Every year we see new innovations that help businesses to get more out of their existing investments. More often than not, the focus is on the front end or on consumables management. Rarely is the actual press performance monitored. That’s all changed with SpencerMetrics, a new technology from SpencerLabs.
This American company has a long pedigree in digital color imaging for publishing and production. The company’s focus has been primarily on benchmark testing and marketing support consultancy for manufacturers. It has focused on research investigating ways to improve print quality and help digital press owners get the most out of their equipment. Much of this work has been based on qualitative and quantitative product comparisons and evaluation services, as well as testing software and hardware combinations.
SpencerMetrics was developed initially to provide a tool that would allow SpencerLabs’ consultants ‘to compare productivity between presses from different manufacturers’ on behalf of a client.
Origins
SpencerLabs’ founder David Spencer and his team wanted a methodology that would help them to figure out how to monitor and quantify press productivity in a more nuanced way than measuring output or uptime. What they came up with has been developed into a standalone product that provides value to printers by monitoring press performance.
The initial work was to compare a Xerox iGen4’s performance with that of an HP Indigo 7000, plus three other digital presses. The testing was done at commercial installations in order to help Xerox to better understand competing technologies in the highend digital press market. They wanted objective performance metrics on the HP Indigo series and subsequently machines from Ricoh, Canon and Konica Minolta. The testing was done using real live commercial printing installations.
SpencerMetrics applied
The initial SpencerLabs’ metrics covered a range of criteria and were used to identify technological limitations or areas where something looked like it was in need of fixing. For instance, a press that was requiring service for 11% of the time was out of commission during service, so it was costing time and money not only for the press owner, but also for the manufacturer in service engineers. The analysis showed that it was only down for maintenance 2% of the time, suggesting that the two may be related.
Another performance metric is the time taken to change consumables. One operator was spending 8.4% of his time changing consumables, which seemed high and suggested some internal logistics or training problem. When looking at results, David Spencer explains, “This data, points out where productive press time is wasted. When we look at nonproductive time we can see issues.”
A couple of printers tested were given the opportunity to revamp their procedures and revisited after a few months. In the example above, the numbers improved – more time was spent on maintenance (5%); the time taken to change consumables dropped to 4.4%; and there were more frequent in-house repairs and parts changes. The press was also up far longer, with print time rising to 64.1%, up from 93 hours to 103 hours (out of the total of about 161 hours the press was not idle).
Another installation saw a productivity gain of 8%. These improvements required no dramatic process changes however, because the print site managers understood what was happening around the press, they could make small changes that helped them to get a lot more out of their investment. SpencerMetrics allows constant measurement of a range of performance criteria that printers and manufacturers can use to monitor performance over time. Manufacturers can also see how needy a particular site is in terms of its service needs.
How SpencerMetrics works
Initially SpencerMetrics required the press operator to manually record performance information with a pencil and paper. This information was then transferred to a spreadsheet for analysis, which worked fine for a one-off project but was crying out for automation. So SpencerLabs decided to simplify the implementation of its methodology with more automated data capture, analysis and presentation tools. It created a web application that could be displayed in a browser and accessed anywhere. It also adapted an iPad mini, turning off all of its normal functions, so that it is only a browser dedicated to capturing individual press data and transferring it to the SpencerLabs cloud. Any web browser (computer, tablet, smartphone) can link to the analytics.
Each press has its own URL and a password sign in, so ten presses have ten data capture terminals with individual, automatic sign-ins. This seems a bit expensive, but it eliminates the need for operators handling multiple presses to have to keep signing in and identifying the press they are reporting on.
Access is immediate and ubiquitous and is recorded on the SpencerLabs server with the data only stored and analysed in the cloud. Different customers have different needs so there are various customizable presentation options. The SpencerMetrics interface designers have tested their system with the Printing Industry of America (PIA) and other operators and made sure that the interface is designed for minimal actions on each criteria button. This makes the system very easy and convenient to use and takes operators very little time to enter data. It took us about 12 minutes to get through the 18 query screens, and that included interruptions to ask questions throughout the demonstration. A press operator with no distractions will take far less time to get through the various categories.
The software measures a variety of factors including time taken for printing, repair, setup, consumables, start up (with start plus start and change paper, in case the required paper is not to hand), service, waiting (when a press cannot print because it is warming up after a period of inactivity, RIP’ing a large variable data job, and more), paper jams, print proof, print waste, maintenance, quality, repairs and idle (when the press has no jobs to print, when it is held up because it’s waiting for supplies, approval, an operator to come off break or finishing information).
Analysis of these datasets can show where operational workflow weaknesses lie, for instance the frequency and duration of consumable changes or service calls. It allows owners to compare a press’s performance over different shifts to measure shift productivity, for instance, with or without idle time. It can also compare time frames and costs for a machine, before and after optimizing procedures.
Answering a simple question
SpencerMetrics allows a press owner to answer the basic question of whether or not press uptime can be improved to keep the press as productive as possible. Of course, this is possible but achieving it depends on having a starting point. SpencerMetrics is a tool printers can use to provide a starting point based on real performance data. It collects information beyond what one would expect with a Management Information System (MIS) and is a complimentary system. An MIS generally picks up information while jobs are running, whereas SpencerMetrics functions independently of the MIS to gather data while jobs are not running as well.
A comment trail on all screens is an additional means of improving performance. For instance, if a machine is waiting the operator can add information about why a machine is waiting, such as for RIP’ing or for the press to warm up. This comment trail can include information that helps to identify cause and effect for downtimes. For manufacturers this is useful as part of remote diagnostics routines for preventative maintenance, or for up-selling services such as color management training, either to printers or their customers. SpencerMetrics has all sorts of possibilities, as David Spencer says, “This is an industry where referral is important so there’s a lot of reasons why manufacturers should like this”.
The software is also a means of tracking press behaviour; it generates useful information for manufacturers as well as printing companies. We can see all sorts of benefits from being a handy tool for operators and management, to guiding new feature requirements for developers. SpencerMetrics can provide performance data that explains the reasons for reduced productivity. The software provides insurance with a tangible and valuable record for operators and press owners. This is very handy if they get into a dispute with manufacturers.
Metrics and data that provide productivity intelligence has all sorts of extended applications. SpencerLabs has developed a module called Vantage that can compare data across sites. It includes analyze and compare modes to compare groups of presses with other groups at different locations, or with single machines, or for individual machines within a group. The analysis tools for daily data sets can be compared over different timelines to identify different patterns in behaviours and performance.
SpencerMetrics is available from SpencerLabs or from the company’s French distributor DPI4U. Costs start at US$ 295 or 295 Euro a month and the technology can be used for monochrome or color, sheet or webfed, toner or inkjet, analogue or digital machines. This is cheap insurance for manufacturers and press owners alike and an ideal tool for getting the most out of press investments.
