Beyond Automation
New workflow management tools are packed with automation and integration features.
November 2006 by Jean-Marie Hershey
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Not all printing workflows are created equal. Different market segments demand different things from their respective workflows, depending on the needs of the customers they serve. Highly automated prepress workflows are well-established in the world of commercial printing. But if page production is one thing, package production is quite another.
Most workflows account for basic production steps including trapping, screening, imposition, and color management. However, packaging workflows differ from commercial workflows in that they reflect the variety and complexity of the end product: corrugated boxes, folding cartons, bags, labels, shrink sleeve foils, POP displays, and metal cans—and the print disciplines used to produce them. They also reflect the vast array of inks, substrates, shapes, and finishings calculated to boost eye and shelf appeal. Trapping and color management are more complex. Asset management is key. Reliable production, proper file handling, and quality control are essential to trim costs, reduce the potential for error, and eliminate extra steps, especially labor-intensive front-end and RIP-based tasks.
With higher and higher levels of prepress automation practically a given, providers of packaging pre-production solutions are moving to refine the features of their workflow management offerings to make them more responsive to the needs of designers, trade shops, and converters, as well as brand-owning consumer product companies (CPCs) that increasingly are among the users of these solutions.
Certify me
Artwork Systems (AWS) places the emphasis on quality assurance and traceability with its Packaging Certified Technology, or PA:CT, incorporating Certified PDF from Enfocus. Certified Automation refers to efficient process controls that document file modifications throughout the production cycle and transform otherwise view-only PDFs into full-fledged production files with a complete history and lifecycle. Nexus is AWS’ comprehensive high-end workflow for commercial, label, and packaging environments. Nexus is modular and highly configurable around its three core modules: NexusIMPORT, NexusPROCESSOR, and NexusRIP. Nexus supports Enfocus Certified PDF technology and uses JDF as the preferred job ticket format for interconnectivity applications, integrated with Artwork Systems’ ArtPro editor for the pre-production of labels and packaging.
Plug me in
Within its flagship integrated packaging suite, Scope, Esko-Graphics’ Deskpack is a graphic editor that turns Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop into full-featured production workstations for package design and prepress. The latest iteration of the Scope software suite introduces an array of new plug-ins for Deskpak, including: 3-dX, which generates a virtual 3-D view of a package within Adobe Illustrator; ImageX, which translates embedded images into separate, externally linked images, making them available for editing; and SeamlessX, a step-and-repeat tool for gravure cylinder or flexo cylinder workflows.
Most workflows account for basic production steps including trapping, screening, imposition, and color management. However, packaging workflows differ from commercial workflows in that they reflect the variety and complexity of the end product: corrugated boxes, folding cartons, bags, labels, shrink sleeve foils, POP displays, and metal cans—and the print disciplines used to produce them. They also reflect the vast array of inks, substrates, shapes, and finishings calculated to boost eye and shelf appeal. Trapping and color management are more complex. Asset management is key. Reliable production, proper file handling, and quality control are essential to trim costs, reduce the potential for error, and eliminate extra steps, especially labor-intensive front-end and RIP-based tasks.
With higher and higher levels of prepress automation practically a given, providers of packaging pre-production solutions are moving to refine the features of their workflow management offerings to make them more responsive to the needs of designers, trade shops, and converters, as well as brand-owning consumer product companies (CPCs) that increasingly are among the users of these solutions.
Certify me
Artwork Systems (AWS) places the emphasis on quality assurance and traceability with its Packaging Certified Technology, or PA:CT, incorporating Certified PDF from Enfocus. Certified Automation refers to efficient process controls that document file modifications throughout the production cycle and transform otherwise view-only PDFs into full-fledged production files with a complete history and lifecycle. Nexus is AWS’ comprehensive high-end workflow for commercial, label, and packaging environments. Nexus is modular and highly configurable around its three core modules: NexusIMPORT, NexusPROCESSOR, and NexusRIP. Nexus supports Enfocus Certified PDF technology and uses JDF as the preferred job ticket format for interconnectivity applications, integrated with Artwork Systems’ ArtPro editor for the pre-production of labels and packaging.
Plug me in
Within its flagship integrated packaging suite, Scope, Esko-Graphics’ Deskpack is a graphic editor that turns Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop into full-featured production workstations for package design and prepress. The latest iteration of the Scope software suite introduces an array of new plug-ins for Deskpak, including: 3-dX, which generates a virtual 3-D view of a package within Adobe Illustrator; ImageX, which translates embedded images into separate, externally linked images, making them available for editing; and SeamlessX, a step-and-repeat tool for gravure cylinder or flexo cylinder workflows.
Companies Mentioned:
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