AI is currently being used to make the workplace and production environment safer and more reliable, and to make life easier for production staff.
For print shops, the use of AI optimises personnel costs through automation. In addition, AI allows resources to be better planned and sustainability goals to be better achieved. Printers will be able to control more tasks remotely, and 24-hour operation for better press utilisation, together with optimal planned maintenance.
The AI-supported print shop will not be completely automated. But the AI systems support the humans, facilitate scheduling, improve utilisation and help the production manager in efficient job planning and utilisation of stock materials.
This enables intelligent planning that deviates from the previous principle of ‘first in, first out’ and changes machines, substrates and sizes less often. But this does not mean that people will be replaced: employees will have a safer and better workplace where they will receive clear, intelligent instructions on how to proceed in their production shift in order to complete orders faster and in a more resource-efficient way. This will allow skilled people to focus on the print shop tasks where humans do best. For example, humans are best leveraged on the creative side, the customer journey satisfaction, the process optimisations like fine tuning, the creation of new business opportunities or proposed print products.
Intelligent solutions from Konica Minolta
Intelligent algorithms that determine different document layouts and minimise print waste during the production print process. For direct mail and catalogues, personalised mailings can be automatically created with variable content that is determined by an individual customer profile. AI makes this process more efficient and less error prone.
When it comes to job submission, intelligent software routes new jobs directly to presses that are currently available because it can monitor which presses are busy and which are not. Self-monitoring presses constantly monitor themselves with numerous sensors. Based on the data, algorithms can adjust in real time, for example in paper orientation and image quality. The outcome is the best possible print result without human intervention. Operational data about the press can be sent directly to Konica Minolta. Specialist staff will analyse press data with tools and algorithms and compare it to the expected performance. A technician can then identify and recommend software updates or adjustments. Predictive analytics identify service needs and initiate maintenance even before service interruption and downtime.
Konica Minolta’s Intelligent Quality Care (IQ-501) saves time during printing with powerful and automated adjustments for image position, registration and absolute colour control, including hybrid colour measurement and real-time correction for print output. With Intelligent Quality Care, you can create versatile and new print products in no time at all.
It is also possible to automatically detect and correct paper registration and correct problems in individual print jobs while printing is in progress without human intervention. This addition simplifies the printing process significantly.
Konica Minolta is opening a whole new chapter of inline capabilities in production printing and industrial printing, encompassing prepress, press and post press as a single system that works together harmoniously and can be controlled by automated decision-making processes such as AI- and ERP systems working together.
Book a live demo of Konica Minolta’s Intelligent Quality Care (IQ-501) here
