Workflow

Web-to-Print Made Easier with Apago’s Automated Technologies

Thursday 04. December 2008 - Early Internet Adopter Credits Automation as Key to Success

A decade ago, only a handful of printers looked to the Internet as a tool to grow their businesses. For those that took the risk, the payoff has been big: increased revenue, plus years of experience.

Atlanta-based Imagers had the foresight to embrace the Internet in the late 90s. With nearly 150,000 files transferred through its client portal to date, this 40-person commercial printer credits automation as a key component to its success with the Web. It’s no wonder that Apago’s technology has become an integral part of Imagers’ production processes, providing the tools necessary both to facilitate the company’s online presence and to expand its business offerings.
 

Growing with Web-to-Print

Imagers’ early embrace of the Internet taught the company to see opportunities where there appeared to be none. In 1998, the company ventured into a new business of online greeting cards, Cardnotes.com. Visitors access an online design center to create custom, personalized photo greeting cards, with a promise of receiving the printed cards within 24-48 hours. Conceived to maximize Imagers’ presses with minimal administrative overhead, this true web-to-print business model required full automation. Imagers turned to Apago’s technology.
 
To create a fully automated workflow, Robert Givens, IT Manager of Imagers, created a series of hot folders using Apago’s PDF Enhancer, a tool that automates the assembly, preparation and optimization of PDFs for print, the Web, and archiving. PDF Enhancer automatically formats customers’ orders to size: small, medium, or large. It also converts RGB to CMYK on the fly. “PDF Enhancer’s color conversion is superb,” notes Givens. “It converts RBG to a true black for superior printing.” After PDF Enhancer processes the job, files are automatically sent to a RIP, then to press. The press operator receives the packing slip, then prints the job. The entire process is completed and delivered to the customer within the 24-48 hours timeframe.

“To make Cardnotes.com successful, we needed a tool that streamlines and automates the process,” comments Givens. “PDF Enhancer is a pivotal tool in the workflow. It provides the total automation and is maintenance-free.”
 
Handling Online Proofing, Reordering, and Private Sites
 
Online proofing for Cardnotes.com and other, more traditional jobs was a challenge, requiring a solution that would both reduce the PDF file sizes for quick customer downloads and be scriptable for automation. Reducing files manually was not an option, notes Givens: “We automate as much as possible and remove redundant tasks, which enables us to handle the volume of jobs we process daily.” Givens uses Apago’s PDF Shrink, an application that is capable of reducing most PDF files—including those created by Mac OS X iLife and iWork applications, Adobe Creative Suite, and Microsoft Word and PowerPoint—by as much as 90% of their original size.

Imagers’ online proofing workflow is simple. For offset press jobs, customers upload native files (InDesign, Quark, etc.) to Imagers’ Web server and its prepress staff produces a PDF or PostScript of the file. After RIPing, files are automatically processed through PDF Shrink then posted online for client viewing. “PDF Shrink made online proofing possible for us,” comments Givens.

A natural evolution of online proofing is online reordering. “Because we save client jobs, customers can access their order history and view a PDF of each job. This service saves a considerable amount of time for our customers,” states Givens. Since implementing online reordering, Imagers has seen a steady increase in reorders.

 
Private Sites

More clients are turning to Imagers to host private sites for jobs that get printed regularly, such as corporate collateral and stationery. For quick and easy imposition of these jobs, Givens uses PDF Enhancer. Files are dropped into the application’s hot folders for processing before going to press. Givens notes, “PDF Enhancer’s hot folders can be used to address nearly any kind of issue that arises. It’s a powerful tool.”

“Apago’s technologies have given us an opportunity to offer more to our customers while simultaneously easing our production process,” concludes Givens. “We find new uses for Apago’s tools everyday.”

http://www.apago.com
Back to overview