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Tortoise or Hare Production?
Wednesday, 18 November 2009 19:26 | 
Written by Admin | 
I know many Production Directors that venomously disagree with this phrase however Tortoise & Hare still holds true.
It’s a fact the majority of lost production comes from downtime not slow running.
Yes increasing press speed by 10% will reduce the runtime by 10% however it does NOT reduce the make ready by 10% so downtime is still a constant. The shorter the runs the more make readies actually increasing the lost running time on everything other than ZMR machines.
Reducing all downtime is critical if you want to increase the overall pressrooms performance.
As a pressman there are many tasks that need to be completed form to form these need to be reduced to a minimum or automated if possible.
All efforts need to be directed towards getting the press running again.
If make readies take 10mins & running time is 10mins the press will be stopped 50% of the time Increasing run speed 10% could save 1min / form = 40mins more run time / 24hrs if the additional speed does not impact press performance or waste which it normally does (Longer Makereadies, web breaks, paper jams etc.)
However reducing the make ready by 1 min will have no impact on already established press performance or crew comfort levels therefore translating into guaranteed additional throughput.
This is obviously a picture perfect day, in the real world very few machines run trouble free 24/7 so identifying & eliminating non scheduled downtime is imperative.
As a pressman you need to understand the importance of having the machine running. Organize your crew to minimize make ready, size change, & web break times.
As a manager schedule the workflow to minimize changeovers & reduce or eliminate on press paperwork. Ensure job bags, paper & plates are available in a timely manner.
Waiting for paper or plates on the press report is a direct reflection of your company’s professionalism.
Last Updated (Wednesday, 18 November 2009 20:21)
Print 2009Tuesday, 15 September 2009 20:25 | Written by Admin |
So what about the show? As expected the digital presence grew & the offset presence shrank, smoke & mirrors are working as well as ever with 200 - 300 page per minute digital solutions being marketed as competition to offset - This would be laughable if people weren’t buying it. However higher speed digitals were on display, these appear however to be 12 - 24 months out for anyone not desiring to be on the bleeding edge of technology. Digital Printing is coming & coming fast in all fields of printing, the economics of digital printing need studying hard, at the moment digital presses offer versatility, however if you are a fixed format printer the advantages need to be closely weighed against the disadvantages. · Consumable Cost · Ink / Toner · Reliability · Click cost? · Working Life The first digital machines are already obsolete & uncompetitive after only 5 years so depreciation / obsolescence needs to be taken into consideration when calculating ROI. For the few that did attend this year’s print show unless they were there on a mission, I am sure it did not live up to expectation it didn’t mine.
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Last Updated (Sunday, 16 August 2009 22:50) Cost Cutting at what cost?Monday, 07 September 2009 20:29 | Written by Simon Says |
Are you really saving money?Printers can only be as good as the equipment allows them to be! Employers are looking for high quality with minimum waste & maximum up-time. With that in mind you would expect they would load the dice in their operators favor by supplying them with the best equipment & materials to achieve it. Unfortunately quite the contrary is more common, many short sighted employers are cutting the cost of consumables (including paper quality) to save a buck or two. I am a devout believer in you get what you pay for & have too much experience of these cost cutting measures backfiring. It is far more common when cutting costs in one area to increase them in another, Last Updated (Wednesday, 09 September 2009 04:10) Printers Forum Now LiveSunday, 06 September 2009 01:53 | Written by Admin |
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