FFEI’s new Graphium Label Production Workflow
If digital label and packaging production was the subject of an election, I am pretty sure that MIS and workflow would trail behind the high profile digital presses, which is a great shame, because they can be critical factors in enabling digital presses to maximise their potential profitability. By Sean Smyth.
Label converters with digital presses know all about the daily pressures of having to handle many short run, relatively low value jobs. Each requires an order to be raised, artwork files to be processed, substrate and dies organised, the job printed, finished and despatched, the invoice raised, and payments made and received. A business that is used to producing 5 to 10 jobs a day can become overloaded very quickly when it has to process many more. When it is 25+ jobs per shift, making a saving of a minute here and a minute there makes a huge difference to the workload. Integrating workflow and management information systems (MIS) can eliminate many repetitive manual tasks, saving many minutes per job.
The sales and marketing function has to win many more orders, and make it easy for customers to place them. An MIS can handle the administration, while a workflow system handles the digital artwork, press and finishing set up. Both use digital data, put them together and the result is an extremely powerful toolset. MIS and workflow developers are looking to enhance the sales, administration and production departments’ productivity, while at the same time eliminating duplication, manual steps and repetitive tasks.
Central engine
Esko is the market leader in packaging production workflows. It is used in all stages from initial concept, structural and graphic design, artwork production, receipt and optimisation, proofing and approval, colour management, imposition, ripping and queuing job files to press, generating dies and laser die-cutting. The heart of the workflow is the Automation Engine, a very successful product leading the trend to reduce or eliminate manual operator intervention to save cost and time while eradicating errors. There are many installations, with lots of successful integrations into external MIS/ERP systems. It grabs information through SQL queries, XML or XMP data and this populates job information and workflow parameters. Examples include step & repeat data, barcodes, spot colours, etc, and this is stored in the internal database, which can be archived. Order administration systems can be linked through MIS integration. Information and data are centralised, again reducing admin intervention.
The workflow competition includes FFEI, which has just launched its workflow to the snappily titled Graphium Label Production Workflow. This develops a fully automated pre-press system designed to optimise a hybrid flexo/inkjet production capability for labels and includes full JDF functionality to integrate with MIS and finishing equipment. It offers the potential of no manual intervention from submitted file to finished product, including the capability of examining the cutter guide to determine if there is a standing cutting die available. It will generate a high resolution press-ready plate file to send to CTP or out to a supplier with all press marks and correct dispro factor applied from the job automatically. The choice of flexo or inkjet methods can be automatically made to optimise production time and cost, along with finishing tooling to minimise waste. An interesting feature is barcode optimisation, where some clever pixel alignment software renders a barcode (or QR code) at highest resolution, treating it differently to other image and text to boost the readability scores. The system is in operation at a couple of installations in the USA and will be provided to all existing and future customers as part of the Graphium package.
Full integration
Peter Dhondt is head of business development & sales for Belgian MIS provider, Cerm. The company is owned by Heidelberg, but continues to act independently, providing solutions into the narrow web sector, analogue and digital. It boasts many installations into HP Indigo, Xeikon and many inkjet converters. There are multiple sites integrating with Esko workflow systems, providing high levels of automation in end-to-end configurations controlling all aspects of production and administration. In Holland Geostick is an excellent example, where thanks to the link with Esko and HP Indigo, production is largely automatic. Cees Schouten, technical director at Geostick, elaborated, ‘Repeat orders for the digital printer are transmitted completely automatically to the HP Indigo, ie without any intervention from the repro unit. At that, management enjoys the flawless support from the automated plan board.’
An interesting function that will be increasingly useful is the Web4Labels module, a portal for online quoting and managing functions online. Web4Labels enables sales personnel to provide immediate quotes to customers on the road, or allowing customer access to pricing, stock availability and job progress. This is being developed with Chili Publish, to add functionality allowing customers to select shapes and upload artwork to create new labels and packaging. This is proving popular in France for wine producers, with Cerm reporting growth in online ordering, web-to-labels which is enabled by an end-to-end workflow handling the administration.
In the UK, Springfield Solutions has implemented a solution that includes full JDF integration with CERM/Esko/ABG to control finishing lines. This means the entry on the Cerm can effectively pick up artwork, format it to the digital press and set up the finishing line automatically, saving much time in pre-press and in production. Dennis Ebeltoft, joint managing director, commented, ‘As a fully digital label producer since 2012, controlling costs is paramount and automating processes is key to our success in managing brand consistency. We have spent a lot of time on our systems, with great benefits in increasing productivity with integration between Cerm, Esko, AB Graphic, Screen and HP Indigo with JDF, JMF and XML. Building efficiencies to save minutes per job is vital as run lengths fall and the number of jobs we handle – up to 18,000 last year – continues to grow. Letting customer service personnel load jobs into automated workflows eliminates manual pre-press delays, improving customer service.’
A new function from Label Traxx means that die-line information can be automatically generated and printed on the lead-in frames of the job
Streamlining
Label Traxx introduced several new functions for digital labels at the recent Dscoop event in the USA, including enhancements to the integration with Esko systems. This allows passing lead-in and lead-out specifications to Automation Engine. These are automatically printed at the beginning and end of a job containing product/job details, and a company logo can also be added. This die-line technical information is printed on the lead-in and lead-out frames, setting the number of lead-in and out frames required and registering the finishing. This saves time in pre-press and just printing a die-line can save ink as the full artwork is not printed more than required.
‘For companies that were adding this information manually at pre-press, this feature will save an inordinate amount of time,’ explained Label Traxx president, Ken Meinhardt. ‘Passing lead-in/out data from Label Traxx to Automation Engine makes the set up of digital label jobs even more streamlined – something that’s key when you are dealing with high volumes of smaller jobs.’ The latest release of Label Traxx also includes the new model of click charges for the HP 20000 for flexible packaging and labels.
There are other MIS providers of course. IML Labels & Systems is utilising the latest solution from Shuttleworth to control every aspect of customer management. The company has experienced steady growth by focusing on labels for highly specialised applications such as high temperature labels for metals, regulatory chemical drum labels, virtually indestructible tags for construction plus a wide array of other weatherproof, and durable tags and ties. IML’s expertise in this field is recognised globally and its products are used throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Tharstern has over 550 worldwide installations and is looking at packaging as a new market sector. Flexible packaging and labelling specialist OPM Labels and Packaging Group reports halving production time for its studio and other departments after integrating Tharstern Primo MIS directly into an Esko Automation Engine. Owners Sue and Chris Ellison said, ‘We have continuously looked to improve profitability and output through lean manufacturing and this has been made possible with the Tharstern Primo MIS system. One of the most exciting things about Primo is the way it integrates with other platforms. It provides strong, reliable data to improve communication between our team and our customers.’ Customers have welcomed the move to automation that brings the sales, customer and studio teams together on one workflow platform, which avoids a previous requirement to re-input data.
Sounds encouraging, but does it get your vote? Chicago mayor William Hale Thompson is credited with coining the phrase ‘Vote early, and vote often’ to win his two stints. He was famous for the levels of corruption associated with his elections and time as mayor, which is some feat in Chicago in the 1920s/30s! He liked to be rewarded for doing nothing, and this is exactly what MIS/workflow integrations can deliver. I’ll vote for that!
