Print Production Enhancement by Reducing Process Wastage in Printing & Packaging Industry

Abstract

This research study is focused on the analysis of waste generation and its optimization in the press and post-press sections of a printing press. The primary objective is to assess the different types of waste, their prospective causes and to suggest suitable measures to optimize the production process.  A comprehensive analysis of production data of four-month period from four printing machines (Heidelberg CD-102UV, CD-74, CX-102, CD102E) showed a cumulative waste of 4,390,4031 prints, with a corresponding waste percentage of 2.43%. The in-depth analysis further showed that top three waste among all were printing waste (2.43%), Auto die punching (0.31%) and lamination (0.17%) among others. The printing waste majorly constituted shade variations due to design corrections, dampening solution issues, problems in ink mixtures, machine malfunctions (such as roller problems), and set-off. Auto die punching waste primarily occurred due to side pin and gripper issues while major issue contributing to lamination waste was lamination wrinkling. As the printing market is getting much fiercer these days, printers are required to increase their resource efficiency and waste reduction.

The study also noted that the running wastage (4.77% - February, 5.78% - March, 4.34%-April) was significantly higher than the proposed target waste (3.50%).  Based on the analysis, corrective measures have been suggested to optimize the production and reduce the waste. These include implementing targeted strategies to address identified issues, such as improving the accuracy of design corrections, ensuring the correct pH (4.5-5.5) and conductivity (<800µS/cm), training for correct mixture of ink based on ink manufacturer guideline, preventive maintenance of machinery and maintaining proper environmental conditions (24 °C and 65% RH).The study emphasise the importance of continuous monitoring and the implementation of quality control measures to detect and mitigate potential sources of waste in the production process.