If you are planning to laser engrave your gravure cylinder, how do you go about it? Well, his is one of the questions that you need to get right if you want to get the most out of the task. Otherwise, you might end up with a gravure cylinder that has not been engraved to the expected quality.

There are several preparations for the laser engraving gravure cylinder and the laser engraving machine. In this guide, we are going to look at some of the basic steps that you need to follow for a perfect laser engraving of a gravure cylinder. Check out the following:

Clean the Cylinder

One of the basic thing that you need to do is to clean the laser engraving gravure cylinder. This is one of the crucial steps you should start with. The importance of cleaning is to remove the dirt from the surface of the steel cylinder. But you don’t just clean it with anything you come across. There is a special fluid that’s used for the cleaning of these cylinders. Some people use thinner for the cleaning of these cylinders.

Prepare and Place Plates

The second thing that you need to consider is the engraving plates. If you are using rubber plates, then you need to prepare them. Check if they are in the best condition. If they are good for engraving, place them on the cylinder. You must use the tools for measuring the right place to place the plates. But if you are using a copper or Zink coated laser engraving gravure cylinder, then it should be easy to put the layer on. There is a special machine for that.

Place the Cylinder in the Machine

For the engraving work to start, you need to have the laser engraving machine ready. Powering on the machine should be taken in steps. First, you need to inspect the entire machine with your eyes for any unusual thing. You might notice a fault that can damage the machine extensively if it’s allowed to run without fixing it. Once certified, the machine is in perfect shape, power it one, and place the laser engraving gravure cylinder.

Engrave Gravure Cylinder

The next thing you need to do is to engrave the laser engraving gravure cylinder. This should be easy with the program already in the software. Set everything right and start the engraving process. Keep checking whether the expected image is being produced.