Mark Andy launches Color Smart programme to improve pressroom repeatability

Packaging Solutions

Mark Andy has introduced the Print Products Color Smart programme, a pressroom initiative created to help label and printed packaging converters achieve more consistent colour across jobs, presses, shifts, and operators.

​​​​​Available immediately, the Color Smart Pprogramm turns Mark Andy Print Products’ technical expertise into a defined, repeatable process. Through on-site evaluation, press fingerprinting, calibration, product recommendations, and documented standard operating procedures, the programme helps converters establish the right combination of materials, settings, and operating practices for their production environment.

‘Colour consistency is rarely determined by one component,’ said Dave Telken, senior vice president, Mark Andy Print Products. ‘It depends on how the plates, mounting tape, anilox rolls, doctor blades, ink, and press settings work together. Color Smart brings those variables into one coordinated process so converters have a clearly defined production standard that they can repeat from one job to the next.’

As experienced press operators and technical personnel continue to leave the workforce, many companies are being asked to produce more work with fewer internal resources. At the same time, printed packaging buyers expect tighter colour tolerances, faster turnarounds, and consistent results across repeat orders, multiple presses, and, in some cases, multiple facilities.

Color Smart is designed to help converters close that gap by creating a documented production standard that reduces dependence on tribal knowledge and makes repeatable results easier to achieve.

The programme follows a five step process:

• Listen: MAPP specialists begin by understanding the converter’s production goals, colour challenges, and current operating environment.

• Evaluate: The team reviews relevant areas of the pre-press, plate room, and pressroom workflow, including current materials, equipment, colour management practices, and opportunities to reduce variability and waste.

• Recommend: Based on the findings, the team identifies the combination of plates, mounting tape, anilox rolls, doctor blades, ink, and other critical pressroom components best suited to the converter’s applications and equipment.

• Calibrate: The press is fingerprinted and calibrated under controlled production conditions to establish a performance baseline and confirm the curves, settings, and operating parameters required to achieve the desired result.

• Document: MAPP develops a standardised colour specification and operating procedure that the converter can use to reproduce the job consistently over time.

‘Fingerprinting is the point where the entire process comes together,’ Dave said. ‘We establish how the press is performing, optimise the variables that influence colour, and document what works. The goal is to give the company’s team a practical process that makes the job easier to repeat.’

Color Smart can be applied to Mark Andy equipment as well as presses from other manufacturers, making it relevant for converters operating mixed fleets or managing production across multiple facilities. The programme can also help production managers identify training opportunities and give less experienced operators a clearer framework for achieving established colour targets.