EFI Fiery Digital Print Solution A PrintWeek India Case Study

Digital print specialist Avantika Printers has invested in new systems, some nifty pre-press software, along with taking up a lease for a new three-storey factory in Okhla. The shopfloor is busy. On a peak day,

Avantika notches 40-50 jobs in one shift. Himanshu Pandey who is the gen-next at Avantika Printers

is pretty clear about the future. “In the good old days, offset business made monies, whether it was commercial or pack-aging. Life was simple. Not anymore. Long runs have become shorter. Short-run jobs have increased. There are times when a printer cannot meet the customer demand for short-run, resulting in loss of business. Digital printing gives that power to retain business.”

But Himanshu along with his father, MN Pandey, a math-ematics and Sanskrit teacher, are crystal clear about one thing: “The fleet of digital presses on their shopfloor are more accurate in terms of producing fine halftones, clean and precise lines and type, smooth gradients, and solids, which are comparable to most of the offset presses in mid-level segment.” Himanshu adds, “The digital presses along with their digital front-ends (DFE) are now able to comply with internationally recognised industry standards such as FOGRA and GRACOL, which is what gives Avantika an edge over others.”

The Fiery journeyAvantika started using EFI’s Fiery EXP250 in 2007. Currently, they are working with the F200, the fourth iteration of Fiery DFEs. Himanshu says, “Operationally, this has been a learning experience for us.” This is mainly because the Fiery changes from the EXP250 to F200. EFI has improved its graphic user interface and as Himanshu says, “the functions it offers are very diversified, now.”

Avantika produces more than a hundred super-specialised types of jobs. These include: PODs, photobooks, postcards, greeting cards, personalised desk, wall calendars, coasters, gift certificates, discount cards and the list goes on. And digital printing proves to be much more feasible for such applications as quantities as well as turnaround time is very low.

Avantika ups quality and integration with FieryFiery digital front end is the brain which controls our entire print production at Avantika, Himanshu Pandey

Delhi-based Avantika Printers produces more than a hundred super-specialised types of jobs. These include: PODs, photobooks, postcards, greeting cards, personalised desk, wall calendars, coasters, gift certificates, discount cards and the list goes on. M N Pandey and Himanshu Pandey, the father and son duo is at the helm of operations. Avantika started using EFI’s Fiery EXP250 in 2007. Currently, they are working with the F200, the fourth iteration of Fiery digital front ends in their shop.

M N Pandey, Avantika Printers

EFI Fiery Digital Print Solution A PrintWeek India Case Study

Himanshu says, “Fiery DFE becomes very important for us because it is the brain which controls your entire print production. Even minor mistakes may cause direct financial loss. It gives you the facility to see the preview and make changes, before printing even one sheet.”

Fiery’s performanceOne of the focus areas for Avantika is short run books and PODs. The mandate from publishers is “reduction of inventory cost and colour consistency”. Senior Pandey says, “Then there is stock printing for out-of-market books. Today, new publishers produce limited quantity of books for reviews before the actual launch as well as sample books for final production in large quantities, which is another good prospect to look at. Plus the static content in education materials is being changed to incorporate updated examples in the mid-year by top universities.”

Himanshu says all this requires speed. And this is where Fiery plays its part. Himanshu states, “We calculate the ROI on Fiery on its processing speed. Basically, this means, how fast we can deliver the job.” The number of options which Fiery can provide helps Avantika not to return to the design stage.

On the Avantika shopfloor, you see the real-time performance when the digital presses are revving up to produce a short run book order. That’s when Fiery’s RIP-ing performance with a heavy file comes into play. An advanced version of Fiery RIPs a heavy file in 10 minutes.

Help a customer before a vacationHimanshu says, “Usually, Saturdays are crucial for us as most clients submit their jobs during the weekend. So, we can respond to a client if there is any error in the file before he goes off for his weekend vacation break.”

Himanshu says, “With the Fiery DFE, we complete 300 jobs in a week.” When we ask him how Avantika’s job submission makes sense of the mix and

match approach, he replies, “We have shifted 80% of our jobs out of the CTRL+P mode. We now use the import function on Command WorkStation (CWS) for a file which is 40 MB or more. We also use the hot folder function which is good for repeat and pre-defined jobs that use similar functions.”

He adds if 30-40% of your jobs require heavy processing, then getting an exter-nal Fiery is the first priority.” A simple addition which can save few hours that can be utilised to fine tune your process.

With the Fiery, we complete 300 jobs in a week. We have shifted 80% of our jobs out of the CTRL+P mode. We now use the import function on Command WorkStation (CWS) for a file which is 40 MB or more. If 30-40% of your jobs require heavy processing, then getting an external Fiery is the first priorityHimanshu Pandey, Avantika Printers

Himanshu Pandey, Avantika Printers

EFI Fiery Digital Print Solution A PrintWeek India Case Study

How Avantika optimises FieryThe first thing Avantika did was manage the work-flow of the multiple digital machines. This is because all engines and their DFEs handle the pro-cess “differently”. Himanshu explains, “The options in their print drivers are totally different from each other.”

Once there is a system in place, then the higher volume of smaller jobs is segregated. Himanshu says, “I print and import the file at the same time via CWS, reschedule the job, plus interrupt it, and put the higher priority jobs in sequence. This is not possible when I am using a print driver for that machine.”

So how does Fiery DFE drastically reduce the time frame of processing a file? Himanshu answers, “We felt this surge in processing when it handles PDF/VT data” This transpired when Avantika printed calendars. The job files were published in two formats. One with PDF/VT and another with a standard PDF architecture. Team Avantika gained approximately 2.5 hours when the APPE feature with PDF/VT files was deployed.

In addition, there is an advantage with the

Four tips from Himanshu PandeyTip # 1: At other units, digital printers do not work towards efficiency. They have a set of commands and they follow those, day after day, job after job. For example, you have an import option along with CTRL+P to print a file. Now, if you follow this, your graphic intensive files will transfer faster and you will be able to see the output on the machine quickly as compared to the CTRL+P option.

Tip # 2: Avantika uses Fiery’s Preflight and ImageViewer function to verify files which are using transparencies or which are created in a layered mode. For example, in Illustrator, the designer uses a functionality called ‘Overprint’. If you want to print a text in white, it appears invisible, unless you switch off the ‘Overprint’ mode. The Fiery helps us check this during pre-press and make changes if there are any. At Avantika, we have used Fiery’s Preflight function from Version 9, it has helped us resolve 65% of these problems.

Tip # 3: I am a certified Fiery Professional. Earlier, training and tutorial were a pain but nowadays EFI provides video tutorial and other educational/information tools via forums. Plus check the discussions on the EFI Fiery global bulletin boards. At Avantika, I was the first one to learn the system and then I diligently trained my staff. Some of our operators picked up and mastered the tools quite fast, others took time. Our operators learn from video tutorials. Even though entry/junior-level operators are not educated enough, they pick up easily through the videos. With video demos, language is no longer a barrier, and learning is fun and easy.

Tip # 4: Operators must do a daily calibration. Whenever a printer/publisher sets up a print-related software, default settings are deployed. In India, we follow either international or European standards, which are not the same as US standards. We in house follow Fogra for CMYK and Adobe RGB for RGB Workflow. So if Avantika receives files which are different from the set workflow, we convert those files according to standard, calibrate it, print sample and always seek an approval on a hard copy before print. Follow this practice, whenever you have a doubt.

EFI Fiery Digital Print Solution A PrintWeek India Case Study

large files which are required for coffee table books and VDP greeting cards. Himanshu says, “We can adjust the colours on the DFE using ImageViewer Color Curve function on the ripped data itself.”

Avantika uses the EFI’s inbuilt Fiery FreeForm VDP for less complex jobs such as envelope address and personalised letters. While the ObjectifLune’s Printshop Mail is used for sterner stuff like “handling of complex algorithms.” EFI DirectSmile is used for calendars and greeting cards in con-junction with the Printshop Mail.

Fiery: An award winnerHimanshu concludes, “At Avantika, we use 80% of Fiery’s functions. Fiery ImageViewer is the most useful. We have developed a habit to see the file in the ImageViewer. If you have two or three files, then look there.” What’s the big deal you wonder? The big deal is, Avantika’s average is 30% more than the Indian industry average of usage of its digital machines.

This is the reason Avantika Printers bagged the PrintWeek India Awards for the fourth time after making a hat-trick of the Digital Printer of the Year category a few years back. And the award winning samples were a testimony to its print clout. A media catalogue on different substrates using differ-ent image outputs and a coffee-table book with a seven-inch screen and a port to charge, to play a video, all within the book.

All thanks to the power of the Fiery DFE’s higher perfor-mance in printing, remarkable image quality, as well as advanced job management and makeready functionalities.

Note: Command WorkStation, Digital StoreFront, DirectSmile, EFI, the EFI logo, Electronics For Imaging, Fiery, the Fiery logo, Fiery Driven, Fiery JobMaster, and Fiery Navigator are trademarks of Electronics For Imaging, Inc. and/or its wholly owned subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries. All other terms and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners, and are hereby acknowledged.