Colour consistency
Simply put, investment in quality colour management software can
offer untold savings to wide-format print companies and sign-makers that
produce printed work. This software is able to identify colour accuracy
errors at a very early stage of the process, ensuring they are
corrected before printing takes place.
By doing this, the software significantly reduces the chances of
print errors, which will then in turn cut down on print wastage and
related costs, as well as saving staff from having to spend more time
re-running inaccurate jobs.
Here, we look at some of the latest developments in colour
management software and see how these advancements can help wide-format
print companies and sign-makers enhance the accuracy of their work and
make savings at the same time.
Specialist solutions
GMG Color is a specialist provider of colour management software,
offering solutions for companies in the wide-format print, sign-making
and commercial print sectors. Paul Barnes, product manager at GMG, says
colour consistency and accuracy are increasingly becoming a necessity in
wide-format printing and, as such, colour management software is now a
must-have for businesses in this market.
“Customers will expect accurate colour reproduction regardless of
the device and substrate used, be it a digital press using a coated or
uncoated paper, or a large-format printing device using a backlit
substrate,” Barnes says.
“Your devices will come with a level of in-built colour management,
however there are noticeable differences when using specialised colour
management solutions. High-quality colour conversions optimally convert
colours – including spot colours – to the colour space of the required
output devices.
Your devices will come with a level of in-built colour management,
however there are noticeable differences when using specialised colour
management solutions”
“In this way, an ISO Coated V2 (39L) appearance can easily be
produced in large-format printing, in order to obtain a visual match
with offset printing.”
Looking at the latest developments within GMG and while the company
already had a tool for multicolour profiling in the form of GMG
OpenColor, it has now taken this capability and replicated it in its
newest GMG ColorServer multicolour tool for automated colour
conversions.
“GMG ColorServer is now available as a multicolour product, as well
as having solutions for CMYK-based digital and conventional processes,”
Barnes says, adding: “Whatever the colour space of the input file – for
example CMYK and a Pantone colour, GMG ColorServer converts it using
the maximum gamut of the device.
GMG ColorServer is now available as a multicolour product, as well as having solutions for CMYK-based digital and conventional processes
“A bonus for multicolour/extended gamut printers is that massive
time savings are achieved in data processing thanks to the automated
conversion of multicolour print data.”
Another key change is that GMG ColorServer solutions are now
pay-monthly subscription based. They provide all the tools required for
end-to-end colour management, incorporating colour separation, proofing,
ink optimisation and exact profiling tools tailored to your printing
processes.
“GMG ColorServer solution means print jobs can be switched easily
between presses and sites, with predictable colour results time after
time, including matching spot colours and overprints,” Barnes says.
“With digital devices, there’s no need to change the colour
–instead recalibrate to your reference condition with our profiling
engine GMG SmartProfiler for stable print behaviour. Its smart and fast
calibration compensates colour drifts for single colours and overprints,
variations of substrate colour/white points and different print modes.”
Trust and loyalty
Elsewhere and solutions provider Esko also has a number of colour
management products available on the market. Jan De Roeck, director of
marketing, industry relations and strategy at Esko, says when it comes
to brand recognition and value, sign and display specialists know that
colour consistency is so crucial that its importance cannot be
overstated.
“The uniformity of a brand’s colour inspires recall, trust and
loyalty among consumers – particularly important in these continuing
uncertain times, where familiarity brings comfort,” De Roeck says.
“While that trust is also shared throughout the supply chain,
everyone from expert to layman can attest to how the most subtle
variation in tone or shade can lead to the authenticity of a product
being questioned.
“The pressures on sign and wide-format printers have only been
compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, creating additional challenges that
need to be met in a timely and cost-effective manner, without any
compromise on colour quality or consistency.
“Not only are their customers demanding more vibrant and complex
designs to standout, but there is also a trend for campaign-led,
short-burst marketing which requires regular updating and refreshing of
artwork, all of which combines to create myriad opportunities for
something to go wrong.”
De Roeck says Esko has developed integrated solutions to ensure
colour consistency across jobs, run after run, regardless of the type of
press, ink selection, application or substrate choice.
Solutions from Esko include Color Pilot, a central tool that bases
its colour management on industry standards such as Pantone, PantoneLive
and ISO CxF/4. Esko also offers its Pack Proof specialist proofing
solutions to further support users with accuracy in printing.
Colour Preflight technology is one of the latest additions to Esko’s Automation Engine
“Press and substrate profiles are important assets managed in a
central database,” De Roeck says, adding: “For specific colour-critical
jobs whereby spot inks are preferred over process inks, our patented
spectral ink profile technology provides for an easy-to-use profile test
chart and a greatly simplified user experience in calibrating and
measuring spot inks.”
Also available from Esko is Colour Preflight technology within its
Automation Engine, which De Roeck says predicts whether a given job will
reproduce within gamut tolerance on any given press using Esko colour
management technology. This, he says, helps the converter with go or
no-go decisions and cost estimation, as well as in optimising the use of
their digital press and providing better overall equipment efficiency.
“The latest generation Automation Engine delivers high-performance,
easy-to-use workflow automation,” he explains, adding: “Automating,
standardising and improving prepress workflow with accelerated benefits,
Automation Engine also understands and respects that colour profiles
are assets that need to be managed carefully, but can still be
automated.
“The new ‘viewing’ feature looks at separations with the right
colour profile and can even preview and measure ripped and screened
separations, reflecting the values of the printed result based on the
applied colour profile.”
Tangible benefits
As the exclusive UK and Irish distributor of Mimaki kit and
solutions, Hybrid Services also has a number of colour management
solutions on offer. Martin Southworth, reseller account manager at
Hybrid Services, says aside from the need to ensure software functions
correctly with the latest PC operating systems, there are other tangible
benefits from upgrading existing, or investing in, new software.
“The most apparent of these is that new software releases will
typically include improved and increased functionality,” Southworth
says, adding: “A great example is Mimaki’s latest RasterLink 7 RIP
software, which is available as a free upgrade for customers on the most
recent previous versions and delivers powerful new features that offer
significant workflow and productivity enhancements.”
O Factoid: As there are not currently any standards for large-format printing, reference standards from offset printing are generally used, such as ISO coated V2 (39L) O
While Mimaki has high-end colour management software, Southworth
says for many sign-makers and print providers, the inbuilt colour
matching within Mimaki’s new RasterLink RIP technology is more than
sufficient, with the ability to hit up to 95% of the Pantone colour
space achievable with a range of widely available material profiles.
“Proven ink chemistries across a broad spectrum that offers variety in
both ink type and colour space (anything from CMYK up to expanded
options of eight colours in many cases), an integrated workflow and easy
to use software make the process relatively simple, but for print
providers seeking greater accuracy, enhanced solutions, such as Mimaki
ProfileMaster (MPM3) are readily available,” Southworth says.
Mimaki’s MPM3 colour management software works alongside the
RasterLink or TxLink RIP software that is supplied with each Mimaki
printer to deliver what Southworth describes as “superior colour
representation” that maximises colour accuracy and reproducibility.
“MPM3 enables the user to create bespoke profiles for specific
media and applications, and with the capacity to create advanced device
profiles, it also delivers excellent colour matching across multiple
printers and ink types,” he says.
Colour matching within Mimaki’s new RasterLink RIP has the ability to hit up to 95% of the Pantone colour space
“Where complex print techniques such as dye-sublimation are
involved, the ability to profile and accurately match a process where a
number of variables are at play becomes ever more crucial and Mimaki
benefits from its extensive textile heritage by presenting an easy to
use, yet highly accurate solution.”
Colour has and will always be one of the most important factors for
brands and marketers. If a piece of print does not meet their high
standards, it will almost certainly be rejected and lead to the loss of a
job and, potentially, a long-term customer. Quality colour management
software helps you to hit colour and accuracy targets, and keep hold of
valuable clients as a result.
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