In this article, you will learn
- which options are available in the Operation,
- for which process steps you can use this Operation, and
- how to efficiently use the Operation based on a use case.
1. Introduction
As described in the article Create a Production Configuration, you can add various Operations to a Production Configuration. This article provides a detailed explanation of the requirements and options for the Operation Split Print Item.
The Operation Split Print Item can be used within Production Configurations that cover the entire Workflow – from uploading print data to the output. The following use cases are possible:
- The Operation can be used independently within a Production Configuration to split multipage Print Items into individual pages based on a defined grid.
- The Operation can be used multiple times within a single Production Configuration.
- In principle, the Operation can be placed after any other Operation in a Production Configuration, except for the following Operations:
- Create Impose
- Create Impose with Auto Nesting
- Create Production Job
- Create Production Job from Imposition
- Send to Printer
Reasons for using the Operation Split Print Item include:
- Splitting of all pages of a multipage Print Item into separate Print Items to place them together into one or more Impositions.
- Separately processing odd and even pages of a multipage Print Item as individual Print Items.
- Extracting a defined page range from a multipage Print Item and removing all other pages.
- Splitting a multipage Print Item into several smaller Print Items with a specified number of pages, e.g., splitting a 100-page Print Item into 50 Print Items with two pages each.
- Extracting the first and last two pages of a multipage Print Item.
- Extracting specific individual pages, such as only the 5th page of a multipage Print Item.
What happens to the split Print Items?
All Print Items resulting from the split of the multipage Print Item subsequently pass through the same production process, based on the defined Operations of the Production Configuration.
2. Functionality
The purpose of the Operation Split Print Item is to divide multipage Print Items. Single-page Print Items are automatically detected and skipped during this Operation.
2.1. Add Operation
To add the Operation Split Print Item, proceed as follows:
- Open the relevant Production Configuration under Automation > Production Configurations and switch to the tab Operations.
- Add the Operation Split Print Item. By default, the Operation is added at the end of the existing Operation list.
- Move the Operation to the desired position within the sequence. Please observe the placement restrictions described earlier regarding valid positions within the Production Configuration.
2.2. Configure Operation
After adding the Operation Split Print Item, you must define the desired parameters within the Production Configuration.
There are four configuration options available, each supporting a different type of split options.
2.2.1. Split Print Item – Single Pages
This method converts each page of a multipage Print Item into a separate Print Item. This option is selected by default when adding the Operation Split Print Item to the Production Configuration. In this mode, the option Distribute/Use Number of Copies [1] is available. Here, you can define how the number of copies from the original Print Item should be handled. The following settings are available:
- Use the defined Number of Copies for all Pages – The quantity defined under Number of Copies [2] is applied to all split Print Items. If no value is entered, the system automatically applies the original Print Item's number of copies to each of the newly created Print Items.
- Distribute Number of Copies for all Pages – The total number of copies of the original Print Item is divided by the number of pages in the multipage file. The result is applied as the number of copies to each of the Split Print Items.
Figure 1: The dialog Add Production Configuration with the selected Operation Split Print Item and the selected option Single Pages
Note on Non-Integer Division
If the option "Distribute Number of Copies for all Pages" is used, it may occur that dividing the total number of copies by the number of pages does not result in an integer. In this case, the original number of copies is retained and applied unchanged to all Split Print Items.
2.2.2. Split Print Item – Page Range
This method creates a new Print Item that contains only the pages specified in the defined page range. Depending on the input, the result may be a single-page or multipage Print Item. All pages not included in the specified range are removed from the original Print Item.
In this mode, only the Pages [3] input field is available. The valid input formats are explained in Note [4] below the field. The result of this Operation [5] is a single Print Item that matches the selected page range exactly.
Figure 2: The dialog Add Production Configuration with the selected Operation Split Print Item and the selected option Page Range
2.2.3. Split Print Item – Page Chunks
This method creates one or more Print Items, depending on the selected splitting approach. The Result [8], i.e., the number of generated Print Items, is displayed based on the chosen configuration. In this mode, the option Chunk Size [6] is available, offering four methods [7] for dividing the Print Item:
- Even Pages – Extracts all even pages from the multipage file – odd pages are deleted removed. A new Print Item is created.
- Odd Pages – Extracts all odd pages from the multipage file – even pages are deleted. A new Print Item is created.
- Even/Odd Pages – Creates two files: one file includes the even pages and the other file includes the odd pages.
- Number of Pages – Splits the multipage file into many pages including the defined number of pages specified in the input field Pages.
Figure 3: The dialog Add Production Configuration with the selected Operation Split Print Item and the selected option Page Chunks
2.2.4. Split Print Item – Expert Mode
In Expert Mode, all split schemes available in pdfToolbox can be accessed. Regardless of the chosen scheme, only a single file is generated. In this mode, only the option Expression [9] is available. Enter the desired expression here. Information about available expressions and their printouts can be found via the callas documentation link [10].
Figure 4: The dialog Add Production Configuration with the selected Operation Split Print Item and the Expert Mode settings area including a callas-specific expression
3. Split Print Item – Use Case
This section provides a practical example for experimenting with the Operation Split Print Item.
In the following scenario, single-page or multipage Print Items that have already been uploaded as Articles are to be converted into a Production Job and subsequently imposed. To achieve this, a Production Configuration with two consecutive Operations – Split Print Item and Create Production Job – is created in the defined order. Proceed as follows:
Use the source file "Split_Input.pdf" and proceed as follows:
- Navigate to Automation > Production Configurations.
- Create a new Production Configuration. For detailed instructions, refer to the article Create a Production Configuration.
- In the tab General, assign a name to the Production Configuration, then switch to the tab Operations.
- Add the Operation Split Print Item as the first Operation to the Production Configuration.
- The option Single Pages is selected by default. Under Distribute/Use Number of Copies, select the method Use the defined Number of Copies for all Pages [12].
- Leave the input field Copy [13] empty so that the number of copies defined in the Article is automatically applied to all Split Print Items or Articles.
- Then add the Operation Create Production Job from Imposition [11]. Select the desired output template, define the parameters for the imposition, and assign a name to the Production Job that should be created.
- Save [14] the Production Configuration.
Figure 5: The dialog Add Production Configuration with the selected Operations Split Print Item and Create Production Job
- Navigate to Articles > Articles.
- Upload the source file "Split_Input.pdf".
- Select the uploaded Article from the article list.
- Click on the menu Additional Functions [15].
Figure 6: The list of Articles with the selected Article
- Select the command Create Automation Job [16] .
Figure 7: The dropdown menu of Additional Functions with the option Create Automation Job
- In the dialog that opens, select the previously created configuration from the dropdown menu Production Configuration [17] – in this example, the configuration named "Production Job with Nesting".
- Click Execute [18] to apply the configuration.
Figure 8: The dialog Create Automation Job with the selected Production Configuration
- The processing starts by creating an Automation Job that automatically executes both configured steps.
- You can monitor the progress of the processing under Automation > Automation Jobs.
- Click on the first entry Split Print Item [19] in the process bar to open the dialog Process Overview.
Figure 9: The list of Automation Jobs in Automation > Automation Jobs
- By selecting the respective step [20], you can see which actions were performed during that processing step.
Figure 10: The dialog Process Overview for both Operations in the Production Configuration
Name of the Split Pages
The name of the split pages consists of the name of the original Print Item [21] combined with the designation Page_#### [22], where #### represents the respective page number.
- After processing is complete, the Production Job and Imposition are finished.
- By clicking on the name of the Production Job [23] (Figure 10), you open the generated Production Job.
- All Print Items are included in the predefined quantity in the Production Job and are already imposed. This is indicated by the corresponding Status [24].
Figure 11: The list of Production Jobs with the Split Print Items and Copies
Article update: Workflow Version 1.20.1 – 07/2025