Tuebingen - Athena Graphics in Gent, Belgium, is one of the country’s main players in providing prepress services for packaging printing. Its core business is the preparation of packaging print data for all print processes, and it puts a lot of energy into the research and development of the best possible proofing techniques.

To conquer the challenges of the diversity of substrates and spot colors in this sector, Athena Graphics has installed the Epson Stylus Pro WT7900 printer with white ink along with GMG ColorProof. Proofing with white ink on transparent or metallic foils was not possible in packaging proofing. “This printing system is the best and most economic solution for contract packaging proofs,” says Kenneth Hostyn, Proofing Manager at Athena Graphics.

Before Athena Graphics implemented the new proofing system, the technical procedure was quite different. There were several time and cost consuming steps to produce a packaging proof which simulated white color. With the new system it takes about 15 minutes to produce fully automatic and digital contract proofs with the Stylus Pro WT7900 and GMG’s proofing software. GMG ColorProof exploits the entire color space of the printer and simulates spot colors like Pantone GOE colors within the tightest of tolerances.

“GMG software gives the ability to choose between reverse (print white last) or surface (print white first) printing,” says Hostyn. “We can also adjust opacities and print white as a separate channel.”

Athena Graphics has developed several web-based online tools for managing the company’s projects. These include the implementation of automated workflows to facilitate communication with clients, and remote proofing at all its production sites and at clients all over the world. With the calibration and profiling technology of GMG, identical results all over the world and at any time are guaranteed. Digital proofing with the Stylus Pro WT7900 has already been included in these workflows which results in very satisfied customers.

GMG ColorProof support the new Stylus Pro WT7900 for producing contract proofs according to GMG’s high quality standards in terms of color accuracy and reproducibility. ColorProof supports extensive handling of white ink channels, which can be changed in gradation and opacity. The white ink can be tinted to simulate any kind of white ink. These unique features allow the creation of packaging proofs using transparent materials such as PE/PET foils and for simulation of prints on metallic substrates. This includes even advanced proofing like the simulation of watermarks in the white area.