French software giant Caldera has announced a new software and hardware bundle that allows wide format printers to harness the power of digital signage on their own production floors.
PrintBoard, launched last year as a plug-in for Caldera Print & Cut solutions, interacts directly with a Caldera RIP Version 9.10 to display real time output statistics on-screen.
The standalone PrintBoard package will include the Variable Display media player with a 'light' Variable Display software licence.
PrintBoard displays information such as the daily square metre production rate, the rate per printing device, the percentage of production per printer and per type of printer and the number of errors per day, alongside the sequence of jobs lined up for each device. This allows for an at-a-glance overview of the workload, and makes it easy for production managers to order jobs for optimum efficiency and productivity.
"Our customers told us that they wanted a more visible monitoring solution that would enable them to be more proactive in driving efficiency, so we came up with PrintBoard," explains Joseph Mergui, CEO Caldera. "It makes use of data that is already generated by the RIP and displays it in an intuitive format that can be shown anywhere: on the print shop floor, in the office – even in their reception area. Once again Caldera is demonstrating the forward-thinking approach to printing that we know our users value highly."
The web-based platform-independent PrintBoard solution can be accessed from anywhere, including mobile devices like the iPad and Android tablets. The Variable Display management software is easy to use, even for those with no previous experience of using digital signage systems, and the hardware is able to drive any kind of digital display while its compact design allows it to be installed discreetly almost anywhere. Caldera is confident that when PSPs experience the ease of using Variable Display with PrintBoard for themselves, they will realise the value of being able to offer Variable Display as an add-on product to their own customers.
"Variable Display was initially developed as a digital signage solution for wide-format PSPs to offer alongside their printed products," Serge Clauss, Product Sales Manager, Caldera. "That it is also offers a great way to monitor production with the PrintBoard plug-in is a bonus. We see great potential for PSPs to expand into digital signage with Variable Display, and we're sure that once they see how powerful the technology can be in their own businesses, they will want to capture a slice of the market for themselves."
ColourProcess
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Positive Camtec
www.positivecamtec.com.au
