Esko has announced the release of Esko Suite 14, a comprehensive collection of new and updated software designed to give brand owners, premedia houses, converters, sign and display producers and commercial printers the resources they need to manage today’s complex preproduction environment.

“To be successful today, packaging service providers and brands owners are required to perform exceptionally well in all areas of packaging preproduction,” says Carsten Knudsen, Esko President and CEO. “Brand owners must create packaging designs that resonate with consumers and that are designed, developed and produced with the utmost accuracy. Converters must execute perfectly and efficiently to remain profitable. There is also a need ensure regulatory compliance and to operate in an environmentally sustainable manner within the entire ecosystem. Above all, everyone throughout the entire packaging supply chain must be able to work together effectively to achieve these goals.”

Esko Suite 14 builds on Esko’s years of packaging preproduction expertise and features breakthrough developments as a result of ongoing investment in innovation, and based on feedback received from brand owners, packaging converters and industry thought leaders.

Knudsen adds, “In the Suite 14 development process, Esko concentrated its resources on addressing five key trends in packaging preproduction: increasing importance of workflow automation; the use of Smart Templates to handle package variations; quality as the most important driver; a more task-focused software user interface to drive increased efficiency; and integration of the supply chain and data-sharing via the cloud.

“The result is Esko Suite 14, bringing together a family of solutions that provides all parties in the packaging preproduction supply chain with the resources they need to succeed in this dynamic market. We believe that the Esko software Suite is the broadest and deepest collection of professional software tools available today in the package production industry.”

According to Esko, Suite 14 includes a wide range of breakthrough improvements and enhancements that support these key trends in the packaging preproduction market. Each element has been fine-tuned to better meet the needs of the entire supply chain. Details of each of the enhanced Suite 14 modules follow.

Improved connectivity leads to faster turnaround times and reduced errors. WebCenter 14, now a 64-bit application and supporting HTML 5 for the Viewer, offers easy-to-implement connectivity with third-party solutions. Interconnectivity among Esko products is also boosted with WebCenter 14. Seamless data transfer between WebCenter and packaging editors such as ArtiosCAD and Adobe Illustrator guarantee better utilization of centrally managed assets and information.