Color: It’s All in the Process

Recipe for repeatability

Once a job enters the workflow, multiple factors influence color. These include dot gain based on a new range of inks, printing substrates, and blankets, as well as the type and trapping performance of the printing plate. According to Marc Welch, U.S. channel manager, GMG Americas, a color-managed workflow has three components: repeatability in the pressroom regardless of printing process; prepress process control; and color management technology. “A repeatable pressroom is the foundation of process predictability whether the process is offset, flexography, or gravure,” Welch says. “The disciplines of repeatability include standard ink densities, standard press settings, defined blanket packing, ink quality control, and standard operating procedures.”