Ghent, Belgium – Esko is delighted to announce its innovative CDI Crystal 5080 XPS flexo platemaking solution has received a Red Dot Award: Product Design 2017. The CDI Crystal 5080 XPS was entered into the competition by Esko’s German design agency designship. Submissions were received from 54 countries, and all entered products were assessed individually by an independent international jury of more than 40 specialized design experts from various subject areas. They assessed the entries for three days both live and on-site, determining that Esko’s design was one of the best in the industry.
Catching the judges’ attention were the modern design, outstanding ergonomics, ease of use and innovation incorporated in the CDI Crystal 5080 XPS, especially with regard to addressing customer requirements in today’s demanding flexo industry.
designship’s Managing Director Thomas Starczewski says, “We were delighted to win the Red Dot Award with this design for Esko. It’s a major achievement that only was possible thanks to the great and in depth partnership we had with Esko’s development team on the Crystal project. We are pleased to share with Esko the honor we receive from well-respected design experts and to join the esteemed community of previous winners, including HP, Polycom, La Cimbali, Bosch and others.”
Thomas Klein, Esko’s Vice President Hardware explains, “Esko has pioneered digital flexo plate making for more than two decades, and the industry recognizes us as the clear market leader for delivering flexo plates with highest quality and consistency. We have had a few product redesigns in the past. And now, based on past experience, market trends and a deep understanding of customer needs, we developed this innovative flexo plate making concept that simplifies the entire digital flexo platemaking process. We focus on improving the ease of use and ergonomics for the operator, which is handled through the hardware design as well as through the operator software interface. Designship helped us by translating this concept into the brilliant design for the CDI Crystal 5080 XPS.”
He continues, “This solution rethinks flexo platemaking altogether. The previously rather complex and manual process often involves up to six different processing steps and runs the risk of damaging the plate or use wrong parameters when moving from one step to the next. With the integration of multiple steps and automation of the platemaking process, quality, consistency and ease of use was significantly improved. This enables our customers to more efficiently manage the flexo platemaking workflow and results in higher quality printed output.”
With its origins dating back to 1955, the Red Dot Award is organised by Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen and is one of the most respected design competitions in the world. Through this competition, the organisation appraises the best products of the year based on submissions from manufacturers around the world. Innovation, formal quality, functionality and ecological compatibility are just some of the criteria on which the decision is based. The international Red Dot jury bestows the quality seal only on products which set themselves apart with their good design from comparable objects on the market. The Red Dot is now a revered international seal of outstanding design quality.
The award will be presented at the Red Dot Gala on July 3 at the Aalto-Theater in Essen. As part of the award, Esko’s CDI Crystal 5080 XPS will be displayed in the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen for a year.