X-Rite Color Blog

As the range of substrates, inks, and printing technologies has expanded, so has the challenge of maintaining color quality for brands and printers. A workflow based on digital standards is the easiest way to achieve accuracy and consistency across shifts and sites, regardless of production requirements. Adding a quality control solution like ColorCert® to your workflow can boost your bottom line even more. What is ColorCert? ColorCert is a modular, job-based solution that streamlines color ...

In a perfect world, you should be able to put ink in the press and simply run a job. Unfortunately, every year flexo and gravure printing operations waste ink, substrate and press time trying to get color right. Although advancements in technology have made it easier to achieve color accuracy, the variables that affect color still exist. In this three-part series, we're sharing over two dozen reasons your color might be wrong on press. If you missed the first article - Instrumentation - check i...

In a perfect world, you should be able to put ink in the press and simply run a job. Unfortunately, every year flexo and gravure printing operations waste ink, substrate and press time trying to get color right. Although advancements in technology have made it easier to achieve color accuracy, the variables that affect color still exist. In this three-part series, we’re sharing over two dozen reasons your color might be wrong on press. We’ve already covered two important factors &nda...

The International Standards Organization has defined ISO 12647 as a set of Graphic Arts standards for printing. Included are eight parts: Part 1:  Print parameters and measurement methods Part 2:  Offset lithographic processes Part 3:  Coldset offset lithography on newsprint Part 4:  Gravure printing Part 5:  Screen printing Part 6:  Flexographic printing Part 7:  Proofing processes working directly from digital data Part 8:  Validation print processes wo...

  Extended Gamut Printing Increased product variation and lean manufacturing demands are forcing converters to work quicker and more cost-efficiently. Implementing extended gamut printing, also called fixed color palette printing, is a great way for brand owners and designers to specify achievable color, and for converters to reduce press setup time, produce smaller lot sizes, and increase press efficiency. In this video, X-Rite Pantone Color Expert Mark Gundlach explains extended color g...

G7® is a proof-to-print process control method that allows you to reliably and efficiently match the visual appearance of the output from multiple printing devices. It works by defining the gray balance and NPDC curves in conjunction with the traditional method of measuring tonal value increase (TVI/dot gain) for each color. G7 can be applied to any type of printing, regardless of the type of ink or printing method, including all types of digital, offset, flexo, gravure printing.   It&r...

The Pantone Color Institute just announced PANTONE® 18-3838 Ultra Violet as the Pantone Color of the Year 2018! This news is always exciting because it sets the stage for upcoming trends for everything from housewares to fashion to packaging design. In fact, we have already seen shades of Color of the Year used in packaging and graphic design by forward-looking brands in the CPG, luxury, and beauty worlds as well as by personalities and artists seeking to stand out. Part of butt...

The Color Management Group is a blend of certified consultants and resellers who provide products and services to many industries around the world, including graphic arts, photography, textile, and printing and packaging. CMG members have years of experience and a long list of industry certifications. They also have a reputation for providing fast and effective solutions to help businesses of any size implement color management, process control, and standardization. The Color Management Group wa...

January is a popular time for “Top” lists. The Top 100 Songs. The Top 20 News Stories. The Top 50 Travel Destinations. We’re looking back too, and blog readership is one area we find very interesting. Today we’ll share the Top 5 Posts of 2015, what we think they say about you – our blog readers – and how we plan to continue these popular conversations in 2016. New in 2015: The X-Rite Pantone Customer Center at our corporate headquarters in Grand Rapids, Michigan is a great place to see our produ...

If you use eXact with BestMatch™, the answer might be yes. BestMatch helps you determine if you can achieve a closer match to a specified color by adjusting ink on press. Formulating ink for a press run can be tricky because there are many things that go into it. The vehicle, colorants, and solvents are just a few of the things that impact ink quality, and whether it comes from your ink supplier or you mix it yourself, ink can vary in thickness or concentration. With BestMatch, you can confirm t...