CTP--Still Testing the Waters

Talk about fighting words.

Still, Bartram admits, what lies ahead for thermal CTP may not be utopia, but some new and exciting thermal plate products from major competitors set for distribution this year will certainly make for some real competition in the off-press thermal CTP arena.

"We'll try to stay ahead of the curve by aggressively developing our no-process and digital waterless plate technologies, while intensifying our efforts to improve our existing preheat and no-preheat products," Bartram says. "The increasing choices for thermal CTP plates and platesetting systems promise faster CTP market growth and a healthier, more sophisticated, more competitive, offset printing industry in a world of increasingly complex and diversified media choices."