Kennesaw, Ga. -- Faced with tighter turnaround times, smaller jobs, shrinking margins and higher consumables costs, few printers fail to grasp that maximizing efficiencies and squeezing the most from every job are critical business imperatives. At Print 09, Heidelberg will show printers how to grow their businesses effectively by implementing Heidelberg Prinect, a collection of workflow products that integrate and automate the entire print production process, improving costing, building efficiency and boosting profitability.
 
Heidelberg will offer continuous demonstrations of its Prinect solutions for print shop management, production control, process management and color quality during Print 09. Having conceived and structured its 30,000-square-foot booth (1200) to show how workflow connectivity can transform any print shop into a fully integrated production environment, Heidelberg will prove its key message: That the benefits of an efficient production process are beyond question for ambitious printers who adopt the tools of computer-integrated manufacturing via Prinect.
 
Under the Prinect umbrella, Heidelberg integrates prepress, press, postpress and MIS in one seamless process that fully satisfies the definition of “end-to-end.” The Prinect workflow begins with the job quote and carries the job all the way through to finishing and delivery as a stream of digital instructions originating in the business or print management system. Everything Prinect does is aimed not just at optimizing prepress tasks, but also at streamlining time- and labor-intensive mechanical setups in the pressroom and bindery. The result is more work produced in the same time with less waste, repetition and cost – a measurable formula for increased profitability.
 
“Heidelberg is the only company to succeed in combining its workflow products into a fully integrated, all-in-one solution designed to maximize operational efficiency,” said Ray Cassino, director, prepress product management. “Each of the modules and components on display at Print 09 will drive home to printers that the transparent real-time view into their operations provided by Prinect can help them to identify bottlenecks, reduce costs and discover potential savings.”
 
Managing the Job
Visitors to the Heidelberg booth will have an opportunity to evaluate print management modules including:
 
- Prinect Prinance, a JDF-enabled professional print management system that provides job estimates and customer quote letters, accepts orders, manages raw material and finished goods inventories, and coordinates the delivery of the finished goods, invoicing, and job cost analysis. The Prinect Direct Access option provides a fully integrated, Web-based customer interface for RFQ and fulfillment.

- Prinect Pressroom Manager, the first JDF-based pressroom controller that manages every pressroom operation centrally, collects job and production information from MIS and press in a digital job ticket that is made available automatically at the pressroom manager’s console, operator workstation or the press itself. At Print 09, Heidelberg will demonstrate the seamless integration of Prinect Prepress Manager with the JDF-qualified EFI PACE and EFI Monarch Management information Systems.

- Prinect Integration System, the control center for interlinking the entire print shop workflow. Controls and coordinates the data flow while also functioning as a central server for prepress, press, postpress and the job management system. Additional components include:

Prinect Remote Access, a web portal that enables print shops to integrate customers into their processes at an early stage; and Prinect Scheduler, Heidelberg's JDF-enabled, electronic production planning system. Both were introduced at drupa 2008.

Preparing to Print
On the prepress side, Heidelberg will show:
 
- Prinect Prepress Manager, a PDF/JDF-based output workflow management system that handles all prepress tasks including preflighting, color management and trapping, imposition and final output to proof, film or plate. Shown with components including:


Prinect Color Toolbox, a suite of color management, quality control and calibration programs including the Near Neutral Optimizer, a tool that enables different output devices to calibrate to a common appearance. The Prinect Color Toolbox also enables printers to calibrate their equipment to GRACoL G7.
Prinect Color Solutions, a package of products, services and training intended to optimize color management in a closed-loop workflow between the prepress department and the pressroom, reduce makereadies, and enhance color stability throughout the press run;
Prinect Digital Print Manager, permitting the integration of digital printing systems from Xerox, HP, Cannon and Kodak into the Prinect workflow;   Prinect Archive Manager, providing secure, user-friendly archiving and rapid re-use of print jobs. It also plays a major role in eliminating fluctuations in quality; Prinect Content Manager, a reliable, user-friendly data management system;   Prinect MetaDimension, the output RIP component of Prinect Pressroom Manager; and Prinect Signa Station, a proven, assistant-based impositioning tool.

 
Finishing the Job
Introduced at drupa 2008, Prinect Postpress Manager is the first system in the industry to enable full-service print shops to integrate finishing machines into their workflow for dramatically reduced makereadies, job transparency and efficient tracking.  At Print 09, Prinect Postpress Manager will be networked with a variety of state-of-the art finishing equipment including a POLAR PACE cutting system, Stitchmaster ST 450 saddlestitcher, Stahlfolder TH 82, Easygluer 100 folder-gluer, and a KAMA ProCut 74.
 
Prinect products supporting Heidelberg’s pre-eminent XL press technology at Print 09 will include the 2009 InterTech Award-winning Prinect Press Center with Intellistart process-oriented operating platform and high-definition Wallscreen user interface.
 
Visit www.getprinected.com <http://www.getprinected.com> and Get Prinected today.