When it comes to prepress software in 2026, it is fair to say that it is a tool that is more necessary than ever in order to stay productive, competitive, and efficient. With customers wanting jobs faster and faster, and other constraints like costs and staff putting internal pressures on businesses, having dependable software systems can save hours of work. In the last few years many different programmes have emerged and changed the ways people and businesses create artwork, designs, and files. Artificial intelligence (AI) has unsurprisingly had a massive effect on the way that designs and files are generated, also impacting the challenges printers might face. Due to all this, print service providers (PSPs) need to be best utilised to deal with the pros and cons that software such as Adobe, Canva, Figma, DesignLab, and Infinite Design, to name a few, can raise, as well as deal with the typical preflight, colour management, and RIP processes that digital printing typical requires. With a lot of prepress software now combining several processes and more and more automation being required to help with auto file correction, job ticketing, and batch processing, we speak to several professionals within the prepress space to understand what has changed in this sector of software development and what to consider when investing in prepress technology. Getting the Right Artwork A company that has looked to solve inconsistent and poor-quality artwork often being received by printers is Artworker, a company founded by Nate Duckworth after experiencing the issues first-hand as a printer. “We’re automating the journey from file collection and preflight checks through to PREPRESS SOFTWARE | DAVID OSGAR As the industry continues to rapidly change, prepress software becomes more and more relevant to help printers process complex and fast turnaround products. With this in mind, David Osgar speaks to a range of software professionals to find out why prepress investment is more vital than ever THE STRATEGIC COMMODITY DRIVING AUTOMATION AND EFFICIENCY 51 www.printmonthly.co.uk Issue 360 - May | June 2026
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