77 www.printmonthly.co.uk explains, adding: “The GMG Color tools we use give us the flexibility and precision to create tailored profiles that hold up under real production conditions. “Colour management is ultimately about control and confidence – the ability to consistently deliver accurate, repeatable colour across runs, substrates, and formats.” Never Stop Learning Rounding off the feature is PRINTING United Alliance, which has launched a number of schemes to help PSPs with issues related to colour management. Joe Marin, senior vice president of member services, says before investing in any colour management solution, it is essential printers first understand the fundamentals of colour management and why it plays such a critical role in print production. “This is where training becomes invaluable and it’s important for print businesses to ensure their print operators and pre-press departments are regularly trained in this area,” Marin says, continuing: “Ensuring that employees are up to date with best practices allows a business to get the most out of any colour management technology. Without this foundation, even the most state-of-the-art systems won’t reach their full potential. “When it does come to investing in a colour management solution, printers should look for tools that deliver reliable, repeatable results across devices and substrates, and that are up to date and ensure accurate and consistent colour reproduction. A good quality solution will include features such as device calibration, ICC profile creation and management, as well as the ability to monitor, evaluate, and adjust output regularly. Modern solutions should offer support for a range of print conditions and media types and be capable of handling complex requirements such as extended gamut printing.” Equally important, Marin adds, is seamless integration with an existing workflow. He explains colour management should support production, not slow it down, and recommends PSPs look for solutions that work well with your RIPs, design software, and production systems to eliminate bottlenecks, reduce manual intervention, and ultimately minimise costly errors and reprints. “Underestimating the importance of colour management, or underinvesting in it, can have serious consequences for a print business and the importance of high-quality colour management within a print business cannot be understated,” he says, adding: “Colour is the cornerstone of branding and inconsistent colour output can damage client trust and diminish brand value, particularly when it comes to brands that rely heavily on specific colours.” As to how the PRINTING United Alliance can support, he picks out the iLEARNING+ portal, which is available around the world. This allows industry members to access courses and certifications, reports on industry trends and best business practices, quality control devices, and other resources in a single place. ILEARNING+ offers certifications for specific print applications from cut sheet digital to direct-to-garment, wide-format, and flexo, and a range of colour management specific courses including an expanded colour gamut printing course aimed at designers, print staff, press operators, and production management which provides a deep dive into traditional and digital applications. ILEARNING+ also offers two, globally recognised, certification levels: Colour Management Professional: Creative Certification and Colour Management Professional: Fundamentals Certification. The former examines issues critical to ensuring content output meets the intended design and corporate brand objectives and the latter offers the latest in colour theory and applications in colour, providing a comprehensive educational foundation for colour managing a graphics workflow. Another option for colour management training is the G7+ Expert Certification program, exclusively led by PRINTING United Alliance. Available either live online, live in-person, or as on-demand training, this is an industry-recognised certification for all learners regardless of their schedule or availability “This G7+ Expert course and certification equips professionals with the skills to analyse colour and print-related challenges such as colour management, calibration, and press optimisation and covers theory, ICC profiling, linearisation, quality control, and compliance,” Marin says. The message appears pretty clear: neglect colour management at your own peril. There are plenty of options available to PSPs to improve their setup, while they can also make use of various training schemes to bolster their knowledge and improve output. Consider which might be the best route for you and your business. July / August 2025 - Issue 355 Scientists estimate that there are about ten million colours in the world 10 million Ensuring that employees are up to date with best practices allows a business to get the most out of any colour management technology ▼ Contact Originators works in partnership with GMG Color to support customers COLOUR MANAGEMENT
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjM0NDIxOA==