Workflow
KODAK helps to turn a challenge in the desert into UAEs most automated and largest printer
Thursday 06. November 2008 - KODAK NEWSMANAGER Workflow System and KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS 200 Thermal Platesetter complete groundbreaking Dubai print plant
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the world’s fastest developing countries and its competitive business environment offers big rewards to those who can keep up with its pace while delivering excellence.
ww
Masar Printing and Publishing in Dubai – the printing arm of Dubai’s Arab Media Group (AMG) – is a perfect example of a company which has taken the opportunities, and reaped the benefits of UAEs expanding print industry.
The company was already a major player in the countrys print market. In less than 12 months it had grown to supply a substantial slice of the UAE’s contractual newspaper and commercial print jobs due to its commitment to high standards and sound investment in machinery and manpower. But it wanted to further capitalize on the soaring print demands of Dubais growing businesses and the many multinationals based there.
With this in mind, the company set out to complete an in-house commercial and newspaper printing arm comparable with the world’s best printers in terms of infrastructure and quality – all within one year.
After drawing up a prepress equipment procurement plan for its newspaper division at the beginning of 2007, the company undertook an extensive 40-day technical tour of Europe’s leading print houses to witness the best prepress, press and post-press equipment in action. It then conducted an in-depth investigation of all the available workflow solutions, digital front-end systems and outputting equipment including CTP and proofing solutions that would enable efficient use of space whilst delivering quality and optimum productivity.
Its in-depth research led the company to set up its new newspaper operations around Kodaks turnkey prepress solutions which included the KODAK TRENDSETTER NEWS 200 Thermal Platesetter – a pioneering choice for a region dominated until now by violet platesetting technology. Samer Abdel Qader, Prepress manager at Masar, explains why the company made this decision.
“Although violet technology based platesetters stood out for being well-accepted by most newspaper printers in this region, we spotted a very interesting development in Europe and the West. Here, the trend in the newspaper industry was shifting rapidly towards thermal imaging systems.”
Recognizing this technologys potential to give Masar a commercial advantage, Abdel Qader approached Kodak as an acknowledged leader in the field.
“Although Kodak did not have a local presence in the lower Gulf, we were very satisfied with the strong technical support Kodak did, and still do, provide,” he says. “Our decision to invest in Kodak products was based, above all, in the technology’s world-class reputation and promising future.”
Masar purchased two fully automated TRENDSETTER NEWS 200 Thermal Platesetters, fitted with state-of-the-art Nela VCP Evolution plate-bending and stacking systems. Armed with their new KODAK Platesetters, the company expects to reduce process variation with accurate and consistent platemaking, reach target color densities faster and with consistent imaging, and enable both heat-set and cold-set printing with high-quality KODAK SQUARESPOT Imaging Technology.
In its quest to establish new standards of quality in the Gulf region, Masar raised the bar even further by converting from AM to FM screening.
“We were keen to introduce FM KODK STACCATO Screening for the newspaper print applications and thereby become the first newspaper printer in the region to print on heat-set as well as cold-set applications using FM screening technology on a daily basis,” says Abdel Qader.
After a series of calibration tests, Masar successfully implemented 25-micron FM and 36-micron FM screening for heat-set and cold-set newspaper print applications, respectively. Abdel Qader describes this innovative application as “an excellent proposition in achieving high-quality printing while simultaneously boosting ink mileage.”
The well-planned installation helped his team to make the transition from AM to FM screening go smoothly without complications.
“The issue with FM screening was that for many years print-minders had become used to AM screening technology for controlling ink-zoning manually,” says Abdel Qader. “However, with the implementation of CIP3, they are now able to achieve the desired result on the substrate with minimal human intervention. Together with the use of KODAK STACCATO Screening, we can now get a much finer and well-controlled halftone dot and reduce our ink consumption.”
Masar automated and integrated its prepress operations further by installing the full-option KODAK NEWSMANAGER Workflow System, so that the whole pre-press process of laying-out, page-paring, RIPing and platesetting could operate with maximum efficiency and reliability in an automated, hands-free environment. Abdel Qader feels that by investing in KODAK equipment for both prepress and workflow, his team can benefit from relying on one service team to troubleshoot if necessary.
With complete confidence in this service support and in the exceptional technology of its KODAK Solutions, Masar is aiming to benchmark its output – which, from the beginning of 2009, will include both commercial and digital print – against that of the finest printers anywhere in the world.
“We have no doubt this investment will allow us to convert our experience and skills into world-leading quality and productivity,” says Abdel Qader. “For us, Kodak’s acquisition of big names in prepress and digital printing has been an extremely promising development and allowed us to start a journey that will surely be continued in the future.”
KODAK Products are backed by KODAK Service and Support. KODAK Service and Support is made up of more than 3,000 professionals reaching more than 120 countries. It is a leading multi-vendor integrated services provider, delivering consulting, installation, maintenance and support services for the commercial printing, graphic communications, document imaging and data storage industries. KODAK Service and Support professionals are uniquely qualified to provide services that control costs, maximize productivity, and minimize business risk.