance between lightness and stability, sleeves are typically designed with multiple layers. The inner layer is made of compressible material, facilitating installation on an inflatable mandrel; the middle layer is mostly made of glass fiber reinforced composite material or aluminum alloy; and the outer layer is a high-purity chromium oxide (Cr₂O₃) ceramic layer applied through plasma thermal spraying process.

*Laser engraving process: The surface of the ceramic layer is engraved with millions of tiny, uniformly shaped cells by a high-energy laser. The geometry of these cells (such as opening angle and depth) determines the amount of ink transferred.

Main Advantages

Compared to traditional monolithic metal anilox rollers, ceramic anilox sleeves offer significant advantages:

*Quick changeover and high efficiency

The lightweight sleeve design, coupled with pneumatic technology, enables rapid replacement on the printing press, making it particularly suitable for short-run jobs and frequent changeover production needs, significantly reducing downtime.

*Superior hardness and wear resistance, long lifespan

Ceramic coatings boast an extremely high hardness, typically exceeding HV 1200 (with some high-end products reaching HV 1500). This level of hardness endows the sleeves with exceptional wear resistance and scratch resistance, enabling them to withstand prolonged high-speed printing.

*Chemical resistance

The ceramic layer exhibits high chemical inertness, capable of resisting the erosion from inks, solvents, and various cleaning agents. Additionally, the ceramic base is typically coated with a corrosion-resistant barrier layer, preventing liquid infiltration and corrosion of the internal aluminum/steel substrate.

*High printing quality

The ceramic layer exhibits excellent uniformity, ensuring consistent depth of laser-engraved meshes, thereby achieving uniform and repeatable ink transfer, supporting fine printing with high line count (high resolution)

application scenarios

Flexographic Printing

This is its primary application, used for printing various types of packaging, such as food bags, express delivery cartons, beverage labels, and more.

Coating & Lamination

Precise application of hot melt adhesives, solvent-based glues, waxes, varnishes, etc., for use in textile lining, pharmaceutical heat-seal packaging, adhesive tapes, etc.

Special processes

Including leather matte treatment, embossing, carbon powder coating, etc