Use this article when a quote routes to the wrong press, when no valid route is found, or when an active press is missing from the route information. After this you will have identified the exclusion reason and either fixed the press setup or confirmed the routing is correct for the job.
Symptom table
Symptom | Check (where to look) | Fix (action) | Verify (what you'll see) |
No valid route is found on a quote | Open Issue analysis on the quote; read Excluded machines for the exclusion reason on each candidate press. | Address the named exclusion: add a missing tag, raise a sheet-size limit, fill in a missing click rate or plate cost, or set Status to Active. | After Recalculate, a press appears in the route information and a price breakdown is produced. |
Job routes to digital when it should route to offset | Open Issue analysis; check whether the offset press is in Excluded machines with a "no machine matches tags" reason. | Open the substrate under Substrates and add the tag that links it to the offset press (or add the substrate's tag to the press). Apply Pending Changes. | After Recalculate, the offset press appears in the route information for runs above the digital crossover point. |
Job routes to offset when it should route to digital | Open Issue analysis; check whether the digital press is excluded for a missing CMY click rate or Black click rate. | Open the digital press editor and fill in the missing click rate. Apply Pending Changes. | After Recalculate, the digital press appears in the route information for short-run colour quotes. |
A specific substrate never reaches the press | Open Substrates and read the substrate's tag list. Open the press and read the press's tag list. | If there is no overlap, add the common tag to either the substrate or the press. | After Apply Changes and Recalculate, the substrate is no longer in Excluded machines for this press. |
Active press is missing from Excluded machines entirely | Open the press editor and check Status. Inactive presses are dropped before the candidate filter and never appear under Excluded machines. | Set Status to Active. Apply Pending Changes. | The press appears in Excluded machines (or in the assigned route) on the next quote calculation. |
Press is excluded for "sheet larger than maximum" | Open the press editor; compare Maximum sheet size against the imposed flat sheet size shown on the quote. | Either raise the press's maximum if the spec is wrong, or accept that the job genuinely requires a different press. | After Recalculate, the press is no longer excluded for size. |
Press is excluded for "caliper exceeds maximum" | Open the press editor and check Maximum stock caliper. Compare against the substrate's caliper. | Either raise the caliper limit (if commissioning showed a different practical maximum) or reroute the job to a heavier-substrate press. | After Recalculate, the press is no longer excluded for caliper. |
Web digital press matches the wrong imposition | Open Print Machines and confirm each imposition record carries a distinct Maximum / minimum finished size range. Overlapping ranges cause routing collisions. | Tighten the size ranges so each imposition record covers a unique band. | After Recalculate, the planning engine picks the correct imposition record per quote. |
Worked examples
Example 1 — A Stitched Book at Northgate Press routes to digital when it should route to offset
Northgate Press quotes a 5,000-run Stitched Book on a Silk 100gsm SRA1 substrate. The route picks HP Indigo even though the run is large enough that XL105 (the sheet-fed offset press) should win on cost.
Diagnosis: Open Issue analysis on the quote. The Excluded machines section lists XL105 with the reason "no machine matches tags". The Silk substrate has no tag overlapping with XL105's tag set — the substrate was imported with only digital-friendly tags.
Fix: Open the Silk substrate under Substrates and add the "Offset OK" tag (or whichever tag XL105 carries). Open Pending Changes and select Apply Changes.
Verify: Recalculate the quote. XL105 now appears in the route information instead of HP Indigo. The print line cost drops because the offset run beats the digital click rate at this volume; the make-ready and plate lines now appear on the price breakdown.
Example 2 — A new digital press is excluded because the click rate was not imported
Northgate Press imports a new HP Indigo through AI Configurator. After applying changes, every short-run colour quote still routes to the legacy HP Indigo instead of the new one.
Diagnosis: Open Issue analysis on a short-run quote. The new press appears under Excluded machines with the reason "missing CMY click rate". The source spreadsheet did not include the click contract values, so AI Configurator left them at zero.
Fix: Open the new press editor and set CMY click rate to the value from your contract (e.g., €0.008 per impression). Open Pending Changes and select Apply Changes.
Verify: Recalculate the short-run quote. The new press appears in the route information and the click line shows the per-impression cost; the press is no longer listed under Excluded machines.
What if this didn't fix it?
If a press still does not appear in route information after the tag, status, size, and click-rate fixes, the issue is in the price-model wiring rather than press setup. Open a support request and include the estimate ID, a screenshot of Issue analysis for the quote, the press's full editor view, and the substrate's tag list and caliper. Linking the substrate's Why a substrate is missing from a quote article in the ticket helps the support team scope the report.