Maintaining Equipment (or Not) During Lean Times

I run a vintage 2000 Mitsubishi—an automobile, that is, not a MLP sheetfed printing press. With more than 150,000 miles and counting, the service warranty has long since expired, but it sure is nice not to have a monthly car payment, especially during the past year’s economic cliff dive.

Essentially, basic preventative maintenance for a driving machine isn’t so different from that of a press. I change the oil about every 3,000 miles, keep the tire air pressure in check, top off the other fluids periodically and hope and pray she gets me through at least one more salty, petroleum-thickening Chicago winter. Each chilly morning, I knock on slowly rusting metal that my old Galant doesn’t start to nickel-and-dime me to death. “Not today, baby,” I urge her. In the long term, keeping them running efficiently saves us money.

Scheduled maintenance can forestall major breakdowns, but demands for keeping production online, especially during peak production periods, find pressroom managers pressured to put off maintenance until later. When “later” arrives, though, that kind of procrastinator thinking can devastate the bottom line. Putting off regular preventive maintenance can lead not only to major breakdowns and days of idle downtime, but a gradual degradation of quality and efficiency to boot. The flip side is that regular maintenance makes downtime predictable.

What steps should printers take on a regular basis to keep their press investments running efficiently? “Keep them clean and lubricated, at the very least,” is the advice from Ray Prince, NAPL vice president/senior consultant of operations management. Many owners go beyond those two basics, of course, employing service options such as remote, dial-in and contracted service plans from press manufacturers or third-party vendors.

Prince, a 50-year industry veteran, said he’s somewhat amazed by the two trends he sees taking place at print firms across the country. “There are those who want to make their equipment last longer in this economy,” he explained, “so they clean and paint, lubricate religiously, make upgrades and generally take good care of it.” Some printing companies even have implemented more intense maintenance schedules. Then, there’s the polar opposite attitude that makes Prince shake his head in frustrated disbelief: “Some people just don’t want to spend money at all right now—on anything,” he noted. And this “if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it” mentality has nothing to do with the size of the firms in question. In a lot of the acquisitions taking place, the owners are buying books of sales and employees but have little regard for equipment, he said.

The Pre-owned Attraction

Used equipment is hot right now, and there’s a lot of it floating around as over-capacity rages on in our industry. The days of “easy credit” are over, and many print shops continue to fail and fall. Of those left standing, it seems everybody is looking for deals and steals. One anonymous printer admits to purchasing “an AB Dick on eBay, cheap.” Prince said there is some good equipment to be had on the auction market, no doubt, such as repossessed presses. But, he cautioned, there is bad equipment out there, too. People see a low price and think they’re getting a good deal on a nine-year-old piece of technology, for example. “But if the previous owner was struggling, the press may not have been maintained for the past three years,” said Prince. “That represents a lot of wear and tear.”

Pre-owned presses need to be maintained as well. Older presses can benefit from the right service and products to ensure they continue to deliver maximum productivity. To help breathe new life into these presses, Heidelberg Systemservice is now offering a significant discount to customers with presses built in 2000 or earlier—if they book service five business or seven calendar days ahead of time.

Some printers turn to the prepress department to maintain and improve quality on press. A small Midwestern shop saw a substantial jump in quality and accuracy from its three, 30-year-old Heidelbergs after Agfa technicians calibrated its proofs to the presses; prepress was, in turn, calibrated to the proofs.

Whether they invest in new or buy used, every printer knows productivity drops every time the press stops for maintenance or quality issues. Prince jokes that the phrase “press down” doesn’t translate into German. “Nobody’s buying a second press so they can have redundancy,” he added. Today’s newer, highly automated models are specifically engineered to require less maintenance. Mitsubishi’s Diamond V3000, for example, has a progressive lubrication system resulting in 3.5 percent less maintenance time. Still, for newer 40-inch, six-color sheetfeds, downtime caused by machine malfunction (not by an operator) is around 2 percent, said Prince.

Less Iron, More Service

Admittedly, the press manufacturers are selling less heavy iron these days, which is why they’re focusing more on OEM parts and service. Remote, dial-in service, with electronics tied into a line, has its roots in prepress. This is a cost-effective solution for four-color, 29-inch presses and up, according to Prince. “Say they remotely diagnose your problem as a bad circuit board,” he said. “They send out a new board, and all you pay for is the part and shipping­—there are no more air fare, hotel and car rental expenses for technicians.” And it’s fast, so there’s less waiting and more uptime.

Heidelberg took proactive service a step further two years ago with its eCall Web-based remote service function. With eCall, an impending service issue automatically triggers an alarm and, at the touch of a button, the press operator can notify Heidelberg—no telephone call is necessary—in less than one minute. Thanks to the automated pre-analysis tool, a Systemservice Expert will call the customer back quickly with a detailed analysis.

With Remote Diagnostics, direct online assistance from Heidelberg experts is available if there is a problem. Once the remote connection is established, a Heidelberg Systemservice technician troubleshoots the equipment, provides a diagnosis, and makes recommendations for repair. In up to 70 percent of cases—such as setting, application or process errors—the problem can be identified and resolved the first time the service expert and press operator speak together on the phone, preventing the need for an onsite service call. Both Remote Diagnostics and eCall are part of Systemservice 36plus—the comprehensive service package included in the sale of most presses.

Contract service, too, started in the prepress department, as pioneered by Scitex. Prices vary greatly among manufacturers, but the basic premise is that inspections take place at regular intervals—every three, four or six months, for example. This past May, Mitsubishi’s Service Department implemented an expanded menu of programs intended to keep its printing equipment in peak condition. “We are receiving lots of inquiries and requests for quotes,” Dan Sullivan, MLP USA’s electrical service manager, said prior to September’s PRINT 09 show.

With Mitsubishi’s electrical upgrade options, press users can upgrade the existing computer systems, as well as install new auxiliary systems for connectivity to prepress, closed-loop color control and automated color adjustments. “Much of the interest concerning electrical systems focuses on the computer upgrade packages and, in particular, installation of the PPC server,” Sullivan noted. PPC stands for Mitsubishi Prepress CIP4 Control (PPC) server, which transmits digital plate information from a printer’s prepress area to the IPC II press control. The digital data is used to preset ink keys, ink fountain roller speeds, dampening systems and press speed.

Mitsubishi also redesigned its overall service programs to maximize printing equipment. In tough economic times like these, making the most of current machine assets is more important than ever, observed Mike Abbeduto, Mitsubishi director of customer service. “Improving equipment reliability can help alleviate the negative effects of the recession and maximize the profitability of every second of manufacturing time,” he said. In addition to the Electrical Upgrade Options, Mitsubishi’s new menu of service programs includes:

• Quarterly Preventative Maintenance A mechanical field supervisor visits the print facility on four consecutive days during each of four scheduled quarterly visits per year to service the feeder, register, printing unit, coater and delivery sections of the press. In addition, time is allotted to diagnose customer-reported mechanical issues.
• Fixed Price Press Inspection During the full-day press inspection, a field supervisor inspects printing and operational functions. A comprehensive report will detail the findings, identifying any areas that warrant “watch” status or might require future attention.
• Mechanical Upgrade Options A number of mechanical upgrades enhance the precision and sheet-handling capabilities of the feeder, register mechanisms and printing units.
• Digital Register Analysis (DRA) Mitsubishi’s press performance measurement and analysis system not only can identify the cause and location of complex mechanical problems in any size or make of press, but also recommend appropriate solutions. DRA absolutely determines whether a problem is mechanical or lithographic in nature.
• Diamond Litho Analysis (DLA) Capable of measuring print quality up to 10 colors, DLA establishes a benchmark, or “footprint,” of the mechanical characteristics of a printing press. DLA measures eight crucial areas of print quality: mechanical integrity, fit, density, dot gain, print length, trap, print contrast and gray balance.

Graphic Innovations Extension

Meanwhile, Heidelberg‘s comprehensive Systemservice 36plus service package gives printers such as yearbook producer Walsworth Publishing’s Print Group the ability to plan service costs, access to 24-hour service and quick spare part supplies to ensure high machine availability. In April, Missouri-based Walsworth achieved an impressive level of productivity with its two Speedmaster SM 102 eight-color perfecting presses. “We set an eight-hour, single-shift record of 400 plates on the Speedmaster 102,” reported Mark Hatfield, vice president of manufacturing operations. “Our new record for a single 24-hour period is 960 plates”—equivalent to an average of five jobs an hour for the short-run yearbook printer. During peak production periods, it’s not uncommon for the shop to hang 900 plates a day on each of the presses.

Walsworth installed the first SM 102 press, which features Prinect Axis Control, Prinect Prepress Interface and the Prinect CP2000 Center, in 2007. The firm was so pleased with the productivity and quality results that a second, identical machine was installed last December. The pair of Speedmasters has enabled Walsworth to expand its commercial printing business beyond seasonal yearbook production. The company is printing books, magazines and other products for customers including National Geographic, Adobe and McGraw-Hill.

Three-year coverage from the Heidelberg Systemservice package also beats fixed monthly costs on digital presses hands down, contended Taylor Blackwell, president of Walker Printing, Montgomery, Ala. The newest addition to Walker’s pressroom lineup is a Speedmaster SM 52 four-color press with Anicolor short-train, keyless inking. Installed in July, the SM 52 Anicolor replaced an existing Speedmaster 74 six-color, a Heidelberg Printmaster QM 46-2 and a digital press. The contrast between the Anicolor press and the digital machine it replaced could not be more stark, said Blackwell, who maintains he was paying substantially more in click charges on the digital press than he spends on plates for the Anicolor machine. Walker also has had a four-color Speedmaster XL 105 press since 2007.

Earlier this year, Graphics Innovations, Richmond, Va., became the first U.S. customer to extend its Systemservice 36plus program, following three years of successful results. The firm chose to partner with Systemservice for an additional two years by purchasing the Heidelberg Partner Program Full Service Agreement. The initial suite of services was included with the purchase of the shop’s six-color Speedmaster SM 102 press more than three years ago.

“Our equipment is performing better than ever, and we’ve reduced operating costs while increasing productivity across the board,” said Pat Patterson, president. “Heidelberg’s Systemservice 36plus has provided unmatched support for our business. I am confident that our investments are fully protected, which is rare in this uncertain market.”

As his initial three-years under Systemservice 36plus neared its end, Patterson compared the cost of extending coverage under the Heidelberg Partner Program Full Service Agreement to the potential cost of experiencing unplanned downtime, paying for essential spare parts and outsourcing service technicians. After weighing the options, the decision was an easy one. “Before installing the SM 102 with Systemservice 36plus, we had never used Heidelberg service,” Patterson said. “Now, the thought of using anything other than Heidelberg service is out of the question. We feel that Heidelberg is truly a partner that has invested in our success.”

Systemservice 36plus, which was introduced at PRINT 2005, includes 36 months of support services, annual maintenance inspections and full coverage of parts. Additional benefits include repair parts; repair labor and travel, including expenses; and maintenance inspections conducted by factory-trained service technicians, who often are able to identify and correct issues before a critical situation disrupts production. Expert technical support is only one phone call away, using a special Direct Priority Access telephone number. Around-the-clock Expert Support Team coverage is available through a Global Expert Support Team, which uses advanced troubleshooting tools such as Remote Diagnostics to achieve fast problem resolution and reduce downtime.

“More and more print shops are realizing the benefits of today’s service options in protecting their investments, especially in a down economy,” noted Michael Reschauer, Heidelberg USA director of business development for Systemservice. “Maintaining equipment on a regular basis is imperative to preventing costly downtime and meeting customer demands.”

The team at Graphics Innovations collaborates with Heidelberg’s Expert Service Team on a regular basis, determining what service and maintenance needs will help the company reach its business goals. “Whether it’s a simple phone call or an in-house inspection by a field technician, we trust the Heidelberg service team to keep our equipment and software up to date and ready for any challenges we may face,” Patterson said.

Graphics Innovations is an all-Heidelberg shop. In addition to the new SM 102 perfecting press, the company operates a Suprasetter A74 platesetter with Saphira thermal plates, Polar cutter, Stahlfolder RFH 82 folder and an existing SM 102 perfector. The firm produces general commercial work, including direct mail pieces, envelopes, newsletters, brochures and photo cards, for a variety of customers in the Richmond area. Founded in November 2003, the company employs more than 20 people.

The German manufacturer also has introduced a two-year warranty on Heidelberg Original Parts, along with a new service pricing structure designed to meet regular repair and maintenance needs. These changes were originally announced during PRINT 09, where Heidelberg Original Parts, Systemservice and Certified Remarketed Equipment occupied dedicated booth space of their own. Heidelberg conducted an extensive market study of its customers in an effort to ensure that the best service and parts products are offered specific to customer requirements. “We want to partner with our customers to provide them with cost-effective, risk-free preventive maintenance at a price they can afford, on a schedule that suits them, with a warranty on needed parts, all with the assurance that work on their valuable investment will be performed exclusively by highly skilled and trained Heidelberg service technicians,” said Mike Niesen, vice president of technical support.

Heidelberg now will warranty any Heidelberg Original Spare Mechanical Part for a period of two years, provided the part is installed by a Heidelberg technician. Should the new part fail within the two-year warranty period, Heidelberg will replace it at no charge, provided it is also installed by a Heidelberg technician. The electrical parts warranty has been extended to one year, subject to the same conditions on installation.

New Twist on Selective Service

KBA North America’s customized service program brings training and expertise to customer sites. In August, KBA introduced its new Service Select program, a complete line of customized service products designed to maximize the productivity and profitability of its presses. An array of programs are available for KBA’s entire line of presses—from the small footprint Genius 20-inch to the large-format Rapida 205 81-inch—and are designed to maximize the customer’s return-on-investment (ROI) and minimize downtime. KBA says it will customize a program that meets the exact needs and budget of each and every customer, from a one-time press relocation to regularly scheduled ongoing support.

“KBA is always seeking to better serve its customers,” said Tim McKeon, vice president of sheetfed service. “Our new KBA Service Select Program brings the expertise, knowledge and training of our highly skilled technicians to our customer’s site, where we can work one-on-one with their employees and their KBA press. This is a proactive approach where customers can receive operator training, press evaluation, workflow, maintenance, productivity optimization and upgrades on their KBA press and their facility.”

The Service Select Program encompasses an array of packages and solutions that can be customized to a customer’s exact needs and budgets. Programs can be scheduled for one day or multiple days, to ongoing visits. Product solutions include:

• Statistical analysis, in which a complete analysis of press error codes, operating methods, speeds and production numbers are analyzed.
• Evaluation programs for production, workflow, color management, pressroom and press operating procedures with follow-up programs for training needs.
• Training and education designed to meet the needs of customers for optimizing press operation or learning new processes such as UV, plastic, coating and other techniques.
• Machine audits that provide a complete and comprehensive mechanical and electrical press assessment.
• Check and Print one-day quick-check analysis of major press components.
• Remote maintenance with on-going 24/7 online and phone support with operational machine reports and trouble-shooting.
• Relocation programs helping customers with complete stop-to-start relocation planning to optimize their plant workflow and productivity.

Another innovation introduced with the new Service Select program is Service Select Press Upgrades. KBA continually develops new innovations that can be added to a customer’s existing press to ensure competitiveness. These include: Densitronic S: a complete density and spectral color control system; CIP Link: automatic transfer of prepress data for presetting the press; Logotronic Professional: a complete press and plant management information system; and Automatic press systems such as improved wash-up system, faster plate mounting and computerized maintenance programs.

PRINT Show Propositions

manroland, too, upgraded its preventive maintenance offering prior to September’s PRINT show. Its long-standing ProServ platform added another level promoting customer involvement on sheetfed press life cycle management. ProServ Flex is a new preventive maintenance concept that allows sheetfed printers to develop tailor-made programs to fit their exact requirements and prevent downtime. The new PRINTVALUE program features four select options for the company’s entire line of sheetfed offset presses. More than 30 preventive maintenance components assist customers in optimizing the life-cycle costs of press operation.

According to Vince Lapinski, CEO, “Taking the proper maintenance steps will help a press maintain performance long term. The key to ensuring the viability of a manroland press is by maintaining that productive edge and having the ability to spot potential problems long before they occur. That’s what ProServ Flex is designed to do. Any interruption in production can be very costly in this economy. It’s time and money that can’t be recouped.”

Working with a printservices consultant, customers can choose the best program to serve their needs. ProServ programs include the Basic level, as well as Basic Plus, Comfort or Supreme, and now ProServ Flex. Printers have the option of choosing a ready-to-order maintenance program or custom design a program to meet specific press needs.

A ProServ Flex program addresses key functions such as operator training, mechanical and electrical service, maintenance staff training, pressroom workflow optimization and much more. Proactive inspections of the entire press or select components, along with proactive services and analysis to find and settle issues, will help save time and money before production, performance or quality sacrificed by an unexpected failure.

Each of the ProServ Flex agreements is available for the Roland 200E, Roland 300, Roland 500, Roland 700 DirectDrive and Roland 700 Hi-Print, and the Roland 900 and Roland 900 XXL large-format presses. Another advantage is any of the options can be tailored with manroland’s printservices and printcom. Parts and consumables packages offer the preventive maintenance advantages a printer needs, and service parts that will lower operating costs with manroland-approved printcom filters, lubricants, rollers and consumable wear parts.

Service Realigns

Ten months ago, Komori America realigned its service unit to provide greater levels of customer satisfaction. Service administration functions now are centralized in the Rolling Meadows, Ill. headquarters. “By centralizing the administrative responsibilities, we provide our service coordinators with on-site access to our staff engineers and technicians that allow us to speed response times, which is critical to our customers’ success,” said Kosh Miyao, president and COO. Service management and technicians continue to be based regionally.

Third-party Tech

Akin to freelance mechanics vs. car dealers, many printers rely on independent contractors to fix their machinery. This, too, can be good and bad, NAPL’s Prince warned. Find out whether their work is warrantied and if they carry insurance. “Some of these non-factory press mechanics were victims of downsizing,” Prince pointed out, “but others may have been fired for incompetence. So you really need to be careful.” Some are larger and more reputable, such as Independent Graphic Services Inc. (IGS), which specializes in manroland products.

While cars usually can come to mechanics, technicians come to the presses made by Heidelberg, KBA, Komori and manroland. In addition to presses and cars, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries makes a lot of other things—from air conditioners and forklifts to turbo chargers and nuclear energy systems. My father, a WWII Army Air Corps veteran, was quick to point out that the Japanese conglomerate makes a darn solid airplane, too. He was a GM/Buick man who never bought a “foreign job,” but he’d smile knowing that my Galant is still chugging along nearly a decade after its model year. From my garage floor to the pressroom floor and wherever else there are moving parts, lubrication is key.

It isn’t every day that a printer reaches a production milestone like 300 million or even 400 million impressions on a single press. The life span of a sheetfed press can run anywhere between 150 million and 600 million impressions, Prince noted. “I know a web offset printer who got 900 million good impressions from one press,” he reported. So who says maintenance costs? In the long run, it pays!

Based near Chicago, Mark Vruno is a business writer who has reported on the commercial print industry for more than 20 years. Most recently, he was executive editor of Graphic Arts Monthly magazine. E-mail him at [email protected].

An Ounce of Prevention ...

Preventative maintenance has proven to increase production, decrease downtime, reduce repair costs, improve the quality of finished product and prolong the life expectancy of wearable items, reports Mitsubishi. Many of the program items listed, if left unattended, usually produce undesirable results at the most inopportune time.

MLP U.S.A.’s Press Support Services sends a Mechanical Field Supervisor to customer sites four consecutive days during each of the scheduled quarterly visits per year, performing service on all sections. The annual cost per machine is $34,680. (During each visit, a general inspection of all parts related to each listed part also is performed, the manufacturer notes.)

1. Feeder Section

1. Feeder drive chains
2. Rotary valve timing and function.
3. Drive wheel tension, timing, and function.
4. Side guide timings and function.
5. Feed table belt tension and function.
6. Feeder pile platform motor brake gap and function.
7. Rietschle/Becker pump vane dimensions.

2. Register Section

1. Swing gripper settings and function.
2. Clean and set 1st transfer cylinder grippers.
3. Sheet pass linkage settings and function.
4. Sheet pass cam and cam follower.
5. Proximity cam timings.
6. Frontlay cams and cam followers.
7. Frontlay timings and function.

3. Printing Unit Section

1. Inspect each gripper shaft cam follower and replace where necessary. **NUTR204 cam followers would be replaced for a cost of $99 per piece.
2. Inspect dampener gears.
3. Oscillating rollers, cam followers, and races.

4. Coater Section

1. Applicator roller linkage and function.
2. Air piston integrity and function.

5. Delivery Section

1. Delivery chain tension.
2. Chain gripper settings and function.
3. Inspect each chain gripper cam follower, and replace where necessary. **Cam follower per piece price dependent upon Mitsubishi press model.
4. Delivery chain automatic oiler settings and function.
5. Platform pile motor brake gap and function.
6. Inspect Rietschle/Becker pump vanes if applicable

6. Overall Condition

Six hrs. of time would be allotted per visit to diagnose mechanical issues reported which are not listed under each section

Fixed Price Press Inspection
MLP U.S.A. also offers a full-day press inspection that includes all print and operational functions for a one-time cost of $1,500. One of their field supervisors will explain the inspection process, perform the inspection and provide a comprehensive report that details the findings, identifying any areas that may deserve “watch” status or might require future attention. This service applies to all Mitsubishi presses of any model, age or configuration.