The Graphic Enterprise represents the culmination of the evolution of print manufacturing—where technology has taken its rightful place to create a flow of data that begins with project creation and ends with its delivery.

It is the emergence of print communications. The Graphic Enterprise is more than a vision; it is an inevitable result of the maturity of technology and the demands of the market.

In the Graphic Enterprise equipment and processes are not merely linked, rather each component communicates with the other to carry out instructions and provide critical feedback. This type of interactive connectivity extends throughout the Enterprise to encompass every step in the workflow—from the first client communication to the delivery of the completed project. It allows various vendor systems to interface effortlessly and perform optimally; so that instead of competing systems presenting stumbling blocks, they work together to shorten turnaround, reduce errors and lower administrative overhead. It connects internal departments such as marketing, purchasing, customer service, estimating and production planning, and external partners such as finishing and transportation companies. Because components interact and share information, processes can be tracked and redundancies eliminated.

The Internet is a critical communications medium that enfolds clients and manufacturing partners into the Graphic Enterprise. It simplifies approval cycles and overrides the constraints of physical distance, allowing production companies to dramatically raise the level of customer service.

The benefits of such an enterprise are plentiful: faster time to market, lower cost of production, more accurate estimating, more strategic use of personnel, efficient use of capacity, the ability to diversify services with ample room for growth—all of which add up to higher profitability. 

Whether you believe that technology generates need or need invents technology, the end result is the same—there is no turning back. The Graphic Enterprise will replace the current manufacturing model as surely as motorways replaced dirt roads. The benefits far outweigh any resistance to change. And there is a solution for all companies that play a role in the production of print—large, small and in-between.

Companies need not only embrace the concept of the Graphic Enterprise but to share in its development. That means working hand-in-hand with suppliers to implement open digital infrastructures that will serve as a foundation for the Graphic Enterprise.

Roots of the Graphic Enterprise

The Graphic Enterprise is the fulfilment of an evolutionary process. As such, it has its primitive origin, that being CIM or Computer-Integrated Manufacturing. The movement toward CIM has been around for nearly as long as computers have been churning data. It began in the 1950s with the machines that took instructions from the coded data contained in punched paper tape. As technology advanced, the realm of CIM expanded to include computer-based planning, management and process control. CIM planners enlisted the power of computer-aided manufacturing (CAM). Before long unattended robots were assembling cars and computerised assembly lines were counting, bottling and automatically child-proofing aspirin.

The framers of CIM were as pragmatic as they were visionary. Their goal was to reduce costs, increase reliability and raise efficiency—to enable mass production with automated assembly lines. What they did not know was that technology would advance to a point where business administration and manufacturing could merge, bringing their vision to a higher level of automation. Enterprise technology became the missing link in the evolution of manufacturing by enabling integration of business and production processes.

Early CIM activists also never counted on the Internet. The ability to communicate visually and transact business in real time across geographic boundaries changes everything. It gives the Graphic Enterprise new dimension, extending its reach well beyond manufacturing to include clients, designers, partners and shipping companies. It also involves repurposing of print for electronic media. The Graphic Enterprise therefore is an interactive network of print communications.

Economics Shaping the Graphic Enterprise

One could argue that technology generates need. If we did not have the Internet, for example, we wouldn’t need broadband telecommunication networks. However, in reality it is a combination of technological advances and economic demand that shapes the need for change and ultimately generates a paradigm shift.

Over the last few years, more and more printers have found themselves faced with overcapacity. Idle presses force them to cut prices rather than find ways to attract new business. It is the path of least resistance. Unfortunately, cutting prices also eats away at the bottom line.

Overcapacity also spurs consolidation. When you purchase another company, you also purchase market share. Some see acquisition as a means for growth. Not only do they gain market share but by combining resources companies can offer new services.

Whatever the reasons, acquiring companies need to consolidate more than their assets, market share and purchasing power; they need to integrate manufacturing sites and business operations to gain efficiencies. Otherwise the consolidation will bog them down and erode profits.

Printing companies face new competition. Electronic marketing has taken a huge bite out of print. While print will regain its power, new media will cause a shift in the types of materials that are printed and in how they are distributed. Printing companies need to be agile and flexible with the ability to shift direction and target new markets. This can happen only in the Graphic Enterprise.

E-commerce is now a fact of life. Millions of transactions occur everyday putting more pressure on companies to transact business online.

Technology has forever changed the nature of customer relationships. The Internet has given us instant communications. Clients expect immediate response. They want greater access to more information and they want it at their convenience. Economic pressures transform these requests into demands because brand managers, print buyers and publishers are under extreme pressure to get their projects to market faster, less expensively and with more impact. That means they require higher quality projects completed faster and cheaper. And this puts pressure on the printer to produce shorter runs, more frequently with no way of compensating for the additional costs.

Clients also want a single source to simplify and reduce their burdens. As a result the printer must move from being job focused to being project capable. In the end, printers must find ways to improve quality, streamline the workflow, provide new capabilities and lower costs. This is the promise of the Graphic Enterprise.

The agility and readiness that stems from the Graphic Enterprise also opens the door to new opportunities. Having to give less attention to production, managers can spend more time nurturing relationships and building new ones. Sales and customer service reps can provide their clients with an array of value-added services. The Graphic Enterprise repositions print as a critical, time-relevant component of the marketing mix, rather than a commodity.

Because the Graphic Enterprise facilitates expansion and partnering, companies can offer clients new products. By combining a higher level of customer service with a wider assortment of print products and services, companies increase their value to clients, attract new business and differentiate themselves from the competition. The Graphic Enterprise, therefore, is a catalyst for growth.

Multiplicity of the Graphic Enterprise

The Graphic Enterprise is not the exclusive domain of large, cash-rich organisations. Nor is it designed for a particular type of printing, e.g. commercial vs. packaging. The technology that enables the Graphic Enterprise can be put into motion to enrich any type or size of workflow. This includes multiple-plant publishing operations, packaging printers/converters and commercial printers, as well small-scale print shops.

The Graphic Enterprise in Action

The most startling difference from the way companies work today is that in the Graphic Enterprise, production planning takes place very early in the workflow—at the time the customer requests a project estimate. The plan, which describes all resources, processes and actions necessary to produce and deliver the project, is generated automatically. The system is able to do this because it monitors the entire Enterprise; it knows which resources are available at any given time. By examining the project requirements, it can generate a plan for delivering the project as specified. And while the plan is completely automated, at any time an authorised user can intervene manually to change it, giving the Graphic Enterprise absolute flexibility.

Page processing is also done much earlier in the workflow. Since the production plan has already been generated, processing happens automatically, as soon as the client transmits the content. Content collection and page processing happens on the customer service level. In fact, these tasks will be so automated that the current concept of prepress will disappear, much the way typography did at the start of the digital era.

The best way to fully appreciate the Graphic Enterprise is to follow the production of a project during the course of the day in a typical organisation.

A Day in the Graphic Enterprise

Hanover Communications is a 50-person sheet-fed printing operation. The company produces a wide variety of brochures, booklets, and sales promotion materials. Hanover has a computer-to-plate workflow and runs one 8-up and three 4-up offset presses and one digital press.

Project Entry

Maria Lopez, the in-house designer for AmRex Pharmaceuticals, accesses the Hanover website. She enters her ID and password then retrieves an online order form. She enters the job description and delivery instructions. This is a full-colour, eight-page prospectus the company needs for a shareholder meeting that is scheduled for 11.00 hr the next day. When Maria started the project, she thought she had another week to print it. But this morning the company CFO insisted that the prospectus be ready for tomorrow’s meeting. To make matters worse, she’ll need delivery at 08.00 hr to give the fulfilment department enough time to insert them into folders. The good news is that she only needs 1500 of them. She also knows that Hanover runs an efficient operation; the company has never let her down.

Maria completes Hanover’s online Request for Estimate and clicks the submit button. Instantly, the project data enters into the automatic estimating system. At the same time, the system sends an email notification to Hanover’s customer service department.

Peter Boyle, Maria’s customer service rep is working from home today. Because the Graphic Enterprise is Web-based, he gets an email notification about the job just as he would if he were at the office. Peter has also instructed the Hanover system to send all estimates for this particular client to him for approval. This way, he can look it over and add notations if necessary. For other clients, estimates are automatically generated and posted on the Hanover website for online approval. Seeing that this is a rush job, Peter will monitor every phase of the project. This way he can keep Maria informed personally throughout the day.

Along with the estimate, Peter sees the production plan that was generated by the system. He notices that the job is scheduled to go to the platesetter that afternoon. It even shows a template for imposition. Obviously it will be printed in offset. He is very concerned that the schedule is too tight. Nevertheless, he approves the estimate.

Seconds later, Maria receives an email notifying her that the estimate is ready for her review.

Peter calls the production manager Jean Louis, letting him know his concerns. Both men look at an overview of the production facility from their computers. Hanover’s digital press is occupied and will be for most of the day. Jean also points Peter to the job queue for platemaking. Even if the AmRex plates go in normal sequence, they will be ready in plenty of time. You have to learn to trust the system, he says. But he tells Peter that to play safe he will move AmRex ahead of the Unita job that is already in the queue. The job data shows him that Unita is not scheduled for delivery until the end of the week. All parties involved with Unita are automatically notified of the change in schedule. Jean does all of this in real time from his office computer.

Both men receive an email notification that Maria has approved the estimate.

Page Processing

Maria uploads her files to the Hanover website. As she submits the files, the system automatically runs pre-flight diagnostics. Maria receives an alert that one of the images is missing. Normally Maria sends PDFs, but this time she asked Hanover to handle file conversion for her.

Maria has taken advantage of Hanover’s asset management capabilities. The missing image is one she has used before. All she needs to do is go to the AmRex Bank at the Hanover site, type in the keyword or any reference she has set up, locate the image, identify the page it is for and upload it for processing.

Meanwhile, all of the other pages have been automatically processed into PDFs. As soon as Maria’s missing image arrives, the final page is converted. Both Peter and Jean can see that the PDFs are ready as page thumbnails appear in the project window.

Peter notifies Maria that she should be getting proofs any minute. Of course Maria knows this already, she has password-protected access to the Hanover status screens for all of her projects. She can view them from any Internet connection.

Client Approval

After the RIP processes the pages, the system posts them on the website for softcopy proofing.

Maria had decided to forego a hardcopy proof because colour was not critical. If she had wanted a hard proof, Jean would have sent the files to a remote proofing system located in Maria’s design studio.

An email alerts Maria that the softproofs are ready for her review. She checks the pages and clicks the approval link.

CtP and Printing

Seconds later the plates are imaged. As the pressmen mount the plates on press, the prepress system has already sent ink-key settings to the press. Folding, cutting and packaging instructions are also supplied to the finishing department.

Delivery

The courier service Hanover partners with was automatically notified earlier that morning about the pickup. They know exactly how many boxes will be ready for them and at what time. If there is any deviation in the pick-up time or number of boxes, the courier will be notified automatically by email. As soon as the boxes leave Hanover, the shipping department enters shipping confirmation into the system through a terminal located in that department. It automatically generates an email to let Maria know the project will arrive at the specified location at 08.00 the next morning. At the same time the system automatically generates an invoice and instructs prepress to archive the job from the file server into the asset management or dynamic data publishing system.

Technology Shaping the Graphic Enterprise

PDF-based workflow management software was the first step in the automation of print manufacturing. By transforming document files into streamline digital masters, the PDF (portable document format) revolutionised data transmission. It standardised communication of the content between design and production. The secure, yet easy-to-view format simplified approvals, at the same time preventing accidental changes. And it eliminated the quagmire of conflicting proprietary formats.

Intelligent workflow management software channelled the PDFs through the various processes giving operators control over the process, yet allowing them to put instructions in motion unattended, using job ticket automation.

Recent advances have made workflow software easier to use, shortening the learning curve and providing greater flexibility. Scalable and modular in design, this new technology provides the building blocks for the Graphic Enterprise. It enables the print establishment to add functionality as needed.

The key to the success of PDF is that it is an open, platform-independent format. In the multi-vendor Graphic Enterprise all technology regardless of its origin must speak a common language. That means that Agfa technology, for example, can co-exist with a non-Agfa system and vice versa in a distributed network, giving way to an uninterrupted manufacturing process.

Underlying the vendors’ ability to make this happen are XML and JDF technologies.

JDF and JMF

JDF is an XML specification. So to understand JDF, you need to understand XML.

XML stands for eXtensible Markup Language. A mark-up is a tag or a code that identifies information. For example, along with an instruction for “screening” there would be a tag that describes the type of screening “AM”, a specific type of AM screening, “Agfa’s Balance Screening”, the frequency of the screens “150”, and the angles for each colour separation Cyan “15”, Magenta “75”, Yellow “0” and Black “45”.

XML is extensible. That means that XML tags are unlimited. You can add as many descriptors as you like. In addition XML can be supplemented with other files to further define and extend the instructions. This is why you can apply the same content to a template for a webpage and for print. Both will look different but the elements of the content will go into their proper place. XML understands the difference between text and graphics and treats them accordingly.

Although it was implemented to automate e-commerce transactions, XML works just as powerfully within a manufacturing enterprise to drive and automate systems.

XML allows products to talk to each other and different applications to integrate seamlessly. That applies to hardware as well, because today all equipment is software driven. The CIP4[1] organisation refers repeatedly to “interoperability” between systems in multi-vendor environments. Interoperability is made possible by XML-based standards.

Charles Hoffman an author of “The XML Files” describes XML as an “information-understanding” standard. It “allows people and computers to easily search, sort, move, display, personalise, adapt and otherwise manipulate information while maintaining its context and internal relationships,” he explains. The benefits are clear for the Graphic Enterprise; however, the operative word here is “standard.” XML is able to integrate and automate within a specific industry because it uses standard descriptors or “tags.”

That means that every industry must agree upon standards and provide users with formats for creating those standards in an XML document. This is key to interoperability across systems, sites and organisations. It is the thinking behind standards such as those defined by CIP4 in the JDF (Job Definition Format) standard.

JDF provides the XML specification for print communications. It defines elements covering 85 production processes and 164 logical and physical resources. Processes include approval, trapping and imposition. Logistical resources include customer data and physical resources include devices or ink.

By defining these tasks, JDF creates a common print communications language used by key systems throughout the Graphic Enterprise, thus enabling interoperability in a multi-vendor environment.

JDF also includes validation schema to enable and automate processes such as preflighting. And it allows for a selection of a networking protocol and methods of exchange.

Most important is that the JDF standard is being developed by CIP4. JDF was the initiative of four graphic arts leaders –Adobe, Agfa, Heidelberg, and MAN Roland– who joined together to create an open, multi-vendor solution for all companies that create, manage, and produce printed materials. JDF builds on other standards, including CIP3’s Print Production Format (PPF) and Adobe’s Portable Job Ticket Format (PJTF). The four companies developed the first draft of JDF and submitted it to CIP4. In this way, JDF would be a truly impartial solution—one that favours no one vendor over another.

To make JDF a truly vendor-neutral data exchange standard it is necessary to work out a specific Interoperability Conformance Specification (ICS) and perform Interoperability Testing—so that all systems use the same definition format. This, too, is the charter of CIP4.

In the Graphic Enterprise, connectivity implies interactive communication between systems and departments to enable a seamless flow of data. JDF and its subset JMF make this possible.

While JDF describes the project and specifies the controls for each process, JMF (Job Messaging Format) provides the means for parallel processes, such as production and administration, to communicate. As its name suggests, it is the JDF messenger. It relays information about the progress of JDF jobs and gives management systems the active ability to query devices about processing status. JDF and JMF work hand in hand to automate online transactions and data exchange. If JDF is the brains behind processes, JMF is its wings.

The benefits of JDF allow managers to better leverage resources and seize the competitive advantage of the Graphic Enterprise, giving print producers the potential for significantly higher profitability and sustained growth.

Because information, such as client data needs to be entered only once, JDF eliminates redundancies. It enables the transmission of data from various points in the workflow, or from one print site to another, without having to re-enter or rework content.

Because JDF interfaces with MIS systems, shop-floor data can be accumulated with significantly improved accuracy.

By describing how the elements of a page or the imposition on a plate/signature should be executed, JDF can automate complete job planning and process execution—from the time a project is initiated to the moment it is delivered.

In the Graphic Enterprise seamless delivery of project instructions and task monitoring requires using a single application across a distributed (client-server) network and over the Internet.

The Internet

The Internet is perhaps the single most significant enabler of the Graphic Enterprise. It eliminates physical distance and enables instant, simultaneous communications.

The Internet itself is a complex web of technology. Enabling technologies such as Java and J2EE eliminate application conflicts, simplifying data delivery and rendering the complexities invisible.

Reaping the Benefits

Consider the scenario at Hanover. Because the information Maria entered in the online form was automatically submitted to the estimating department and then passed on to all departments, redundancies, such as re-keying of customer and job information, were completely eliminated. That saves a substantial amount of time. More importantly, the errors that so often occur from having to re-enter information were eliminated. Hanover could now deliver more jobs, more frequently.

Because the production planning system knows the job specifications as well as the press it will run on, it also generates the imposition templates. In an organisation that has a mix of four- and eight-up presses, if a job has to be rescheduled to print on another press as soon as the change is entered, all relevant parameters, including imposition, are also changed, automatically.

The ability to communicate interactively between administrative and production departments, as well as partnering companies, is made possible by JDF technology and is what gives the Graphic Enterprise its power.

Organisations will save money not only by eliminating error and speeding the process, but because of the tracking capability of the Graphic Enterprise. Connectivity with management systems also means that every action or inaction can be tracked and recorded. Managers know exactly how much time it took to process a file, image a plate or set-up the press. Estimates and invoicing, therefore, will be accurate to the penny. Customer service or sales reps can provide clients with reports that can open up dialogues about ways to improve future projects.

The Graphic Enterprise, in fact, enables enterprise-wide process improvement. The status reports can show any and every glitch in the operation with detailed intent and process information.

The Graphic Enterprise also eliminates time-consuming paperwork because the system digitally archives, automatically, customer information, job information and job content.

Convenience is another benefit of the Graphic Enterprise. Because the Graphic Enterprise communicates via the Web, production managers, customer service reps, outsourcing partners and clients can communicate at any time from any location with an Internet connection.

Every phase of production –pages and processes– is depicted visually in real time. In addition to making the system easy to learn and use, visualisation gives managers control of the entire operation from a single dashboard—similar to the way a pilot controls an aircraft.

The Graphic Enterprise raises customer service to a new level, allowing companies to build strong, loyal relationships. Online client collaboration not only speeds approvals, it gives the client a greater sense of ownership and control over the process. Yet because access to the system is permission-based, companies can decide who sees what. Control over the manufacturing process, therefore, remains in the hands of the Graphic Enterprise. The speed and automation of processes also frees management to spend more time catering to clients and developing new business.

Asset management plays a dual role in building loyalty and widening profit margins. It gives the Graphic Enterprise systematic access to all of its assets. And it gives clients access to theirs. Because assets are catalogued, users can access them instantly. Projects are easier to assemble and repeat projects become more profitable. Clients can rely on the Graphic Enterprise not only for their print assets but for the ability to warehouse and distribute broadcast and internet assets, as well as print.

The Graphic Enterprise therefore, provides the means to offer clients and prospects new products and services—ones that provide a greater sense of partnership and satisfaction.

Every organisation can configure the Graphic Enterprise to suit its specific requirements. For example using naming convention rules and job tickets can automate an organisation to the highest level. These job tickets can store repeat project types, such as an A4, eight-page, full-colour, saddle-stitched booklet. When a project comes in that matches the parameters of the naming convention rules, the pages will get processed automatically, eliminating the need for any manual action.

In the Graphic Enterprise, every phase of production can be automated. And yet every step can be checked, reviewed and interrupted when necessary. It is the best of all worlds. Yet best of all, it provides unlimited opportunities to improve customer relationships and attract new business. Instead of labouring over every phase of production, managers will actually have the time to manage the business.

Agfa: Enabling the Graphic Enterprise

As a founding member of the CIP4 organisation, Agfa is active in the development of JDF standards—a key enabler for the integration of technology and processes across the Graphic Enterprise.

Agfa’s Global Services group provides the expert consultation and technical know how printers need to make their entry into the Graphic Enterprise. With global experience in systems support, remote diagnostics, preventive maintenance and best-practices programs, Agfa provides the basic requirements for the Graphic Enterprise.

The :Delano project management system is a key enabler of this new manufacturing paradigm. It is an interactive window into the entire Graphic Enterprise. It links the print buyer to the manufacturing process allowing vital client collaboration and elevating the printer’s ability to provide relationship-building customer service. :Delano also links business and manufacturing processes enabling automated data exchange, and thereby eliminating redundancies, reducing labour and saving costs.

Working in tandem with :Delano is :ApogeeX, Agfa’s powerful prepress production solution. Like :Delano, it is JDF-powered for seamless data exchange. It provides users with absolute control of the workflow while enabling unattended automation. Its reliability extends to a “fault-tolerance” fail-safe system which puts a redundant system into play in the event of a power or hardware failure. Because :ApogeeX is modular and scalable, it adapts to any production environment and extends functionality as needs change or the business grows. Among its most important features is its ability to integrate all processes including CtP, proofing, quality control, colour management and screening to not only provide seamless operation, but to provide the highest possible level of quality.

Agfa’s CtP and inkjet systems are built to provide unattended automation with built in quality control. This is essential in the Graphic Enterprise. At the same time they are designed to deliver high quality. Innovations, such as :Sublima screening technology, extend the quality capability of the printing press with high-resolution printing.

Agfa is committed to the continual development of innovative solutions—solutions that will enable the Graphic Enterprise, giving print providers the means to push-button efficiency and the potential for higher profitability.