For the first time, Flexo technology will become a competition in addition to Sheetfed. The contest will use Sinapse Print Simulators for Sheetfed (6-colour) and Flexo (8-colour) to assess problem-solving skills. The Cloud versions of these simulators will be available for practice, problem solving and competition rounds. Practice problems will include those used in recent WorldSkills competitions. Contestants can use the simulators in any of a dozen languages and the Sinapse multi-lingual learning management allows results from all contestants to be easily compared and posted regularly on the competition website. In each round, contestants will practice with simulators, then compete to solve Flexo and Sheetfed press problems.
Each team will also submit individual print job designs for Sheetfed and Flexo. The winning designs will be incorporated into the simulator to be used in the final rounds of the contest. Each competing centre will form a team of students with one coach to compete in four rounds. The designer of the best poster, the designer of the best package, the print finalists and their respective coaches will all win an expenses-paid trip to dupa 2016 in Dusseldorf, Germany, the world’s most prestigious print fair, where the “live” final will be held. The winning school gets a two-year connection to the simulators of their choice. All participants will be listed on the contest website and receive official certificates of achievement.
Sinapse Print Simulators (Saint-Aubin, France) is the world’s leading supplier of print training simulators for flexo, gravure and offset presses. The company’s ongoing worldwide competitions – including results, evaluations and new exercises – are coordinated through a cloud-based interface. Its Print Simulators completely simulate the running of a printing press, reproducing a wide variety of printing conditions and problems that can be used for training, skills assessment, performance enhancement and process analysis. Simulation can also be used to familiarize other staff with the printing process, improve teamwork and increase process efficiency. The company’s simulators are available for all major printing processes.