Hybrid Software’s latest update to its Packz and Stepz PDF production editing software is said to introduce hundreds of new features and enhancements that meet the challenges of professional packaging pre-press and, ‘illustrate once again the power of innovation.’
A notable development as part of Packz and Stepz v8.5 is Press View, a feature that provides an instant view of how graphics, especially spot colours, are printed under various printing conditions. Pascal Wybo, product manager of Packz and Stepz, described Press View as supporting the growing demand for environmentally friendly and sustainable packaging.
‘The functionality supplies professionals with instant views of how graphics, especially spot colours which are critical to brands, are printed under various printing conditions,’ she noted. ‘In many cases, accurate colours can be printed with fewer inks, less plates and faster press speeds.’
Spot colours can be defined as named Pantone colours or specified directly using the CXF standard. In addition, Packz and Stepz now support the new GMG v2 API for full compatibility with the latest GMG Open Color software.
Another new feature, Content XML, allows print service shops to transform PDF artwork templates into standard XML markup language, with the ability to drive high quality dynamic artwork creation from ERP or MIS systems. The creative variation of text, linework, colour and images can be leveraged in web-based digital print-on-demand applications, ‘for engaging one-to-one packaging.’
Packz 8.5 also adds tools to create Digimarc digital watermarks, which encode the artwork surface with an imperceptible pattern for new data insights and smart packaging recycling for a circular economy. Verification tools in Packz and Cloudflow permit error-free inspection of Digimarc watermarks within the PDF editors and workflow processes.
