Canon has received Fogra 59 colour accuracy and consistency certification for its ProStream 1800 web-fed inkjet press, the first to do so.
The certification process means that – with the right media – the ProStream 1800, which was launched almost a year ago, can reliably print 93% of Pantone solid colours with a delta-E 2000 accuracy value of ≤2, without requiring additional inks beyond its standard CMYK set, as well as providing accurate and consistent rendering of all other colour content. A delta-E value of 1 is the smallest increment of colour variation that most people can detect under optimum conditions, and most colour tolerances are set to around 5, with 3 generally being considered a very good result.
The Fogra 59 standard is also known as ECI CMYKv2 and is the successor to ECI CMYK / Fogra 53. These are CMYK colour space profiles designed specifically for commercial print production. The large gamut size covers all relevant ‘classic’ (i.e. offset, principally) output standards and complies with the typical CMYK colour spaces of ‘classic’ printing, allowing consistent colour appearance between digital and analogue print.
Other Canon inkjet presses have also recently achieved Fogra certifications: the VarioPrint iX series has achieved Fogra 51 certification for Fogra’s ProcessStandard Digital (PSD) Print Check, and the ProStream 1000 has been similarly certified by implication as a result of specialist book and journal printer Henry Ling, the first UK site to install that model, receiving the certification for its production workflow, which includes the ProStream 1000.
Helen Kennett, managing director at Henry Ling, commented on the benefits of the certification: ‘Having the Fogra certification gives us confidence in the predictability of the print quality produced on the ProStream. This allows us to move jobs between offset and digital using the same stock and achieving the same print quality. As a result, we have broadened our business into areas which were previously not possible.’
