Product of the Month: Prinect Production Manager from Heidelberg

When did you launch the Prinect Production Manager in India?
2018.

What does it do?
The Prinect Production Manager, as the name suggests, is a tool to manage every aspect of a printshop operation. The Prinect Production attempts at changing the way one thinks about a print production workflow. It is the only workflow that covers all production functionalities for automated or navigated print production. No matter whichever segment a print service provider chooses to extend their business, Prinect is ready for commercial, packaging, and label applications. Prinect provides the basis for greater cost-effectiveness, performance and quality.

What are the salient features?

1. Print buyer integration via web portals to optimise sales and communication processes.
2. Powerful functions for automating data processing for orders, eliminating the need for manual intervention.
3. State-of-the-art planning tools for optimised pressroom planning and fully automatic plate production.
4. Pressroom and finishing integration to deliver best data to drive push to stop production philosophy. Powerful analytics and reporting change the way you take decisions.

What markets is it aimed at?
The Prinect Production is ready for commercial, packaging, and label applications.

How does it differ from the original Prinect?
The Prinect Production Manager is still the well-known and established Prinect workflow with the difference that we offer it now via an easy monthly subscription. This has the benefit that print shops have a low initial start-up cost, are entitled to upgrades, can fully tailor their workflow and have access to high level workflow technology that help print shops print smarter, faster and more profitably.

How does the Prinect Production Manager benefit the end-user?
The Prinect Production Manager contains a comprehensive toolset for managing, assessing, and maintaining print quality throughout the entire production chain. This includes our full featured colour management and trapping engines, paper stretch compensation for accurate register, calibration manager to enable harmonic balance for dot gain in print, colour toolbox for professional ICC-based color transformations and proof to print matching, integration with our inline and offline inspection tools in the pressroom and quality assessment tools at every stage of production from plate-making and proofing to printing.

Are there different modules which the printers can pick from?
The product can be offered in three base modules — PPM Commercial, PPM Packaging and PPM for Pre-setting.

PPM is a simple subscription model that charges you only for your usage, regardless of how large the system is. In addition, once you have the basics in place, you have the option to pick and choose certain value-added features such as multicolour extended gamut printing, automated paper stretch compensation, scheduler, etc at no additional cost. The subscription model is gradually gaining traction among printers, currently with 20+ customers using Prinect subscription model to benefit their business.

How do the different modules integrate?
Basically, it is the license that controls the activation and deactivation of the various available features and tools. The software modules are tightly integrated on one platform for seamless experience.

You only pay for your usage, irrespective of how large or small the system is. How does this work?
The Prinect Production Manager is an output-based subscription model. The monthly fee scales with your 1-bit tiff output volume. By scaling with your production volume, the charging model is fair and accommodates for seasonality.

How easy is it to implement?
The Prinect Production Manager is an all-in-one workflow platform that is both easy to use and learn. Heidelberg’s Prinect specialists support you in every step of deploying your Prinect workflow from consultation, scoping, setup and configuration for a streamlined workflow experience with minimum touchpoints and the highest automation.

What about updates?
The Prinect Maintenance Center is an application that runs in the background that downloads the necessary updates/upgrades from time to time, thereby making sure the system is always up-to-date.

What training and support do you offer?
Installation and training are provided by Heidelberg-trained personnel. Considering the deployment is based on a subscription model, support is available throughout the year — both offline and online.

What is your target for the Prinect?
The Prinect provides some unique advantages in combination with Heidelberg offset presses. With the change in market dynamics, print consumption patterns and evolving packaging landscape, Heidelberg India would like to ensure that print shops are geared up to accept the challenges and adapt Industry 4.0 framework in their operations. Prinect is an essential tool to facilitate the adoption process and ensure productivity enhancements at all levels. We will reach out to all printers who are ready to take the plunge towards introducing intelligent and automated processes in their shopfloor.

Does it come as a bundle with the press?  
We would, in fact, insist on presses to opt for a PPM bundle along with the press to make sure that the investment on the press is justified from day one.