Xeikon updates X800 DFE

Xeikon has updated its X-800 digital front-end to v6, which is used to drive all of its presses, including the dry toner and inkjet machines across all markets from documents to labels.

Xeikon has upgraded its X-800 digital front end to v6 for both dry toner and inkjet presses.

Indeed the main feature of this new version is that it now fully supports the Panther inkjet machines with all the features available to the dry toner machines, such as complex impositions and job optimization, which were previously not supported on the inkjet devices. Jeroen Van Bauwel, Xeikon’s director of product management, says that one X-800 can run multiple machines of different types, though customers may need additional licenses and RIP hardware, depending on data throughput requirements.

Xeikon has also added a couple of new features for both dry toner and inkjet presses. This includes a Job Separator label where the workflow can be configured to automatically generate a Separator label between jobs so that operators can easily distinguish between jobs, which is useful if a particular job requires a further finishing step.

The Job Optimisation feature has also been improved. This determines how labels fit within lanes on a web. Van Bauwel explains: “We now have templates available so that a prepress operator can select a template and automatically we will position the labels, optimized for waste reduction.”

Elsewhere Xeikon has improved some of the existing tools, such as reporting as well as the interface for helping operators choose the appropriate colour conversion for a job, such as selecting the right profile for Pantone to CMYK or five-colour conversions.

Filip Weymans, Vice President Marketing at Xeikon, commented: “Our X-800 DFE is designed from a digital printing perspective to outperform any other DFE in the market when it comes to the level of automation possible. X-800 6.0 strongly focuses on enhancing operational capabilities, one of which is automated impositioning.”

Actually, the X-800 seems to have evolved from just being a front end tool for the print engines and is now in two parts with the engine controller and the workflow software. Van Bauwel argues that the workflow software should be installed separately in the prepress department, noting: “The press operator shouldn’t have to deal with workflow options such as imposition schemes or colour profiles. That’s a prepress functionality so we put the workflow in the prepress department.” He adds that Xeikon has worked with MIS companies to automate many of the workflow features so that in theory this software could equally be installed on a backroom server.

Customers with existing X-800 servers should be able to update their software to version 6 without requiring any further hardware.


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