Virtual Printing. Real Results. Sheetfed and Web Offset Press Simulators for Interactive Learning

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1 Virtual Printing Real Results Sheetfed and Web Offset Press Simulators for Interactive Learning

2 The aviation industry uses them Medical professionals use them Now, training simulators are available for the printing industry. Training Simulator Software Press training simulators reproduce a wide variety of printing conditions and problems that can be used for training, assessment, and performance enhancement. The press simulators remarkably recreate press operations, even to the extent of printing the same jobs that are in your pressroom. Through computer simulation, SheetSim SHOTS (Sheetfed Offset Training Simulator) mimics sheetfed operations, from the feeder through delivery, while WebSim Heatset recreates the operational aspects of a heatset web press, from the reelstand to folder. The process is so effective that many of its users feel that they are virtually printing. The only difference is that there are no paper, ink, or press costs. Why Use Simulators? Simulators provide a realistic experience of operating a press without press and consumables costs, as well as safety and environmental issues. In the Workplace Trainees are presented with situations that one wouldn t want to deliberately create on a real press and could take months to experience in the normal course of press operation. Simulators reinforce the relationship between operator actions and costs simulator users are constantly aware of how many virtual dollars they ve spent during an exercise, and their performance can be rated based on this. In Schools The interactivity and immediate feedback from using simulators is particularly appealing to students. Educators are able to give students the experience of printing on a full-featured commercial 2-, 4- or 6-color press without the need for floor space and significantly lower capital investment, no consumables costs, lower maintenance costs, and no environmental and safety concerns. SheetSim SHOTS

3 The Benefits of Using a Simulator The SheetSim SHOTS and WebSim Heatset simulators are flexible, practical, and easy to use, making them versatile for several applications. 1. Training Simulation-based learning improves skills without incurring equipment risk and cost of press time and materials. It is the only way to give staff hands-on experience without the cost and risks of running the press. The simulator puts its operator in production situations where unexpected problems arise. The operator is led to solve them by developing his or her analytical and decision -making abilities, ultimately experiencing the results. All press interactions are automatically tracked to assess training results against targets. Both simulators come with hundreds of preprogrammed exercises that can be easily integrated with in-house training activities to strengthen understanding and increase knowledge retention. Simulator exercises are already part of Printing Industries of America s Press Training Programs, ideal for companies in need of structured press training. It is also easy to create custom exercises with your own press problems. 2. Assessment Simulators provide a standard method of assessment, taking some of the guesswork out of hiring, placement, and promotion. They can be used to evaluate a potential new employee or to determine where to place a new employee in the pressroom. They can also evaluate existing employees who are being considered for a promotion, new position, or new training. 3. Productivity The primary reason for capital investment in a new press is to generate more revenue by increasing productivity. However, achieving productivity targets depends upon the competence of press crews. New press start-ups are much easier if crews use simulators prior to installation, particularly for high-speed presses with remote console operation. At the end of each exercise, the simulator automatically calculates the real on-press time and real on-press dollars your actions would have cost. Costs like film, plates, blankets, roller changes, paper, and press time are all taken into account. You may even enter what these procedures cost on your own press to make the simulator better reflect your specific press conditions. WebSim Heatset Hundreds of printing facilities and training organizations in more than three dozen countries benefit by using SheetSim SHOTS and WebSim Heatset simulators. Visit and for a listing of the many organizations using it in North America.

4 Customization Every pressroom is unique. The simulators allow you to add your own set of problems to better tailor programs to your specific printing needs. Create pressroom exercises that resemble problems from your plant by altering variables with just a click. Mimic Actual Jobs While simulators come with preprogrammed print jobs, trainers have the freedom to input their own print jobs. Having your press operators train on the jobs that they run makes it much more realistic. Change the Paper Change the substrate to reflect a particular job in your plant. Choose between uncoated, matte coated, and gloss coated, lbs. Density, Dot Gain, and Ink and Water Settings SheetSim SHOTS and WebSim Heatset allow you to adjust the press settings in several areas to mirror internal or industry standards. For example, if your standard magenta density is 1.35, the reference value on the simulated proof can reflect this. Similarly, the 50% and 75% patches on the color bar of the proof can be set up to measure the dot gain numbers your operators should be targeting in the pressroom. Create your own simulated print jobs. Here we re printing a photo of workshop attendees. Notice the print problem that showed up during makeready. Using the simulator SheetSim-SHOTS can be set up as a two-or six-unit press, printing up to six colors Compare the print copy against the proof. Problems can be set for different skill levels. The magnifier shows the extent of our misregister

5 Costs in Your Plant At the end of each exercise, the simulator automatically calculates the real on-press time and real on-press dollars your press operator s actions would have cost. Costs like film, plates, blankets, roller changes, paper, and valuable press time are all taken into account. You can even enter what these procedures cost on your own press to make the simulator better reflect your specific press conditions. Information on Your Presses and SOPs The multimedia capability of the simulators allows instructors to incorporate video clips, press illustrations, and other information that teach about your presses and procedures. For example, upon accessing one of the SheetSim SHOTS printing units, your press operators would be able to read your company s standard operating procedures for changing a plate or even watch a video of the plate being changed properly at your facility on your equipment. Customize your SheetSim SHOTS simulator by adding photos and video clips. Here we ve added a video showing the steps to mount a plate. The manual densitometer is used to check density, dot gain, and trap. A scanning densitometer and spectrophotometer are also available. All press components can be checked and adjusted. Here we ve verified the correct blanket tension. Has the problem been solved? An acceptable match will cause the good copy counter to start. Notice the money that has been spent to solve this problem.

6 SheetSim SHOTS and WebSim Heatset simulators are designed to provide operators with a realistic press experience. The controls and press adjustments on the simulators mirror, as much as generic presses can, the operation of any of the presses from major press manufacturers. Print Quality Problems That Can Be Demonstrated Blistering Bounce marks Dog ears and tears Doubling Fan out Fiber puff Fluting Folds canted/shifted Gear marks/streaks Ghosting Hickeys Scratch marks Scuffing Scumming Setoff Silicon marks Slurring Streaking Tinting Tone value increase (dot gain) Uneven ink coverage Wrinkling Water marks Mechanical and Material Problems That Can Be Demonstrated Blanket incorrectly manufactured Blanket tacky and/or dirty Blanket tension incorrect Cracked inking/dampening rollers Crooked sheet Dirty delivery Double-sheet detector not working Dried ink/paper on plate/blanket/ rollers Emergency press stop/press crash Folder jam Glazed rollers Grippers improperly set Ink piling Paper moisture content too high/low Pickup and transport rollers worn Plate blinding Plate improperly mounted Plate poorly made due to vacuum, exposure, or developer Relative humidity and pressroom temperature too high/low Roller pressures too high/low Rollers not parallel Sheet slow-down device not working properly Smashed blanket Speed of the dampening metering roller/ink pan roller high/low Wavy-edged paper Web break Wrong paper type Possible Press Adjustments Amount of dampening solution concentrate and alcohol substitute Back cylinder pressure Change plates/blankets Chill roll speed Clean plates/blankets/rollers Cutoff register Dampening recirculation tank temperature Dampening roller pressures and parallel Dryer Feeder mechanism Folder Fountain level Gripper settings and maintenance Ink roller pressures and parallel Ink color/tack/viscosity Ink keys Jogger settings ph of dampening solution Paper stacking Pile height and alignment Plate color/screen angles Plate/blanket packing Press speed Print units on/off Reelstand Relative humidity and temperature in the pressroom Registration Remake plate Roller oscillation Sheet separation Side lay and side guide Spray powder amount Speed of the dampening metering roller/ink pan roller Press Tools Available Hand-held densitometer to measure density, dot gain, and trapping Scanning densitometer to measure density and dot gain Spectrophotometer to measure Lab, LCh, and Delta E 8 viewing loupe 50 viewing loupe Glossmeter WebSim Heatset only SheetSim SHOTS only

7 Frequently Asked Hardware/Software Questions What are the hardware requirements and options? Hardware Requirements (as of July 2010): Multimedia PC* Minimum Recommended CPU Intel Pentium 4 2GHz (or equivalent) Intel Core 3GHz+ (or equivalent) RAM 1GB 4GB Hard Disk 10GB 100+GB Monitor 17 Two 21 LCD Windows XP/Vista/7 XP/Vista/7 Mouse + Sound Standard Standard DVD drive Required Required Graphics 32 MB Video Memory Dual Monitor Video card with 128 MB Memory *not supported on Mac Why are two monitors better than one? With the twin monitor setup, the user can see the press console and print units on one monitor and the print copy on the second monitor. If only one screen is hooked up, the user must click on the stack to see the print copy. The display of the print copy then occupies the screen until the user asks to return to the press console/print unit view. To use the twin monitor configuration, you will need a second monitor and either a second graphics card or a twin-monitor card. A three-monitor setup is ideal with WebSim Heatset so that the additional monitor displays the folded signature. Can I install my simulator on multiple computers? Licensing for use on multiple computers is available. The software requires an activation key (or dongle) in order to run. A network version of the key is available when the extended support contract is purchased. The network key enables any computer on the LAN to run the simulator (the software must be loaded on each computer). The number of computers that can run the simulator simultaneously depends on the number of licenses purchased. Can the simulator be customized to look like my press? The press graphics in SheetSim SHOTS show a generic press and console, not a particular press brand or model. It is currently not possible to change the graphics. WebSim Heatset, on the other hand, offers two graphic interfaces to choose from for the press console: generic and manroland PECOM. The next version of WebSim Heatset will include a Goss M-600 simulator with Omnicon console. Can students train independently on simulators? Yes. Once they have passed the introductory level, they can train unaccompanied. However, a key to success is regular review sessions to identify problems, monitor progress, and maintain motivation. The Simulator User Workbook explains to trainees and students how the simulator works and contains exercises that make them familiar with different operational aspects. Printouts of each simulator session Print out trace files of every action a trainee took to solve an exercise. This shows the bottom-line information. are available for the trainer to review the progress (time, waste, cost) and working paths of each trainee/student. What support options are available? Six months of technical support and free software upgrades automatically come with the purchase of a simulator. Companies and schools have the option of purchasing an extended three-year support contract. Is training provided? Printing Industries of America conducts a two-day training program at our Training Center in Pittsburgh several times each year. Topics covered include how to operate the simulator, create exercises, and import press sheets. New purchasers receive a free registration. Please visit for a list of dates.

8 Want to See the Simulator in Action? Printing Industries of America can demonstrate the SheetSim SHOTS or WebSim Heatset simulator over the Internet. Just call us to arrange a time. Visit our simulator webpages at or to see videos, as well as a 30-minute webinar on SheetSim SHOTS. For More Information and to Purchase For more answers to hardware, software, installation, and training questions, or to obtain a quote, contact: Dillon Mooney Technical Consultant Phone: , ext dmooney@printing.org Jim Workman Assistant Vice President Phone: , ext jworkman@printing.org