Independent Can Racks Up Productivity and Quality Control with Esko’s Automation Engine 10 | Package Design

Independent Can Racks Up Productivity and Quality Control with Esko’s Automation Engine 10 | Package Design

Posted: July 26, 2012 by

Package Design Reader

World leader in the manufacture of specialty tins uses Esko’s advanced workflow server to streamline workflows, increase throughput and efficiency, and tackle complex design and prepress files — while controlling quality

Maryland-based Independent Can (http://www.independentcan.com)  has migrated from the Nexus platform workflow to Esko’s advanced server workflow, Automation Engine 10, streamlining its operation, reducing errors, and automating prepress tasks for dramatic increases in productivity.

Founded in 1929, Independent Can is a world leader in the manufacturing of specialty decorative tins and metal lithography. Its product line has grown from the wholesaling of large cans for fresh and refrigerated foods to an extensive array of items serving a wide variety of markets, including custom-printed cookie, candy and popcorn tins. To uphold its company mission, “To be the best, not the biggest,” the company follows an unhurried and well-thought out plan of continuous investment and innovation.

Independent Can’s prepress department processes approximately 960 files annually, for printing on the shop’s KBA Metal Star six-color press with Trail UV Coater, the only one of its kind in the United States, or its Metal Star II four-color UV press. With two high-speed presses continually ready for action, time to market shrinking, and design files becoming increasingly complex, the need for a more robust yet simplified prepress workflow became apparent.

Automation Engine 10, the backbone of Esko’s Suite 10 packaging and print pre-production software, answered the call. The prepress server, installed at Independent Can in March 2011, provides high-level quality control and increased throughput and efficiency, simplifying the entire file management process and delivering extensive automation for job tracking and prepress functions.  Pre-setting of repetitive tasks, such as trapping and step-and-repeat, result in reduced operator manual control and reduced errors.

Simplifying workflows

“Previously, we were using around 10-12 different workflows—we had workflows for proofing, plating, an initial importing workflow and ArtPro workflows,” says Tim Downey, Prepress Manager, Independent Can. “Now, we have one workflow that we use to output a proof and for dielines; it also generates a low-res PDF for archiving. The workflow is user interactive, asking ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions. ‘Should I output proof? A dieline?’ The user just answers the questions and the workflow does the rest—it’s all automated.”

A main challenge (with Nexus) was that certain tasks required prepress operators to go back and forth between native Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop files and ArtPro, increasing the amount of time to complete a job as well as the possibility of mistakes being made. With designers building more intricate files with assorted complex elements, not being able to work in the native file became an issue—like when building the transparency of the image to take advantage of the substrate’s (metal) reflectivity.

“When files were taken from Adobe® Illustrator® and Photoshop® and brought into Nexus, the system would choke and wouldn’t recognize some of the filters that were being applied,” explains Downey.  “With Automation Engine 10, we can stay in native Adobe applications.”

Remaining in the Adobe family also saves time when sending files to customers. “There are lots of times customers want a working Illustrator file sent back,” notes Downey. “Before, we would convert the Illustrator file to an ArtPro PDF file, and then export an Illustrator file out of ArtPro. Doing that in ArtPro, we would lose preference settings of the file; there wasn’t a smooth transition for getting the working file to the customer. Now we just send the PDF and a normalized file, and we don’t have to go in and out of Illustrator.”

Managing files streamlined

The entire process of managing files is now very streamlined, as job organization and data management tools allow for fast location of product status and data throughout the prepress workflow. “We are able to keep everything pertaining to the job right there,” says Downey. “We no longer put paper in job jackets—we’re all digital now. All the information relating to the job is in the folder, and anyone in the department can find out what they need to know.”

The process of normalizing PDFs is also much more efficient. When the file was rasterizing through Nexus, depending on the file complexity or size, it could take upwards of an hour to travel through the workflow. With the file now staying in Illustrator or as a PDF, it takes between 30 seconds to a minute to normalize.  “It’s not quite instantaneous, but it’s about as close as you can get to it,” says Downey.

Trapping, too, has become simplified running Automation Engine 10. “We did upgrade the server that was running Nexus before we bought Automation Engine 10, but it didn't fix a lot of the problems,” notes Downey. “We deal with a lot of agencies and they get as creative as possible and the files are pretty complex. The trapper would have problems; it wouldn’t know what to do with some areas. So we would have to delete what the program did and manually do it. Now, it’s all automatic, and instead of it taking us 20 minutes to trap a file, it’s done in 2-3 minutes. Occasionally we edit that traps, but 85% of the time it traps just fine.”

Mistake-free production

Automation Engine 10’s extensive quality control tools allow the prepress department to run “an environment that is more mistake-free,” says Downey. The Viewer module lets the prepress operators find errors early in the workflow—95% of mistakes are caught ahead of time. “We can compare the customer-supplied file to the one we are working with, making sure all the corrections are applied,” Downey explains.

Automation Engine 10’s automated imposition or step-and-repeat reduces the need to prepare impositions manually. “We used to manually step-and-repeat in ArtPro,” recalls Downey. “Now we take the engineering drawing, type in the stepping data, get a ticket and it is automatically stepped. When setting up a job it takes about a minute to enter the data; if it’s a difficult job it takes another four minutes — if it’s a one-color job maybe it takes 30 seconds. All told, a job usually takes under 5 minutes; it used to take us 20 minutes. Also, we are making fewer mistakes, because we are catching them earlier during set-up, before we step-and-repeat.”

Since the Automation Engine 10 implementation, everything is faster, says Downey. “We are trapping faster, stepping faster,” he says. “We have no paper trail—instead of spending time looking for paper we are double-clicking on a folder to find info. It all adds up.”

Job turnaround times have been reduced by a full day, from five days to four, and even the most complex projects are running smoother. “A couple of times a year we receive a job from a high-profile customer,” notes Downey. “The job always choked on Nexus—it would take days to get fixes to run through. We just completed 5 jobs for them, and were able to stay in Illustrator to build the files. There were no issues—it all went very smoothly.”

Looking ahead, Downey hopes to be able to take advantage of Automation Engine 10’s advanced JDF-based MIS integration capabilities, tying in the company’s administrative systems and prepress production for an even more efficient process. Independent Can is not at that stage—yet. “We know Automation Engine 10 is MIS capable, but our company’s MIS software is not,” says Downey. But, we're ready whenever the company makes that move. Automation Engine 10 has simplified our workflow, and offered us another QC element to rely on. We’re able to manages jobs and files a lot more efficiently.”

About Esko (www.esko.com/)

Esko is a global supplier of integrated solutions for packaging, sign and display finishing, commercial printing and professional publishing. Esko products and services help customers raise productivity, reduce time-to-market, lower costs and expand business and improve profitability.

Portfolio

Esko is the worldwide market leader with software for artwork creation, structural design, pre-production, workflow automation, quality assurance and online collaboration. Esko solutions support and manage the packaging and print processes at brand owners, retailers, designers and packaging manufacturers.

CDI flexo computer-to-plate imagers and Kongsberg digital finishing systems complete the portfolio for the packaging, label, signage and display industries.

Enfocus, with its suite of PDF tools for graphic designers and print production professionals, is part of Esko.

Facts & numbers

Esko employs around 1200 people worldwide. Its direct sales and service organization covers Europe, the Americas and the Asia Pacific region, completed by a network of distribution partners in more than 50 countries.

Esko is headquartered in Gent, Belgium, and has R&D and manufacturing facilities in five European countries, the United States, China and India. 

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TIN STAGES A COMEBACK

Below you will find excerpts from Tin Stages a comeback. An article by written by James  Krouse

"Metal packaging, at one time, dominated store shelves. From cans to metal tins, the packaging was durable, protected goods from being crushed, and sealed in freshness. While cans have remained a staple of practical packaging, metal tins were relegated largely to occasional holiday container for cookies. Today, however, metal tins have seen a bounce back due to some of the inherent advantages of the material as well as unique applications leveraging its advantages to redefine entire product arenas.

Package designers and brand owners can take advantage of tinplate's unique packaging properties taking a cue from innovative applications that range from cat nip to software to adult entertainment products. Manufacturers can help along the way to help designers realize the full benefits of this time-tested form of packaging.

Unique appeal

In most retail product categories, tinplate is such a unique packaging material that it automatically gains attention. Often, this can rejuvenate not only a brand but an entire product category. The famous tin for Altoids mints is a good example. Although the tin package was used for the product since the 1920s, it was widely introduced in the U.S. in the 1980s and the unique metal tin along with a quirky ad campaign quickly launched the product into widespread success. Today, dozens of product categories are taking advantage of the "something different" factor in metal.

Cosmetics and personal care products are another good example of a product category that is taking advantage of the unique properties of metal. 

"Gourmet foods are still, by far, our largest product category," says Neil DeFrancisco, v.p. of sales at the Independent Can Company (www.independentcan.com) in Maryland. "Retailers in any sector are looking to get the most bang for their buck out of shrinking shelf space and demands for less packaging from retailers. Tin packaging can provide that quite well." 

 There are a number of applications that take full advantage of metal's unique look on store shelves. Bosch, for example, has launched a new line of handheld, cordless power shears in a custom metal tin. The container features an irregular, tube-like shape decorated in light green and silver.

Life after purchase

While many designers may be focused on leveraging metal's properties for initial sale, most manufactures point out that consumers often consider the use of a package in their home. A Google image search under "Altoids Tins," for example, reveals a huge trend in reuse for the package for everything from storing paper clips to creating custom MP3 players and portable speakers.

The reusability factor is a plus for brands looking to extend their image, promote the longevity of a product, and to give consumers an option of not throwing away a package.

Package uses and reuses also play into concern for the environment. As retailers and consumers call for less packaging, metal packaging is answering the call. The material is 100% recyclable, over and over, and recycled metal uses less energy to process than new metal does. Design flexibility can also impact the environment, as Independent Can's DeFrancisco points out. "We're seeing more and more requests for tapered designs of metal buckets which can be nested during transportation before they are filled, " says DeFrancisco. "A small change like this can reduce fuel and other transportation costs."

Challenges and benefits

For many designers, working with metal for the first time can present some challenges in execution and changes in thinking. Color, for example, plays differently on metal as opposed to paper.

"The PMS guidelines are based on paper and come out much darker on metal," says DeFrancisco. "We can do several things to accommodate for this effect, but there is a learning curve for designers. In addition, designers often don't know about all that is available to them with metal. We can selectively print a background color so the natural color of metal shows through or use a variety of varnishes in combination to highlight a design. "

In addition, tinplate can be manufactured with different properties to enhance a design such a pebbly textured varnish that is often used in combination with a printed label. There are so many possibilities with tins that most manufacturers point out that working with the material is more of an art than a science.

"We can do so much in the way of varnish combinations and coatings on the same package, " says Neil DeFrancisco. "That, in combination with embossing and printing, can really make a brand pop. We employ people who work with designers to help them achieve their vision but also leverage everything that tinplate packaging has to offer. For many designers, it's like working with a brand new medium even though it's been around for hundreds of years."

Getting back to basics

Tinplate packaging has been, for years, a staple of holiday cookies and candies, and although this form of packaging has clearly evolved to other applications, some of its basic benefits still apply.

Neil DeFrancisco points out that, although there are some new technologies they still build on the basic benefits of metal packaging. "We've seen the advent of six color printing and we're seeing concentric dot technology that can produce nearly 300 dpi print clarity, but many of the basic features of the metal like shaping, embossing, and varnishes are really new for designers in many markets, " Neil DeFrancisco explains."

Excerpts quoted from the original article written by James Krouse. James Krouse served as a consultant and writer for the packaging and printing industry for the past 10 years, covering package design for food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, and a wide range of retail goods