Improving quality, sustainability and efficiency at Artes Gráficas del Mediterráneo
Artes Gráficas del Mediterráneo, a leading printing company in Spain, has adopted ECO3’s SPIR@L screening technology to reduce its environmental impact and improve operational efficiency.
Established more than 35 years ago, Artes Gráficas del Mediterráneo (AGM) offers a wide range of services, from content creation to distributing magazines and other printed products. These include prepress, color proofing, and printing utilizing its two heatset web presses, a Goss M600 and a Manroland Polyman. Located in Valencia, AGM is part of Prensa Ibérica (Iberian Press), a leader in regional news in Spain, with business activities extending to 27 newspapers, online hubs, four magazines, and three TV channels.
AGM's continuous improvement strategy strongly focuses on sustainability, which includes reducing paper, ink and water consumption. Among its sustainability initiatives, the company has chosen to work with ECO3's SPIR@L screening, an innovative technology designed to optimize ink use and reduce raw material usage and waste.
Optimizing efficiencies
To ensure a seamless and efficient transition, AGM took a carefully phased approach to the rollout of SPIR@L within its prepress workflow. Working closely with ECO3, the team devised a restructuring of its processes and a training plan.
The first phase involved an evaluation of the AGM's needs and capabilities. Detailed analyses of existing equipment, production workflow and paper types were conducted to identify the areas where SPIR@L would have the most significant impact.
AGM was already operating an Apogee workflow and CtP system from ECO3, which helped with compatibility. To align the new screening with the previously used press fingerprint, calibration and print curves were established using a standardized procedure known as 'split run'. This method emulated past printing conditions but with reduced ink usage and all the associated benefits.
Advantages and benefits
The adoption of SPIR@L has brought substantial operational and environmental benefits to AGM; one of the most significant being the reduction in ink consumption. Furthermore, SPIR@L's efficient ink coverage results in sharper images with greater detail, allowing AGM to offer high-quality prints to its clients in a standardized manner while minimizing raw materials use and waste.
With ECO3's support, the operators can now control, measure and maintain the output while pursuing new improvement objectives emphasizing quality, sustainability and costs. To achieve this, they use ECO3's PressTune solution, which automatically measures, validates and verifies the new screening results against AGM's standards. Generating detailed reports, this print standardization tool ensures that results are closely monitored and the calibration adjusted as necessary.
By adopting sustainable solutions like SPIR@L and PressTune from ECO3, AGM is cementing its reputation as a leader in environmental responsibility. Through careful planning, proper training and professional change management, the company has reduced its environmental impact, heightened product quality and reinforced its market position. These efforts have also strengthened relationships with its suppliers and clients.
Article originally published by PRESSGRAPH
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