Printing Certification and PSA
Bob Chung, RIT
(2c)
Presented at the Institute of Print-Media Professionals
Meeting, September 13, 2012, Hong Kong
Outline
• Customer requirements and printing
standardization
• Printing standards define common
requirements
• PSO, G7 and PSA
• APTEC and RIT partnership
• Meeting customer’s needs
2
Customer Requirements and
Printing Standardization
• Building trust between printers and print buyers
– The old way is based on a personal relationship.
– The new way is based on demonstrated technical
capability and management systems.
– Certification is the 3rd Party attestation that the printer
is technically capable and has effective quality
management systems for sustained performance.
3
4
Printing Standards Define
Common requirements
• Technical capability is defined by ANSI and ISO
standards.
– Applicable printing standards include ISO/DIS 15339-1,
ANSI/CGATS TR 016, etc.
• Management system is defined by ISO 9001 and
ISO TC130/WG13 standards.
– ISO TC130/WG13 is developing a sector-specific management
system requirement for tone and color reproduction quality.
PSA Certification
• PSA is a certification scheme and RIT is
the certification body providing services to
printers seeking PSA certification.
– Printers who demonstrate printing conformance to a
dataset become PSA Certified Printers.
– PSA Certified Printers who are G7 Masters and
choose the GRACoL dataset can also become G7
GRACoL Certified Printers*.
* Same for G7 SWOP Certified Printers
5
PSA Certification with Honors
• PSA with Honors recognizes printers who
have sound management system support
and are able to print in conformance on a
sustained basis.
– PSA Certified is a prerequisite.
– PSA with Honors will be available when ISO 16761-3
Conformity assessment and management system
requirements for tone and color quality is published.
6
PSO and PSA
• Similarities
– Both are workflow-based certification schemes.
• 3rd party on-site audit, followed by measurement and audit reporting
• Workflow covers data reception, proofing, and printing.
• Differences
– PSO focuses on conformance to process control
aims, as defined by ISO 12647-2, for offset.
• Fixed substrate color, single tolerance, offset only
– PSA focuses conformance to dataset, as defined by
ISO/DIS 15339 and CGATS TR 016.
• Substrate correction, multi-tolerance, multiple printing
devices
7
ISO 12647-2 and ISO 15339-1
Standard
ISO 12647-2
ISO/DIS 15339-1
Starting point
Specifies printing
parameters and
process control aims
Specifies reference printing
conditions (RPCs)
Calibration
TVI adjustments
TVI, gray balance, or device
link adjustment
Dataset
generation and
testing
Printing trials,
sampling,
measurement, and
data analysis
Printing trials, sampling,
measurement, and data
analysis
Dataset
standardization
No public review
Public reviewed through ANSI
and ISO balloting
8
G7 and PSA
• G7 is a press calibration method with a
qualification scheme specified by G7 Pass/Fail
Criteria in three levels.
– G7 Gray, G7 Targeted, and G7 Colorspace
• PSA focuses conformance to dataset, as defined
by ISO/DIS 15339 and CGATS TR 016.
– PSA Certified Printers who are G7 Masters and choose the
GRACoL dataset can also become G7 GRACoL Certified
Printers.
9
10
Costs of PSA Audit
• A standard PSA Audit for printers who are
already G7 Masters is $5500 USD.
– Including 30% discount off standard pricing
– Not including consultant costs
APTEC and RIT Partnership
• APTEC is the exclusive partner of RIT in
the Greater China region.
– RIT owns training contents and post training
assessment. APTEC trains PSA consultants.
Consultants receive certificates from RIT and APTEC.
– APTEC is responsible for customer communication
from initial inquiry to audit closure. RIT performs
audits and issues audit reports.
11
APTEC and RIT Partnership
• Short term objectives
–
–
–
–
Introduce conformance to dataset
Train APTEC staff as PSA trainers
Train Pro-Act & HKDI staff as PSA auditors
Conduct initial audits
• Long term objectives
– Promote printing standardization
– Enable industry adoption of printing to standards
• Provide industry education and training
• Create a base of qualified experts
12
Meeting Customer’s Needs
13
• Every printing company faces the
challenges of managing its daily operations
to meet customer’s perceived and unmet
needs.
– Conformance to dataset and become PSA Certified
are strategic in meeting customer’s color match needs
across multiple substrates and printing platforms.
Tips for Success
1. Plan
• Why PSA certification is
important to you
• Who else is interested in PSA
• Gather relevant requirements
2. Do
• Study PSA Assessment Criteria
• Secure necessary tools,
materials and equipment
• Institute training
• Implement standards compliant
workflow
3. Check
• Conduct self studies
• Measure your progress
• Close process gap
4. Act
• Contact APTEC for PSA
audit
• Prepare for on-site audit
• Participate in the audit
• Celebrate the success
14
15
Thank you.
Q/A