esko automation engine connect receives esteemed printing industries of america 2015 intertech&trade technology awardconnectivity to powerful esko workflow reaps rewards for esko automation engine usersgent belgium, july 2015 &ndash esko www.esko.com proudly announces that automation engine connect, a toolkit allowing integration from third party products to an esko workflow, is a recipient of a 2015 printing industries of america intertech&trade technology award. since 1978 the intertech&trade technology awards have honored the development of technologies predicted to have a major impact on the graphic arts and related industries. more than 80 of technologies that receive an award experience continued commercial success in the marketplace.this is the eighth intertech award an esko solution has received over the past ten years. other recipients include a wide variety of technologies esko webcenter 2006, esko deskpack 3dx 2007, esko neo 2008, esko studio toolkit for shrink sleeves 2011, icut suite 2012, full hd flexo 2014 and equinox 2014.&ldquowe are thrilled to receive an intertech award from printing industries of america this year. esko has a legacy of investing a much higher portion of our budget into r&d than the industry average. we believe in innovation as a means to help our customers conduct their jobs more easily, productively and profitably. automation engine connect is certainly an example of creating software technology to help our customers design complete, more efficient workflows," remarks udo panenka, esko president. "we understand that it is important for our workflow systems to communicate with third party systems. similarly, we listen to our customers&39 challenges, and strive to build more effective solutions for them. that is the ultimate reward for us."esko automation engine connect an easy way to integrate third party systemseven though many in the printing industry have pushed connectivity, not all systems are jdf, or even xml, compliant. and, even if they are, it does not mean that data from one system maps out correctly to another system. this means that when a print provider wishes to tie in the production workflow to outside systems &ndash erp, mis, webtoprint, shipping systems, etc. &ndash there will often be a challenge. this usually requires, for just about any other workflow, customized programming to create a way to connect systems together.esko has significantly reduced the cost of integration for its customer base with automation engine connect, the only toolkit offered specifically by a workflow vendor expressly developed to integrate other, disparate business systems. there is no other application on the market that is deeply rooted into the workflow server itself. automation engine connect provides a toolkit that allows integration from a third party product with an esko component, such as webcenter, automation engine or artioscad. this means that mis, web stores, finance and shipping systems, and more, can all be integrated into the workflow. automation engine connect is easy to install. while esko provides the service to map and connect data, those who are knowledgeable in it can do it themselves. with automation engine connect there is no reliance on anyone who creates a customized system to continue maintaining the system. automation engine connect is also scalable. if the business invests in more, or new, systems, connect can easily make sure that these systems are integrated into automation engine. among the numerous applications that have been connected to automation engine are packaged mis systems such as efi radius, labeltraxx, cerm and theurer custom systems based on microsoft excel and filemakerpro and even one user who connects to world weather online to understand wind conditions when planning outdoor mounting activities for billboards."when we purchased our mis system, it was taking too much time for prepress to duplicate csr efforts, entering similar job information into the production system. we invested in automation engine connect," comments rebekah harmon, art director, best label company." after the system was set up, it was easy to use. now, our artists probably can process 50 jobs per day. before connect, we only could produce 30 per day."flexokliche provides design, prepress services and plates for packaging applications. "we had purchased our mis system purely on how it handled and worked. but, we had not thought much about future integration. we started a simple xml transfer, but it never worked," remembers linda ekehage, owner, flexokliché. "i do not know how esko does it, but esko automation engine connect works. once we got in touch with the right people from our mis developer to understand the data files, it was really easy. it took esko only about eight hours. we can now look up jobs easily in automation engine and keep track. now that order information is sent directly to automation engine my bookkeeping time is 50 faster. and that is just a small part of the workflow chain. all of the designers and account managers save time as well."&ldquothe judges commented that automation engine connect is the start of a new and simplified approach to connecting disparate systems. the user interface makes it very user friendly to connect systems. it&39s simple and effective, and takes lots of extra work away from the user," notes dr. mark bohan, vice president, technology and research, printing industries of america. &ldquothe judges were also very impressed with the wide array of systems that have been connected with esko automation engine connect in real installations."about printing industries of americawww.printing.orgprinting industries of america, with local affiliated associations, delivers services and products that enhance the knowledge, growth, and profitability of members through advocacy, research, education, and networking.for more information about the intertech technology awards, contact jim workman, assistant vice president, center for technology and research, printing industries of america, at 4122591710, intertech@printing.org or visit www.printing.orgintertech.about esko www.esko.comesko is a global supplier of integrated solutions for the packaging and labels, sign and display, commercial printing and publishing industries. esko products and services drive profitability in the packaging and printing supply chain by reducing timetomarket and raising productivity.portfoliothe esko product portfolio supports and manages the packaging and print processes at brand owners, retailers, designers, packaging manufacturers and print service providers. for 9 out of 10 retail packages, esko solutions are used in packaging management, asset management, artwork creation, structural design, prepress, 3d visualization, plate making, workflow automation, quality assurance, samplemaking, palletization, supply chain collaboration and the production of signage and displays.the esko solutions consist of an extensive suite of software and two hardware product lines cdi flexo computertoplate imagers and kongsberg digital cutting systems, complemented with professional services, training and consultancy.enfocus, with its suite of automation solutions and pdf quality control tools for printers, publishers, and graphic designers, is part of esko. mediabeacon, with its digital asset management dam solutions servicing the brand owner and media market, is also part of esko.facts & numbersesko employs around 1500 people worldwide. its direct sales and service organization covers europe, middle east and africa, the americas and the asia pacific, japan and china regions and is complemented by a network of distribution partners in more than 50 countries.esko is headquartered in gent, belgium, and has r&d and manufacturing facilities in five european countries, the united states, china and india. esko is a danaher company www.danaher.com.
