New tools now
available (and affordable) to help small printers who need powerful front ends
Big workflow products get broken apart into mini workflows
By Ron Ellis
There is a full slate of PDF products available to high-end users. Products
such as Kodak Prinergy, Agfa Apogee, and Heidelberg Metadimensions have been
available in the marketplace for some time and have proved their worth. There
have also been some lesser-known PDF products such as Artwork Systems Odystar
and EFI Oneflow. Both of these products are powerful PDF workflow products in
their own right. Both of these products are also PDF front-end only versions
released at a price point of less than $10,000.
Why these are
worth a look
What can you do with a PDF-only front-end from either of these vendors? At a
minimum, they all can take and create PDF files, check them, and then process
them based on a conditional check of the file. They are designed to sit in
front of a screening RIP such as a Harlequin or Nexus system and provide clean
bulletproof files to the RIPs.
There are several
important functions these products provide. For creators, they can create solid
PDF files that have been preflighted and corrected. More importantly for small
printing plants, especially those with a Harlequin, these products can give
them workflow capabilities at a large price. For example, with Oneflow
Workflow, a customer could add preflight, trapping, and imposition capabilities
to their Harlequin-based workflow for under $10,000. No products that offer
this amount of power have been available to Harlequin users in this price range
before.
A look at the
specific products
What specifically are the products? EFI Oneflow Workflow is based on an EFI
product called Oneflow. The Oneflow product is composed two components. The
first is a PDF Workflow product that includes trapping, imposition and
preflight capabilities, as well as other features. The second component is a
RIP, that screens one-bit TIFF files for output to computer-to-plate (CTP),
drives a proofer, and, and contains a one-bit TIFF viewing utility. The Oneflow
product is a full PDF workflow that can drive platesetters, proofers and other
devices. In contrast, the Oneflow Workflow product contains only the PDF
portion of the full Oneflow product.
While this may not sound
like much, appearances can be deceptive. The Oneflow Workflow product has
configurations that include trapping and limited imposition and lists for less
than $10,000. Besides Pitstop automation, Oneflow and can trap and impose PDF
files.
What does this mean for
smaller printers? It means that for a small amount of money, they can have
Adobe trapping and imposition, as well as the numerous other features. Some of
the other features included are Pitstop preflighting and automation (preflight
and actions), the ability to map and join spot colors, the ability to create
and trap a composite PDF from a pre-separated PDF or Postscript file. All of
these are major functions that are lacking on the Harlequin. (For example, once
you send you cannot modify the file, and must resend to change separations,
traps, imposition.)
In addition, the Oneflow
Workflow can copy, e-mail files, and branch the resulting files back to
multiple workflows. The 2.5 version of the product provides the ability to
print the resulting PDF file, or to export it back to Postscript. Imposition
features allow you use an existing Preps or Dynastrip Adobe .jt imposition
file, and the product also includes a simple Imposition Module for creating
impositions from scratch.
For those using Fiery
RIPs, Oneflow Workflow can send the corrected file directly to any Fiery RIP.
OneFlow PDF Workflow is an excellent solution for anyone with an older RIP
version like Harlequin or Brisque and would like to have a PDF workflow. ÒIt
can also fit perfectly in front of digital presses or color copiers that are
Fiery driven,Ó said Bernard Laroche, EFI Oneflow product manager. Oneflow runs
on the Windows platform. While the RIP product required a powerful PC, the
workflow product has much less in the way of system requirements. The product
is available now, and the full product has been out for several years.
Enfocus
Pitstop Automate
The other new product that is similar is Enfocus Pitstop Automate. Pitstop
Automate lists for $6,000 and is a subset of Artwork Systems Odystar. Odystar
is a powerful PDF based workflow that can perform automated Pitstop functions
as well as trapping, screening, imposition and other advanced workflow
functions. Although Enfocus has a similar product called Pitstop server,
Pitstop Automate provides many additional functions.
For example, Pitstop
Automate can make a PDF from a Postscript file rather than simply processing
files that are already PDF files. It can perform conditional checks on files
and decide which path to send the file on. Pitstop Automate can also send files
down multiple paths.
Instead of creating one
file, Pitstop Automate can create one higher file for use with the RIP, and
then scrub a file down to low resolution and e-mail and send the file for
preview purposes. The software can also print a file to any supported printer.
Unlike Pitstop Server,
Pitstop Automate can also split PDF files, which is an important function for
many facilities using high-volume PDF workflows. Running on AppleÕs OSX,
Pitstop Automate has speeds that are much faster than the typical Pitstop
Server, and appears to much more productive. ÒAutomate will be a solution used
for inexpensive do-it-yourself workflows,Ó said Lisa Thostenson, from Enfocus.
There will be an upgrade path provided for new and current users of Pitstop
Server.
Enfocus is owned by
Artwork Systems and the Pitstop Automate product is the first obvious
collaboration between the two companies since their merger. The Pitstop
Automate version of the product will be released in the first quarter of 2006.
Odystar
powers Pitstop Automate
Odystar, mentioned above, is related to Pitstop Automate and is the core
technology that Pitstop Automate is based upon. The full version of Odystar is
a full workflow product that rivals Printergy and Apogee. For a product that
offers more than Pitstop Automate, and for features that are more on par with
Oneflow Workflow, users will want to consider Odystar Connect.
Odystar Connect, used by
major publishers and content producers, differs from Pitstop Automate by having
a client and additional modules that provide load balancing, compression and
file transmission capabilities. For those who need to do more than just distill
and certify files, Odystar will be a product they will look at.
ÒThe benefits of PDF are
evident in any prepress workflow, but automation is still an area of
improvement for many users of PDF,Ó said Artwork SystemsÕ Mike Rottenborn.
ÒOdystar offers full automation of PDF workflows for packaging and commercial
customers and can be configured for both large and small operations.Ó
At this time there is no
upgrade path available from Pitstop Automate to Odystar, but it will be under
consideration. The Odystar product has been quietly shipping for the past
several years, and is available now. Odystar Connect lists for $15,000. The
full version of Odystar sells for $27,500.
Oneflow Workflow and
Pitstop Automate are new tools for the small printer needing a powerful front
end, as well as content producers using a do-it-yourself workflow. More
information on EFI Oneflow Workflow is available at www.efi.com. More information on Enfocus
Pitstop Automate is available at www.enfocus.com. More information on Artwork
Systems Odystar is available at www.artwork-systems.com.