Software - Workflow

Version two of Agfa Graphics’ Apogee StoreFront, the cloud-based web-to-print solution, is now available. Apogee StoreFront 2.0 features support for variable data processing and documents of different sizes, and a more refined support for business-to-business e-commerce. Thanks to the tight integration with both Apogee Prepress and the new Asanti Production workflow, it saves time and avoids double data entry both for commercial printing sites and for wide-format inkjet printers.

“Apogee StoreFront is a prime example of how Agfa Graphics is taking its know-how in workflow automation and web portals to the wide format printing market. It is the most cost-efficient way for Print Service Providers (PSPs) to take advantage of new technologies and market their services to a wider audience online,” said Andy Grant, Head of Software, Agfa Graphics.

Apogee StoreFront, which was recently honored as the “Best web-to-print solution” by the European Digital Press Association, features refined support for B2B e-commerce, including personalized address books and support for custom domain names. Admins can now partially approve or ship orders, an added value that PSPs can offer their business partners.

Variable data processing makes it easier to create batches of personalized documents. By uploading an Excel spreadsheet with contact, pricing or other content data, print buyers can order sets of customized banners, flyers, business cards or other documents.

With this new version, users can define the size of the poster they order, for example, and Apogee StoreFront will calculate its price per square meter or square foot immediately. This offers increased flexibility for online orders in conjunction with Asanti Production for wide-format printers.

As a cloud based service, Apogee StoreFront (www.apogeestorefront.com) offers PSPs a fast and affordable entry into the web-to-print market so they can extend their service offering and/or reach new markets.

Enfocus has announced the immediate availability of Connect SEND 11 software which enables graphic arts and print service providers to streamline and automate file delivery from their customers..

Print service providers continue to look for ways to better serve customers and increase operational efficiency. Connect SEND 11 supports print service providers by giving their customers everything they need to submit files without requiring them to remember FTP addresses, web site locations or log-on credentials.

Connect SEND joins the Connect product family, Enfocus’ award-winning, powerful resource for PDF creation, quality control, and job delivery automation. Two versions of the Enfocus Connect 11 product family are already available: Connect YOU offers individuals a desktop application for streamlined PDF creation, verification and delivery. Connect ALL, winner of a PRINT 13 / Must See ‘ems  Award, is designed to provide service providers or large creative groups the same abilities to automatically create, verify and deliver consistently high-quality PDFs.

Michael Reiher, Connect Product Manager at Enfocus, says of this new release, “Our Connect product line is focused on making file delivery easy and efficient in a distributed environment. The release of Connect SEND builds on that goal by giving our customers a way to improve the order submission process for their clients. With the easy commands of click, drag, and drop, Connect SEND makes it so easy to submit a job that your customers might never again think of going to another provider.”

Using Connect SEND, service providers create and distribute pre-configured and branded applets, called Connectors, to customers. Connectors contain all the embedded settings for delivery of PDFs, images, native layout files or any other file type to existing FTP, sFTP, HTTP, Email, or Enfocus Switch servers. Using Connect SEND to deliver files into a Switch-based production workflow automates file receipt, sorting, management and processing, to achieve end-to-end automation. To submit a file, all the customer has to do is drag and drop the files onto the desktop icon; without the usual email and telephone support required to ensure settings and delivery credentials are correct.

Additionally, electronic job tickets can be defined so that all necessary customer and job information is delivered with the production files.

Connect SEND provides an automatic updating mechanism, enabling service providers to update remote connectors with any new settings. The process is hassle-free for service providers and their customers.

Availability, pricing and compatibility

Enfocus Connect is available in three editions: one for individual users, Connect YOU; and two for companies that need to collaborate with many internal and external users: Connect ALL and Connect SEND. For more information, please visit www.enfocus.com/Connect

Fujifilm has launched a new version of its XMF Workflow - v5.5. The latest issue includes a number of major new variable data and productivity-enhancing features designed to optimise high speed print production on the Jet Press 720 and 540W digital inkjet presses.

As with previous versions of XMF, content rendering is processed by the award-winning PDF Print Engine from Adobe®. XMF v5.5 takes performance to the next level, as it is one of the first systems on the market to utiliseAdobe’s newly announced scalability framework, the “Mercury RIP Architecture.” This means XMF v5.5 is able to take advantage of this architecture to drive data-rich, high-volume digital print production. Mercury’s parallel processing architecture features distributed multi-tier caching and dynamic load balancing to take full advantage of available hardware.

“Digital web presses put huge demands on workflow systems, so our focus has been to develop an extremely efficient end-to-end print environment that allows companies to increase their productivity and competitiveness,” comments Shigenori Tsuji, Senior Vice President of the Workflow Division for Fujifilm Global Graphic Systems. “As well as being the first vendor to bring to market a workflow built from the ground up around JDF and the Adobe PDF Print Engine, Fujifilm is leading the way once more with the introduction of Adobe’s new Mercury RIP Architecture.”

Fujifilm has used this unique technology within XMF v5.5 to create a very wide data path for driving graphically rich personalised content to the company’s digital inkjet web press, the Jet Press 540W. According to Raman Nagpal, senior director of print at Adobe, “The Fujifilm Jet Press 540W powered by XMF v5.5 marks an impressive milestone in the evolution of continuous-feed digital printing.”

This new version of XMF has undergone a number of internal technology upgrades to accommodate the more complex demands of high speed digital printing as well as optimise more traditional CTP plate production:

XMF Workflow v5.5 supports both the most innovative (PDF/VT) and well established (PPML) variable data formats. In addition, a new database has been implemented within XMF to sustain the high data processing volumes associated with variable data printing in order to maximise the productivity typically required by fast-moving digital print environments.

Fujifilm has recently obtained CIP4 certification for XMF v5.5 which guarantees full integration between an MIS system and XMF. This means XMF can now be connected to many different MIS systems and incorporates a new JDF tool to interpret and convert incoming MIS instructions into JDF compatible ones.

XMF v5.5 offers improved proofing capabilities through the automated distribution of 3D proofs. The 3D proofing module, already embedded in previous versions of XMF Workflow, gives printers the ability to create a ‘virtual printed product’ to provide their customers with an accurate representation of the final print job. Within XMF v5.5, this is now processed automatically, saving time and increasing efficiency.

Finally, XMF Workflow v5.5 features further improvements to support XMF ColorPath, the cloud-based colour management system that is designed to help printers calibrate and maintain compliance to printing standards.

“XMF Workflow v5.5 has been developed to seamlessly integrate with any fully functional production environment,” concludes Shigenori Tsuji. “Accurate colour management, reliable processing of high volumes of variable data, greater automation and support for the most extreme printing speeds are all essential capabilities of a modern workflow that this latest version supports. We are confident that XMF v5.5 sets new standards for printers looking to enhance performance and output.”

Enfocus has announced the availability of its new Connect 11 product family designed to solve file problems at the creators' desktop saving them time, money and production delays.

The Connect 11 product family is designed to bridge the gap between designers and production professionals. It helps designers to deliver high quality files, right the first time, thus ensuring the production of high quality PDFs regardless of the document creation application used or the PDF skill levels at the designer level.

“PDF has become the file transfer format of choice, from the office environment to agencies, design firms and print service providers,” said Fabian Prudhomme, Enfocus Vice President. “But there are still many issues associated with creating high quality PDFs for print. Many print service providers spend excessive time on file review and correction after jobs are submitted.  We developed the Connect 11 product family of products to address these issues head-on by making the PDF creation and submission process consistent and predictable.  By complying with the Adobe® Normalizer - the market standard for PDF creation -  we have ensured that the Connect 11 product family is the simplest and most reliable means for producing reliable PDF output.”

Enfocus Connect uses state-of-the-art technology and replaces a pair of proven Enfocus products:  Instant PDF and PitStop Connect. The Connect family features a new level of PDF creation and quality control along with job delivery automation that makes collaboration between the designers and producers easy and consistent. Two versions of Enfocus Connect 11 product family are available - Connect YOU for individuals and Connect ALL for service providers or large creative groups.

Enfocus Connect YOU is an affordable, easy-to-use single-user solution that allows anyone to create high quality PDFs from any application and to deliver them automatically to a production site, including job instructions related to the file. PDFs are written to pre-set standards, then checked, corrected and uploaded automatically with one click. No special operator skills are required.

Enfocus Connect ALL allows print service providers to easily deploy and manage Connect solutions to an unlimited number of outside clients. Connectors can be customised for individual clients or created for general use functions, such as job submission, and distributed to many clients. Each Connector that is created can be totally tailored to create, verify and fix high-quality PDFs, collect electronic job ticket information, and deliver jobs to a variety of servers such as FTP, HTTP and Enfocus Switch.

Connector icons can be branded with a company logo or background to personalize the service even more. End-to-end automation is also made possible when combining Connect ALL with Enfocus Switch, offering a seamless automation environment for the graphic arts professional.

"Enfocus Connect 11 family is an impressive solution," says Enfocus customer Axel Robert, Prepress, Print Studio & Graphic Chain Quality Manager for Ubisoft. "Connect 11 product family offers ease of use and flexibility in the creation, verification and delivery of PDFs (and other file formats) for various production needs. The Connect 11 product family will be very useful for designers, making it easy for them to create and deliver quality PDFs to production — an impressive tool for the entire graphic arts supply chain."

For more information, please visit www.Enfocus.com.

SA International (SAi) will use FESPA 2013 to demonstrate recently-introduced solutions designed to increase the productivity and workflow of large-format printing and signmaking businesses.   On show at SAi’s stand (H45S) and showcased for the first time at a major international tradeshow will be the SAi Flexi Cloud and SAi PhotoPRINT Cloud, which include useful web-based tools that enhance the way sign and print providers do business.

The two new Cloud solutions, which bring state-of-the-art, web-based capability and added-value functionality to SAi's best-known brands, will feature alongside the award-winning SAi PixelBlaster™ print-to-finish production software for large-format print businesses.

The feature-rich SAi FlexiFAMILY software offers a solution for any signmaking business, from design to output with integrated job management, while the SAi PhotoPRINT RIP software offers an affordable, easy-to-use print-and-cut solution for large-format print businesses. SAi Flexi Cloud and SAi PhotoPRINT Cloud add a new dimension to these popular software packages by making production management simple from local and remote locations using a Cloud Web Window that sits on a user's desktop display.

Three significant tools of the Cloud Web Window that enable increased productivity comprise Job Reports, a tool that provides job summary and analysis; Cloud Storage for uploading and archiving design jobs for backup, sharing and retrieval; and FlexiQuote™, a pre-loaded database with standard pricing that can create customer quotes for new jobs within 30 seconds.

SAi Flexi Cloud and SAi PhotoPRINT Cloud also includes a free, companion mobile application, SAi Cloud mobile app, which provides businesses owners with remote access to valuable production information while on the road or away from the office. SAi is the first RIP manufacturer to offer such a mobile application, which is compatible with both Android and iPhone devices.

Standardised printing to the large format sector

SAi also delivers standardised printing to the large-format sector with its award-winning SAi PixelBlaster. As a genuine end-to-end system , SAi PixelBlaster guides jobs through every stage of the production process – from file verification, job preparation, color management, RIP to analog or digital (CTS to screen), output check, and finally printing and automated finishing. It can also ensure that in multi-printing device environments, each printer automatically generates exactly the same output quality and color regardless of brand of hardware, the type of inks or the substrates used.

In addition, SAi will demonstrate its SAi EnRoute™ CAD/CAM software for the CNC signmaking and manufacturing industries. This industry-leading 3D CAD/CAM Suite features an easy-to-use interface designed to undertake detailed 3D work with surface creation and texturing.

"SAi is looking forward to returning to FESPA, where in conjunction with our partners, we will demonstrate our latest feature-rich software packages that offer a multitude of in-built, performance-enhancing attributes to maximise design and production,” says Sarit Tichon, Senior VP, Worldwide Sales & Marketing at SAi.

SAi’s software solutions will also be exhibited by CNC World (P50S), Esko-Graphics (F35S), Graphtec GB (Q67S), J-D (J60S), Mutoh (M20S) and Zund Systemtechnik (C20S).

Esko has released Esko Suite 12.1 at its annual user meeting - EskoWorld - being held in Phoenix, Arizona between 19th and 22nd May 2013. The release includes significant new functionality that further streamlines end-to-end workflows across the entire print and packaging supply chain. Suite 12.1 follows the successful release of Suite 12 at drupa 2012 and includes updates of its flagship editing and automation software.

Workflow Made Easier

Suite 12.1 contains enhancements that will make work easier and more profitable for all stakeholders in the print and packaging supply chain, from novice users to advanced environments. Key enhancements incorporated in the release include:

• Standard Template Workflows. For novice users, setting up an effective workflow is not a trivial exercise. By providing standard workflow templates for typical applications such as resp. folding carton, labels, signs, etc, Esko shortens the learning curve for less experienced users. Esko has leveraged its experience in training and in configuring many workflows in the field to create standard templates that automate the most common prepress and production tasks.
• Integration with On-Press Visual Inspection Systems. In prepress editors PackEdge or ArtPro, users can now define areas on a job for inline visual inspection systems. This significantly reduces overall setup time for the press since the inline inspection system receives its setup data directly from Esko Automation Engine. With the inspection area defined upstream and not by the press operator, it becomes easier to standardise the production process across multiple sites, presses and operators. First inspection system integrations work with Esko´s partner AVT.
• CombiPress Support. Especially in the label industry, it is common practice to combine different print processes (offset, flexo, digital, screen) within the same job, with each process requiring different preparation. With CombiPress support, even trapping tickets will automatically perform overprint calculations based on the targeted printing processes, eliminating manual selection of trapping tickets.
• Esko Viewer Sports New Tools. The Esko Viewer in Automation Engine 12.1 is equipped with a barcode and braille reader. With this, the difficulty of manually and visually verifying the accuracy of a barcode or of a line of braille text, an essential check in the prepress QA process, has been overcome.
• Compliance with EU Food Regulations. EU Regulation No. 1169/2011 goes into effect 13 December 2014 onwards. This regulation specifies minimum font size requirements for the nutrition declaration on food packaging. In DeskPack 12.1, the Preflight function can now detect text that does not meet this requirement, ensuring use of the correct font size and providing proof that the produced packaging is compliant.
• Automation of Gang Runs for Flatbed Printers. With a growing number of shorter runs, automating gang printing on large format flatbed digital printers means more profitable operations. With Automation Engine 12.1, multiple odd-shaped designs can automatically be ganged onto a single print sheet layout, improving operator productivity and reducing waste of expensive substrates.

Bernard Zwaenepoel, senior vice president, software, at Esko says, “After drupa, Esko's Software Suite 12 was labeled as the industry reference. But we haven’t been resting on these laurels and invested significant time with our customers to understand additional value-adding requirements, many of which we have addressed in this release. By extending our capabilities beyond traditional prepress tasks, Suite 12.1 brings unsurpassed value to service providers, converters and printers alike as they strive to stay competitive and current in a dynamic market environment.”

The release of Esko´s Suite 12.1 is planned from July 2013 onwards and will be available for existing customers.