Agora Publishing House Invests in PuzzleFlow Workflow Systems

2005-12-19

Agora, the publisher of “Gazeta Wyborcza” daily, has recently invested in three ACCHSH PuzzleFlow workflow systems, equipped with both ColorManager and Trapper modules.

The systems are to be implemented in three Agora’s printing sites at the beginning of January.

The co-operation between ACCHSH and Agora was first established in 2001. At that time the publisher of Gazeta Wyborcza, one of the biggest Polish newspapers, started the implementation of PDF format, replacing PostScript files in their daily production. Sylwester Zacheja, Deputy Manager at Agora’s IT Production Department, says: ACCHSH offered us the imposition tool, which was the first in the world based on the technology of native PDF files imposition. The technology was created by ACCHSH and received awards at the Seybold conference in 1999. We have been using the software successfully since that time. The investment in PuzzleFlow systems is the next step of the fruitful co-operation between our companies.

Agora has invested in three PuzzleFlow Light systems, additionally equipped with ColorManager and Trapper modules. Sylwester Zacheja says: The ACCHSH solution will be mainly used as a color management system and it will replace another vendor’s software. The ColorManager module will be implemented in the current workflow systems used in our printing sites. Press operators will be able to check the correctness of each job thanks to the soft proofing option offered by ColorManager.

The module will be also used for digital proofing: ColorManager will support the production of proofs of neuralgic newspaper pages that need a deep color control. We will also check the color pages of Agora’s magazines, printed in heatset presses by our partners – Sylwester Zacheja says. – It was very important for us to implement the color management module in the existing prepress system. It was possible thanks to high flexibility and versality of the PuzzleFlow system.

The ColorManager module provides various color correction strategies, the same or distinct for text objects, vector graphics, vignettes continuous tones and indexed images. Is supports ICC profiles, either standard ones or device-link profiles. It utilizes direct or emulated (proofing) color correction using various rendering intents, defined globally or selectively for distinct objects. Spot colors can be excluded and converted according to predefined color list.

The other important module purchased by Agora is the Trapper, a native PDF, vector trapping module creating traps between vector objects, images and shadings. It generates sliding traps and provides sophisticated trap mitering and trap line width reduction for thin objects. The module recognizes trapping information from a job ticket accompanying the processed job.

We will use this tool for some specific jobs – Sylwester Zacheja adds. – We want all three PuzzleFlow systems, including two additional modules, to start working at the beginning of 2006.

We are extremely glad that Agora, one of the biggest newspaper publishers in Poland, has invested in our solutions again – Andrzej Czyz, partner at ACCHSH says. – The delivery of three new systems is the next step in a long-term co-operation between our companies. We hope that the PuzzleFlow solution will be as useful for Agora as the imposition tool, first delivered by us in 2001.