Hybrid Software has teamed up with Think Laboratory in an OEM deal that allows the Japanese manufacturer to offer the full range of Hybrid’s native PDF workflow products, including Cloudflow and PACKZ. Think Laboratory is a major global supplier of advanced gravure engraving equipment, while Hybrid’s PDF technology leads the industry in the labels and packaging sectors. Hybrid now has almost 400 seats of PACKZ and 100 Cloudflow workflows in use at customer sites around the world. 

“Tatsuo Shigeta, the president of Think Laboratory, and I have known each other for more than twenty years and the mutual respect we have as individuals and for the technologies behind our companies made this an obvious agreement,” says Hybrid chairman Guido Van der Schueren. “Think Laboratory’s position as a key player in gravure will provide us with another sales route into a very important market and we’re looking forward to working together with Mr Shigeta and his team in the future.”

Hybrid’s Cloudflow is a web-based workflow solution that meets perfectly the needs of businesses that have to link multiple locations via a highly efficient interface. Supported on Windows and Mac OSX, Cloudflow interacts with external systems such as MIS/ERP and custom designed web pages, and can submit files to workflows via HTTP. 

PACKZ, Hybrid’s professional PDF editor for packaging and label workflows, can be fully integrated within the Cloudflow environment. Hybrid is continually expanding its range. In 2015 the company launched the Cloudflow RIP, which supports native PDF 1.6 files, and says it will announce further new products in the near future. 

“We have great faith in Hybrid Software and its technologies,” says Tatsuo Shigeta, president of Think Laboratories. “The importance of PDF workflows in the labels and packaging markets continues to increase. 

“We wanted to extend our product portfolio in order to provide solutions that range from the initial handling of PDF files through to the final engraving of the gravure cylinder. This new OEM agreement with Hybrid Software is ideal both for us and our customers and we expect a high level of interest in the Cloudflow and PACKZ products.”