Print 2 or more PDF on one set for CTP

[funwork]

Hello,

We have just launched an enveloppe printing activity.
We use a HALM press with a HALM CTP which is a Glunz & Jansen iCTP

So far, everything is OK.

What we would like to do now is the regroup two or more enveloppe PDF on a sole set a plates
We only receive PDF files to print the enveloppes...

It would be easy to fill a plate with two and sometimes more enveloppe PDF.
That would let us spare a lot of plates !

What we are looking for would be a software were we would set once for all the plates and printer/ctp specs.
So we would have to load PDF1, PDF2 and maybe PDF3 and position each of these "on" the plate.

One last thing is that because we deal with enveloppes visuals, a PDF could be placed on "top of the other" because between two logos of the same enveloppes (one on top and the other on the bottom of the env) there is often free space that could be "used"

We though of using InDesign but have a question here...
Say we receive PDF1 from customer 1 and PDF2 from customer 2...
The 2 PDF were made on different system and may not share the same ICC profile...
What we fear would be to "change" one or both colors on the outputed PDF (the one with the two visuals)

It may be something realy easy to deal with or not but as we are TOTAL newbies here, we would be glad to hear your recommandations !

Anyway, thanks a lot.

Frank

 

[Paul Santer]

Hi Frank
I would make sure that any document you look at processing has been Pre-Flighted to the same standard prior to the merge. This way you know that all the PDF files you are attempting to merge are of the same specification. If you think about how complicated a single PDF file can be these days and add to that the complication of merging Two or Three of these files into one document it isn’t difficult to imagine how errors may occur.

 

[abc]

You need some kind of imposition program to help you lay down multiple pdf files on the plate.
here are a couple to look at, I think demo/trial versions are available
Quite Imposing: home page
PDF Imposition Software inpO2 – For Adobe Acrobat

These two work as a plugin to Acrobat but there are also standalone applications available depending on how many plates you will be outputting.

Paul also makes a good point, you should preflight these pdf files before imposing them to avoid any issues and production issues.

 

[funwork]

Hello.

First of all, thank you very much for your answers.

If I understand, the procedure should look something like the following :

1-After having received the PDF (say 2), i should pre flight them with the built-in Acrobat engine or BEST ;-) with Pitstop for exemple !
The preflight should be for a defined standard, say PDF/X-1, for all the files.

2-Only after having ensured that both files are compliant to the defined standard, I should use a imposing tool, like Quite, and dispose of the 2 PDF on what should represent my plate.

I have two questions...
-> What about color space... Is something that will be checked at the preflight stage (for exemple convert to ICC #1 if the PDF is ICC #2)
-> What about putting one PDF on top of the other to optimze the space on the plate ? Remember it's enveloppe and often the PDF look the same with a logo on top and an adress at the bottom, leaving a blank space between.
What I would like to do it put PDF2 on top of PDF1 so I would have something looking like this from top to bottom : Logo1/Logo2/Address1/Address2...

Thanks again for your quick feedback yesterday ! And have a nice one today.

 

[Paul Santer]

What you need is a production ready PDF file prior to imposition. Any colour conversion or manual editing required should be carried out prior to creating this file. How you do the Pre-Flight and colour conversion would depend on what software you have available within your workflow and the versions. Personally I would end up with a folder named with the customer Code and Job Number containing a folder with the original file, a folder for any Pre-Flight reports and a folder containing the production ready file. I would create an additional folder structure for the imposed files, this way if you needed to reprint one of the files and combine it with other files you have all the individual required elements.
Your imposition requirements fall in to the FlatWorking category as your pages are of multiple sizes and require overlapping. If you choose to do this with an imposition software just check with the vendor that the software supports what you are trying to achieve, most of the vendors out there offer evaluation periods so you get a chance to try before you buy. You could also do this manually but I guess this is what you are already doing. There are so many ways to end up with the same result these days that it’s difficult as an outsider to suggest the best method unless you carry out a full evaluation of the production process and available software.

 

[funwork]

OK Paul,

Thanks a lot for the feedback and direction.
We are already working with structured directory and I agree with you, it's really helpful !
For the imposition we will explore all available options.

Again, thanks a lot