· AutomatePrint
10 details every prepress handoff should make clear
Give production the approved file, selected plan and instructions needed to run the job without guessing.
A prepress handoff succeeds when another person can run the next step without reconstructing the job's history. Keep the release record short enough to use and specific enough to resolve common questions.
- Job identity. Include the order reference and product or variant.
- Approved version. Identify the exact artwork released to production.
- Finished dimensions. State the units and relevant product boundary.
- Required quantity. Include the order quantity and any agreed overrun.
- Substrate. Specify the material, thickness and stock format.
- Print configuration. Identify the intended equipment or process and relevant ink requirements.
- Selected layout. Make the form or production plan unambiguous.
- Finishing route. Explain the cutting, folding or other operations that follow.
- Output files. Distinguish print, cut and supporting reports.
- Exceptions. Record any approved departure from the usual specification.
Keep instructions close to the work
Use shared job information and file properties for facts the team repeatedly needs. Keep artwork revisions and decisions in the approval record, where someone can inspect the original context.
AutomatePrint connects those records with estimating, imposition and production tools. The connection is useful only when the team selects and releases the intended version.
Test the handoff with another operator
Ask someone who did not prepare the job to find the production input, quantity and finishing route. Each question they must ask reveals information that could be clearer.
When a late correction arrives, update the handoff deliberately. Identify affected exports and make the replacement clear so an old file cannot remain the apparent production choice.