Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
A BREAKTHROUGH IN INKJET QUALITY
Global Graphics Software, dip, hall 7.0, stand C 20 / B 21
Martin Bailey, CTO Jill Taylor, drupa media contact 2 March 2016

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Our customers
We develop the software that provides the power to drive all of
these and more:

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Who we are
International company
Listed in Brussels on Euronext (GLOG)
• 80% world’s photo books
• 70% world’s newspapers
• In high-speed digital since
2002
• Harlequin RIP since 1986
• Expert in transforming
design and pre-press data
into a format that can be
printed
• Active on ISO standards
bodies, notably PDF, PDF/X
and PDF/VT

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Harlequin today
We’re going to focus on
and why more vendors are switching to our technology
Harlequin in high-speed inkjet

0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Billionsofletter/A4equivalentimpressions
Brochures
Catalogs
Direct Mail and Inserts
Books and Manuals
Magazines and Newspapers
Other Color (including
Transaction)
Higher Quality Applications Printed on Coated Stocks Will Be
a Key Driver in High-speed Production Color Inkjet Growth
(10M+ Color Duty Cycle Segment,U.S.&W.E.)
Source: U.S. & W.E. Digital Production Printing Application Forecasts: 2014-2019, InfoTrends
• Overall page growth = 21.0%
• Higher quality application growth = 28.7%
• Other color growth = 9.1%
Medium or high
quality requirements
Direct Mail and Inserts
Books & Manuals
Magazines & Newspapers
High quality requirementsBrochures & Catalogs
Lower quality
requirements
Other Color (Including
Transaction

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
To put it another way
0.0
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Billionsofpagesincreaseperyear
Growth in impressions
High quality (Brochures,
catalogs)
Mid to high (DM, publication)
Low (transactional etc)
Low quality
applications
still growing,
but rate of
growth is
slowing
Mid to high quality
applications
growing rapidly,
and at a steady
rate
High quality
applications are
quite a new
space for inkjet,
but growing
rapidly
Source: U.S. & W.E. Digital Production Printing Application Forecasts: 2014-2019, InfoTrends

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Trends in inkjet printing
InfoTrends and other industry research show the following:
Increasing top speed of the presses – still working toward
matching offset and flexo
Increasing use of inkjet in higher quality sectors
And adoption in higher quality sectors of labels &
packaging
Transactional
Direct mail &
publication
Brochures
and
catalogs
Increasing use
of coated stocks
in GA (and
impermeable
media in labels
and some
packaging)

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Common quality issues
Ink drops should
ideally form a
regular grid on the
media
Images are available on a USB stick in your
press pack, and at our online press office
They usually don’t You can see
straight lines
along the media
(up and down),
but uneven lines
across the media

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Common quality issues
Irregular drop
positioning leads to
drops ‘randomly’
coalescing on the
media:
Images are available on a USB stick in your
press pack, and at our online press office
These microscopic
effects cause visible
artefacts, often
described as
mottling or streaking:
Synthetic image with exaggerated artefacts in order to be visible
on a projector, or reproduced on another print process

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Quality matters!
Brand managers and buyers are driving change by pushing the
boundaries. They need high-quality at high-speed
Inkjet press manufacturers are frustrated with output
quality. They are reaching the limits of what can be
achieved with mechanical improvements
The faster the press runs, the
harder it is to control drop
placement precisely
Coated and impermeable media
suffer more from coalescing

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Quality matters!
Brand managers and buyers are driving change by pushing the
boundaries. They need high-quality at high-speed
Inkjet press manufacturers are frustrated with output
quality. They are reaching the limits of what can be
achieved with mechanical improvements
They know they need to significantly improve output quality and operate at
high speeds to keep pages fed to the press.
They’ve come to Global Graphics to help them fix their problems

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Software is the answer
It’s not financially viable to fix these press problems in hardware
Global Graphics have developed the solution to solve them in
software
Today we’re launching Harlequin Multi-Level Digital Screening
the technology you need for the future of inkjet
By carefully tuning multi-level halftones we can significantly raise
output quality, even on challenging media
Harlequin can meet that challenge, today.

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
How does it work?

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
How is it available?
Digital press
Harlequin
RIP v11,
with
ScreenPro
Using Harlequin
for RIPing as
well as
screening
resolves
additional
challenges, such
as driving the
press at speed
for variable data
jobs
Any workflow or RIP
Harlequin Screening Engine

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
What difference does it make?
Gives press vendors an immediate
competitive advantage
Harlequin Multi-level Digital Screening enables press vendors to …
• Bring new presses to market faster
• Address customer complaints around existing presses
• Print confidently on challenging media and at higher speed
• Expand into higher quality (higher margin) applications

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Intelligent software
is as critical a component as
the print head, media, ink,
fluid control, paper
movement, electronics, etc We’ll be
making
announcements
about who is
using this
technology in
the future

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Harlequin 11
Latest version of Harlequin launched today
• Yet more processing speed, including PDF/VT hints
• More quality: including multi-level screening
• New features for labels and packaging
Harlequin 11 at drupa?
• HP SmartStream Production Pro 6.0 is based on Harlequin 11
and will be driving HP Indigo digital presses at drupa
Harlequin 11
press
release is in
your pack

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
The future
Our goal is that within the next 5 years all digital press
vendors will be switching to Harlequin.
We have the speed, quality and compliance with industry
standards
We are fully focussed on solving press vendors’ issues
Why wouldn’t you switch?

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
Summary
We have the answer to fix inkjet quality problems in software
We are the only company in the market with this technology
Our solution can be applied to any workflow



Manufacturers have approached Global Graphics because they
cannot solve it themselves and they know we have the expertise

Copyright © Global Graphics Software Limited 2016
QUESTIONS
Contact us:
• For a one on one interview to find out more
• To book your personal demo on our drupa stand
Speak to us if you are writing about DFEs, inkjet printing, variable data printing
& PDF/VT, screening, colour management: Jill.taylor@globalgraphics.com
Your press pack is on-line at: www.globalgraphics.com/company/drupa-news