Prepress
Large German publishing agency opts for “Softproof”
Tuesday 27. October 2009 - EAE solution to be introduced at ten print locations that produce publications for the agency
Some days ago a large German publishing agency decided to use “Softproof” at ten print locations in Germany. “Softproof” is being installed in close to 80 control consoles within the framework of this project.
For the publisher this step bears significant economic and production-related advantages. EAE has managed to set a milestone in the development of its color quality increase-related products.
This EAE product “Softproof” is a full-fledged, electronic replacement for complex, time-consuming hardproofs. With “Softproof”, the contents and the colors of a print result are tested on a screen during the ongoing production process. The display of the print product on the calibrated proof monitor is based on the use of the latest color management method.
“The solution we are going to realize at the ten printing locations, is trend-setting – not just for the whole newspaper industry, but far beyond that. With the project we are setting new standards in terms of user friendliness and color rendering but also in terms of traceable results,” Andreas Wagner, EAE Business Development Manager, comments the project.
For the group two major goals are now within reach with the use of “Softproof”:
Significantly reduce the yearly costs for proofs creation
The “Softproof” as a full substitute for the hardproof and, at the same time, the further increase of the quality of the proof.
In concrete terms, the second goal means that:
The printer will be able to adjust the color feed of the machine color proof according to the “Softproof” system. That means that the visualization on the monitor serves as a template for the desired target color of the print.
An identical color proof display of the printing material will be possible for all installations independent of the location.
The effort for manufacturing hardproofs manually at the individual printing houses must be eliminated.
Thanks to easy handling at the control consoles, the printers will accept the new “Softproof” quickly and without any problems.
If “Softproof” is used universally, 100% of all pages can be checked.
“Softproof” – EAE’s high color proof an all-in-one solution – is, among other things, known for its deep integration into the newspaper production process. Regardless of the machine configuration, EAE “Softproof” can be retrofit for every existing production system.
A very particular additional assignment for EAE from the group shows the high demand for high-quality newspaper production. The group wants to be able to carry out all quality control remote from a central location – in this case the publishing house located in Berlin – for all other locations. That means that the publishing house will be able to check the color reproduction of all “Softproof” systems of the ten locations according to standard criteria. This concept ensures that the coloring of the newspapers is identical – regardless of the location it was printed. This criterion is of particular importance to advertising customers, who publish their ads nationwide. What is new is that not just the quality of the monitor display is tested, but the whole process, from the publishing house to the display on the “Softproof” monitor.
The installation of EAE’s “Softproof” solution at all ten location will be completed with the third quarter of the following year. Until then, the existing hardproof systems in ten printing houses will be replaced.
The EAE “Softproof” solution in short:
The quality of “Softproof” exceeds that of the traditional hardproof. The visualization is carried out at the control console on a separate, vertically installed monitor, corresponding to the alignment of a broadsheet page. The use of a 30 monitor allows the 1:1 display of the newspaper pages in the northern format. The display of additional standard newspaper formats as well as panorama pages, etc. is, of course also possible.
In this project, the pages can be selected according to two methods:
A convenient page increment according to the paging of the print product or the selection of one page on the control console of the press.
Selection of the page on a separate touch screen monitor.
If “Softproof” is integrated into the functions of the printing shop control console, this greatly increases the efficiency of the solution, because the manual selection of the corresponding page, that is to be visualized as a proof, is no longer necessary. Thanks to the connection with the control console, “Softproof” generally displays that page on the corresponding monitor that has been selected via the color-/water-mask anyway.
For a more profound check it is possible to display the individual CMYK color separations or the TIFF G4 exposure data. As a further display option the pages can be visualized as thumbnails on the proof monitor. This option allows a broader overview over the pages that have already been produced.
EAE “Softproof” is based on the publisher’s production files in the TIFF G4 format. The files are transferred for printing plate exposure and at the same time they are also transferred to the server for production planning / ink preset and to a separate proof server.
“Softproof” accesses the dimmable norm lighting that is part of the system via USB interface to ensure defined observation conditions for the color matching of “Softproof” and print.
“Softproof” supports conventional AM-, and FM- technologies as well as hybrid raster technologies. The necessary RIP calibration can be considered separately in the system per printing object.