Agfa is preparing to launch what it deems to be its response to the increasing plate demands in the Asia Pacific and Chinese markets with the grand opening of its new plate manufacturing plant in China.

The new manufacturing facility is located in Wuxi, China, and will commence its operation on October 30 2003. At the invitation of Agfa’s Oceania group, ten major Australian and New Zealand customers will join over 200 customers worldwide for the opening.

The Wuxi plant will produce Agfa’s portfolio of digital and analogue plates to meet Asia-Pacific’s increasing demands for quality printing technology and improved efficiency and productivity. The Wuxi plant is the most recent addition to Agfa’s list of worldwide plate manufacturing sites, which are located in Wiesbaden, Germany; Branchburg, New Jersey (USA); Leeds, UK; Pont-a-Marq, France; Suzano, Brazil; and Banwol, Korea.

The new plant will produce plates to Agfa’s highest quality standards, using the latest technology for plate production. According to Agfa, area printers will be able to receive deliveries much more quickly than in the past, improving the competitiveness of Asia-Pacific printers in the global market.
Plant Manager, Thorsten Lifka, former Plant Manager of Agfa’s Suzano manufacturing plant in Sao Paulo, Brazil, will oversee operations of more than 100 local employees who have been fully trained according to Agfa’s quality standards. Agfa experts will remain on site at Wuxi through the end of 2003.

The full capacity of the plant is 25million sqm a year. The plant will produce the positive analogue plate :Meridian P51 and negative analogue plate :Zenith N555 for the Asia-Pacific (ASPAC) markets. The plant will also produce the :Thermostar P970 digital plate and, starting Q3 2004, it will produce :N91 digital photopolymer plates.