Prepare for take off
Printing hardware may be what produces the physical printed product but, as many modern print-service-providers (PSPs) will agree, achieving these high quality results would simply not be possible without software products.
Software solutions are now considered a critical component of any print business. Whether they are helping a PSP maintain control over its printing process or helping staff at the company ensure printing kit is hitting accurate colours, these products are key in today’s fast-paced market.
Print Monthly takes a closer look at raster image processor (RIP) and pre-flight software in particular to understand the full benefits of these products and learn more about some of the latest solutions available to the market.
Efficient process
First, Jonathan Malone-McGrew, senior director of engagement at Solimar Systems, offers a brief round up of both RIP and pre-flight systems to demonstrate the main benefits that these solutions offer to PSPs.
“The role of the RIP in its most basic form is to transform or convert print data streams into the raster image format required by the systems that manage the print marking technology,” Malone-McGrew says, adding: “It plays an essential role in the infrastructure of offset computer-to-plate systems and the digital front ends (DFE) of all digital print devices.
“While beginning as basic image transforms, RIP systems today often have added features to help operators and production floor managers maintain the speed of production. This can include viewing work that is coming to the printer, updating colour settings, changing the imposition, and updating finishing controls. However, leveraging the RIP for these tasks ultimately takes away from the actual focus of the RIP – processing composed print files for production on the print device.
“Pre-flight systems are generally upstream from the RIP, but you may in some cases find those capabilities also built into the RIP or co-located on the RIP hardware. Pre-flight can be linked to the same type of pre-flight checklists that an airline pilot uses to ensure a plane is ready for a safe taxi, take-off, and landing.
“Pre-flight for print includes a check for font resources, colour settings, bounding box adherence, resolution settings defined by the user or profile, crop boxes, bleeds, transparency issues and more. The challenge is that not all pre-flight tools are make-ready tools or correction tools; pre-flight is about warning a person about challenges that may exist in the file prior to sending it through the rest of the production processes.”
With this in mind, what should PSPs be looking for when it comes to investing in this type of software? Malone-McGrew picks out processing speed, automation and correction capabilities as a package as key attributes but says print companies should also keep certain other attributes in mind.
Solimar Systems says processing speed, automation and correction capabilities are key qualities to look for in RIP products
“Ease of setup and the ability to expand or contract throughput processing to meet the demands of the environment as they change over time,” he says, adding: “Support is also key; as with any solution, you want to ensure that there are resources to train new team members about the product, get technical questions answered, and ensure that the solution will be implemented and put into use in your organisation quickly.”
So, what does Solimar Systems have on offer in this area? Malone-McGrew points to the PDF optimisation software ReadyPDF in particular, saying this solution is the aggregation of multiple technologies and libraries found in other PDF optimisation solutions available today.
O Factoid: A Keypoint Intelligence whitepaper found ReadyPDF from Solimar Systems could save a printer 30 minutes out of an eight-hour work shift, based on RIP processing O
However, he goes on to say that what differentiates this offering from other options on the market is Solimar’s in-house developed technology, which he explains is proven in customer environments to process large PDF files where other solutions fail.
“It optimises the file structures, replaces fonts (including subsets), manages colour spaces, can detect and change rich black to pure K and apply ICC colour profiles,” he says, adding: “With ReadyPDF our customers automate the entire process through built-in, templated automation.
ReadyPDF from Solimar Systems deflects and changes rich black to pure K and applies ICC colour profiles
“To prove the impact and importance of this Solimar Systems technology, we have had independent lab tests run by Keypoint Intelligence against different printer RIPs/DFEs. In a whitepaper, Keypoint confirmed the ability to reduce PDF files by 40% on average across the test file suite. They also proposed, based on the RIP processing impacts, that a printer would be able to save 30 minutes out of an eight-hour work shift.
“The ultimate goal of pre-flight and RIP systems is to make sure the work is prepared correctly, and it can be produced in an efficient and high-quality manner. The more efficient the process is from the time work is composed to when it is accepted into the production process, the faster the organisation can deliver finished products to its customers. That gives its customers a quicker route to market. Decreased time to market is the ultimate benefit of good pre-flight, make-ready, and RIP solutions.”
Generate repeat business
Elsewhere and Onyx Graphics has a number of wide-format options on offer in this area. Jonathan Rogers, international marketing manager, says that as print businesses are under increasing pressure to be competitive in an already competitive market, software like this can ease the pressure.
Jonathan Rogers, international marketing manager at Onyx Graphics
“Having a solution that can help reduce costs, reduce manual error, improve internal process and efficiency directly impacts the bottom line,” Rogers says, adding: “In addition, the needs of print buyers continue to evolve which further impacts print businesses to provide consistent, quality output in a timely manner to meet those needs.
“Solutions that provide the kinds of controls to provide such output in a fast, simple-to-use manner helps print businesses to delight the customer and hopefully generate repeat business.
Having a solution that can help reduce costs, reduce manual error, improve internal process and efficiency directly impacts the bottom line”
“In our experience as a software solutions provider, print businesses are seeking ways to differentiate themselves in a mature and competitive market. One way to do that is through software solutions that offer tools to help them in the day to day running of their print production.”
These tools, Rogers goes on to say, include a colour engine specific for wide-format printing, automation of common job settings and production steps, support for white and specialty inks, a way to pull spot colours out from any file easily to ensure brand colours can be met, and seamless integration with design applications such as Adobe.
“It’s hard to say which of these tools are more important than any other,” Rogers explains, adding: “Print businesses are aware of the evolving needs of print buyers when it comes to output standards and accuracy and should only really consider a solution that meets all of these needs, especially if the software is to be considered a real end-to-end software solution.
“Ideally, they should all work together as an integrated part of a full end-to-end RIP and print workflow solution for print production.”
Looking at what Onyx Graphics has on offer, Rogers says the provider offers wide-format RIP, print workflow and business software for all wide-format print applications including soft-signage and textile.
The latest version comes in the form of ONYX 22, which introduces a new drag and drop user experience to simplify the print production process including automated settings for common jobs. Rogers says additional tools such as Smart Job Submission, Auto-trim, Split Copies and Auto-image Cropping are designed for easy, everyday automation.
“Smart job submission, for example, provides designers with the ability to specify the copies, magnification, rotation, and other job settings in the file name that automatically apply in the RIP without manual touch points,”
he says. “In addition, Auto-trim provides a simple way to control artwork placement for flatbed or direct-to-garment printing that can be automated. ONYX 22 also introduces the ONYX Colour Reference Library.”
Make it easy
Also in this market, Enfocus has a range of software products to offer the market. Piet De Pauw, head of marketing at Enfocus, says ease of use and integration should be key for print companies investing in new RIP and pre-flight software.
“Printers should be looking for ease of use and features such as if the software can be applied with a click or whether the interface is clear,” De Pauw says, adding: “Then there is the issue of integration; as production software technology is becoming more fragmented, can one piece of software speak to all the other pieces?
“If not, you might be trapped with a few ‘islands of automation’, as we call them. Bits and pieces of software that automate part of the business but generating or working with information that is stuck and can’t be used by the other solutions.
Enfocus advises investing in software that is easy to use and integrate with your production setup
“Investment in quality and trusted RIP and pre-flight software will ensure incoming jobs are analysed and fixed in seconds, rather than hours, while the fact that they are checked by a machine will free up your staff for other jobs and allow them to focus on the work that matters.”
Looking at the solutions supplied by Enfocus, De Pauw picks out Switch in particular. De Pauw says this acts as middleware, allowing smart routing of all production files and data, serving as an open platform that integrates with everything.
“The wide-format solution is a standalone flavour of Switch, designed to get wide-format printers up and running with automation,” De Pauw says, adding: “While it also allows any upstream or downstream connection, we chose to keep it entry-level. This solution can grow along with your further automation needs.”
Simply put, it is nigh on impossible to run a modern print business without software. On the same point, it is equally important to ensure that this software is kept up to date so that you are making use of the latest features and upgrades, and your business is feeling the full benefit of this. RIP and pre-flight software help cut out some of the most common errors in printing, and investment in quality software from this area of the market could prove invaluable for your business.
Your text here...
