This is a fast paced world, often with the slimmest of margins. Too many mistakes can spell disaster. In the past there were press passes and sign offs on hard copy proofs. Everybody was clear about their place in the process. And we had the luxury of time. All that has disappeared with the growth of digital workflows, the internet and print standards to aspire to if not adhere to. The online approval of a PDF, all too often using an inadequate screen in a totally inappropriate setting, is now the accepted way of working. In order to achieve the prices and the turnaround required, we have to trust the technology, the software and our own processes.
As the number of jobs processed per day rises, processes are put under extreme pressures. If there are weak links, today’s way of working will break them. If there are parts of the process that have been changed, to accommodate a new piece of equipment or in response to new breakeven points between litho and digital print say, the risk that follows when the system buckles is greater still. Or perhaps something has been going wrong because of incorrect assumptions and nothing is spotted until the end of the week, month or quarter.
More than ever companies need to know what is going on in the business, and what should be going on in the business. Workflow and MIS software (and increasing the two slide over each other) should allow the tracking of individual jobs, but does not necessarily record what has happened when something goes wrong, nor what was done to put it right. This knowledge capture of the processes and changes in place is essential for the continual smooth running of any operation. On the spot adjustments are noted so that they can be checked later before becoming part of the process bible for the business. Many companies will stress test their machinery to understand where it is liable to break down and under what conditions. The same approach is needed for digital workflows. The alternative is the sort of heart attack that may prove fatal.
The need to avoid the modern cardiac arrest
This is a fast paced world, often with the slimmest of margins. Too many mistakes can spell disaster. In the past there were press passes and sign offs on hard copy proofs. Everybody was clear about their place in the process. And we had the luxury of time. All that has disappeared with the growth of digital workflows, the internet and print standards to aspire to if not adhere to. The online approval of a PDF, all too often using an inadequate screen in a totally inappropriate setting, is now the accepted way of working. In order to achieve the prices and the turnaround required, we have to trust the technology, the software and our own processes.
As the number of jobs processed per day rises, processes are put under extreme pressures. If there are weak links, today’s way of working will break them. If there are parts of the process that have been changed, to accommodate a new piece of equipment or in response to new breakeven points between litho and digital print say, the risk that follows when the system buckles is greater still. Or perhaps something has been going wrong because of incorrect assumptions and nothing is spotted until the end of the week, month or quarter.
More than ever companies need to know what is going on in the business, and what should be going on in the business. Workflow and MIS software (and increasing the two slide over each other) should allow the tracking of individual jobs, but does not necessarily record what has happened when something goes wrong, nor what was done to put it right. This knowledge capture of the processes and changes in place is essential for the continual smooth running of any operation. On the spot adjustments are noted so that they can be checked later before becoming part of the process bible for the business. Many companies will stress test their machinery to understand where it is liable to break down and under what conditions. The same approach is needed for digital workflows. The alternative is the sort of heart attack that may prove fatal.
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