A series of must see innovations by Esko, Enfocus and X-Rite Pantone at drupa 2016.
Esko’s showcase along with X-Rite Pantone, Enfocus and MediaBeacon was spread out across six Inspiration Zones where visitors were taken through each step of a typical packaging production workflow. In addition, Enfocus offerings were presented in the booth and Pantone occupied a dedicated zone to display and sell its well-known Pantone guides and tools for colour inspiration and design.
Brands, Specification & Briefing Zone
This zone focused on the holistic packaging production process from idea to shelf, connecting stakeholders including brands, designers, premedia and converters; and integrating with business systems such as MIS, ERP, PIM, MRM and Content Management.
On view was WebCenter, the packaging management solution that streamlines activities from specification and design through production. Users share files with all stakeholders for approval and collaboration. In the new version, they are able to view 3D designs, including transparency and print finishing effects, using a standard web browser on a desktop computer or mobile device.
Integrated with WebCenter was Esko’s MediaBeacon Digital Asset Management system. MediaBeacon makes assets available in the right version at the right time to the right stakeholders in the packaging workflow. This integration supports better design, helps protect brand integrity, ensures regulatory compliance and speeds up time to market.
X-Rite showcased new tools that allow brand owners to select and communicate colour so that it can be consistently achieved across multiple substrates, printing processes, and locations. Featured solutions included X-Rite’s PantoneLIVE digital colour management; Esko WebCenter for project management; and MediaBeacon, the digital asset management company acquired by Esko in 2015.
Design Zone
Esko’s design solutions are about making packaging and display designs better, and faster. Also highlighted was connecting design with production/logistics for faster time to market and the ability to ensure achievable designs prior to the expense of production.
One of the highlights was ArtiosCAD 16, the CAD design editor that makes design and preproduction of multi-part packaging and POP displays simpler, more intelligent and productive. With ArtiosCAD, users can avoid guesswork, waste and errors. For sign and display producers, ArtiosCAD 16 offers access to an extensive online library of proven parametric design templates. Sign and display converters use these designs to produce complex designs easy and fast, taking away the need for 3D design expertise.
Studio Store Visualizer 16 now integrates with planogram systems to create and populate visually stunning virtual 3D stores in minutes rather than days. Studio Store Visualizer, co-developed with VTales, makes it a lot easier for users to create and test package designs and ultimately reduces time to market. Visitors navigated a highly realistic virtual store, and interact with the packaging in stunning 3D.
Other featured solutions included Pantone Color Guides (including the new Extended Gamut Guide), X-Rite CAPSURE, X-Rite i1Pro Solutions.
Artwork & Repro Zone
This zone focused on ways to produce print-ready artwork efficiently and avoid rework. The solutions showcased demonstrated how operations can address the larger number of smaller jobs running through prepress by better controlling and streamlining workflows.
ArtPro+ is the brand new PDF native prepress editor featuring a state-of-the art 64-bit architecture. ArtPro+ has a unique and intuitive user interface with a software tool selector wheel that provides the user instant access to the right tools wherever he happens to be working in the design.
The new Content Management module for WebCenter enables printers and converters to expand their offerings related to artwork services. The software includes a controlled and automated process for updating existing artwork and for creating multiple variants for a single product.
Global Vision QC functionality is now available in Esko’s workflow server Automation Engine 16. The quality check runs as a background process and results in an annotated and viewable design file for Automation Engine, WebCenter and in ArtPro+. This enables fast, systematic revision of all detected errors.
Flexo Platemaking Zone
Esko showcased how customers can take control of their flexo plate production and achieve faster plate production turnaround times while delivering more consistent flexo plates.
Esko’s digital flexo platemaking focus on simplicity: making a digital flexo plate as easy as an offset plate. On display was the brand-new integrated flexo imaging and exposing solution, CDI CRYSTAL 5080 XPS. This new flexo platemaking solution delivers impressive benefits, including a 68% reduction in operator time for platemaking; 50% reduction in operator training time; and 74% faster time to plate.
Printing and Ink Formulation Zone
This zone presents solutions that tackle the increased complexity of mixed printing environments (digital, flexo, gravure, offset) with extra attention to achieving colour consistency across an ever-growing number of substrates and production locations. X-Rite’s PantoneLIVE offerings with its sophisticated ink formulation software and colour measurement devices, improve converters’ speed to market by reducing set-up time and eliminating physical on-press approvals. Extended gamut printing solutions enable the profitable production of short run jobs on conventional flexo presses. Extended gamut printing allows customers to reduce job changeover times and press downtime, produce more short-run jobs per day, and reduce media waste and ink inventories. Press uptime is increased by 50%, and there’s a 34% reduction in printed waste per job changeover.
Featured solutions that aid automated colour management scanning and closed loop colour reporting include Esko Equinox software for Extended Gamut printing, X-Rite InkFormulation Software, PantoneLIVE Rationalization Service, ColorCert, eXact Xp and IntelliTrax2.
Finishing Zone
With a series of new drupa launches, Esko gave digital finishing companies the tools to get the absolute most out of their equipment, their workflows and their staff.
By bringing the complete digital finishing process together in one powerful, streamlined, optimized workflow, Esko helps companies prepare quotes with reliable data, plan production from intuitive, yet powerful, dashboards, execute quick job changeovers at the cutting table, reduce operator idle time, boost throughput with automation and keep Kongsberg tables producing continuously.
Esko showcased an industrial, automated robotic production system. This setup demonstrated how intelligent material processing and handling will work in perfect harmony with the Kongsberg cutting table. The solution is powered by one of the most agile industrial robots currently available, demonstrating high speed, high power and versatility. Besides, a new series of automated board feeders increase Kongsberg table’s productivity.
Enfocus
Enfocus showcased its highly rated software solutions for PDF preflighting, editing and modular workflow automation, including the latest developments with Switch and PitStop and Connect. The recently released Enfocus Appstore enables Switch users around the world to instantly purchase and use apps created by other Switch users. By leveraging Enfocus PDF-knowledge in other third parties’ applications, more people than before will have access to the new powerful PDF preflight capabilities.
Enfocus also showed a number of Cloud integrations: PitStop Server subscriptions, Asset Syncing for Switch and a move towards HTML based user interfaces, in order to maximize flexibility and user experience.
Pantone Store
The booth featured a Pantone store where designers, prepress and print professionals were able to explore and purchase the latest Pantone Color Guides and other tools and publications for colour inspiration and design.
Esko Virtual Store Experience: touch packaging!
Visitors also experienced virtual packaging in 3D reality. Using Esko’s Studio Store Visualiser software with an easy to operate touchscreen interface, users were able to “walk” through a virtual shopping mall on a large size screen. They picked products from the shelf, looked them over and checked every detail of the product packaging. As Studio Store Visualiser used real packaging production data, it was an absolute realistic way to experience virtual packaging: all print and finishing effects were brought to life!
Esko Surfer Game
Also, visitors to the booth could play and win at the Esko Surfer (Kinect powered) game. They gathered Esko points and won some exclusive prizes.