The economic downturn has impacted every industry. As companies have responded by cutting back on marketing expenditures, the number of commercial printing jobs has declined dramatically. This is forcing printers to look for ways to reduce productions costs while delivering improved quality to capture the jobs that are being produced.

Sourcing a cheap paper won’t solve a printers challenges. It’s critical for printers to implement solutions that can increase throughput and reduce waste. Contrary to what many printers may feel, applying the principles of lean manufacturing can drive productivity improvements equal to $5 to $8 cwt in paper prices, enabling them to be cost competitive.

How can printers apply lean manufacturing principals in a work environment that’s not traditionally conducive to benchmarking because of dissimilar printing jobs?

Lean manufacturing is nothing new; a common definition states, “A manufacturing improvement approach based on the premise that waste or non-value-added effort should be minimized or eliminated.” The process involves identifying business processes that have room for efficiency improvement and then applying small changes in an effort to minimize or eliminate waste. When evaluating production lines, it is important to consider all factors that contribute to reducing make-ready time. For example, a small change such as switching paper stock can improve runnability, printability, consistency, and ink holdout, which can optimize productivity. Beyond the technological prowess of today’s printing presses, it is paper that is the cornerstone of quality and on-press performance.

To determine paper’s impact more precisely, MeadWestvaco (MWV) recently contracted with an independent graphical technical foundation to test their Tango Advantage C1S and C2S cover products against the major competitive offerings. The test findings indicated that the Tango Advantage product did in fact improve print performance and press productivity. For example, in repeat tests of competitive 10 pt. C1S cover where all variables were controlled other than the paper used, Tango Advantage achieved solid ink density using 70 to 225 fewer sheets than the competitive grades. Assuming a typical average of five additional adjustments to match to a proof, the make-ready reduction equates to more than $100 in paper and press time savings for a single 4,200 sheet cover job.

Paper variables that were found to play a role in press productivity included: dynamic tonal response (ability for the printer to make color adjustments quickly and precisely), dot gain, dot gain consistency, side-to-side uniformity, and resistance to mottle.

Based on the excellent results “Tango” achieved, MWV launched “The Tango Advantage Challenge Program” in 2008 whereby printers are encouraged to run a test comparison in their own pressroom. “We always thought we had a superior product that provided printers with overall cost savings, but we were thrilled to have our print performance confirmed through independent testing,” said Kevin Clark, vice president for MeadWestvaco’s Commercial Printing business. Good principals indeed.

Kevin Clark is VP, MeadWestvaco, Commercial Printing. For more information, please visit www.mwv.com.