DES inks distribution deal with CPI

The deal is another example of the successful strategic relationships forged by DES, with the digital imaging supplier already the exclusive provider of Mitsubishi inkjet paper to the industry along with a range of other key contracts including EFI, X-Rite, Innova Art and Just.

PrintSpec is the flagship product from Mellow Colour, a colour quality system that assists print professionals with achieving predictable and consistent print appearance. The system quantifies the appearance of colour printing and measures the performance of printing equipment compared with the targets set out in ISO 12647 printing specification.

David Crowther, director of Chromaticity Australia, believes that CPI are set for success in the region with Mellow Colour's advanced quality control system and confirms there have already been three successful installs.

“Although it is taking some time to get printers to change what they are doing, eventually I think they will commit to the ISO 12647-2 standard,” says Crowther.

“PrintSpec uses the internationally recognized standard as the benchmark, and printers can now easily & simply achieve it without a major outlay.”

Chromaticity claims PrintSpec is compatible with a wide range of equipment and generally works with what the customer already has in place, meaning major changes can be made to quality control without requiring a major investment.

David Bull, director of CPI, says his company took on the distribution of Mellow Colour to allow its customers a means of decreasing downtime and increasing the quality of their printed products.

“This system can compare colour samples to a standard and can even compare the colours in different samples,” says Bull.

To illustrate, Bull uses the example of a client returning for a product check, with the printer needing to ensure the printed product precisely matches the proof.

“This system will analyse the colour of a printed product and tell you that the problem is for instance, with the magenta deck of the press, saving you a heap of time in fixing the problem at its source.”

Full implementation, training and support will be offered by Chromaticity Australia, who have just completed two days of intensive training for nine key technical and sales staff across CPI.

Unlike some quality control systems, PrintSpec monitors the integrity of the printed product while it is on the press rather than during the pre-press stage. It includes software designed to measure different print quality aspects of substrate, ink and colour combinations and can be configured to compare the colour of a product to either a benchmark or an in house colour standard.

PrintSpec contains the targets and tolerances of the ISO Specification as well as grey balance targets, essential for replicating print appearance from device to device. The system also provides ongoing measurement and analysis allowing for the evaluation of CTP TVI compensation curves, grey balance and even colour densities in the final product.