Does Kodak make an approval system anymore?

Kodak Approval hardware is no longer being manufactured, however there are refurbished units for sale and by law they have to have spare parts.

New Doners are still being manufactured.

There have been recent free software additions so that less doner material is used when setting up Pantone/brand colour recipes.

The Kodak Approval is far from dead, however it’s prime has long gone in offset - it is still the benchmark in packaging proofing for many prepress shops, brands and converters, however many use inkjet proofs as an interim and only use the Approval as a final proof. Although one can do “dot proofing” on an inkjet, it is not the same thing as an Approval dot.

There has not been an end of life announcement and when there is there is a grace period where Kodak have to maintain support of the EOL product.


Stephen Marsh
 
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An alternative could be to use a proofing rip that can print a dot proof to an inkjet printer (Epson 9900 for example).
 
The Fujifilm FinalProof is in the same boat. I've heard that you can buy a used one now for ~$10,000. To put that into perspective some of the rolls of film are around $1,000 a piece. I work in packaging and we have a FinalProof and an Epson 9900. The Epson is our go-to proofer now unless the job is printed on a special substrate (Example: metallic) or the customer requires mockups.

The only sound alternatives are really limited to these:
Epson 7900/9900
Epson 7990WT (prints white)
Roland Versa UV LEC (prints on "any" substrate but with limited gamut, also can simulate coatings)
Roland VersaCAMM VSi (can print metallic and/or white depending on configuration)

Our next proofing purchase will likely be the Roland Versa UV LEC or it's successor...
 
You should really look at the Roland VSi series. With CGS ORIS Flex Pack and Extended Gamut inks you have a very large gamut and ORIS Flex Pack software gives you much more versatility than the other rip solutions for Roland. The CGS Extended Gamut Inks are fully authorized by Roland. Plus you can create proofs on the same substrate as the final product.
CGS
 
Cosnet, to be clear, I thought that Roland printing on the “same substrate” was only possible with the UV units, where as the VS is an ecosolvent based machine and the CGS XG inks are also ecosolvent and as such - any media requires solvent coated media for *direct* printing. Is this understanding incorrect? Or were you referring to the CGS ORIS transfer film, which is ecosolvent coated and allows one to laminate the film to the “same substrate” (similar to the Kodak Approval which is laminated to production stock).


Stephen Marsh
 
Cosnet, to be clear, I thought that Roland printing on the “same substrate” was only possible with the UV units, where as the VS is an ecosolvent based machine and the CGS XG inks are also ecosolvent and as such - any media requires solvent coated media for *direct* printing. Is this understanding incorrect? Or were you referring to the CGS ORIS transfer film, which is ecosolvent coated and allows one to laminate the film to the “same substrate” (similar to the Kodak Approval which is laminated to production stock).


Stephen Marsh

Hi Stephen,
CGS has developed a number of medias and one of those is a receptor film that laminates to customers stock. It is of such high quality and low thickness that it is similar to how Kodak Approvals and Fuji Final proofs work. The same laminate donor can be made to produce both gloss, semi-matte, and matte finishes. The ink is made by CGS and authorized by Roland but only works with our software. BTW, we add Orange and Green to make this printer have a large gamut that is in the same family of other competitive printers with Orange and Green such as Epson.
 
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Hi Stephen,
CGS has developed a number of medias and one of those is a receptor film that laminates to customers stock. It is of such high quality and low thickness that it is similar to how Kodak Approvals and Fuji Final proofs work. The same laminate donor can be made to produce both gloss, semi-matte, and matte finishes. The ink is made by CGS and authorized by Roland but only works with our software. BTW, we add Orange and Green to make this printer have a large gamut that is in the same family of other competitive printers with Orange and Green such as Epson.

Thanks cosnet, I am aware of the above, I was just not sure when you originally said “Plus you can create proofs on the same substrate as the final product” - I was not sure if you were referring to direct printing on the production stock or via the laminate. Thank you for clearing that up.


Stephen Marsh
 
No worries.. and call me Bruce! Yes, I was not too clear but the new transfer media is significantly better than past transfer films. Now we have just one film that can go gloss matte or semi-matte and then back to gloss if you want. Very cool technology.
 
With the CGS inkjet film solution you'll still need a laminator. I evaluated this technology a while back and was told the one I already use for my Finalproof could be utilized.
 
Yes.. your Kodak or Fuji Final Proof laminator can be used. Also CGS can provide you with where you can acquire a laminator if you don't have one. It really is rather painless and does not add much time to the process.
 

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