Clean Smarter: It’s Time to Retire the Scrub Brush

Anilox rolls play a critical role in consistent coating application. When dried coating, residue, or contamination begins to build inside the engraved cells, the roll can no longer transfer the intended coating volume evenly.

This can lead to reduced gloss levels, inconsistent coverage, streaking, and unnecessary adjustments to your press settings. What may appear to be a production issue can often be traced back to a roll that is no longer transferring coating efficiently.

Regular cleaning helps maintain coating consistency while protecting the performance and service life of each anilox roll.

The Limitations of the Scrub Brush Method

For years, many operators have relied on scrub brushes and manual cleaning to remove coating buildup. While this method may clean the surface of the roll, it can be difficult to remove residue trapped deeper inside the engraved cells. Manual scrubbing is also time-consuming and inconsistent. Results can vary depending on the brush, cleaning solution, pressure applied, and the amount of time spent cleaning each section of the roll.

Aggressive scrubbing can also create unnecessary risk to your anilox engraving. The wrong brush or excessive pressure can contribute to wear or surface damage, while incomplete cleaning allows buildup to continue affecting coating transfer.

CleanCell Pro: A Faster, Easier Cleaning Process

CleanCell Pro gives operators a simpler and more effective way to clean anilox rolls. Designed for routine use on or off press, it helps loosen and remove coating residue from the engraved cells without relying on prolonged manual scrubbing. In many applications, the cleaning process can be completed in under 15 minutes, on or off the press. This makes it easier to include anilox cleaning as part of the regular production routine without adding significant downtime.

A cleaner roll supports more consistent coating transfer, improved gloss and coverage, faster changeovers, and less operator time spent scrubbing. It also helps reduce the risk of hardened coating buildup that may eventually require a deeper cleaning or re-engraving.

Cleaning Should Be Preventative

Anilox cleaning is most effective when it becomes part of the regular weekly maintenance routine. Waiting until a roll shows visible performance problems often means buildup has already started affecting coating volume and consistency.

Cleaning the roll after production, especially when running UV, specialty, high-solids coatings, or switching between coating chemistries can help prevent residue from drying inside the engraving. This protects cell volume and makes future cleaning easier.

Consistent maintenance also gives operators a clearer understanding of how each roll should perform. When coating results begin to change, potential issues can be identified earlier instead of being masked by unnecessary production adjustments.

Schedule an Annual Professional Cleaning and Inspection

Routine cleaning with CleanCell Pro helps prevent coating buildup and protects anilox performance throughout the year. However, the surface engraving anilox rolls naturally wear down over time, which can gradually lower their effective volume and coating transfer.

An annual professional cleaning and inspection provides a clearer picture of the roll’s true condition. Our fully comprehensive evaluation includes checking cell volume before and after cleaning, inspecting the engraving, and identifying trouble spots that may not be visible during daily operation, including plugged cells, uneven wear, scoring, surface damage, or stubborn coating buildup.

Understanding the true volume and condition of each roll allows maintenance teams to plan for deeper cleaning, repairs, or re-engraving before performance begins to decline or the roll creates larger production problems.

Protect Your Coating Performance

The condition of an anilox roll directly affects the quality and consistency of every coated sheet. Replacing the old scrub brush method with CleanCell Pro makes regular cleaning faster, easier, and less dependent on manual effort. Combined with an annual professional cleaning and inspection from Harris & Bruno, CleanCell Pro helps protect anilox performance, reduce avoidable downtime, and keep coating results consistent.

Contact Harris & Bruno to learn more about CleanCell Pro or schedule a professional anilox roll cleaning and inspection.

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