OUTPUT

The subject of workflow in the wide-format sector is becoming more and more topical as users strive to match colour and enable truly effective pre-flighting so that they can be comfortable with the principle of getting it right first time. Companies who've come into the digital display arena from commercial print probably have a greater understanding of the necessity of sticking as close as possible to standards, whereas former sign-makers might not.

But today's end customers aren't particularly interested in how accurate colour is achieved across a range of different printing engines, ink formulations and materials. They place their orders expecting identical rendering to be in place on all their wide-format output. This becomes more convoluted when multiple machines with different RIPs are employed and when orders are being produced at more than one location.

Data coming in as orders has also often been generated and supplied from different sources, frequently with no guarantee about colour space, let alone usable profiles. This can lead to a vast variation in settings with each file needing be checked and adjusted manually before being converted for the output device. Factor in spot colours and transparency options, and it's easy to see how time consuming and error-prone this can be, a problem which is exacerbated when multiple engines and media are being used to produce the job.

So there are products which are continually being developed that are designed to take away headaches of achieving consistency in colour without having to have a rocket scientist in charge of the workflow. These software options are absolutely essential in the proofing market, and can also help greatly in wide-format, packaging and labelling where total fidelity is vital. In simple terms, no brand owner or design company wants to see the colour chosen being compromised because they cannot be transferred satisfactorily to an ink-jet printer model.

When PrintFactory was originally introduced it was intended to be a complete production solution for wide-format printing, with integrated pre-flighting making certain that mistakes are corrected and other job parameters are matched. But this has now moved a step further with the integration of GMG's ColorServer and SmartProfiler tools, with the first being colour management software and the second offering profiling and calibration capabilities.

ColorServer includes amongst its strengths the ability for automatic image adjustment, and GMG's technical sales support manager, Steven Accou, explains its raison d'être. "In the past, high-quality artwork was made by pre-press experts, and the PDF format was simple. Today there are non-professionals using Photoshop, for example, so PDF creation gets more complex with layers, transparency and different colour spaces. A print company takes in files using various colour spaces which can now be automated, such as ISO coated, GRAcol, or mixed RGB and CMYK and, additionally, there's often the need for spot colour conversion."

Automating time-consuming procedures using PrintFactory GMG Edition means that all pre-flighting and job preparation is carried out efficiently, and its strengths in mixed environments are boosted with the intervention of ColorServer and SmartProfiler. These optimise the data to match different devices, with calibration making sure that all results are the same, regardless of which RIP is being used to print the final application. So, if there are two output devices, the calibration algorithm makes sure that both print identical results.

There's another benefit in GMG's ink-saving technology, with InkOptimizer automatically reducing the colour components of CMY and increasing the black (K) with this channel being preserved. This means that the colour composition of images retains the same visual fidelity because the optimisation process works on the grey balance, which is where the human eye reacts most sensitively. This, in turn, results in more consistent colour behaviour across both neutral areas and in tertiary shades, yet improves contrast and definition in shadows.

Using less ink isn't just a question of saving a bit of money because the way InkOptimizer works means that less is actually put down, so drying is faster. Via hot folders, which can be created very easily using a wizard, there are presets for all international printing standards, with seamless integration with GMG ColorServer.

Tom Peire, chief executive of Four Pees under whose umbrella these products sit, sums up: "PrintFactory GMG Edition is now the most complete production solution for wide-format printing, able to print jobs as they are being processed, and drive more than 600 different printing, cutting and CTS devices. It also adds elements which are specific to this market, with the ability to add folds, seams and tunnels, define cut lines and create tiles and grommets."