A creative collective of individuals, companies and products specialising in workflow solutions and drawn from Aussies, Kiwis, Belgians, Indians, English and the French, will constitute a ‘print intelligence centre’ at the PacPrint exhibition in Melbourne in May.
According to Tresta Keegan, Tharstern NZ managing director, the international collaborators together provide their collective end-users with the best in class choices when it comes to implementing effective, proven workflows around a robust MIS.
“We have confirmed participation from Insoft Automation with its ganging and imposition software; Enfocus Switch’ workflow automation with Yves Roussange’s Soltect as a local representative; and Vpress, online ordering. Of course, alongside the Tharstern presence that will mean we’ll be able to deliver the detail of how we work together locally, based on the successes our customers with our respective products,” she said.
“We’ve located our stand alongside Agfa so we can take advantage of similar conversations. We have joint customers using the JDF connection between Tharstern and Apogee and this relationship is of great value to us.”
The partners are also looking at linking up with other exhibitors, such as the HP SmartStream Production Centre in addition to their long established partnerships with Fujifilm for XMF and Kodak for Prinergy.
“Our primary goal is to show how vital successful partnerships are in this industry. No one provider is an expert in all areas and each print environment is better served when their core strengths are supported through technology,” said Keegan. “That is, in part, reliant upon the software, but predominantly the make or break depends upon all parties having a vested interest in communicating effectively, taking ownership of set goals and never settling for the status quo.”
The genesis of the collective came at drupa last year when Keegan and Roussange agreed to distil the level of international expertise between them. To access their combined level of industry knowledge and operational oversight printers had to traipse kilometres around different vendor stands at drupa. By bringing it all together and demonstrating cloud based ordering, automated imposition, and pushing jobs down to the press with real-time data through a powerful MIS, Keegan believes they would maximize PacPrint visitors best use of time.
“Printers doing their necessary due diligence will be able to deal directly with the respective vendors on the one stand. We aim to provide a complete solution,” she said.
Roussange echoed the idea by saying the PacPrint stand B16, is shaping up as software central at the show. “Together with Tharsten we’ll be demonstrating what printers need to do to ‘feed the beast’ – the press waiting for the jobs,” he said.