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trol department should have responsibility

for random sampling of these supplies. They

should be involved in verifying that external

suppliers understand the importance of

agreed upon specifications and can meet

these specifications on a continual basis.

All supplies should have specifications.

The quality department should have the

responsibility for making sure that there are

specifications and follow-up to be sure that

suppliers can meet these demands. Some-

times this is impractical as department man-

agers or purchasing departments control

these items. In that case the quality depart-

ment should at least be involved in develop-

ing specifications and verifying that they are

met. In this way the quality department can

work toward reducing inspection cycles.

Too often individual departments and

operators assume that the supplies they

will work with are within specification and

only find out that this is not true when they

get to use them. Some departments and indi-

vidual operators can be delegated to inspect

the incoming materials. This is a good prac-

tice if they understand what to inspect, how

often to inspect and what to do when the

material is out of specification. Quality

departments should assist in the training of

all employees involved in these functions.

PRINTING AND CONVERTING

PROCESS CONTROL

Setting up procedures and even doing cali-

bration of inspection and quality devices is a

value-added activity for quality departments.

Most manufacturing departments are too

busy producing the product and even though

they may value the results of calibrated

instruments they rate it low on the priority

list of things to do. It then falls to the quality

department to make sure that the devices

used to measure the accuracy of the product,

as it is manufactured, are within proper tol-

erances. This can be done through an inves-

tigation of what each instrument’s calibration

tolerance is and how often it needs to be

checked for accuracy and then developing a

strategy to accomplish this calibration and

holding an individual in the quality depart-

ment responsible for it (Table 17).

The development of a plan of when to sam-

ple, how to measure and the use of statistical

process control are part of the quality depart-

ment’s responsibility. Developing a program

that will sample frequently enough to ensure

that the product is within tolerance and yet

not too often so that it gets in the way of

manufacturing is an important part of the

quality strategy. A part of statistical process

control is to record and analyze the results.

Written records of inspections are critical,

even if the inspection is visual and subjec-

tive. A simple run chart (Figure

) is a good

way to record and display the results of a

measurement or inspection.

QUALITY CONTROL 87

A histogram can be

used to determine the

capability of a process.

This histogram depicts

print-to-die deviations.

Specification Limits

-.08 -.06 -.04 -.02 -.00 .02 .04 .06 .08

Print to Die Deviation

Frequency

Table 17

■ Identify what needs to be calibrated

■ Establish the tolerance

■ Establish the frequency of calibration

■ Designate who does the calibration

CALIBRATION PROGRAM

The results of a set of

measurements can be

plotted in a run chart. This

chart shows density

measurements.

Ink viscosity can be

measured by timing its

flow through a Zahn

cup.

88 FLEXOGRAPHY: PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES

PROCESS-IMPROVEMENT

STRATEGIES

Assisting all departments of the organiza-

tion with process-improvement strategies is a

major function of a modern quality depart-

ment. It is their responsibility to observe

methods, materials, skills and equipment and

then evaluate the outcomes. Better, simpler

and less expensive systems can then be devel-

oped. These can range from major process

changes to simply reviewing how sales uses

effective forms to gather information that will

be used to develop the specifications for a

corrugated, paperboard or flexible package,

label or publication.

Listening to and observing what operating

personnel do and say about the quality meth-

ods and tools they use for inspection is an

important function that can be used to start

the process-improvement cycle. Here are

some sample questions that might be

explored: How often should a Zahn cup

(Figure

) be used to check viscosity of an

ink or a pH meter be used to check water-

based inks? How often should these instru-

ments be calibrated? Are there more efficient

procedures that can be used instead? Should

measurements be recorded? Why are the

measurements recorded? Is it to see whether

the process is in control or how far it varies

Table 18

1. List and include key files, FPO

(for position only) files placed in key file

2. List fonts used (include if necessary)

3. List correct names of fonts

5. List software names and versions

6. Name final file that prepress is to open,

all other support files listed

7. When including more than one design,

put one design file and all support files

in one folder

8. Annotate any layers that are common

9. List layers to be used with base design

10. Include hard copy of disk directory

11. Include hard copy of final art files,

same size or 100%

12. List all file names

13. List all colors – process, special

14. Include instructions for blends

15. Include instructions for special effects

16. List all FPOs

17. List of all items provided

(transparency, disk, color proofs, etc.)

Adapted from p. 24 of FIRST, 1997.

CHECKLIST

Documenting the Design

Upper Specification Limit

Specification

Lower Specification Limit

123456789101112

Sample Number in Increments of Time

Density

1.58

1.56

1.54

1.52

1.50

1.48

1.46

1.44

1.42

1.60

over time or, when to make corrections to the

process? It is the quality department’s obliga-

tion to review these elements and assist in

offering improvements to satisfy customer

expectations while developing more efficient

and economical quality processes.

Organizing process-improvement teams

into departments and interdepartmental

groups is an effective manner of gathering

information on what may be needed to do an

effective job of maintaining and improving

quality. Industry standards or guidelines can

provide valuable assistance to this process.

For example, FIRST provides a checklist to

document the design in prepress which will

help assure a quality product and smooth

workflow (Table 18).

The research and development of quality

devices is a significant part of what a modern

quality department can and should do.

Reviewing the literature, and attending print-

ing and converting conferences and exhibi-

tions where suppliers present their equip-

ment is an important part of the job. Some of

the other research methods can include con-

tacting suppliers and having them supply lit-

erature, quotes and demonstrations.

QUALITY CONTROL 89

90 FLEXOGRAPHY: PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES

uality costs are the sum total

of all of the costs involved in

making a product correctly. In

flexo printing and converting

there are two choices: either

the job is printed and convert-

ed correctly the first time or it must be

redone until it is correct. Quality costs are

one of the best means for quantifying the

overall level of quality, since they take into

account the entire impact of both problems

and improvements. Quality theorists and

practitioners have broken down quality

costs into four general categories:

• prevention;

• inspection and appraisal;

• internal failure; and

• external failure.

PREVENTION COSTS

Prevention costs represent, in large part,

the investment that the flexo printing and con-

verting company will make in quality im-

provement. Traditionally, prevention has had

a very low priority in the United States. These

costs represent the up-front time and effort

required to do the job correctly the first time.

Typical prevention costs include training, pre-

ventive maintenance, vendor certification,

ISO certification, planning and quality team

meetings. Prevention costs are unavoidable if

the flexo printing company is to reduce its

overall cost of quality. In other words, preven-

tion costs are the price a printing company

has to pay for real quality improvement.

INSPECTION AND

APPRAISAL COSTS

Inspection and appraisal costs represent all

of the various ways in which we look at the

product to ensure its conformance to require-

ments. This process starts and ends at the

receiving and shipping dock and takes place

at various checkpoints throughout the

process. Instead of preventing problems from

occurring in the first place, many flexo print-

ers will inspect the product and weed the sub-

standard pieces out. Inspection and appraisal

costs are partly avoidable and partly unavoid-

able. As internal quality levels increase, the

need to inspect finished products will be

reduced. However, true quality improvement

involves allowing employees such as

platemakers and press operators to appraise

their products in order to control their

processes. These costs are unavoidable, but

they will also be diminished as processes

come into a more stable, controlled state. An

excellent example of an appraisal cost in the

printing industry is color proofing. It is gener-

ally considered a necessary process, although

by standardizing the reproduction process

from computer monitors to imagesetters and

consistently optimizing and characterizing

the process, it is possible to minimize the use

of color proofs for monitoring purposes.

INTERNAL FAILURE COSTS

Internal failure costs represent what hap-

pens when the job hasn’t been done right the

first time. Some of the printed matter will be

The Economics of

Quality Improvement

thrown away and some will be reprinted.

Either way, valuable prepress and press time

will be used for reprinting the job and addi-

tional inspectors will be required to make

sure that the defective product doesn’t reach

the customer. Internal failure costs are whol-

ly avoidable when the proper preventive

measures have taken place and in-process

inspections have ensured product conformi-

ty. The potential savings that can be realized

by focusing on internal failure costs, and

reducing waste and rework, is enormous.

EXTERNAL FAILURE COSTS

External failure costs are those that occur

when the customer gets defective products.

These costs include liability costs, claims and

discounts, and high customer turnover. It has

been estimated that an unhappy customer

will typically tell five to seven friends about

the problems associated with the flexo print-

er involved. Think about how you react in

your personal life when you go to a restau-

rant and receive inferior service. If you are

anything like a print buyer, you will tell your

friends about the experience and never go

back. What’s worse, customers don’t usually

complain, they just leave. If quality improve-

ment is to be effective, printers must ask cus-

tomers not only what they liked about the

job, but what they didn’t like as well.

External failure costs are also wholly avoid-

able. When the printed product is delivered

on-time and defect-free, the customer will

react favorably and be retained. The sales

effort can then focus on truly new cus-

tomers, not just replacing those that have left

because they were dissatisfied.

Unfortunately, traditional methods of

accounting and control have failed to look at

these categories as separate elements on the

income statement. Instead, quality costs

have been lumped together with such gener-

al items as labor, materials, overhead and

selling expense. Recent findings in compa-

nies like Motorola and TRW have shown

that, when separately accounted for, quality

costs can be as high as 20% to 30% of sales

revenues for manufacturing organizations.

Table 19 lists some of the reasons to mea-

sure quality costs.

In the words of Dr. Joseph Juran, quality

costs represent “gold in the mine.” This is

money that the printer is already spending.

As companies invest resources in their quali-

ty improvement processes, the managers of

those companies will want to see the return

on that investment.

QUALITY COST STRATEGIES

The levels of prevention, inspection and

appraisal, internal failure and external failure

should represent strategic choices made by

the flexo printing company’s top manage-

ment. It is too important just to let various

quality costs happen by chance. A company

can choose to try and “inspect quality in” by

putting their quality resources into inspectors

or a company can choose to focus its efforts

on improving quality and preventing prob-

lems. In the long run it is more cost effective

to focus on prevention rather than inspection.

Every flexo printer needs some inspection;

however, they should work toward minimiz-

ing inspection and maximizing prevention.

QUALITY CONTROL 91

Table 19

■ Determine the return on investment

■ Justify individual quality improvement

projects

■ Benchmark the overall impact of the

quality effort

■ Get top-management attention

■ Give direction to your improvement

efforts

REASONS TO MEASURE

QUALITY COSTS

92 FLEXOGRAPHY: PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES

he Total Quality Management

Process or TQM involves the

entire organization. It affects the

way of doing business in all

aspects of the operation. The

Total Quality Management Pro-

cess can be defined as combining the nine

elements listed in Table 20.

CUSTOMER FOCUS:

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL

The success of a flexo printer is driven by

the understanding of what the customer

wants and needs and by meeting those

needs. The external customer is the one who

pays the bills and purchases the flexible

package, corrugated container, label or any

other flexo printed product. In order to fully

understand the needs of this customer it is

necessary to also understand the end use of

the product. Some considerations may

include the type of material to be used, UPC

and color tolerances and ink rub and dura-

bility needs. These issues can only be

addressed by doing a thorough investigation

of customer expectations before the job is

specified.

The internal customers are those individu-

als or departments that are part of the

sequence that goes into the manufacturing

process. This might include sales, estimating,

planning, customer service, design, electronic

prepress, press, finishing and shipping. The

concept implies that every department and

individual has responsibility for understand-

ing what the next person, department or

operation needs in order to fulfill quality

obligations. Each sequential operation has to

have specifications and it is up to the person

and department of each preceding operation

to understand these demands and meet them

every time. If the specification requires that a

highlight dot of two percent be maintained on

the photopolymer plate then it is the respon-

sibility of the plate maker to have a system in

place that verifies this to the press depart-

ment. It is also advisable that internal suppli-

ers and customers work together so that they

understand what each needs to supply the

appropriate product to the next operation.

The Principles of

Total Quality Management

Table 20

1. Focus on the CUSTOMER – both internal

and external

2. Involve the ENTIRE flexo organization

3. Develop a TEAM effort

4. EMPOWER the employees of the flexo

company

5. Work toward PROCESS IMPROVEMENT of

the entire organization

6. BENCHMARK activities of the organization

7. PARTNER with suppliers and customers

8. REENGINEER where needed

9. MEASURE quality so that it can be

managed

THE PRINCIPLES OF TOTAL

QUALITY MANAGEMENT

INVOLVE THE ENTIRE

FLEXO ORGANIZATION

A quality flexo product is the sum total of

the efforts of all those involved in the

process from sales to production to delivery

and billing. It is a serious mistake not to

understand the relationship of all the ele-

ments that go into the execution of a flexo

job. Understanding the customer’s needs

and converting these to acceptable and

workable specifications, that can be main-

tained, is a critical part of each step in the

operation. Customer satisfaction is the sum

total of the individual parts. If the janitorial

staff leaves dust and dirt around which con-

taminates the plate-making process, or the

inks or substrate, the end result could be

work rejected by the customer. If the sales

department does not get the proper informa-

tion from the customer and manufacturing

does not know of this, then the end result

could be an unacceptable job. Quality is the

sum total of doing many small and large

things correctly.

DEVELOP A TEAM EFFORT

The success of a quality flexo organization

depends upon each individual and depart-

ment working well with other individuals

and groups within the organization. This

requires that employees view themselves as

team members and part of an organization

that pulls together for the benefit of the cus-

tomer. The organization needs to foster and

reward team behavior. This can be done by

including team effort as part of each job

description. This then can become part of

the evaluation process which in turn can be

rewarded in the normal appraisal process.

There are a number of ways formal teams

can be implemented into an organization.

The first way is to establish an executive

team which comprises top management.

Usually, the chief executive officer or a

designee is on the team along with a financial

officer, someone from marketing and sales as

well as manufacturing. Their purpose is to

act as a steering arm of the team effort. They

give approval to the operations of a team and

make decisions on team suggestions. It is

suggested that for teams to be really suc-

cessful the organization needs to develop a

budget that will sustain team efforts.

Teams can be set up a number of ways. The

functional team is set up to operate within a

department. If customer service procedures

are to be analyzed for improvement purpos-

es then the customer service department

would set up a team of individuals to review

the process and make suggestions for

changes. The cross functional team is similar

to the functional team, however they also

have members that are internal suppliers and

customers as team members. The purpose of

the internal supplier and customer team

members is to assist in developing solutions

that positively affect both of these groups.

Self-directed work teams are the fourth type

of team. In the self-directed team approach

the employees are trained to take responsi-

bility for managing, coordinating, scheduling,

quality control, working with suppliers and

evaluating team members. This team

approach requires that supervisors relin-

quish their traditional roles and work as

trainers, coaches and facilitators.

EMPOWER THE EMPLOYEES

OF THE FLEXO COMPANY

The employee-empowering process re-

quires that management relinquish control

of individual efforts and that employees take

responsibility for their work. The job of the

supervisor becomes one of a mentor, trainer

and facilitator of employee efforts. He or she

acts in the capacity of a staff person in offer-

ing advice and working toward satisfying the

needs that employees have in relation to per-

forming their job in a quality manner.

Employees are trained and encouraged to

QUALITY CONTROL 93

94 FLEXOGRAPHY: PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES

make decisions as it concerns their work.

The end result is that work should be done

better, faster and more easily.

WORK TOWARD

PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

OF THE ENTIRE ORGANIZATION

Flexography is a printing process that has

seen monumental strides in process im-

provement. Ink systems are better under-

stood, and with understanding of the rela-

tionships between ink viscosity, pigmenta-

tion level and the proper choice of anilox

roll, the flexo printer can predict density and

dot gain more effectively. The use of doc-

tored anilox rollers and chambered print

units have dramatically increased the fidelity

of print and reduced environmental issues.

Various teams of the Flexographic Quality

Consortium have undertaken studies in wide

web, narrow web and corrugated to deter-

mine how to maximize the most important

characteristics of the flexo printing process.

Some of the studies undertaken have includ-

ed the relationship of substrate, ink system,

plate characteristics and anilox roll configu-

rations. Studies have also been done to judge

the value of flexo printers using a Pantone

guide to color match flexo colors. These and

other studies are available through the

Flexographic Technical Association.

Most of these studies have been accom-

plished through the efforts of a few compa-

nies and individuals and coordinated by the

Flexographic Technical Association. More

involvement is necessary in order to remain

competitive with other printing processes

and other methods of communication. Each

company must encourage the flexo work

force to maintain a mind-set for process

improvement. This means questioning the

methods, materials and their combinations

to determine the best procedures for quality

flexo reproduction.

BENCHMARK ACTIVITIES

OF THE ORGANIZATION

Benchmarking is the process of measuring

a flexo company’s level of performance in its

various functions and comparing this level

of performance to the level of performance

achieved by successful leaders in their simi-

lar functions.

Internal, competitive and generic bench-

marking are the three common methods of

benchmarking. The constant review of inter-

nal processes, including how people inter-

act, choice of materials, methods practiced

and the quality procedures used to ensure

the accuracy of the work need to be studied.

Competitive benchmarking looks at what

the competition is doing to produce a quali-

ty flexo product and be profitable and pro-

ductive. Generic benchmarking reviews

“best in class.” This may be a review of any

company, not necessarily a flexo organiza-

tion. The review would include specific sim-

ilarities to the flexo company. If a company

is known to have a superb customer service

process then the review would include how

they accomplish this in order to be able to

develop similar strategies for customer ser-

vice. Benchmarking is a powerful tool

because it enables the flexo printer to ana-

lyze its strengths and weaknesses against

the best in class. In turn, the gap between

what exists and what can exist can be nar-

rowed by initiating similar actions to the

benchmark that has been studied.

PARTNER WITH SUPPLIERS

AND CUSTOMERS

Partnering is a method of working with

suppliers and customers for the common

good. When dealing with key materials, pur-

chasing by price alone without considera-

A Illustrates the air

flow mpattern through

recuperative thermal

oxidizer

Pantone, PMS and Pantone Matching System are trademarks of Pantone, Inc.

tion of long-term relationships can be devas-

tating to long term needs. Knowing what the

supplier can do concerning price, on time

delivery, consistency of meeting specifica-

tions and assistance with training and techni-

cal information will make the printer/convert-

er a more competitive company. Price needs

to be considered in relationship to the total

cost of the product over the long run. If mate-

rials are out of specification or their delivery

is late or incomplete the long-term effect

upon the operation could be very expensive

and therefore not very cost effective.

Studying and understanding the needs of

your customers and being able to advise

them on their printing needs makes your

organization truly value-added. This means

having intimate knowledge of what your

customers are doing in the marketplace and

what the needs of their customers are. If the

corrugated package must withstand a cer-

tain crush force and the fluting required may

prohibit the fidelity of print, it is your

responsibility to offer advice as to whether

to direct print, or use preprint or printed

labels as the decorative medium. The true

flexo partner studies what the customer’s

competition does and offers suggestions as

to how the customer can compete more

favorably with better printed products.

The nurturing of partnerships between sup-

pliers and customers allows a flexo company

to spend more time on process-improvement

activities rather than having to look for new

suppliers and customers.

REENGINEER WHERE NEEDED

In their book “Reengineering the Corp-

oration” Michael Hammer and James

Champy define reengineering as “the funda-

mental rethinking and radical redesign of

business processes to achieve dramatic

improvements in critical, contemporary mea-

sures of performance, such as cost, quality,

service, and speed.” This includes all aspects

of the organization from management issues,

equipment, materials, new technologies and

methods of operation.

The objective is to satisfy customer needs

and look for ways to delight the customer

with possible new processes, procedures and

services. Reengineering means starting over.

What would you do if you were starting a

flexo company? What would you do differ-

ently? Reengineering does not mean tinker-

ing with the old, but doing something entire-

ly different. Reengineering means getting rid

of old systems and starting over again.

Reengineering can be a very difficult

process. It is much easier to say “let’s reengi-

neer” than to actually do it. Reengineering

means change and change can be very

expensive in the short run. Also, people will

resist change because it is not comfortable

for people to change their habits. If reengi-

neering is seen as a process that may cause

job loss then people will resist. However,

will the company be in business and for how

long if changes are not made? The most

expedient procedure for reengineering is to

observe, through the benchmark process,

what other organizations are doing and then

evaluate whether it is in the company’s best

interest to reengineer processes, equipment

and methods. Participating in management

and technical organizations as well as read-

ing available literature and working with

suppliers and customers will assist in devel-

oping procedures for reengineering within

the flexo company. Think of a flexo compa-

ny as a packaging and communication orga-

nization and not just a label, corrugated or

flexible packager. In this way it is easier to

see opportunities to reengineer and remain

profitable, productive and competitive.

MEASURING QUALITY SO THAT IT

CAN BE MANAGED

It has been said that “what you do not mea-

sure you cannot control.” One of the most

QUALITY CONTROL 95

A Illustrates the air

flow mpattern through

recuperative thermal

oxidizer

96 FLEXOGRAPHY: PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES

important reasons for measuring quality is

so that it can be controlled. Color varia-

tion, registration and other important

aspects of quality flexo reproduction must

be measured on an ongoing basis. This data

needs to be recorded and evaluated to

determine if the process is stable and in

control. It is impossible to evaluate trends

without measuring and recording the flexo

process.

How can one take corrective action if one

does not measure what is taking place? If the

specification for the density of the black ink

is 1.50 ±0.07 then measurements with a den-

sitometer must be taken at statistically sound

intervals to determine whether black is

remaining within its range of 1.43–1.57. The

measurements can be plotted on a run chart

as shown previously in Figure

. The oper-

ating staff can visually determine, from the

chart, if there is a need for corrective action.

Records should be kept of all measure-

ments made so that a flexo company can

prove to a customer how quality was moni-

tored and maintained during a given produc-

tion run. These records may include color,

trap, dot gain, register, number of products

run and waste.

Quality records will also show the source of

variation. If flexo plates are continually mon-

itored for overall height it is then easy to offer

constructive feedback to the supplier by shar-

ing this information. This will assist in the

quality effort because plates that are not with-

in specification can be rejected before they

are mounted and run on the press.

The measuring and recording of quality

data will help characterize the process capa-

bility. If, for example, images are trapped to

one-sixteenthof an inch, but after monitoring

the press it is shown to hold register to one-

sixty fourth of an inch, the trapping specifica-

tion could be decreased to one-thirty second

of an inch or twice the register tolerance. This

might allow sales to develop new markets

that require closer tolerances.

A Illustrates the air

flow mpattern through

recuperative thermal

oxidizer