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BOBST Application Management: A new hands-on consulting ser…

A brand owner at a medium sized snack company sits in her office and signs off on a new brand of peanuts. A year later, a man walks into a shop, browses the shelves for a snack, likes the look of the packaging and chooses the new brand. What the man does not know is all the hundreds of major and micro decisions and steps that have led to this point and have influenced his decision in this moment. From the initial concept creation, the target demographic and competitor research, to the flexible packaging design, the substrate selection, weighing environmental impact, protective qualities, cost and more. The prototyping and testing, the mock-ups and functionality evaluations. The printing, the coating, the laminating, the filling and sealing, palletising and the shipping. All the steps and strategic decisions made by brand owners and converters along the way, which can make or break a brand, or transform a brand from a mediocre success to a global smash hit. Wouldn’t it be good if brand owners and converters had an industry expert by their side as a strategic partner providing counsel and advice to get all those big decisions correct? That is now a reality, with BOBST Application Management. An industry expert by your side to help make the big decisions BOBST Application Management is a hands-on innovative consulting service from BOBST, which can be scaled to the specific needs of converters and brand owners. Through BOBST Application Management, customers can receive guidance on technologies, raw materials, sustainability, processes, and business cases along the entire packaging value chain. Application Management is the latest major initiative to help BOBST fulfil its vision to shape the future of the packaging world for its customers, based on the pillars of digitalization, automation, connectivity and sustainability. “With over 130 years of leadership in the packaging industry, BOBST is much more than a manufacturer of machines, we are industry experts and thought leaders and can offer significant insight and counsel to our customers,” said Xavier Bonamour, BOBST Application Manager. “We fully understand the pain points and barriers faced by our customers and, with an industry-wide view, we can provide exactly the right solutions and advice for each specific scenario.” BOBST Application Management is currently available for flexible packaging and will be available for other industry sectors in the future. It helps customers to match solutions to their specific requirements, addressing their specific pain points, while ensuring their business is future proof. How does it work in practice? A typical scenario is when a customer is facing a major decision for their business. Perhaps they are entering a new market or industry, for example moving from labels only into flexible packaging, or they are seeking to enlarge their product portfolio. BOBST will work closely with the customer to plan through potential scenarios and provide insights into the strategic directions most suited to their business in the current and future environment. Another typical example is when a customer is thinking more holistically about how to improve a certain element of their business – how to better incorporate sustainability for example. Perhaps the customer is considering polymer versus paper flexible packaging. BOBST has the insights and understanding of market needs on these topics – from the brand owner, converter and consumer perspectives – and the range of solutions available to provide accurate advice and with it, a significant competitive advantage. On the other hand, a customer may just want some general counsel and guidance on how to improve their business, ensure they are well prepared for the future, or understand how to get ahead of the competition. “At BOBST, our business has always started with listening to our customers and truly understanding their challenges so that we can help overcome them, so Application Management is a natural extension of what we do best,” said Xavier Bonamour. “Now, we provide this service in a very tailored and bespoke way, which can really elevate a brand owner’s or converter’s business to the next level.”

BOBST Application Management: A new hands-on consulting ser…

Up to 20 percent increase in overall productivity thanks to Peak Perf…

Cost pressure, the skills shortage, and sustainability – print shops worldwide need to contend with all these issues and yet remain competitive. Throughout the printing industry, the costs per printed sheet are a measure of how competitive a print shop is. Boasting numerous innovative features, the new machine generation from Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (HEIDELBERG) cuts costs, helps alleviate the skills shortage, and improves print shops’ sustainability.“The new Peak Performance Speedmaster XL 106 cuts print production costs significantly, which makes our customers in the commercial, packaging, and label printing sectors more competitive,” says Dr. Ludwin Monz, CEO of HEIDELBERG. “Compared to the previous generation, we expect users who produce packaging in the 70 x 100 cm format to achieve an increase in overall productivity of up to 20 percent.” Costs down – competitiveness up: HEIDELBERG has the solution to this in the form of more speed and automation. The new Peak Performance generation of the Speedmaster XL 106 can print up to 21,000 sheets per hour. With this new generation, autonomous printing is now also possible in packaging production, thanks to the enhanced Push to Stop concept. This means complex production parameters can now be configured completely automatically in packaging and label printing, too. “We anticipate that a high-volume packaging producer or wet-glue label manufacturer will very soon achieve a benchmark of 100 million sheets per year. This figure represents a 20 percent increase on the 85 million sheets currently being produced by today’s industry leaders,” says Markus Leichtle, Senior Manager Industrial Packaging at HEIDELBERG. Mike Günther, Managing Director of colordruck Baiersbronn GmbH and a pilot customer trialing the new Peak Performance generation, agrees: “We are expecting a significant reduction in makeready times, set-up times, and general downtime to improve the efficiency of our printing with low costs per box.” Alleviating the skills shortage with the “I like working here” concept: Print shops compete to attract the best skilled staff, so it is important to make the workplace more appealing by offering cutting-edge, intuitive user interfaces and a low-emissions working environment. With further improvements to the HEIDELBERG User Experience (UX) and a new ergonomic design, the new Peak Performance Speedmaster XL 106 is setting high standards. The new PowderStar XL (Duo) reduces powder consumption by up to 15 percent and powder emissions by up to 45 percent. What’s more, strain on personnel capacity is eased, because use of production clusters means that fewer staff can operate the same number of presses efficiently. When fully automatic Plate to Unit printing plate logistics is incorporated, it is possible to save on one assistant entirely, while also handling up to 150 printing plates per hour automatically. Sustainability – new DryStar Combination Eco energy-saving dryer: Featuring insulation in the delivery, a cross-flow heat exchanger, and an improved dryercassette design, the new DryStar Combination Eco dryer uses up to 30 percent less energy for drying. This investment is of particular interest to companies operating in markets with high energy prices. Customers paying European industrial electricity prices will find an investment in this innovative dryer will pay off within around two years. What’s more, the complete press uses less energy per 1,000 sheets when the production speed is faster – for example, when the printing speed is increased from 18,000 to 21,000 sheets per hour, energy consumption drops by around 4.5 percent. “It is precisely because of rising energy prices that we expect this new dryer technology to really help ease the pressure we’re under in terms of energy consumption,” says Stefan Leonhardt, Managing Director of WEIG Packaging in Emskirchen, who is also a pilot customer trialing the new generation. “The new press also automates key processes in folding carton production. For us, this means greater efficiency, shorter makeready times, and increased uptime.” Digitalization – fully automatic job processing and avoiding waste: With its Prinect workflow system, HEIDELBERG takes automation up to a whole new level in terms of productivity by offering a solution for increased digitalization. For example, Prinect supplies additional data to many assistance systems, which increasingly work with artificial intelligence. Many new and enhanced digitalization functions, such as Intellistart 3 – which alone results in some 70 percent fewer operations at the Press Center – or the improved Color Assistant Pro assistance system for fully automatic ink presetting without operating errors, dramatically reduce the number of manual interventions required. These functions save up to four minutes of makeready time and between 100 and 150 sheets of paper waste per job. When combined with the Prinect Inpress Control inline color measurement system and the automated delivery logistics, the inline ejection of waste sheets means that a waste-free stack is delivered for postpress operations, thus increasing the efficiency of the entire process. HEIDELBERG will be showcasing further highlights of the new Speedmaster XL 106 Peak Performance generation at drupa 2024, which is opening in Düsseldorf on May 28.

How to implement automation in printing operations

It is becoming necessary in printing operations to automate as much as possible to gain efficiencies. But before you begin your planning processes, look at your current state to ensure that you understand how works happen today. Kodak, a global technology company focused on print and advanced materials and chemicals, explains the vital role of automation in printing operations and how to do it properly. Read on. Single system of record that reliably gathers data from business and production systems If you have that system of record, you are in the perfect state to take on end-to-end automation. If you have multiple points of data collection that have never been integrated, there is still a path to automation. Still, your planning may take longer to accommodate identifying the required data and the processes that use them. Standard processes for order taking, job specification, and order management When there are standard processes, planning for automation can leverage them to speed implementation. When the procedures to take orders are different for every sales channel, it is hard to standardize order intake. When the process of capturing job specifications varies by sales team member and orders are managed without a strategic view into machine usage and job deadlines, some work will be required before automating and making those processes more efficient. How many spreadsheets are used to track jobs, components, or processes? Every business has some ad hoc processes tracked on spreadsheets, whiteboards, and notepads to keep mission-critical items front of mind. There is nothing wrong with them, but when they become the sole source of truth about a job or a process, they add risk to production. Some organisations justify using spreadsheets by putting them onto shared-access servers so that all authorized constituents can easily access them. It sounds like a great idea, but over time you may find that copies are sitting on individual desktops, and the shared copy is no longer the reliable source of information. Knowing what you have as you plan for automation will help you size the effort. Moving to that automated environment creates a single system of record that is reliable and can be integrated into adjacent business and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. Planning for automation You could find some processes that appear easy to automate, add some new tools, and call that your automation plan, but there is a better path. It starts with knowing what is possible. New options in cloud-based workflows bring the same powerful options to smaller shops as the largest shops enjoy. With minimal investments and immediate implementation, shops with a single digital press can build an efficient workflow that will scale using the same technology as a mid-size shop with a mix of offset and digital devices. And these modern cloud-based production workflow solutions can help in any segment, whether the work you produce is graphically-rich static content or uses data-driven processes to execute variable content targeted to a specific recipient. Today’s automated production workflows are built to integrate MIS and ERP tools, Web-to-Print solutions, and e-commerce options. This approach should be high on your list as you consider automation options because it brings a robust IT infrastructure to the table. Automating individual processes glued together with manual interventions isn’t the accomplishment that brings the most benefit. Considering automation requires a dive into every action involved, from the point of estimation and sale to the final delivery to the customer. Planning is the active event designed to identify the touchpoints and the best approach to reviewing each step, the people involved, and the current tools used. Start by articulating your strategic goals for 2022. You may be looking to expand into a new industry or print segments. Your current workload may require more capacity. You may want to acquire more capabilities, either through buying more equipment, optimising workflows, or buying a company. As you consider your strategic plan, itemize the candidate processes for automation to move you toward those goals. Don’t be surprised if you identify current manual processes as critical roadblocks. Strategic goals are long-term and inform the way the business runs. There will be some work to do to build the bridge from strategy to implementation, and that is where tactical planning becomes essential. Tactical goals are more than solving today’s bottleneck. They work within the strategy to consider implementing new software and processes while keeping production moving. Think of it as changing the tires on a car while it’s in motion. There will be practical concerns as current processes are replaced by automation, including how and when to move off tools that are no longer providing value. Tactics should support the strategic goals and solve the business' specific challenges without adding more hurdles to creating an automated environment. Build the strategic plan for automation to consider the practical implication of automating the current processes, including goals for gaining buy-in from the team members in each department, who may be asked to change how they do their jobs or change positions to accommodate the planned process modifications. Look for onramps to the fully automated business environment for every element in the tactical plan that enables lower cost and higher margins. A part of tactical planning includes your approach to daily operations. To create an efficient environment in 2022, consider a standalone Operational Plan to document the expectations for each department, interface points between departments, and the key performance metrics that will help everyone stay on the strategic course. Automation does not eliminate the need to understand the production touchpoints. The best practice is to document what should happen if you lose access to the automation, too. The last step in planning for automation is to build the appropriate contingency plans. Cloud-based automated workflows protect you from onsite server disruptions and mitigate much of the risk associated with onsite installations when paired with a disciplined backup strategy. What to do next If you plan to automate your print workflow in 2022, look for scalable and easy platforms to integrate with your core business systems. Ensure that your chosen technology partner lets you automate each task within prepress and production and then map those automated tasks together to ensure that each type of job takes the correct journey through each process. Learn your options, and then create a plan that works for you.

admin in News July 22, 2022

Estimable estimators

If they were lucky, the human estimators had an adding machine or desktop calculator to help with the figures. A busy medium-sized printer might have 10 or more full time estimators. Finding and keeping that many specialised estimators could be tricky, as the work was exacting but hardly exciting. Computers were an obvious solution, but the knowledge of how to program for such specialised calculations wasn’t. One of the first UK companies to crack it was what was to become Imprint Business Systems, which is still going strong after 42 years. Today its customers in print and packaging run into the hundreds and many of them have used Imprint systems for at least 25 years. Like most of the early MIS developers, Imprint grew out of the needs of a particular print company, which then used the experience gained to sell to a wider circle or printing and packaging companies. The late 1970s and early 1980s saw a lot of computer estimating start-ups, often with printing company roots. Some of Imprint’s original UK competitors from 40-odd years ago have also survived and prospered independently, such as Optimus (originally Optichrome Computer Systems Ltd, or OCSL), DDS (Accura) and Tharstern, while others were taken over by the ever-expanding EFI empire (such as Prism, Radius, Shuttleworth and Technique). A few others have either merged, or closed, or both. Imprint itself was founded in 1978 by Glennys Bourne and Jonathan Richards. Originally the pair had worked together at the art book printer Shenval Press in Harlow. Richards was general manager, later a director of Shenval, but had learned programming skills at college. Bourne went on to run the nearby Caterpillar Press. Bourne says that the reason for writing the original computer estimating program was a shortage of the trained human variety. “You could not get estimators for love nor money,” she says. So the first estimating program was written to suit the needs of Shenval Press and Caterpillar Press. Bourne saw the potential for Imprint beyond the needs of Shenval and Caterpillar, so the latter was sold to concentrate on the new business. “The Imprint name describes the company well and has stood us well over the years,” says Richards. “As for why the name was chosen, it just seemed a good fit at the time.” Both are still very much involved today. Bourne is CEO, while Jonathan Richards says he’s “allowed to be chairman on high days and holidays”. However, time marches on and their children Will Richards and Nick Bourne have also joined Imprint – the latter now being MD. Today Imprint is based in High Easter, in the countryside between Chelmsford and Bishop’s Stortford, handily close to the M11 and Stansted airport. It employs 16 people in an often overlapping mix of management, programming and customer services roles.

admin in News July 22, 2022

Agfa Avinci CX3200

Avinci CX3200 is 3.2 m wide dye sub textile printer capable of printing on polyester-based textiles What is it? Agfa’s Avinci CX3200 is a highly reliable and convenient soft signage printer that can print directly to fabrics and onto transfer paper. It uses an off-line calendar unit to ensure perfect fixation. Agfa’s dedicated dye sublimation roll-to-roll printer will enable you to create vibrant, high-quality prints on polyester-based fabrics up to 3.2 m wide, including a broad range of in- and outdoor soft signage applications, as well as interior decoration. The Avinci CX3200 boasts a rich color gamut and delivers deep black, perfect solids, accurate spot color mapping and smooth tonal rendering that is particularly noticeable in skin tones. The Avinci inks are characterised by their flexibility, image longevity and outdoor resistance. They offer stable jetting performance and deliver the same high-quality results, batch after batch. An off-line calender unit fixes the color deeply into the structure of the polyester-based fabrics while evaporating the carrier fluid. When was it launched at what are the target markets? It was launched on June 22, 2021, and aimed at soft signage industry, sports wear, fashion industry and home décor. Avinic CX3200 is a 3.2 m wide Dye Sub Textile printer capable of printing on polyester based textiles. Does it replace an earlier product? It replaces the earlier model of DX3200. The Avinci CX3200 is driven by Agfa’s Asanti wide-format workflow software. Color accuracy is provided by the easy-to-use color management. Using their Calibrated Print Mode feature, new media can be calibrated and profiled in less than 15 minutes, after which the new profiles can be used to guarantee print quality. Asanti controls and automates the entire printing process from file intake to finishing, maximising productivity. Its comprehensive integration of file handling, color management and preflighting guarantees smooth and error-free jobs. The web-based Asanti Production Dashboard offers a view on your running production. It summarizes the jobs produced and reports on quantity printed, media usage, ink volumes enabling you to control your production and to manage your print shop optimally. What is the USP? It allows you to print directly on textiles and capable of print on transfer paper media as well. Single person media loading and low inks consumptions are another features. High productivity and a robust design for reliable printing at all times, vibrant prints and a wide color gamut; fine detail rendering; extensive applications scope; low ink consumption; convenient operations and a fast changeover between jobs are another features. Avinci produces good results with a minimum of jetted ink. This low ink consumption is based on Agfa’s renowned Thin Ink Layer technology: a smart combination of particular ink characteristics and our Asanti workflow software algorithms that tune the ink quantities perfectly to the required image quality mode. What training and support are available? Full in house training and support available from Agfa UAE and Belgium. Complete and integrated solution are available for printer, inks, workflow software, worldwide service and applications support. How productive is it? It prints at speed of 250 Sqm per hr on express mode. Being able to print directly to fabric is easy and ideal for fast handling and for special applications such as flags, where print-though is needed. Transfer paper allows for super sharp prints, eliminates any set-off, and limits media waste to a minimum. In addition, it extends the application scope to sportswear and fashion garments, as well as home décor prints on non-coated polyester fabrics. What does it cost? How is it sold? The recommended retail price (RRP) is approximately $220k stand alone printer and requires a separate calendaring unit. How many are in use? Currently, the latest CX3200 are around 11 units around the world. Specifications 3.2m Dye sublimation Printer Kyocera print heads 4 colour printer CYMK Direct to garment capable to print on transfer paper Max speed of 250 sqm Stand alone printer Resolution up to 600 x 1800 dpi Media types: Polyester-based fabrics, or transfer paper used to create banners, indoor wall graphics, shop decoration, outdoor advertising, light boxes, trade show displays, flags and high polyester-based blends “Agfa Avinci CX3200 was launched in June 2021.”

Aug. 2, 2022

Epson – SureColor SC V7000 Flatbed Printer

Epson's first UV large format printer offers exceptional image quality, Shihab Zubair What is it? The SureColor SC-V7000 is Epson's first UV large format printer, offering exceptional image quality. The V7000 is ideal for printing eye-catching retail and outdoor signage, window displays, hoarding panels, packaging, promotional goods, and décor products. It includes Epson’s Micro Piezo printhead with ten newly developed original inks, for accurate colour reproduction for spot and corporate colours. It allows businesses the flexibility to print on a range of media up to 80mm thick including acrylics, polycarbonates, PVC, glass, aluminium, metal, polyester, foam board, styrene, wood and stone. The printhead layout enables simultaneous high-speed printing and, with the 4-zone vacuum system, it offers real flexibility for production environments. When was it launched at what are the target markets? The Epson SureColor SC-V7000 was launched in April 2021 within the Middle East region, building on the success of Epson’s award-winning range of SureColor S Series signage printers. The V7000 allows sign and display makers to expand their portfolio of products, to deliver high quality, fast and reliable results on a variety of different media. Does it replace an earlier product? The SureColor SC-V7000 proudly marks Epson’s entry into the UV flatbed signage print market. As Epson’s first UV large format printer, it provides unique features to differentiate and enhance our offering to the signage market. Every feature of the Epson SureColor SC-V7000 has been designed with the customer in mind. This is a robust and affordable UV LED flatbed signage printer capable of fast and quality printing on a wide range of media – any type of surface, despite the size, thickness, or weight. This is in addition to Epson’s successful product solutions such as the Epson SureColor SC Series of eco-solvent and resin ink printers. For instance, for environmentally friendly organisations, Epson’s SureColor SC-R5010 Series has the capacity to include a resin ink solution, offering print service providers and creative design agencies the ability to produce a wide range of signage in a more sustainable way, without compromising on the results. For a larger ink capacity, Epson offers the SureColor SC-R5010L. What is the USP? The Epson SureColor SC-V7000 provides exceptional image quality, productivity, usability, and safety. With the unique Epson Micro Piezo printhead, the printer has ten newly developed original inks and 3-layer high-speed printing. It helps print with ease and safety with automatic measurement of media thickness, a multi-zone vacuum, and a printhead crash prevent function, Epson Edge Print, proximity sensors. What training and support is available? Epson manufactures all the components for the SureColor SC-V7000, including printheads, inks and software, in order to reach the consistent quality levels that our customers expect. The Epson Cloud Solution PORT is a cloud-based system from where you will be able to monitor equipment across several sites, or several printers across one site, from the production floor or remotely, and assist the control of production. This enables efficient production planning, increased uptime and enhanced support. Epson Production Monitor is part of the Epson Cloud Solution PORT suite of apps and allows you to examine the production status in real-time. If an issue occurs, it can be corrected efficiently with minimal disruption to the print run. How productive is it? The SureColor SC-V7000 enables businesses to print at high speed with a maximum print area of 2.5 metres by 1.25 metres. The printhead layout enables simultaneous high-speed printing, with white ink and varnish, without losing productivity. What does it cost? How is it sold? The recommended retail price (RRP) is around AED 330,563 (US $90,000) and it is sold through authorised partners in the Middle East. How many are in use? Currently two printers have been installed in the UAE, and we are scheduled to install a few more in December and further into 2022. Specifications UltraChrome UV 10-colour inkset Printing resolution of 720 x 1,440 DPI Outstanding print quality High-speed simultaneous printing even when using white, colour and varnish Printheads, ink, firmware and software with an ink tank capacity of 1,000 ml Price from AED 330,563 “Epson SureColor SC-V7000 was launched in April 2021.”

Aug. 2, 2022

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