Making of printing plates

A method of assembling a montage, for example in making a printing plate, said method comprising the steps of:

• (1) applying a dry heat-sensiive adhesive coating which does not exhibit any tacky characteristics at ambient temperature even if pressure is applied thereto to one face surface of a carrier sheet,
• (2) positioning at least one sheet-like member on said carrier sheet face surface in a predetermined register position and in overlying relation to said adhesive coating by forming register holes in said sheet-like member and said carrier sheet and passing register pins through the register holes in said sheet-like member and said carrier sheet to provide a montage,
• (3) transferring the montage to a vacuum device,
• (4) operating the vacuum device to hold said sheet-like member flat against the carrier sheet by removing all air therebetween, and
• (5) applying localized heating to the montage while it is under vacuum at any desired locations where said sheet-like member is positioned at selected localized areas, said localized heating having a temperature sufficient to melt at such localized areas only said adhesive coating without damage to said sheet-like member or to said carrier sheet, whereby to provide a montage in which said sheet-like member is bonded by solid, dry adhesive bonds to said carrier sheet at said localized areas only and in which any area of said adhesive coating which is not covered by said sheet-like member remains dry and still exhibits said non-tacky characteristics.