Cestrian Imaging personalizes box of chocolates

Manchester (UK) based Cestrian Imaging has rolled out the first Variable Data Production run on its :M-Press Tiger. It started with the idea of a box of chocolates for Valentine’s day to which the company added variable data at high print quality on its :M-Press Tiger.  According to managing director Paul Whitehurst: ‘True personalization of both text and images without loss of production speed, even on long runs, has enabled us to offer the market the next step in print.’

The box is printed on the :M-Press using a brand new textured Art canvas board.  When opened, the inside flap shows chocolates whose descriptions reflect the services that Cestrian offers its clients.  Inside the box is a dyesub fabric (printed with a chocolate selection stretched onto an Eflex Aluminium frame, a new product which Agencies and Retail are using to cover walls.  On the outside of each box is a label where the recipient’s name is printed.

On the back of the box was a QR tag/code, which, when scanned, takes the recipient to the company’s website, and next to that a unique number which identifies the recipient to a label which is then stuck onto the envelope.  The inside of the box invited the addressee to ‘make a date’ to visit Cestrian’s production facilities, and to take home a real box of chocolates home.  From concept to delivery was less than 2 weeks.

Agfa Graphics offers variable data printing through :Apogee Vibe, an optional extension to the prepress workflow system.  Single individual copies are created automatically from variable text and images that are taken from records in a database. Each record represents a unique finished document.

It is possible to verify the page layout with and without variable live data in :Apogee Vibe before going to press.  Page layout with variable data preview will display the actual content of the fields from the database and the actual static images, next to all static elements.  To optimize print capacity on the press, it is possible to create multiple-up pages with :Apogee Vibe.

Developed jointly with Thieme, Agfa's :M-Press Tiger combines the printing expertise of both companies: screen printing from Thieme and digital inkjet printing from Agfa Graphics.  Adding variable data printing answers a prominent need from print service providers to print up to 700 square metres per hour including loading and unloading, with no make ready, films or screens. :M-Press can handle substrates up to 10 mm thick with a colour gamut better than ISOcoated V2, the offset gamut.