NASHVILLE, TN—Flexography has evolved so much, is capable of such high performance and implements so many technologies, it can be easy to overlook some of the simple things. With that in mind, Wednesday’s Forum 2015 itinerary kicked off with “Gauging Your Flexo Vital Signs: A Basics Reality Check.” Andy Knapp, Flint Group, and Kevin Schilling, Anderson & Vreeland oversaw things.
Beginning with a look at what a printer should be doing, Kenny Bell, Berry Plastics Corp., detailed how a printer can take its flexo pulse. Much like a human heartbeat, by not knowing your flexo pulse, risks can crop up in your operation, from machinery breakdowns to letting bad prints out the door to losing customers.
Bell offered three reasons for those unconvinced:
- Identify potential problems within a workflow
- Track and record any deviations to identify potential risks
- Create a baseline to assist in making improvements
He then went through four steps his company uses to take its pulse:
- Measure: Identify what, where and when to measure
- Analyze: Determine what tools to use
- Track: Use workflow tags to glean lots of information at a glance
- Improve: “It’s not just take your pulse, but grab that and figure out what your target heart rate is,” Bell said, quoting Dwayne Homa
Bell closed by recommending Flexographic Image Reproduction Specifications & Tolerances (FIRST) as a means to keep things in check. “In my opinion, there is not better way to monitor your flexo pulse than with a FIRST Company Certification.”
Following Bell’s presentation on best practices, BST Eltromat North America’s John Thome took the stage to deliver some not so best practices.
Starting with narrow web, Thome didn’t pull any punches, saying that one of the most common occurrences he witnesses—a press without any inspection—“makes me want to scream!” He said printers using inspection systems will always have less waste, produce more product that’s of a higher quality and have shorter setup times.
Thome followed with the most common narrow web mistakes he sees:
- An inspection system that’s used to only watch a register mark
- Operators that fail to use the auto scan function to inspect the entire repeat
- Cameras that are mounted in areas where operators can’t reach them
Calling back to the “Color Mayhem” session at Toolbox Tuesday, Thome asked a question to printers who aren’t using color management: “Are you guys and gals crazy?”
Moving on to proofing and visual inspection, Thome drew a vital distinction: “Inspection on the press is process control—you are managing your process. Inspection on the rewinder is quality control—separating the good stuff from the bad stuff.” He implored attendees to utilize 100 percent inspection, providing a list of reasons that included:
- Running waste of less than 5 percent
- Dirty air in the plant
- High cost substrates
- Jobs with tiny type
Thome shifted over to the wide web segment, where once he again he singled out an inability to properly utilize an inspection system. If a press has a 47-in. web and a 30-in. repeat, but its inspection system only covers a 4-in. by 3-in. portion, nearly the entire run isn’t being checked. “Give your operators the proper tools for the job,” he urged. And the older the press, the more important an inspection system is, since those machines are also less efficient and consistent.
Another common wide web problem, he said, is central impression (CI) presses without register presetting functions. Thome pointed out that presses without this are generating huge amounts of waste, and retrofitting a system is easy.
Offering some statistical conclusions, Thome said that roughly a third of installations have room for improvement, and 10 percent to 15 percent have major issues to correct. Printers who haven’t upgraded equipment in the last three to five years have fallen behind, he said, before saying, in a politically correct manner, that “frugal approaches yield subpar results.”
Following the pair of presentations, five FTA Hall of Fame members took the stage for a frank and honest discussion of flexography’s past, present and future titled “Consulting FTA’s Cooperstown.” The panel consisted of:
- Al Bowers, RR Donnelley, inducted in 2012
- Mark Mazur, formerly of DuPont and now retired, inducted in 2009
- Dennis McGee, MPS America, inducted in 2005
- Mark Samworth, Esko, inducted in 2011
- Howard Vreeland, Jr., Anderson & Vreeland, inducted in 2008
The discussion began with a question posed to the entire panel: What do you see as the greatest influencing factor to the flexographic industry in the next decade? Answers ran the gamut from dependency on foreign oil to a potential dearth of employees, to color and digital printing.
Over the next 40 minutes, the group spoke more about serious subjects like digital printing’s impact, predictions of where the industry goes from here and concerns over the next generation of flexographers. Some questions that promoted reflection were also thrown out, eliciting some of the loudest laughs heard all Forum. When asked, “What was your second occupation choice if flexography didn’t work out?” Mazur exclaimed, “This was my second choice!”