X-Rite & Flint Group Announce Global Partnership

LUXEMBOURG & GRAND RAPIDS, MIFlint Group’s Paper & Board business has entered into a new partnership with X-Rite, a global leader in color science and technology, to deliver a color solution that leverages the X-Rite eXact and NetProfiler to reliably meet the color management needs of each stakeholder in the package print value and supply chain.

VIVO Color Solutions is a dynamic color communication and service platform supported by Flint Group’s centralized color service provider, the Global Colour Centre (GCC). VIVO ColorCloud utilizes the eXact device to provide a central web-based self-service digital color repository, containing thousands of approved and tested colors. Customers benefit from the ability to easily search and download CxF files, DigiSwatches and ink recipes.

Ray Cheydleur, printing and imaging product portfolio manager for X-Rite, comments, “This partnership will benefit Flint Group’s customer base of printers around the world. Utilizing X-Rite’s NetProfiler software for verifying device performance, along with the award-winning eXact handheld spectrophotometer, will provide ultimate agreement of measured colors amongst Flint Group and their printing and converter clientele. When paired with VIVO Color Solutions, this technology will provide the basis for converter confidence in their ink supply, and a competitive advantage to deliver consistent color packaging.”

Stuart Duffy, Flint Group director, professional services paper and board, says, “We are excited to have reached agreement on this unique partnership with X-Rite, the leader in color measurement equipment.”

Duffy goes on to say, “Following rigorous beta testing at a number of corrugated sites, our initial expectations have been surpassed. The sites conducted hundreds of searches from VIVO ColorCloud with every download achieving 100 percent ‘Right First Time.’ This level of performance can only be delivered through a consistent and managed digital workflow along with the support of X-Rite’s eXact spectrophotometer. This results in an effective end-to-end color management process that fits the needs of prepress, printing and packaging companies of all sizes while reducing variability and improving efficiencies. I have no doubt VIVO Color Solutions, in combination with X-Rite equipment, can become an industry benchmark.”