Cost containment. Waste management. FIRST? A contingent of four successful FTA printer members sees it that way, and they encourage peers to “make the same connection.”
To paraphrase their message: “Everything comes down to optimization. Basic procedural changes drive progress.” The call to action is clear: “Control variables.” “Get to color quicker.” “Lower your loss.” “Lower your costs.”
Those same strategies have long served as compelling arguments for signing on to Flexographic Image Reproduction Specifications & Tolerances methodologies. Now, talking from years of experience with FIRST—the workbook itself and FTA’s associated training regimens—representatives from ABX Innovative Packaging Solutions, Berry Global, PPC Flex and Smyth Companies, comment on their choice and its impact in their plants.
Specific questions addressed:
- How does adhering to FIRST principles and practices promote cost containment for flexible package printers?
- Can you single out areas where most significant impact is felt? Why?
- How does FIRST contribute to waste management?
- Why would you encourage fellow printers to deploy FIRST in their own cost containment and waste management campaigns?
Choose Standardization
Bob Coomes, PPC Flex, Kansas City, KS, contends, “FIRST promotes an optimized, process-controlled workflow from design to prepress to print production, which encourages continuous improvement.“
He acknowledges, “Many in the industry do not understand that there are several areas which can impact the pressroom’s KPI’s (key performance indicators) prior to the operator starting the set up of the order.” Then, he immediately insists, “FIRST reinforces one clear point. The more upstream actions taken and accurately completed and communicated, the greater the throughput. The end-result: reduction in cycle time and increase in profitability.“
Jennye Scott, current chair of FTA’s board of directors, Berry Global, singles out FIRST’s influence on the business. “What we have learned and implemented has saved us so much time and money. The FIRST program is a very methodical way to ensure you can repeat your print every time. It is a proven methodology that allows you to prove to your customer that you can do what you say you can do. It could gain you more business.”
Kim Madigan, director of corporate color management, Smyth Companies, Minneapolis, MN, offers, “There is no downside to using FIRST in your production process. The specifications and tolerances are tools usable by your teams to help them set up control points. Calibrations of equipment, optimization of processes, etc. are all choices.”
Measures & Controls
“There is no doubt that FIRST has a significant impact on flexible packaging operating costs,” declares Joe Riccardella, director of print services, ABX, Macedon, NY. “Optimizing the plate package and ink system helps control critical variables in the printing process, allowing us to get to color quicker and with greater accuracy.”
“When properly optimized and following the FIRST process, printing spends less time chasing proofs. A controlled, repeatable setup makes it much easier to hit the press target with less wasted materials and press time,” explains Dave Ruckman, technical projects supervisor, creative services, Berry Global, Evansville, IN.
In actuality, Ruckman and Scott credit the entire creative services team with formulating a collective response to FLEXO’s query. It addresses benefits from the prepress and plate making perspectives, alongside print.
Speaking to prepress, they relate, “Following the optimization/fingerprint/characterization process yields an accurate proofing profile and plate compensation curves. This reduces prepress time and materials spent to match a calibrated proof to the customer’s target.” Another observation the team voices, “Consistent procedures, documentation and measuring of control elements helps to mitigate wasted time and materials during plate making.”
Madigan shares, “We set up our process controls to support our color control well before FIRST existed. However, these controls were aligned with the expectations of FIRST. You cannot look for one, single area where a significant impact was felt. My standard answer—it happens everywhere!”
She goes on to report, “Every step in the process has aims and tolerances set up.” And, with that given, she promises, “If every department does its job, you will see success on the press.”
Smyth’s experience? According to Madigan, “Adherence to FIRST methodologies immediately reduced changeovers and first pull signoffs for press approvals from hours or days to minutes. This huge change means less waste in time and materials, which goes right to the bottom line in profits.”
Coomes echoes many points the others express. “Time is money on press and having a press and its components optimized; a fingerprint and characterization completed, and accurate separations and plates with the proper printers’ marks applied, can make matching a proof at press within one or two pulls a huge cost saver.”
He continues, “Makeready and matching proof to print is probably the easiest area to see the impact. If you can track the planned versus actual data for makeready, footage, ink, etc., it can help identify additional ways of reducing costs in both setup and pre-/post-production.”
Coomes offers examples. “Prior to FIRST, we would spend hours matching a proof at press. Although we had done the needed work in fingerprinting and profiling, we’d find the operators not following the ‘recipe.’ Usually, the application of something outside the standard work (incorrect tape, anilox, etc.) was used.”
“Once we had operators begin training in FIRST, they learned the reason behind optimization, fingerprinting, etc. which empowered them to work with more efficiency and effectiveness,” Coomes explains. “As they followed our standard work, we began finding areas such as mechanical concerns in mounting or press, ink formulation issues or areas of associate training which needed attention. …FIRST addresses all those subjects. Its training and certification components do wonders for the pressroom floor.”
Quality & Consistency
At Berry, Ruckman and the creative services team acknowledge, “We’ve seen through turnover and staffing challenges that proper documentation and procedures as outlined in FIRST significantly promotes quality and consistency when onboarding new employees. Simply put, it reduces time spent developing operator competencies.”
Elaborating on the point, he states. “Utilizing the proper volume anilox rolls indicated by the optimization and maintaining them through proper cleaning practices helps control ink waste. Similarly, as we incorporate new post-consumer recycled (PCR) substrates, we’re following FIRST methodology to fingerprint on these challenging yet more sustainable materials.”
Talking to results, Ruckman says, “After becoming FIRST certified, Berry experienced a 64 percent reduction in press scrap in one facility,” then notes, “One of Berry’s printing facilities that is not yet FIRST certified has experienced a 32 percent reduction in scrap.”
Berry attributes the achievements to simply implementing basic procedural changes that were inspired by FIRST. Namely:
- Anilox inventory to properly track usage and wear
- Standardizing anilox selections to be more universal
- Switching from density measurements to a Delta E color philosophy
Ricccardella voices impressive numbers as well, particularly those relating to scrap. “By following the principles of FIRST, we have seen reduced film scrap as makereadies are much faster. … As a result, we have seen a 40 percent reduction in film scrap.”
He also cites “reduced ink costs due to standardization.” That prompts a further observation. “Ink hazardous waste generation has also been reduced through the control of ink blending and handling and reduced toning / extending.”
At PPC Flex, Coomes says, “Training and adhering to FIRST allows the team to speak the same language, have standard work and provides the path to consistent, repeatable print production. …FIRST improves quality and reduces waste in time, resources and materials which impact the bottom line. With proper fingerprinting and process control, print quality improves. Understanding concepts, such as how ink viscosity and impression impact the performance of the printed dot, which impacts print quality, or how improper anilox and ink correlation can hinder PMS color matching, can lead to wasted materials and added costs.”
“Process control in FIRST should naturally reduce waste in set up and poorly printed material in production,” Coomes advises. “Aside from reducing wasted materials, such as ink or substrate, adherence to FIRST principles also reduces energy usage by increasing throughput through efficiencies implemented.”
Promise to Peers
Back to Berry, where Ruckman says, “We would encourage fellow printers to invest in the development and press time needed to follow the steps outlined in FIRST.” Why? “Optimizing the prepress separations, plate making and printing processes—up front—can yield great savings in time and materials later.”
In rendering additional advice on behalf of the creative services team, he insists, “A printer cannot be successful alone. Develop relationships with your suppliers to utilize the optimal materials for your needs. Find the plate material, mounting tape, anilox rolls, etc. that work best for your process.”
Coomes tells fellow printers, “You may not realize how much time, resources, and materials are being wasted through old fashioned, non-value-added processes. FIRST will open your eyes to the existence of adverse conditions in your plant, while simultaneously offering guidance that permits you to troubleshoot issues and mitigate their negative impact.”
To that, Madigan adds, “FIRST unites the understanding and communication for all team members. Each team knows its aims and tolerances. They know what they are responsible for, and data collected and analyzed can be used to prove the process is under control for every job.”
Her motivational message to peers follows. “Control points in each department help with root-cause analysis. Your team can make changes faster or get support faster for the right issue. FIRST is a roadmap—your blueprint—to process control. Use it. Watch what happens. You’ll definitely like what you see.”