Universal Language of Print
As Print Professional’s June issue goes to press, drupa—the world’s largest printing trade show—will be in full swing at Messe, Düsseldorf, Germany. Approximately 400,000 visitors from 122 countries are expected to pass through the exhibit halls between May 29 and June 11, delighting in the latest technology and workflow tools from several hundred vendors. The new workflow solutions being introduced at drupa will subsequently join those already existing, further underscoring the need for industry standards designed to simplify information exchange between different applications and systems in and around the graphic arts industry.
Part of the solution is Job Definition Format (JDF), an industry specification created to facilitate process automation and integration. Then, there is Pittsburgh-based Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF) in partnership with the Integration of Process in Prepress, Press and Postpress (CIP4), aiding the cause with a two-part strategy: JDF certification and the formation of a JDF User Group.
Brandon Iskey, computational research scientist, JDF certification program administrator for PIA/GATF, explained the organization was selected by CIP4 to conduct the certifications. “PIA/GATF is a unique organization. We’re an independent, third-party research, training, education and advocacy facility that identifies problems and comes up with answers to help out the printing industry in general,” he said. “JDF isn’t going away; it is definitely here to stay.”
He explained PIA/GATF’s certification program deals with companies seeking to get their products certified within the realm of the JDF 1.3 or 1.2 specifications. “This is the ‘nerd work’, looking at code and at attributes and making sure everything passes and is manipulated correctly,” Iskey good naturedly, yet proudly, joked. “We started our certification program approximately two years ago, and [have] issued 25 certifications. To complement this, with the JDF user group, we can demonstrate the potential of JDF and the advantages of the workflow.”
Iskey, together with Dr. Mark Bohan, vice president, research and technology at PIA/GATF, helped to establish with CIP4 the JDF User Group, which is aimed at a wide range of users of JDF-enabled systems, from creation to fulfillment. With a steering committee consisting entirely of printers who have either implemented systems or are in the process of implementation, the group seeks to address important questions, such as where to start, what to avoid and how to optimize the integration of new installations into existing workflows.
The first JDF User Group meeting was held March 24-25 at PIA/GATF’s headquarters. More than 40 attendees—including MIS experts, printers, prepress specialists and graphic artists—got a hands-on introduction to JDF implementations within the facility. During the event, they participated in discussions about the challenges to creating successful implementations, reviewed case studies and had an opportunity for
peer networking.
“Presidents and CEOs of companies, as well as others from within their organizations, shared their experiences,” noted Iskey. “For instance, some presenters discussed the challenges of integrating large and complex systems, the hurdles that had to be overcome and solutions to these challenges. This was followed by the advantages [gained] from JDF implementation, including how much money and time is saved now. Sure, JDF is not plug-and-play, but when everything is integrated and your workflow is constructed correctly with the options you want to have, it does [benefit your operation].”
PIA/GATF is currently in the process of organizing two more JDF User Group meetings before the end of the year. “One will be in September before Graph Expo, followed by one in November,” reported Iskey, “but dates and venues are still being decided.”
Forward Thinking
JDF builds on and extends beyond pre-existing partial solutions, such as CIP3’s Print Production Format and Adobe Systems’ Portable Job Ticket Format. It also enables the integration of commercial and planning applications into the technical workflow. JDF joins the growing number of standards based on XML, ensuring maximum possible portability between different platforms and ready interaction with Internet-based systems.
The most prominent features of JDF are:
• The ability to carry a print job from conception through completion, including a detailed description of the creative, prepress, press, postpress and delivery processes.
• The ability to bridge the communication gap between production and MIS, enabling instantaneous job and device tracking, as well as detailed pre- and post-calculation of jobs.
• The ability to bridge the gap between the customers’ views of product and the manufacturing process by defining a process-independent product view, as well as a process-dependent production view of a print job.
• The ability to define and track any user-defined workflow without constraints on the supported workflow models, including serial, parallel, overlapping and iterative processing in arbitrary combinations and over distributed locations.
Just because a product is JDF compliant doesn’t mean it reads or writes [all of the necessary] information. However, a JDF-certified product, explained Iskey, must write certain information that is pertinent to the layout creation process, the prepress process or the press process.
PIA/GATF currently offers four different product certifications:
• Layout creator to imposition
• MIS to conventional printing sheetfed
• MIS to prepress
• Prepress to conventional sheetfed.
To make things easier, Iskey provides those seeking JDF product certification with the testing tools and the actual files he uses during the process. Depending on the situation, certification can take up to three days or several weeks. “People are going to be looking for JDF certified products,” predicted Iskey. “These are large investments, and the certification indicates a proven level of compatibility and interoperability.”
For more information, visit www.piagatfcim.org, www.cip4.org.
Related story: JDF Promotes Productivity and Profitability