My previous post, which was a post that did not get posted on PrintCEOBlog.com, apparently was not posted due to automatic filtering of some kind and not due to censorship. This has been corrected and this post is now also on PrintCEOBlog.com. I just wanted to correct the comments I made.

As a summary, there are great opportunities to obtain not only greener production but also lower costs if fundamental issues in the process can be properly addressed. I do hope this will be an issue in the industry soon.

Talkback says that it wants to hear what we say. I believe that. So far, Talkback has been very gracious in permitting me to state my comments, which tend to have a touch of rant, without me being banned for life. It is important to get views known that are not always "good news" comments if they do hit important issues. ........... The following is a related comment on issues that needed to be discussed, which affect a green environment, sustainability and also cost and productivity. It was originally posted on PrintCEOblog.com in a response to "How Green is My Printshop". It turned out that the powers that be at PrintCEOblog.com did not like the comments and they proved my point by removing it from the site. Gee, I didn't think it was so bad but I admit it could be viewed as a little harsh in places. Anyway the issues presented are important and do need open discussion in the community. Here they are: .........................
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Now the issue is the environment and sustainability. Previously the issues were operator skill levels, short run printing, lean manufacturing, waste reduction, process control, etc. It goes on and on. Of course they are all related and all are important but why is there no interest in understanding the critical problems that affect all these issues. ..............................
Drupa is about products. After all it is a trade show and not a science conference. But the history in the printing industry has tended to be that technical products move ahead without much of a concern about the science of the problems that are trying to be solved. The pattern is that technologies are being applied to symptoms of problems and not to fundamental causes. This results in expensive and not always successful outcomes. .........
In many industries, the science is out ahead of the technologies. Sometimes, by hundreds of years. In computers, hardware and software, aerospace, chemistry, medicine, etc. the potential is known due to a developed science well before the technologies are available. This is not the case in the printing industry. ...................................
Theoretical science has always been a very practical guide for developing continuously improving technologies in other industries but the printing industry has at best a weak theoretical culture and in some cases none at all. ........................
In offset lithography, one of the most critical problems is the one related to ink water balance and its related density variation problem. This results in a lack of consistency and predictability. Now a days, one does not hear about ink water balance much but it still is a prime problem in the process. If one wants to have a sustainable and environmentally sound process and progress in all those other issues stated above, this problem of ink water balance and density variability must be solved. Since the same fundamental cause to this problem also exists on waterless presses, solving it will help there too. ................................
Most people do know that density variation is a problem but the industry has no explanation for it happening. What is worse is that they have no interest in developing an explanation. They don’t mind describing the observations but they have no theoretical explanation. It has never come up as a goal to have an explanation. All that is wanted is a product that promises to reduce the symptoms. ......................................
My point here is that the industry is not really interested in science but only in products. The equipment and chemical vendors are not interested nor are the graphic arts institutions, technical associations, or the trade press. None of these groups will spend a minute thinking about why density changes. Saying that a process has many variables is not an explanation. .........................
Where is the open discussion about this problem. It is no where. The reason for this is that as a community, you are happy in your ignorance. ........................................
Now as an example, let’s take a simple mind experiment. The press prints a large solid. The density is at one level. Nothing is changed except that the water is adjusted higher. The density drops to a new steady state level. The drop in density is directly related to less ink being printed. Now the question is, “Where did the missing ink go?” If you don’t know, then you don’t understand the process. ..................................
I would suggest students to ask their professors that question and see how they answer it. Do they know? Can they explain it in a clear way or do they give a confusing answer. If you can’t get an answer that makes sense, then you know you paid too much for your so called education. ..............................
When will the trade press bring this up as an issue? Maybe never because they are too much interested in products and are too impressed with technology. They have done a disservice to the industry by avoiding a public debate and not expecting answers to this critical question. ............end ..................Now was that so bad?