Blog kumpulan artikel menarik tentang percetakan dan kemasan di Indonesia dan mancanegera. Hasil ulasan di majalah printpack Indonesia dan UNTOLDABLE...
Selasa, 13 November 2012
Kamis, 01 Maret 2012
Free X-Rite Webinar Explains New Color Management Standards ISO color and M1 measurement discussed in exclusive two-day event
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., February 22, 2012 - X-Rite <http://www.xrite.com> , Incorporated (NASDAQ: XRIT), - the world leader in color management, measurement and communication technologies, will present its expert insight on new measurement standards, technologies and ways operations can enhance their business in a free webinar.
For two days only the exclusive event entitled New Color Management Standards in 2012 - How Will You Be Impacted? will focus on ISO color and M1 measurement standards in prepress and print. The issues surrounding optical brighteners in paper will also be detailed before a Q&A session at the end.
Targeted at prepress professionals and commercial printers, the webinar will take place on March 1 and March 2 at 17.30 CET (16.30 GMT).
The first to register will be among the selected few to receive “The M Factor”, a comprehensive white paper explaining how to successfully color manage papers with optical brighteners.
To register for the free event follow the links:
- March 1, 2012 - 17:30 CET (16:30 GMT) <https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/299117998>
- March 2, 2012 - 17:30 CET (16:30 GMT) <https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/331018478>
About X-Rite
X-Rite, Incorporated (NASDAQ:XRIT) is the global leader in color science and technology. The company, which now includes color industry leader Pantone LLC, develops, manufactures, markets and supports innovative color solutions through measurement systems, software, color standards and services. X-Rite's expertise in inspiring, selecting, measuring, formulating, communicating and matching color helps users get color right the first time and every time, which translates to better quality and reduced costs. X-Rite serves a range of industries, including printing, packaging, photography, graphic design, video, automotive, paints, plastics, textiles, dental and medical. For further information, please visit www.xrite.com
Press Contact for Europe:
duomedia pr
Monika Dürr
monika.d@duomedia.com
Tel: +49 (0)6104 944 895
For two days only the exclusive event entitled New Color Management Standards in 2012 - How Will You Be Impacted? will focus on ISO color and M1 measurement standards in prepress and print. The issues surrounding optical brighteners in paper will also be detailed before a Q&A session at the end.
Targeted at prepress professionals and commercial printers, the webinar will take place on March 1 and March 2 at 17.30 CET (16.30 GMT).
The first to register will be among the selected few to receive “The M Factor”, a comprehensive white paper explaining how to successfully color manage papers with optical brighteners.
To register for the free event follow the links:
- March 1, 2012 - 17:30 CET (16:30 GMT) <https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/299117998>
- March 2, 2012 - 17:30 CET (16:30 GMT) <https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/331018478>
About X-Rite
X-Rite, Incorporated (NASDAQ:XRIT) is the global leader in color science and technology. The company, which now includes color industry leader Pantone LLC, develops, manufactures, markets and supports innovative color solutions through measurement systems, software, color standards and services. X-Rite's expertise in inspiring, selecting, measuring, formulating, communicating and matching color helps users get color right the first time and every time, which translates to better quality and reduced costs. X-Rite serves a range of industries, including printing, packaging, photography, graphic design, video, automotive, paints, plastics, textiles, dental and medical. For further information, please visit www.xrite.com
Press Contact for Europe:
duomedia pr
Monika Dürr
monika.d@duomedia.com
Tel: +49 (0)6104 944 895
Esko supports PantoneLIVE, a breakthrough color workflow for the packaging supply chain
Integration of Esko's Color Engine supports first-time-every-time color integrity – from design and ink kitchen to print production
Gent (Belgium), March 1, 2012 – Esko (www.esko.com) takes its packaging supply chain color management offerings to the next level through a partnership with X-Rite/Pantone, the global leader in color science and technology. Visitors to the Esko stand at drupa 2012 (Hall 8b, stand A23) will experience a color management workflow that encompasses the entire packaging supply chain and ensures first-time-every-time color integrity.
“Market research consistently reveals that consumers use the color and shape of a package to recognize and select the product they want when shopping,” says Geert De Proost, Director Software Engines for Esko. “That is why brand owners are so concerned about an accurate representation of package colors. For the same reason, we decided to implement support for PantoneLIVE™ from X-Rite/Pantone in our workflow. PantoneLIVE delivers an end-to-end solution that, for the first time, addresses the needs and requirements of every single discipline within the packaging supply chain. This means that the brand manager will see an accurate representation of on-press color early in the design process, while converters can be assured of first-time-right color proofing and easy-to-match color on press. This sets the right expectations from the beginning of the process and has the potential to significantly reduce time to market.”
Accurate and consistent color data throughout the packaging supply chain
Esko's Color Engine, the central color database to manage color and device profiles, is the enabling technology to support the PantoneLIVE color management process across the prepress packaging workflow. The combination of PantoneLIVE spot color profiles with Esko’s unique and patented spectral ink model provides absolute accuracy and predictability for spot color simulation. This is a winning combination at the basis for a breakthrough color workflow in the packaging supply chain.
All supply chain stakeholders can access the Color Engine from within their preferred application:
· For designers, Ink Manager and Esko Viewer are PantoneLIVE-enabled plug-ins inside of Adobe® Illustrator® and Adobe® Photoshop®.
· For prepress professionals, PackEdge, ArtPro, Automation Engine and WebCenter all connect to the same color data for editing, previewing and proofing purposes.
· FlexProof creates accurate and achievable hardcopy inkjet proofs, either locally or remotely, based on PantoneLIVE spot color profiles.
· Brand Owners can use the PantoneLIVE portal to manage digital brand color standards.
· Printers and converters will access the exact same color references to use in X-Rite Ink Formulation Software.
The Esko Color Engine is the central color management software that brings about consistent color across the packaging and print supply chain. In combination with the PantoneLIVE color database, the Color Engine Pilot provides the perfect tool set for creating and maintaining critical brand colors, creation of spot color profiles and other color conversion settings. The Color Engine maintains consistency throughout the production environment by ensuring that every application and operator works with the same color critical data.
”PantoneLIVE delivers color DNA based on real ink, on real substrates with real printing processes for predictable, repeatable results,” explains Dr. Sonia Megert, vice president of the Pantone digital business unit at X-Rite/Pantone. “We are very pleased to have Esko, the leading packaging workflow software provider, endorse and recognize the value of PantoneLIVE. Esko plays a key, strategic role in the digital ecosystem that surrounds PantoneLIVE.”
“This is the first time that the same digital ink specification can be used throughout the entire packaging supply chain,” concludes De Proost. “It guarantees consistent color reproduction from design through production, a goal that has been difficult to achieve in the past. Integration of Color Engine in PantoneLIVE changes the game. We are excited to support PantoneLIVE's end-to-end color workflow at drupa 2012.”
For more information about Esko's Color Engine, visit www.esko.com/colorengine; for more information about PantoneLIVE, visit www.pantone.com/live or see PantoneLIVE press release.
Esko is a global supplier of integrated solutions for packaging, sign and display finishing, commercial printing and professional publishing. Esko products and services help customers raise productivity, reduce time-to-market, lower costs and expand business and improve profitability.
Portfolio
Esko is the worldwide market leader with software for artwork creation, structural design, pre-production, workflow automation, quality assurance and online collaboration. Esko solutions support and manage the packaging and print processes at brand owners, retailers, designers and packaging manufacturers.
CDI flexo computer-to-plate imagers and Kongsberg digital finishing systems complete the portfolio for the packaging, label, signage and display industries.
Enfocus, with its suite of PDF tools for graphic designers and print production professionals, is part of Esko.
Facts & numbers
Esko employs around 1200 people worldwide. Its direct sales and service organization covers Europe, the Americas and the Asia Pacific region, completed by a network of distribution partners in more than 50 countries.
Esko is headquartered in Gent, Belgium, and has R&D and manufacturing facilities in five European countries, the United States, China and India.
For more information, visit www.esko.com or contact:
P.R. agencies
Europa, Asia, África
Nancy Vermeulen
duomedia pr
Tel: +32 2 560 21 50
North America
Irvin Press
Press+
Tel: +1 508 384 0608
Esko
Corporate and EMEA
Jef Stoffels
Director of Corporate Marketing
Tel: +32 9 216 90 32
Rabu, 07 Desember 2011
Flexografi, Solusi & Tren Cetak Masadepan
Flexography menjadi sorotan dalam kurun waktu beberapa tahun belakangan ini..Tak hanya produktifitasnya yang tinggi mencapai 1-5 juta lintasan dan kemampuannya mencetak diatas bermacam material. Namun juga dapat meminimalisir besaran dot gain dengan ‘kiss impression, efisiensi waktu dalam produksi [produktifitas tinggi], biaya relative lebih murah dan ramah lingkungan. Kedepan, teknik cetak tinggi [flexografi] akan menjadi andalan sebagaimana telah terjadi pergeseran signifikan di berbagai belahan dunia.
Flexography is coming
Flexography merupakan satu dari teknik mencetak konvensional yang mengalami perkembangan yang sangat pesat. Beberapa kemajuan yang terjadi secara signifikan pada industri percetakan dan kemasan, membuat pencetakan dengan teknik Flexography menjadi sorotan dalam kurun waktu beberapa tahun belakangan ini..
Membandingkan teknik cetak Flexo sekarang ini dengan 5 tahun sebelumnya bagai melihat siang dan malam. Perkembangan teknologi telah menghadirkan mesin dan prepress yang mampu menghasilkan cetakan berkualitas baik; presisi dan akurat. Hal ini mengantarkan teknik cetak Flexo menuju posisi dan peluang yang lebih menjanjikan pada persaingan pasar industri cetak yang lebih luas.
Prinsip cetak Flexography termasuk proses cetak tinggi; mencetak diatas permukaan bahan bentuk rol (reel feed) dengan acuan cetak bersifat lentur (Flexible printing plates) dan tinta yang agak cair (Low viscous ink). Komponen dasar teknik cetak Flexo meliputi : Fountain roll, Ink metering roll (Anilox), Plate cylinder, Impression cylinder.
Meluasnya pemakaian teknik cetak Flexo juga berhubungan dengan dengan isu ramah lingkungan yang sedang didengungkan secara mendunia (Go green). Pemakaian tinta flexo umumnya yang bersifat water based sedangkan solvent based mulai dikurangi. Sebagai penggantinya, sekarang hadir tinta UVW (UV water based) untuk memenuhi kualitas cetak yang lebih baik dan ramah lingkungan.
Aplikasi cetakan Flexography
Keistimewaan utama pada Flexography yaitu Flexography dapat mencetak dengan sangat variatif; diatas Plastik film, Foil, kertas, sampai karton, termasuk dipermukaan yang tidak rata sekalipun seperti bahan kulit atau bahkan diatas bahan lembaran kaku seperti karton gelombang.
Aplikasi cetakan Flexo dibagi dalam beberapa katagori:
Menurut ukuran Lebar bahan (substrate / web).
Width web, meliputi Plastic Bags :
Bakery Products, Snack food, Candy and Confectionary, Frozen Food, Dairy Products, Industrial Agricultural, Meat, Poultry and Seafood, Fresh Produce, Dry food, Beverages, Drugs, Surgical, Medical, Household and Sanitary Toilet, Cosmetic, Cleaning Apparel/ Textile, Tobacco Product
Narrow Web :
Industrial: Primary Labels, Specialty Labels, Grocery, Pharmaceuticals, Liquid product, Cosmetics, shampoo, Tags and Tapes.
Medium web/ Folding Carton :
Drugs, Surgical, Medical, Candy and Confectionery , Industrial / Hardware , Toilet / Cosmetic/ Cleaning, Frozen Foods, Paper Products ,Bakery, Automotive, Toys, Fast Foods, Dairy Products / Liquid Packaging, Apparel / Textile, Computer Supplies, Beverage Carriers.
Perkembangan Flexo di beberapa Negara
Flexography di Amerika dan Eropa sangatlah popular dan telah berkembang dengan baik.. Pencetakan kemasan lentur (flexible packaging), kemasan karton (cardboard packaging), label sticker / vinyl sampai kertas hias dinding (wall paper), kertas kado (wrapping / gift paper), kertas tisu (tissue paper), amplop dll.
Dengan terus berkembangkannya teknik mencetak Flexography ditambah lagi dengan pencapaian hasil cetak yang semakin baik, sehingga posisi pasar flexo semakin meluas. Tentunya hal ini dapat dicapai setelah melalui waktu yang panjang dan melalui penelitian dan pengembangan (R&D) yang kompleks.
Selama ini popularitas Flexo di Jepang berkembang lambat sekali jika dibanding di Amerika dan Eropa, hal ini karena Jepang sangat mengutamakan (concern) terhadap mutu. Flexography dituntut untuk menghasilkan kualitas cetak yang baik. Untuk mencapai hal tersebut ada beberapa upaya yang terus dikembangkan; memberikan perhatian terutama pengetahuan dibidang prepress; software, CTP untuk Flexo Plate yang lebih baik sekalipun adhesive sebagai pelekat Plate pada Impression cylinder, tinta (solventless), mesin sistim Gearless & Central Drum type, plate mounting, produktivitas, sampai kepada penekan biaya produksi. Namum demikian Flexography di Jepang dimulai aplikasi untuk mencetak surat kabar.
Mari kita lihat sepintas kutipan data perbandingan pemakaian teknik cetak secara global.
Komposisi pemakaian teknik cetak menyeluruh
Gravur = 22%
Flexo = 30%
Offset = 40%
Lainnya = 8%
Komposisi pemakaian teknik cetak pada kemasan lentur
Gravur = 30%
Flexo = 55%
Lainnya = 15%
Perbandingan Perkembangan Pemakaian teknik Gravur dan Flexo
Kawasan/Negara Gravur : Flexo
Eropa barat 20% : 40%
Amerika utara 10% : 75%
Asia 50% : 15%
Jepang 85% : 5%
Bagaimana aplikasi Flexo di Indonesia kondisi saat ini? Dan bagaimana perkembangan dan trend Flexo di Indonesia? Tentu hal ini akan menjadi topik sangat menarik, pada kesempatan ini kami mengundang Ibu /Bapak sekalian untuk simak bersama para pakar dibidangnya pada seminar sehari “Flexo Day” pada tanggal 1 Agustus 2009, yang akan berlangsung ditengah pesta grafika asia tenggara FGDexpo2009 di Jakarta Convention Center.
Informasi dan pendaftaran:
Diny K. Sastrawinata
Sekretariat FGDforum
Jl. Pegambiran 591 Jakarta 13220
T. 021 4720643 ext.123 ,70640280, 70648360, 98778850, F. 021 4894828
M. 0815 10886333 email: diny.sastrawinata@yahoo.com
Flexography is coming
Flexography merupakan satu dari teknik mencetak konvensional yang mengalami perkembangan yang sangat pesat. Beberapa kemajuan yang terjadi secara signifikan pada industri percetakan dan kemasan, membuat pencetakan dengan teknik Flexography menjadi sorotan dalam kurun waktu beberapa tahun belakangan ini..
Membandingkan teknik cetak Flexo sekarang ini dengan 5 tahun sebelumnya bagai melihat siang dan malam. Perkembangan teknologi telah menghadirkan mesin dan prepress yang mampu menghasilkan cetakan berkualitas baik; presisi dan akurat. Hal ini mengantarkan teknik cetak Flexo menuju posisi dan peluang yang lebih menjanjikan pada persaingan pasar industri cetak yang lebih luas.
Prinsip cetak Flexography termasuk proses cetak tinggi; mencetak diatas permukaan bahan bentuk rol (reel feed) dengan acuan cetak bersifat lentur (Flexible printing plates) dan tinta yang agak cair (Low viscous ink). Komponen dasar teknik cetak Flexo meliputi : Fountain roll, Ink metering roll (Anilox), Plate cylinder, Impression cylinder.
Meluasnya pemakaian teknik cetak Flexo juga berhubungan dengan dengan isu ramah lingkungan yang sedang didengungkan secara mendunia (Go green). Pemakaian tinta flexo umumnya yang bersifat water based sedangkan solvent based mulai dikurangi. Sebagai penggantinya, sekarang hadir tinta UVW (UV water based) untuk memenuhi kualitas cetak yang lebih baik dan ramah lingkungan.
Aplikasi cetakan Flexography
Keistimewaan utama pada Flexography yaitu Flexography dapat mencetak dengan sangat variatif; diatas Plastik film, Foil, kertas, sampai karton, termasuk dipermukaan yang tidak rata sekalipun seperti bahan kulit atau bahkan diatas bahan lembaran kaku seperti karton gelombang.
Aplikasi cetakan Flexo dibagi dalam beberapa katagori:
Menurut ukuran Lebar bahan (substrate / web).
Width web, meliputi Plastic Bags :
Bakery Products, Snack food, Candy and Confectionary, Frozen Food, Dairy Products, Industrial Agricultural, Meat, Poultry and Seafood, Fresh Produce, Dry food, Beverages, Drugs, Surgical, Medical, Household and Sanitary Toilet, Cosmetic, Cleaning Apparel/ Textile, Tobacco Product
Narrow Web :
Industrial: Primary Labels, Specialty Labels, Grocery, Pharmaceuticals, Liquid product, Cosmetics, shampoo, Tags and Tapes.
Medium web/ Folding Carton :
Drugs, Surgical, Medical, Candy and Confectionery , Industrial / Hardware , Toilet / Cosmetic/ Cleaning, Frozen Foods, Paper Products ,Bakery, Automotive, Toys, Fast Foods, Dairy Products / Liquid Packaging, Apparel / Textile, Computer Supplies, Beverage Carriers.
Perkembangan Flexo di beberapa Negara
Flexography di Amerika dan Eropa sangatlah popular dan telah berkembang dengan baik.. Pencetakan kemasan lentur (flexible packaging), kemasan karton (cardboard packaging), label sticker / vinyl sampai kertas hias dinding (wall paper), kertas kado (wrapping / gift paper), kertas tisu (tissue paper), amplop dll.
Dengan terus berkembangkannya teknik mencetak Flexography ditambah lagi dengan pencapaian hasil cetak yang semakin baik, sehingga posisi pasar flexo semakin meluas. Tentunya hal ini dapat dicapai setelah melalui waktu yang panjang dan melalui penelitian dan pengembangan (R&D) yang kompleks.
Selama ini popularitas Flexo di Jepang berkembang lambat sekali jika dibanding di Amerika dan Eropa, hal ini karena Jepang sangat mengutamakan (concern) terhadap mutu. Flexography dituntut untuk menghasilkan kualitas cetak yang baik. Untuk mencapai hal tersebut ada beberapa upaya yang terus dikembangkan; memberikan perhatian terutama pengetahuan dibidang prepress; software, CTP untuk Flexo Plate yang lebih baik sekalipun adhesive sebagai pelekat Plate pada Impression cylinder, tinta (solventless), mesin sistim Gearless & Central Drum type, plate mounting, produktivitas, sampai kepada penekan biaya produksi. Namum demikian Flexography di Jepang dimulai aplikasi untuk mencetak surat kabar.
Mari kita lihat sepintas kutipan data perbandingan pemakaian teknik cetak secara global.
Komposisi pemakaian teknik cetak menyeluruh
Gravur = 22%
Flexo = 30%
Offset = 40%
Lainnya = 8%
Komposisi pemakaian teknik cetak pada kemasan lentur
Gravur = 30%
Flexo = 55%
Lainnya = 15%
Perbandingan Perkembangan Pemakaian teknik Gravur dan Flexo
Kawasan/Negara Gravur : Flexo
Eropa barat 20% : 40%
Amerika utara 10% : 75%
Asia 50% : 15%
Jepang 85% : 5%
Bagaimana aplikasi Flexo di Indonesia kondisi saat ini? Dan bagaimana perkembangan dan trend Flexo di Indonesia? Tentu hal ini akan menjadi topik sangat menarik, pada kesempatan ini kami mengundang Ibu /Bapak sekalian untuk simak bersama para pakar dibidangnya pada seminar sehari “Flexo Day” pada tanggal 1 Agustus 2009, yang akan berlangsung ditengah pesta grafika asia tenggara FGDexpo2009 di Jakarta Convention Center.
Informasi dan pendaftaran:
Diny K. Sastrawinata
Sekretariat FGDforum
Jl. Pegambiran 591 Jakarta 13220
T. 021 4720643 ext.123 ,70640280, 70648360, 98778850, F. 021 4894828
M. 0815 10886333 email: diny.sastrawinata@yahoo.com
Maugein Imprimeurs Goes Digital With KODAK NEXPRESS SE2500 Press
Press release from the issuing company
Maugein Imprimeurs began as a newspaper printer before moving into commercial printing. Today the company has a nationwide customer base, comprising large enterprises, public organizations and local businesses.
Maugein Imprimeurs operates two sites, at Tulle and at Malemort, for wide-format and small-format offset printing respectively. The company was an early adopter of in-house prepress equipment and has two CTP systems. It has a turnover of EUR 4.2 million and employs 50 staff.
"Our partnership with Kodak goes back a long way," explains Jean-Paul Maugein, Director of the Malemort site. ?We've been using KODAK Films for years, and KODAK Plates more recently. In 1999 we invested in KODAK LOTEM 400 and LOTEM 800 Platesetters controlled by two identically configured KODAK PRINERGY Workflow Systems."
Moving into the short-run market
Jean-Paul and David Maugein started thinking about moving into digital printing in 2010. "We knew we were missing out on the short-run print market-from a few dozen to a hundred or so copies," said Jean-Paul Maugein. "We'd been aware of the issue for three or four years. Yet we couldn't consider investing in digital while the technology couldn't rival offset."
In November 2010, the company's management opted to invest in the KODAK NEXPRESS SE2500 Digital Production Press. "We narrowed down the choice to two digital presses," said Jean-Paul Maugein. "We chose the NEXPRESS Press because it rivals offset quality and exceeds the inline options and applications. Our decision was also influenced by our past experience of Kodak and the strength of our partnership."
The NEXPRESS Press is installed at Malemort and controlled by the same PRINERGY Workflow System as the CTP system. "Using the same workflow manager to control the offset channel and the digital channel enables our production to be more flexible," said Jean-Paul Maugein. "We can easily shift a job from one channel to the other, without the need for re-ripping. The colorimetry is exactly the same, too. It's a major asset in terms of balancing our workload. Moreover, with over 100 new additions, the award-winning NEXPRESS Platform now prints on more than 700 qualified substrates that range from standard offset substrates to synthetics, magnets, foils, textured stocks, and photo and specialty stocks, which is a real benefit for any printer."
Adapting to digital
When Maugein Imprimeurs installed the NEXPRESS Press in 2011 it also invested in a dedicated finishing line. This ensured the NEXPRESS Press was independent of the existing finishing department, which is reserved for wide formats. Meanwhile, the workflow has been upgraded from a PRINERGY EVO to a PRINERGY CONNECT System for increased automation and control of the blended conventional and digital print environment.
"Installation and commissioning went without a hitch," said Jean-Paul Maugein. "And there were no problems training the operator we recruited specifically for the NEXPRESS Press. The system is easy to use, although the mindset for digital is different from offset. Digital equipment is more fragile, and the initial approach is more complex. But Kodak's support is second to none. We felt like we were in very safe hands as we ventured into digital. We were fully operational in six months, exactly as Kodak promised."
Winning new customers
The first customers appeared in March 2011. "We're the first printers in the region to open a digital section, and news spread quickly," said Jean-Paul Maugein. "People know about digital and understand its potential."
Barely nine months after being put into operation, the KODAK NEXPRESS Press is working virtually non-stop. Jean-Paul Maugein is very optimistic. "Digital opens the door to short-run jobs, where we used to have trouble positioning ourselves. We can now meet all the needs of our customers, who are no longer forced to go elsewhere for certain jobs."
"The system is also enabling us to work with customers operating in areas we haven't worked in before, such as photographers. We can offer lead times of 24 to 48 hours for digital jobs-some customers even arrive with their order and leave with everything printed."
For an overview of the SpencerLab Photographic Print Image Quality Study where Kodak captured highest rating, visit http://bit.ly/SpencerLabStudy
Maugein Imprimeurs is planning to invest in black-and-white digital printing, so it can tap into the growing short-run book publishing market.
Kodak is a global advisor and provider of integrated services to help companies transform and optimize their businesses. Through a network of service professionals in 120+ countries, Kodak provides technical, professional, consulting and managed services to enable customers to focus on growing their businesses, maximize productivity, and more effectively manage risks. All KODAK Products and Software are backed by KODAK Service and Support. To learn more, visit www.graphics.kodak.com.
HP Acquires Hiflex
Press release from the issuing company
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Founded in 1991, Hiflex is headquartered in Aachen, Germany. Following the acquisition, Hiflex will continue to evolve its offerings and service its current customers.
“HP wants to break the traditional barriers of how and where business customers print, making it easy for them to produce custom or personalized materials anywhere, anytime,” said Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president, Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “Hiflex’s technology provides a powerful platform to deliver on this goal as part of our overall cloud printing strategy.”
Technologies from Hiflex will enable continued innovation across HP’s imaging and printing offerings and will extend the company’s portfolio of cloud-based technologies and solutions. HP also remains committed to supporting a broad range of partner solutions, giving customers maximum choice and flexibility.
Litho & Digital – A Complementary Mix
By Andrew Tribute
Published: December 2, 2011
Today it is becoming much more common to find printers using more than one printing technology. In most cases this is adding sheet fed digital printing to complement a predominantly offset printing operation. This allows offset printers to profitably handle very short run work and also to get into new markets where offset printing is not appropriate. This includes business to consumer operations such as photo books and also to enter into variable data printing for one to one marketing, direct mail and even adding Internet based services.
For the conventional offset printer what one finds however is the normal mode of operation is to find the offset and digital technologies are run separately using different workflows and where the printing technology to be used is chosen at the time of quoting for the job rather than at the time of production. The trend in future, as we will see at drupa 2012 from 3rd to 16th May, will be for much of the work to be done for a common workflow to be used and for the technology to be selected at the time of production. For this to happen the output from the two technologies must look the same in terms of both image quality and colour compatibility.
In the launch this year of Heidelberg’s partnership with Ricoh, the common workflow and colour compatibility at digi:media in Düsseldorf was a principal theme of the Heidelberg message under a marketing term call HEI Flexibility. This was shown by a demonstration of production of a marketing package for a golf event where the different items in the package were printed using offset and digital printing and where the look of the different outputs was near identical. The work was all driven from Heidelberg’s workflow with common colour management. The work shown also linked in Heidelberg’s digital inkjet packaging press in the same workflow plus a range of Heidelberg finishing systems. In the UK Heidelberg has also demonstrated how this workflow can be extended up the value chain by linking up with Cloud based web to print company Red Tie for online ordering and communication with the print buyer or specifier.
Where Digital Printing Should Fit
The Heidelberg example above was a demonstration of what can be done, and today we are seeing such things happening from many printers in the industry using a range of different equipment. The use of digital printing to carry out work that would previously have been printed by offset where digital printing is a more suitable process because of the short run nature of the work is only part of the way digital printing is complementing offset. It is an example of how printers have found it necessary to implement digital printing in order to provide a more complete service to their customers while staying profitable. This is offset transfer where it is not profitable to print short run work using offset technologies. Today the digital printing from all the suppliers can match four-colour offset printing for quality and colour reproduction.
While digital printing has been the technology in the limelight at the past drupa events, offset technology has continued to develop and become more efficient and more suited for short run printing. Some digital printers have also seen the need to invest in offset to handle a wider range of work. In these cases it is often seen that a digital printer will add offset printing with D.I. technology from for instance Presstek. One reason for this is digital printing companies don’t want to have offset printing skills and the Presstek D.I. presses can be run almost like digital presses with offset costs. Jeff Jacobson the Chairman, President and CEO of Presstek states the following. “We have a term called bridging the gap. Customers are having great difficulty as 80% of all printing in four-colour is under 5,000 impressions and to do that efficiently you cannot do it with electrophotography because the toner is too expensive and inkjet is not there yet. Between 500 and 20,000 impressions DI will give you the absolute highest quality at the lowest cost per piece.”
Sheet fed digital printing has developed hugely over the past decade. While major attention has focussed on the high productivity presses from HP Indigo, Kodak and Xerox we have seen key developments in the mid volume and light production areas. A recent announcement in the light production space has come with a joint development of a new next-generation printer using existing proven technologies from Canon and Océ. We are now seeing additional functionality being added to these presses. This can be with a fifth printing unit for adding the equivalent of a coating or varnish. An example of this can be shown with the Xerox 1000 Color Press where the clear dry ink allows for special effects like spot varnishing and special effects to be added to prints. The Kodak Nexpress also offers a similar functionality. We are also seeing larger sheet sizes being offered. The Xerox iGen4 EXP handles sheets up to 66 cm in length permitting a wider range of work to be handled on the press. The Kodak Nexpress SX also offers a similar sheet size capability.
This however is only part of the way that digital printing can complement offset printing and enhance the offerings that printers can provide for their customers. The key for the printers building their businesses today is to be able to offer a wide range of integrated services and products rather than just high-quality printing. The key to this is through enhancing the workflow to become accessible to a wider range of customers and to become easier to work with. This is using workflow to reach new buyers for whom buying print is a normal procedure, as well as making it easier for print buyers to work with the printer. Apart from the high street quick printer, printing has predominantly been a business to business (B2B) operation. Internet based ordering and workflow and digital printing is now making printing a business to consumer (B2C) operation.
Precision Printing – Changing the Business Model
A very good example of this can be seen from Precision Printing a UK based printer. Precision was a typical medium size offset printer and they first invested in digital in 2005 with an HP Indigo press. For a number of years their digital business was just complementing the litho business for short run printing that matched their offset printing. Following the last drupa in 2008 Precision changed their business operations by developing their own workflow for automating all their processes, and adding a very advanced web to print ordering operation through an alliance with Italian specialist Pixelartprinting. This has allowed Precision to double their turnover in five years with only a small increase in staff. Their offset printing turnover has hardly changed in that time despite an increase in capacity through a new Heidelberg 10-unit press. The increase has come through moving to a B2C operation with online ordering and automated production via its workflow allowing a huge number of small jobs to be processed via their four HP Indigo presses. At the same time the addition of variable data printing has allowed Precision to offer a much wider range of services to its B2B customers.
Web to print software and integrated workflow is the key for making print businesses more efficient and allowing them to widen their markets as Precision has done. This type of workflow will be one of the key items on show at drupa from a range of companies. Kodak will be one of the key ones showing such software with its Unified Workflow Solutions that link up the market leading Prinergy commercial workflow with the InSite portal solutions, together with Darwin variable data and Kodak web to print solutions to drive offset, flexo and digital printing systems. Most of the main industry vendors will be showing similar workflow approaches that reach up and down the value chain to allow printers to widen the scope of their businesses. I would also expect to see many small systems providers showing a range of new software products in the drupa Innovation Park for enhanced web to print working and multiple media communication.
Imposition Optimization Creates a New Business
One area of web to print that we are now seeing is specialised workflow software to optimize the loading and scheduling of work on the press. In the past few years, particularly in Germany there has been a major rise of web to print where printers are using specialised software to gang multiple jobs on the same press. In this they are mainly using large format four-colour offset presses rather than digital presses for the work. One company well known for this is Vistaprint but I feel the best example of what is happening is Flyeralarm who run multiple large-format KBA and Heidelberg offset presses, as well as digital presses, with all work being ordered online via their web sites and online stores around Europe. Currently they process an average of 10,000 orders per day of which 99% are ordered online. One of the keys to such efficiency is the very fast make-ready and low manning levels of modern large-format offset presses.
Companies like Flyeralarm have developed their own workflow and job ganging software to create this massive area of business. Today such software is available from certain software suppliers to allow other printers to enter this high-volume web to print area. Litho Technics has a solution for automatically generating complex imposition plans for ganging multiple jobs together on one sheet. One user is MPG Books, a leading UK book printer. They needed to increase the capacity from 400 to 600 book titles per month and saw gang printing as a solution. They achieved this while reducing staffing in the planning area as well. Colin Gammon, MPG Books Technical R&D Manager stated “The software has helped us to remain highly competitive by cutting our labour costs in half. The AutoLayout feature allows us put more work on a single sheet, which reduces spoilage and speeds job turnaround,” One can also see the solution integrated into some other suppliers’ workflow packages. This includes Fujifilm Europe adding it to its XMF suite of workflow solutions and EFI using it with some of its MIS systems. In the UK MIS supplier Tharstern is also developing a work ganging imposition extension to its systems
Traditional Suppliers Going Digital
One of the key trends to be seen at drupa is some of the leading offset press suppliers entering the digital market place. Heidelberg and its partnership with Ricoh have already been announced and the first systems have already been installed. manroland has announced a partnership with the Canon owned company Océ to sell high-speed inkjet presses into its markets. KBA will also enter this market through a partnership with the world’s largest printer R.R. Donnelley. R.R. Donnelley has developed its own inkjet presses and is licensing its inkjet technology for KBA to build its own presses. These manroland and KBA inkjet presses will be aimed at the traditional high-volume offset printers in books, direct mail, magazines and newspapers with the aim of changing the business models for printers in these markets.
So far the majority of high-speed inkjet presses have been sold to transactional printers and few commercial printers have invested in this technology. In the USA in particular some book printers have installed such systems, predominantly from HP and Kodak. They have used them to change the business models of publishers so run lengths of colour books up to 5,000 copies now become viable on this technology allowing print buyers to reduce their levels of inventory of offset printed books where ordered run lengths are usually longer in order to get a lower price per book. A good example of this is King Printing, a small USA book printer. They were the first book printer to invest in high-speed inkjet presses for book printing and now have two presses with a third on order. They anticipate that with the success of this technology in helping their publisher customers change their business models that they will may phase out their offset printing operations and become a total digital printing company. Aditya Chinai, the President of King Printing states the following: “We are becoming inventory managers for our customers as they look to cut their warehousing and costs. With inkjet the frequency of orders increases and the quantity of run decreases. We may see 10 orders for 50 copies of a title instead of one large run. It is now print for order rather than print for speculation.”
It is anticipated that with the entry of manroland and KBA into the digital market that book and magazine printers will be more likely to install high-speed inkjet presses to help change the business models of the customers in books, magazines and newspapers.
Where Does Offset Fit in Future?
This is perhaps the key thing that printers need to understand about the impact of new workflow approaches, web to print and digital printing is that it allows them to work with their customers to help them change the way they do business. The new business model for printers is to be a multiple media communications supplier in which print is just one way of communicating. Printers’ customers are being offered a whole new way of communicating and a range of new suppliers. The new web to print and workflow tools allow a printer to be able to make it easier for the customers to work with them, or for the printer to offer a wider range of services to become a more complete supplier. This is not saying offset will disappear, far from it. Offset will remain the major element of most printers’ businesses, but without digital printing and automated Internet based workflows, customers will move away from just offset centric suppliers.
While many analysts and the press will once again call drupa 2012 the “Inkjet drupa”, in reality it will be “Digital drupa”- that is an event built around how digital workflow and printing technologies will spearhead the change of printing to become a multiple media communications industry.
Published: December 2, 2011
Today it is becoming much more common to find printers using more than one printing technology. In most cases this is adding sheet fed digital printing to complement a predominantly offset printing operation. This allows offset printers to profitably handle very short run work and also to get into new markets where offset printing is not appropriate. This includes business to consumer operations such as photo books and also to enter into variable data printing for one to one marketing, direct mail and even adding Internet based services.
For the conventional offset printer what one finds however is the normal mode of operation is to find the offset and digital technologies are run separately using different workflows and where the printing technology to be used is chosen at the time of quoting for the job rather than at the time of production. The trend in future, as we will see at drupa 2012 from 3rd to 16th May, will be for much of the work to be done for a common workflow to be used and for the technology to be selected at the time of production. For this to happen the output from the two technologies must look the same in terms of both image quality and colour compatibility.
In the launch this year of Heidelberg’s partnership with Ricoh, the common workflow and colour compatibility at digi:media in Düsseldorf was a principal theme of the Heidelberg message under a marketing term call HEI Flexibility. This was shown by a demonstration of production of a marketing package for a golf event where the different items in the package were printed using offset and digital printing and where the look of the different outputs was near identical. The work was all driven from Heidelberg’s workflow with common colour management. The work shown also linked in Heidelberg’s digital inkjet packaging press in the same workflow plus a range of Heidelberg finishing systems. In the UK Heidelberg has also demonstrated how this workflow can be extended up the value chain by linking up with Cloud based web to print company Red Tie for online ordering and communication with the print buyer or specifier.
Where Digital Printing Should Fit
The Heidelberg example above was a demonstration of what can be done, and today we are seeing such things happening from many printers in the industry using a range of different equipment. The use of digital printing to carry out work that would previously have been printed by offset where digital printing is a more suitable process because of the short run nature of the work is only part of the way digital printing is complementing offset. It is an example of how printers have found it necessary to implement digital printing in order to provide a more complete service to their customers while staying profitable. This is offset transfer where it is not profitable to print short run work using offset technologies. Today the digital printing from all the suppliers can match four-colour offset printing for quality and colour reproduction.
While digital printing has been the technology in the limelight at the past drupa events, offset technology has continued to develop and become more efficient and more suited for short run printing. Some digital printers have also seen the need to invest in offset to handle a wider range of work. In these cases it is often seen that a digital printer will add offset printing with D.I. technology from for instance Presstek. One reason for this is digital printing companies don’t want to have offset printing skills and the Presstek D.I. presses can be run almost like digital presses with offset costs. Jeff Jacobson the Chairman, President and CEO of Presstek states the following. “We have a term called bridging the gap. Customers are having great difficulty as 80% of all printing in four-colour is under 5,000 impressions and to do that efficiently you cannot do it with electrophotography because the toner is too expensive and inkjet is not there yet. Between 500 and 20,000 impressions DI will give you the absolute highest quality at the lowest cost per piece.”
Sheet fed digital printing has developed hugely over the past decade. While major attention has focussed on the high productivity presses from HP Indigo, Kodak and Xerox we have seen key developments in the mid volume and light production areas. A recent announcement in the light production space has come with a joint development of a new next-generation printer using existing proven technologies from Canon and Océ. We are now seeing additional functionality being added to these presses. This can be with a fifth printing unit for adding the equivalent of a coating or varnish. An example of this can be shown with the Xerox 1000 Color Press where the clear dry ink allows for special effects like spot varnishing and special effects to be added to prints. The Kodak Nexpress also offers a similar functionality. We are also seeing larger sheet sizes being offered. The Xerox iGen4 EXP handles sheets up to 66 cm in length permitting a wider range of work to be handled on the press. The Kodak Nexpress SX also offers a similar sheet size capability.
This however is only part of the way that digital printing can complement offset printing and enhance the offerings that printers can provide for their customers. The key for the printers building their businesses today is to be able to offer a wide range of integrated services and products rather than just high-quality printing. The key to this is through enhancing the workflow to become accessible to a wider range of customers and to become easier to work with. This is using workflow to reach new buyers for whom buying print is a normal procedure, as well as making it easier for print buyers to work with the printer. Apart from the high street quick printer, printing has predominantly been a business to business (B2B) operation. Internet based ordering and workflow and digital printing is now making printing a business to consumer (B2C) operation.
Precision Printing – Changing the Business Model
A very good example of this can be seen from Precision Printing a UK based printer. Precision was a typical medium size offset printer and they first invested in digital in 2005 with an HP Indigo press. For a number of years their digital business was just complementing the litho business for short run printing that matched their offset printing. Following the last drupa in 2008 Precision changed their business operations by developing their own workflow for automating all their processes, and adding a very advanced web to print ordering operation through an alliance with Italian specialist Pixelartprinting. This has allowed Precision to double their turnover in five years with only a small increase in staff. Their offset printing turnover has hardly changed in that time despite an increase in capacity through a new Heidelberg 10-unit press. The increase has come through moving to a B2C operation with online ordering and automated production via its workflow allowing a huge number of small jobs to be processed via their four HP Indigo presses. At the same time the addition of variable data printing has allowed Precision to offer a much wider range of services to its B2B customers.
Web to print software and integrated workflow is the key for making print businesses more efficient and allowing them to widen their markets as Precision has done. This type of workflow will be one of the key items on show at drupa from a range of companies. Kodak will be one of the key ones showing such software with its Unified Workflow Solutions that link up the market leading Prinergy commercial workflow with the InSite portal solutions, together with Darwin variable data and Kodak web to print solutions to drive offset, flexo and digital printing systems. Most of the main industry vendors will be showing similar workflow approaches that reach up and down the value chain to allow printers to widen the scope of their businesses. I would also expect to see many small systems providers showing a range of new software products in the drupa Innovation Park for enhanced web to print working and multiple media communication.
Imposition Optimization Creates a New Business
One area of web to print that we are now seeing is specialised workflow software to optimize the loading and scheduling of work on the press. In the past few years, particularly in Germany there has been a major rise of web to print where printers are using specialised software to gang multiple jobs on the same press. In this they are mainly using large format four-colour offset presses rather than digital presses for the work. One company well known for this is Vistaprint but I feel the best example of what is happening is Flyeralarm who run multiple large-format KBA and Heidelberg offset presses, as well as digital presses, with all work being ordered online via their web sites and online stores around Europe. Currently they process an average of 10,000 orders per day of which 99% are ordered online. One of the keys to such efficiency is the very fast make-ready and low manning levels of modern large-format offset presses.
Companies like Flyeralarm have developed their own workflow and job ganging software to create this massive area of business. Today such software is available from certain software suppliers to allow other printers to enter this high-volume web to print area. Litho Technics has a solution for automatically generating complex imposition plans for ganging multiple jobs together on one sheet. One user is MPG Books, a leading UK book printer. They needed to increase the capacity from 400 to 600 book titles per month and saw gang printing as a solution. They achieved this while reducing staffing in the planning area as well. Colin Gammon, MPG Books Technical R&D Manager stated “The software has helped us to remain highly competitive by cutting our labour costs in half. The AutoLayout feature allows us put more work on a single sheet, which reduces spoilage and speeds job turnaround,” One can also see the solution integrated into some other suppliers’ workflow packages. This includes Fujifilm Europe adding it to its XMF suite of workflow solutions and EFI using it with some of its MIS systems. In the UK MIS supplier Tharstern is also developing a work ganging imposition extension to its systems
Traditional Suppliers Going Digital
One of the key trends to be seen at drupa is some of the leading offset press suppliers entering the digital market place. Heidelberg and its partnership with Ricoh have already been announced and the first systems have already been installed. manroland has announced a partnership with the Canon owned company Océ to sell high-speed inkjet presses into its markets. KBA will also enter this market through a partnership with the world’s largest printer R.R. Donnelley. R.R. Donnelley has developed its own inkjet presses and is licensing its inkjet technology for KBA to build its own presses. These manroland and KBA inkjet presses will be aimed at the traditional high-volume offset printers in books, direct mail, magazines and newspapers with the aim of changing the business models for printers in these markets.
So far the majority of high-speed inkjet presses have been sold to transactional printers and few commercial printers have invested in this technology. In the USA in particular some book printers have installed such systems, predominantly from HP and Kodak. They have used them to change the business models of publishers so run lengths of colour books up to 5,000 copies now become viable on this technology allowing print buyers to reduce their levels of inventory of offset printed books where ordered run lengths are usually longer in order to get a lower price per book. A good example of this is King Printing, a small USA book printer. They were the first book printer to invest in high-speed inkjet presses for book printing and now have two presses with a third on order. They anticipate that with the success of this technology in helping their publisher customers change their business models that they will may phase out their offset printing operations and become a total digital printing company. Aditya Chinai, the President of King Printing states the following: “We are becoming inventory managers for our customers as they look to cut their warehousing and costs. With inkjet the frequency of orders increases and the quantity of run decreases. We may see 10 orders for 50 copies of a title instead of one large run. It is now print for order rather than print for speculation.”
It is anticipated that with the entry of manroland and KBA into the digital market that book and magazine printers will be more likely to install high-speed inkjet presses to help change the business models of the customers in books, magazines and newspapers.
Where Does Offset Fit in Future?
This is perhaps the key thing that printers need to understand about the impact of new workflow approaches, web to print and digital printing is that it allows them to work with their customers to help them change the way they do business. The new business model for printers is to be a multiple media communications supplier in which print is just one way of communicating. Printers’ customers are being offered a whole new way of communicating and a range of new suppliers. The new web to print and workflow tools allow a printer to be able to make it easier for the customers to work with them, or for the printer to offer a wider range of services to become a more complete supplier. This is not saying offset will disappear, far from it. Offset will remain the major element of most printers’ businesses, but without digital printing and automated Internet based workflows, customers will move away from just offset centric suppliers.
While many analysts and the press will once again call drupa 2012 the “Inkjet drupa”, in reality it will be “Digital drupa”- that is an event built around how digital workflow and printing technologies will spearhead the change of printing to become a multiple media communications industry.
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