More Than a Plate Mounting Tape: When Application Expertise Makes the Difference

“Customers aren’t looking for another plate mounting tape supplier — they’re looking for someone who helps them print better.” 
This sentence captures the reality of modern flexographic printing. Today, an plate mounting foam tape is far more than a consumable. It forms the foundation for print quality, press speed, and ultimately the profitability of the entire process. Yet even the most innovative technology can only reach its full potential when it is applied with the right expertise. 

This application expertise is at the center of a generational transition at Lohmann USA. After many years as an Application Engineer, Stan Riches is gradually handing over his responsibilities to Brad Windsor. For Lohmann, this is much more than a personnel change. It is about preserving decades of knowledge and ensuring that customers can continue to rely on the same technical competence and quality of support. 

A Holistic View of the Process, Not Just Product Sales 

At Lohmann, one principle has long guided our work: application expertise is one of our most important products. Our role is not simply to sell a plate mounting tape, but to help our customers continuously improve their processes. 
“At Lohmann, one principle has long guided our work: application expertise is one of our most important products.” 
Anyone who wants to remain profitable in the modern packaging industry cannot think in terms of isolated products. Printers face increasing demands — driven by shorter print runs, more frequent job changes, and increasingly complex print images. That is why our Application Engineers look at the entire printing process, not just the point where the tape is used. 

“The real value emerges where advanced products meet decades of application expertise.”

Together with our customers, we analyze the complete value chain, identify potential weak points, and develop solutions that help reduce unplanned downtime and increase efficiency. 
The depth of this understanding becomes clear in the interaction between individual process steps. Reproducible print quality does not depend on the right tape alone. Factors such as mounting quality, the condition of the sleeves, the geometry of the anilox rollers, and the properties of the inks being used are just as important. Only by understanding these relationships can potential sources of error be identified early and production processes improved over the long term. 

Experience Cannot Simply Be Documented 

This deep application knowledge cannot simply be documented or captured in technical data sheets. The most valuable part of this expertise is developed over many years of direct exchange with customers and day-to-day work on their production processes. It is about recognizing patterns, understanding relationships, and using experience to find the solution that creates the greatest value under each customer’s specific conditions. 
“This deep application knowledge cannot simply be stored in manuals or technical data sheets.” 
That is why structured knowledge transfer means far more to Lohmann than an internal personnel measure. Through the transition from Stan Riches to Brad Windsor, we are helping ensure that knowledge built over decades remains available to our customers without interruption. 

“Customers aren’t looking for another plate mounting tape supplier — they’re looking for someone who helps them print better.”

Brad brings ideal qualifications for this role. He has more than 30 years of experience as a plate mounter, press operator, production manager, and Application Engineer, and he knows the challenges of modern printing operations from hands-on experience. Through his close exchange with Stan, this practical background is now combined with decades of application knowledge — a combination that directly benefits our customers. 

Knowledge Transfer Creates Customer Value 

“When we pass knowledge from one generation to the next, we do not do it for its own sake. Our goal is to reduce production risk for our customers and strengthen their long-term competitiveness,” explains Stan Riches. “Many decisions that affect print quality, efficiency, and profitability cannot be derived from technical specifications alone. They are based on experience and a deep understanding of the entire process.” 

“Only the combination of advanced products and sound consulting turns adhesive technology into a true value-adding system solution.” 

That is why we see ourselves as a technical partner, not simply as a supplier. We do not just recommend a product. We work with our customers to develop the solution that delivers the greatest benefit under their specific production conditions. 

Value That Lasts 

Technologies continue to evolve, presses become faster, and processes become more complex. What remains unchanged is the value of experience. The transition from Stan Riches to Brad Windsor therefore represents far more than a personnel change. It shows how Lohmann preserves knowledge, develops it further, and passes it on to the next generation. 
“The real value for our customers does not come from a high-performance adhesive tape alone. It comes from the point where innovative products meet decades of application expertise — creating solutions that measurably improve production processes,” explains Brad Windsor. 
That is where the difference lies: the plate mounting tape alone does not create value. The value comes from knowing how to use it to improve our customers’ processes over the long term. That makes Lohmann more than an adhesive tape supplier. It makes us a partner who translates application expertise into measurable customer value.