The ApogeeX, Delano and ColorTune products are being expanded and connected.
At drupa 2008 in Düsseldorf from 29 May to 11 June, Agfa Graphics will introduce Apogee Suite, a comprehensive software package comprising Apogee Publish, Apogee Portal, Apogee Prepress and Apogee Color.
The modules are intended to cover the requirements of everyone involved in print and publishing, from print buyers, content creators and designers to prepress teams and production coordinators. Apogee Suite integrates content management, page creation and approval, proofing, output, connections to upstream and downstream systems, and coordination of the publishing process.
“Our new Apogee Suite opens up new dimensions for networked production,” says Bart De Pelsmaeker, director of Agfa Graphics’ Software Group. “Its high degree of functional integration improves communication in print and media production. Customer requirements for software solutions are becoming steadily more demanding, so it is important that we offer modular solutions. The individual Apogee Suite modules support the specific functional requirements of each working group or department, while their modular design allows them to be integrated into one logical overall workflow.”
Apogee Publish covers tasks from content management to page design for print and internet output. It includes Apogee Media, a solution developed for layout production by brand owners, print-service providers and design agencies that will also premiere at drupa.
Apogee Media connects existing text and publishing tools to a largely automated workflow with integrated content management.
The result is a production platform for cross-company collaboration, designed to integrate editorial and layout work with prepress environments such as Apogee Portal and Apogee Prepress. Apogee Publish also includes the Apogee Secuseal security solution. Its design and verification tools can produce complex security designs and patterns on packaging, helping companies protect products against counterfeiting and brand piracy.
Apogee Portal, previously Delano, is intended to improve communication between printers and their customers and enable closer cooperation in print and media production. It can reduce process steps, particularly approvals before printing, lowering costs and improving production reliability in an area where errors often lead to rework.
Apogee WebApproval allows print-service providers to make files and proofs available through the internet. Other Apogee Portal tools include Apogee StreamProof for integrated high-resolution soft proofing and Apogee Project Manager for online print-project management.
Apogee Prepress, previously ApogeeX, is a comprehensive JDF-capable production server for managing and controlling prepress processes. Increased automation allows production environments to handle more tasks with fewer staff. The server can control all Agfa Graphics CtP systems and also provides access to new technologies.
- Apogee Color integrates continuous quality and colour-management solutions into Apogee Suite. Including ColorTune and SherpaProof, it supplies soft and hard-copy proofs at relevant points in the production cycle so that every participant in the communication process works with identical proofs regardless of location.
