A variable data digital offset workflow

With the increasing availability of high quality digital offset presses, one of the key challenges faced by the industry is to develop new profitable markets for variable data content. In this paper we will provide an overview of Shutterfly's variable data products manufactured on the HP-Indigo line of digital offset presses. Shutterfly produces Greeting Cards, Note Cards, and Calendars on these presses. The end users provide text and digital images to customize these products. A key aspect of this purely variable-data workflow is that the customization is "consumer centric" with minimal job variability on the press. The presses are part of a fully automated printing work flow with no job specific previews, setup, or calibration. The presses are calibrated to be colorimetric devices and color is communicated in standardized color spaces to ensure an accurate color reproduction workflow. Data management is designed to operate the presses in a continuous printing mode; thus maximizing throughput.