In my early days of print buying, Bob, the head of the Boston University print shop, threw around phrases like "work & turn" and "work & tumble." And so began my fascination with all things printing.

Thanks to subscriber Ron Taggart of Printing Concepts in Stow, Ohio, today's column deals with an important issue for serious print buyers: the three principal layouts or methods of running a job on a printing press: sheetwise, work & turn, and work & tumble (sometimes called work & flop). This is called the “method of working.”

By understanding these three methods, print buyers can avoid specifying jobs in such a way that they needlessly increase costs. Buyers don't need to fully understand the following information (it's not that simple a concept), and we are NOT suggesting that buyers tell printers how to run their jobs! However, by being AWARE of how print jobs are run, buyers can avoid specifying jobs in ways that hamper a printer's ability to CHOOSE the best method for running their jobs. (As my Italian grandparents would say, "Capisce??")

First, some key terms you should know:

Gripper: The leading edge of the paper as it proceeds through the printing press. (In Europe, it's simply called the 'grip' or sometimes the 'grip edge'.)

Side Guide: A guide that positions the paper sideways to ensure proper register. ("Side lay" in Europe)

Number Up: The number of times an image is repeated on a press sheet.

SHEETWISE (known as sheetwork in Europe)

Sheetwise means printing one side of a sheet with one plate or one set of plates, and then turning the sheet over and printing the other side with another plate or set of plates. Sheetwise uses the same gripper and opposite side guides. Sheetwise involves a front and back set of plates, as well as the resulting front and back plate setups.

When does a job run sheetwise? Here are some examples:

- when the piece size can only be run 1-up due to press size limitations
- when the paper surface requires that an image be run on a specified side (like C1S, or coated one side, postcards)
- when a designer wants printing done on a specific side of a paper
- when special finishing operations (e.g., foil stamping, embossing, die cutting, etc.) require hairline precise register.
- when the image can't be run an even number up due to press or paper size
- when a heavy solid might make it prudent to run only one side at a time.

WORK & TURN

Printing one side of a sheet, with both front and back images simultaneously, then turning the sheet over from left to right using the same gripper and images with the opposite side guide. Work & turn is only used if the image can be run two or more up, and the number up must be even (e.g., two fronts + two backs = 4-up).

Generally speaking, work & turn is the most economical method of working, since it involves only one set of plates and plate make-readies for both sides of a printed piece.

To visualize work & turn, take a piece of 8.5"x11" paper and fold it in half to 5.5x8.5. Unfold the paper, and draw a line where your fold was. Label the left side "Side A" and the right side "Side B". Now picture your paper going through a printing press with the 11" side as your gripper. After your sheet has gone through your imaginary press, turn it over left to right and run it through your imaginary press. If you mark this blank side again as described above, you will see that when you tear your sheet apart you now have a 5.5x8.5 piece printed with sides A & B. The economies of work & turn are most evident in shorter runs, where the bulk of your printing cost is in films, plates, and make-readies.

One common mistake Ron sees is clients asking for a job to be quoted 4-color process over 2 PMS (4/2), presumably to save money on the second side. If you understand work & turn, you'll see how 4/4 is one set of plates and make-readies, where 4/2 forces your printer to make an extra two plates, films, and make-readies.

Keeping the job 4/4 will actually cost less than 4/2, because you only need one set of plates and make-readies. Exception: on longer runs (above approx. 50,000), a printer with a perfecting press (prints both sides at once) may choose to run the job in one pass. Another exception: if the piece size is too large to run 2-up, the economies of work & turn cannot be taken advantage of, and 4/2 might be less expensive.

Ron cautions buyers against asking for C1S paper on smaller quantities - it forces the printer to run the job sheetwise, with its concomitant extra costs. Unless you absolutely need an uncoated writing surface for a job like postcards, ask for a price on C2S. Note: on very large quantities, C1S stock can make perfecting a job easier, and is cheaper to buy. These two factors may offset the extra setup costs involved in sheetwise jobs.

Designers might specify that the front cover of your printed piece be on a particular side (for example, the heavy laid side) of the paper. This may be quite relevant to your aesthetic goals, but be aware that you may now have incurred additional costs associated with going from the economical work & turn to sheetwise.

WORK & TUMBLE (also work & flop)
Printing one side of a sheet, with both front and back images simultaneously, then turning the sheet over from top to bottom using the same side guide and images but with the opposite gripper. To visualize work & tumble, take the 8.5"x11" piece of paper you constructed above and picture the 8.5" side as your gripper. Send it through your imaginary press and flip the sheet over so that you use the other 8.5" side as your new gripper. Work & flop is typically used when limitations in press size prevent us from using work & turn. For example, Ron's plant has a 23x29" press. When printing a six pager (11" x 25"), they may prefer to print work & tumble, since the press size lets them print 2-up, but not to turn the sheet left to right. Work & tumble does, however, present some technical problems. On pieces that require precision register front to back, work & tumble can't guarantee accurate results. For example, scoring panels to a high degree of precision for both sides may depend on how well the paper is cut before the press run.

For lower end pieces, work & tumble may result in cost savings, but for a piece that requires highly accurate finishing, it does present some risks.


SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
Simply this - understanding "methods of working" can enable you to specify a job in such a way that your printer is able to run it in the most economical fashion possible. Print buyers and designers should NOT specify "method of working" in their requests for quotations. However, asking your printer how he or she intends to run the job will help you educate yourself into a more effective buyer.

JUST REMEMBER:
- Don't order 4/2 on short to medium runs
- 2/1 is probably the same price as 2/2
- Don't order C1S on short runs
- Don't specify paper side unless it really matters aesthetically
- Do price compare C1S to C2S on medium to long runs

Ron, thank you for being a guest columnist this week! You can contact Ron via email at [email protected].