The New York Times inputs densitometer data to Excel using WinWedge(SoftwareWedge for Windows)

To meet the needs of readers and advertisers, the New York Times insures not only quality editorial, but also quality production by enforcing high levels of quality control throughout all stages of production. This control extends right down to the inks used, as these are rigorously tested and evaluated in their own laboratories.

Quality Assurance - Ink Density Measurement

An X-Rite 400 Reflection Densitometer is used to measure the density of ink printed on a newspaper as part of the meticulous quality assurance testing performed at the New York Times. The densitometer measures the reflection of light off sample black ink areas and these readings are input via the SoftwareWedge for Windows standard version (WinWedge) directly into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. The data readings are automatically graphed in Excel to show the highs and lows. Statistical analysis is performed using Excel to determine if the measured ink densities fall within an acceptable range. Ink "rub-off" quality control tests are also performed with densitometer readings taken before and after the ink has been rubbed with a weighted tissue. WinWedge eliminates the need for slow, error-prone manual data entry of densitometer readings into Excel greatly increasing the speed, accuracy and efficiency of the process. Hence WinWedge assists the quality control technicians to assure that the inks used are fit to print "All the News That's Fit to Print".

Benefits

• 100% accurate and cost effective data collection
• Easy to set up and use
• Significant time reduction in data collection
• Ability to perform statistical analysis in Excel

TAL Technologies, Inc.
2101 Brandywine Street,
Suite 102,
Philadelphia, PA 19130, USA
Tel: 800-722-6004
Tel: 215-496-0222
Fax: 215-496-0322