Print Solutions
Software company PrintFactory will explore ‘the power of possibility’ at (Stand C38, hall 1.1) by demonstrating the profitability boosting potential of true and total automation for large format print businesses.
With recent statistics suggesting that up to two thirds of European print jobs are yet to be fully automated, PrintFactory is using the exhibitionas a platform to show large format print businesses how they can start to close the gap by embracing cloud based automated technologies. By showcasing how the technology can resolve some of the biggest challenges in large format workflows – including pre-press bottlenecks, waste and inconsistency of output – the team hopes to address common fears around automation.
PrintFactory CEO and founder Erik Strik commented, ‘Our goal to remove complexity from the workflow process drove us to develop an automation solution which gives wide format businesses peace of mind that their entire production workflow – from job submission to print – is running as efficiently as possible.
‘We will be encouraging Fespa delegates to overcome their ‘automation anxiety’ and think about how the technology can propel their operations ahead of the competition. Industry 4.0 is already here, and we are excited to demonstrate how transitioning to a new age of automation can take large format print business to unprecedented levels of profitability and productivity.’
One of the innovative features of PrintFactory’s automated solution is ‘dynamic nesting’. This uses deadline dictates priority (DDI) and just in time techniques to test the most efficient output conditions before automatically delivering jobs to the RIP for output via the cloud. As the technology only commits jobs to a specific output device at the last moment, jobs can be automatically rescheduled or replaced with a different job if there is a change in priority or if a device goes off line.
PrintFactory Cloud also allows users to integrate existing MIS/ERP systems into their workflow for a true end to end automated production process, while its browser-based dashboard enables business owners to leverage insights from real-time data reporting. The company’s recent Version 6 software release delivered multiple enhancements to PrintFactory’s automation features to support more efficient job management, web to print workflows and reduce waste based on output release criteria.
‘Having multiple workflow touch points in the black hole of the production floor leaves more opportunity for human error, creating inconsistencies, delays and wastage,’ Erik added. ‘By deploying a technology that can streamline, manage and automate the process with a unified, end to end workflow, print operations can practically eliminate such inefficiencies.’
