Ravi Vaitiyanathan of Esko began his presentation with a focus on how to remove inefficiencies in the pre-press process plus simple tips on how to handle complex packaging artwork production.

Ravi Vaitiyanathan who is a G7 certified CMP pro and first certified implementation specialist for flexo; and this helped the hundred delegates understand how one can reduce lead time and increase efficiency with Esko's ArtPro+. Also he helped the delegates to understand how to cope with shorter time to market; plus the ever-increasing number of packaging changes.

Vaitiyanathan requested delegates to stay up-to-date with the market situation. He said, "We have seen customers moving towards virtual 3D mockups to get artwork approval. The pandemic has resulted in restricted movement, so customers prefer contactless 3D mockups for easy and quick approval of artworks."

His rationale was packaging firms need to protect margins and firms need more print ready files per headcount; less but faster touch points.

Vaitiyanathan pointed out that today's trend is: "more and more jobs are required with fewer touches". The other requirement is, how to abandon rejections, missed delivery dates or claims. He demonstrated how Esko's ArtPro+ can centralise, integrate, standardise and automate.

One of the problems Ravi Vaitiyanathan says, it is easy to miss issues and introduce errors unintentionally. He pointed out that ArtPro+ reduces unintentional errors when editing.

He said, "Now one can identify print quality issues, then safely edit only the item that needs attention."

(r) Vaitiyanathan: ArtPro + 21 can highlight duplicate entries and incorrect data

Vaitiyanathan stated ArtPro+ has 200 rules to automatically check and identify potential errors & specifications violations. He added, "Without taking apart the PDF, ArtPro+ provides a firm access to the transparency and object level thanks to a unique navigation concept; and the new Esko Trapper eliminates the need of preparing the artwork for trapping."

Speaking about the ArtPro+ 22, he said, "In the 2021 update, the 'auto bleed' tool was introduced to extend existing artwork beyond the cut line. In variable data printing workflow, high-end graphics could be set as variable elements. ArtPro + 21 could also highlight duplicate entries and incorrect data while processing."
 
He added, "Object-based trapping features were updated to handle complex packaging artwork and automate the trapping process. Action lists were updated to include more manual tasks for automation. Now, the PDF action lists automate pre-press tasks without special programming or scripting skills."

Esko is headquartered in Belgium and is part of the Danaher group of companies, which also includes Pantone, Videojet, Linx and X-rite. But as Sriraam Selvam of PrintWeek and WhatPackaging? magazine said in his introduction, "Esko pre-media workflow system has a large user base among packaging firms – Esko claims that packaging for nine out of ten major brands is produced by its customers."