NPES The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies announces that ISO 16612-1, Graphic technology — Variable printing data exchange — Part 1: Using PPML 2.1 and PDF 1.4 (PPML/VDX-2005) has been published as an ISO (International Organization for Standardization) standard digital data format for representing final form graphical page content for variable data print applications. PPML/VDX is designed for use with job ticketing formats such as CIP4’s Job Definition Format (JDF) and represents full color page data in a way that is compact, production workflow and printing device independent, and suitable for open exchange. This ISO standard underscores the importance of open data exchange in expanding acceptance and use of variable data printing. By enabling data authoring systems to create VDP jobs that can target a variety of output devices, PPML/VDX offers content creators and print providers the greatest flexibility in the design, development, exchange and production of variable data documents. Page content creators such as graphic design agencies, for example, could send portions of the same variable data job to several print providers—based on geography or other considerations—with the assurance that output color quality will remain consistent among each run and match the designer’s expectations. “There has long been the need for a standard way of submitting variable data printing jobs,” said Frank Romano, Professor Emeritus, School of Print Media, Rochester Institute of Technology. “After more than six years of effort by users, printers, and suppliers, PPML/VDX is now an international standard. As digital printing vendors implement PPML/VDX, it will allow small, medium, and large jobs to move from origination to print more effectively.” PPML/DVX was first published as ANSI CGATS.20 in 2002 by The Committee for Graphic Arts Technologies Standards (CGATS), an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) committee administered by NPES. A core group of software developers, equipment manufacturers, and professional users have championed PPML/VDX since its beginning. Tim Donahue, Eastman Kodak, chaired the ISO TC 130 Task Force that developed PPML/VDX as an international standard. “Wider acceptance and use of variable data printing (VDP) will be realized as more software developers and digital printing equipment manufacturers comply with and integrate PPML/VDX into their VDP workflow and printing solutions,” said Donahue. “By making it easier than ever for everyone involved in the process of creating and producing VDP jobs to participate in the process, PPML/VDX can bring the promise of one to one marketing, personalization and other VDP applications to a much larger market.” The standard can be ordered from NPES at http://www.npes.org/standards/orderform.html, or from national standards bodies. For more information, or to participate in the standards development work, contact Mary Abbott at 703/264-7229 or [email protected].