Industry leading suppliers gathered in Bruges, Belgium to take part in a pre-drupa press conference from March 16-18, 2016. The event, titled, “Press On To The Future,” featured contributions from Xeikon, Esko, Agfa Graphics, Asahi Photoproducts, CERM, CHILI Publish, Enfocus, and X-Rite Pantone. Each company highlighted its latest technologies that will be present at drupa, which takes place in Dusseldorf, Germany from May 31 to June 10.

In addition to site visits to Xeikon (Lier) and Agfa Graphics (Antwerp), the press conference was held at the Hotel Novotel Brugge Centrum. The presentations on March 16 focused on prepress software and effective color management strategies.

Esko, a graphic arts company specializing in prepress and finishing solutions, conducted a panel discussion with president Udo Panenka, Jan de Roeck, Philippe Adam and Thomas Klein. In developing new products for drupa, Panenka said the company spent a considerable amount of time talking to customers, using that feedback to complete product updates. Esko also set up an industry advisory board to better assess its users’ needs.

Esko’s product updates will focus on high quality at faster speeds, all while lowering the risk for errors. As the industry evolves, the company wants to better handle newer trends–such as short-runs and SKU proliferation–with automated quality control. “The number of jobs per shift continues to increase. Today, label and packaging converters, sign makers and display manufacturers often spend more time setting up their printing presses and converting equipment between jobs than in the actual printing and converting itself,” said Panenka. “Press changeovers have to be faster to ensure margins are maintained. And the same is true for design, artwork creation and making jobs print ready: short lead time requirements demand higher throughput for these processes and better control of the entire operations. Esko facilitates these pressing challenges by integrating and simplifying every step of the packaging management, prepress and production process. That is why we have chosen “Packaging Simplified” as our drupa theme.”

While Esko focused on prepress software, X-Rite discussed how its customers can better handle color challenges in today’s printing market. According to Adrian Fernandez, vice president of PantoneLIVE at X-Rite, stated that 51% of brand owners have color-related challenges that cost their companies $50,000 per year or more. In addition, 25% said that they frequently encounter color inconsistencies or inacurracies across their supply chains and at the store shelf.

X-Rite’s goal is to establish color standards, calibrate for quality control, and offer accurate proofing and services to implement change in the workflow. The company will be showcasing IntelliTrax2, an automated coolor management system at drupa, as well as process updates for M1, G7, and PSO/Fogra.

In regards to color management, X-Rite also noted the launch of 112 new Pantone colors on March 1. Pantone discovered that there was a high demand for more blushes, blues and neutrals, and a deepening of red, orange and brown.

“We’re pushing for significant brand adoption and the brands will drive the systems, and that has worked very well,” said Fernandez. “We have the Pantone colors digitized in the Cloud with different standards. These are connected to the different software solutions that are used in each of the steps, so everybody can get to exactly the same point and address industry challenges.”

Enfocus, which describes itself as a “technology disruptor,” announced updates to its Appstore, which is a co-creation platform where users and developers of Enfocus Switch could share their knowledge and work. Enfocus will be focusing on PitStop and Switch, and how they interact with the Appstore. Currently, the company has 17 published apps with 12 more under review. It expects 50 by drupa.

Cloud availability is also an important focus, where users can automatically sync Switch Assets like workflows to the Cloud. Enfocus is also planning updates to Switch that will include greater flexibility. According to Enfocus, new features under development include an HTML Switch Client that enables users to access Switch from everywhere without the need for locally installed software.

“At Enfocus, we do tend to spend a lot of time asking ourselves what the customers think about us and why customers like us–perhaps why they do not like us–and what we can do better,” explained Fabian Prudhomme, vice president at Enfocus. “Many customers view us as the PDF and preflight editing experts through our PitStop range. We are also known for our open archicture and efficient automatiuon through Switch. Overall, I think we are valued because of high quality, stability and cost effectiveness in our software solutions.”

Enfocus has also collaborated with CHILI Publish, which will display its next generation of document editing with CHILI publisher 5.0 and CHILI rendro 1.0. CHILI publisher 5.0 does not constrain users to a desktop, as they frequently use mobile devices and tablets.

“We redefined online editing when we introduced the CHILI publisher in 2010,” explained Kevin Goeminne, CHILI publish CEO. “Much has changed since then. Our technology is now used in regions around the world, mobile devices dominate the market, and designs are more complex than ever. With these trends in mind, we developed CHILI publisher 5.0. The powerful new functionality included in this release significantly enhances the document editing experience today and in the future.” 

CHILI rendro is a solution designed to provide accurate renderings of PDFs on an HTML canvas. The JavaScript SDK (Software Development Kit) format of CHILI rendro allows for tailored, scalable integration and platform independent collaboration that requires little configuration. These features make the solution adaptable to any work environment

Cerm, with a focus on narrow web printing, will display the printing capabilities with many of their partnerships. It will also be delivering new versions of its digital shopfront Web4Labels. “During the pre-drupa press conference in Bruges on March 16, Cerm performed an impressive live demonstration by capturing, processing and digitally printing all images of attending journalists on a personalized label,” said Peter Heyse, software consultant at Cerm. “The picture was taken upon arrival on March 16 of each journalist, then personalized on CHILI Publish, processed on the Esko Automation Engine and finally printed on the Xeikon presses. All journalists picked up their personalized set of printed labels the next day at the Xeikon premises. All of this is driven by the powerful Cerm MIS engine.”

Esko, along with sister company X-Rite Pantone and subsidiary Enfocus, will be located Hall 8B, Stand A23, at drupa. The 900 square-meter stand will feature six “Inspiration Zones,” highlighting design, artwork, flexo platemaking, printing and ink management, and finishing. Esko will deal with prepress software while X-Rite will focus on color management tools across multiple substrates, printing processes and locations.

Enfocus will have its own zone detailing PDF preflighting, editing and modular workflow automation. The company’s stand will display Cloud integrations available for current PitStop Server subscriptions, Asset Syncing for Switch and a move toward HTML based user interfaces.

Asahi Photoproducts concluded the first day of the pre-drupa press conference with a look at the new members of the AWP and AFP families. AWP-DEW with Pinning Technology offers faster plate processing speeds for larger formats and is best for the Fixed Color Palette on wide web flexible packaging. AFP-DCV (Deep Color Vibrance) with Pinning Technology is designed for water and solvent-based inks. It provides a balance of deep and vibrant colors and Pinning Technology for a clean transfer, as well as constant repeatability. According to Asahi, this product will result in fewer cleaning intervals and press stoppages for the printer.

For more information on Xeikon’s pre-drupa event, click here.