April 2014 - The Flexographic Technical Association (FTA) named All Printing Resources (APR) and SpotOn! Press winners of its prestigious 2014 Technical Innovation Award. SpotOn! Flexo Technology co-developed by the two companies, was the winner in the Prepress-Pressroom category. An elite team of industry professionals conducted the competitive judging, and the winners were announced at the annual awards banquet that took place on Sunday, April 27th at the FTA's 2013 Annual Forum in Baltimore, MD.
"On behalf of APR, we are honored to be recognized with the prestigious FTA Technical Innovation Award for our SpotOn! Flexo software," says David Nieman, President & CEO of APR. "Collaborating with SpotOn! Press has truly been a partnership of shared ideas resulting in a product that can save our customers time and money."
"Our vision of creating an effective, accurate, and dependable tool for flexo press operators to consistently control ink densities would not have been possible without the support and involvement of APR. Together we have delivered a powerful tool unlike any other. SpotOn! Flexo is Color Made Easy," says Bruce Bayne, Founder and SpotOn! Flexo architect.
SpotOn! Flexo Pressroom Software
SpotOn! Flexo is a color analysis software tool that incorporates new, leading-edge technology making it possible to get optimum color reproduction and ink density information for any color. Utilizing a Predictive Analysisalgorithm it determines the best ink density to achieve optimum color reproduction in the pressroom or the ink lab.
SpotOn! Flexo creates a new metric for flexo press output, "Optimal Ink Density." Using spectral information, the software compares the measured color from a press pull (using a spectrophotometer) to the reference color and provides the press operator the ink density for optimal color reproduction. It also incorporates a unique chart that provides the targeted ink density range. Although originally designed for the pressroom, SpotOn! Flexo can also be used in the ink lab to determine if the ink can be successfully matched when it's run on press.
Prior to this technology, matching spot colors has been done subjectively by a visual comparison or by using a spectrophotometer to calculate the Delta E (ΔE). Both of these methods have many variables, making it difficult to achieve consistent and accurate results, press-to-press and job-to-job. Neither method provides any corrective actions to improve the color match.
"Our collaborative goal was to create an easy-to-use product that provides converters with immediate benefits and cost-savings," says Richard Black, Director Digital Solutions of APR. "Being recognized by the FTA with this award confirms we have accomplished this goal."
"We at SpotOn! are genuinely pleased to see the FTA recognize the result of a true collaboration between two companies with common interests. We, along with our partner APR, are excited to get the word out to the industry," says Robin Michalisko, Director of SpotOn! Marketing.