Resources
Care Card
A care card for South African flexo teams, with routine checks for print units, drying, web handling, and operator housekeeping.
How Care Card helps on a busy press week
The Care Card gives press crews a simple reference for routine machine checks. It covers print units, drying, web handling, and operator housekeeping that support steadier packaging output on the floor. Keep it where the team can use it during normal running and shutdown checks.
Use the Care Card against the job in hand, not as a generic tick sheet. Check substrate type, repeat length, print width, ink system, dryer load, and the site power pattern before the shift starts. Teams running film, paper, or board in Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town will not all stop at the same points on the card.
Keep one printed copy at the press and another with the job file. Mark the first findings from startup, wash-up, and shutdown so the next crew sees what changed on that machine. A dated note beside an anilox, doctor blade, or web guide check can prevent wasted material on the next run.
Press-side checks that matter
The Care Card covers routine machine attention during normal production, not only when faults show up. It groups checks around print units, drying, web handling, and operator housekeeping so crews can work through the press in a sensible order. That makes handover notes clearer when a job moves between shifts.
- Print unit condition noted by station
- Dryer and web path checks recorded
- Space for crew observations and actions
Checks shaped for local pressrooms
South African packaging sites often juggle changing power conditions, mixed-age presses, and varied substrate supply. A useful Care Card must leave room for extra dryer attention after interruptions, plus repeat checks when humidity or dust starts affecting web travel. Short, plain entries work better than long notes during a busy production day.
Coastal plants may need closer watch on corrosion points, solvent handling, and drying consistency. Inland sites often see dust build-up around sensors, idlers, and web guides, especially near doors and loading areas. Those conditions belong on the routine card because they change how often crews clean and inspect the line.
Operated by Astros Marketing (Pty) Ltd from 2 Makro Place, Sunnyrock 1401.
Information to send with it
Send the Care Card with press photos, job timing, substrate details, and a clear note on what has already been tried. Use a straightforward subject line.
A filled-in Care Card is stronger when it travels with the right production detail. Include press model, substrate description, print fault location, photos from the affected stations, and the timing of when the issue starts in the run. If anything was adjusted on impression, tension, temperature, or air settings, write that down as well.