As described in the Article Creating a Production Configuration, you can add various Operations to a Production Configuration. This article describes in detail the prerequisites and the available options provided by the Operation Export Spot Color Report.  

When processing Print Items, it may be necessary to adjust the Spot Colors in the print data to match the color appearance of an existing print result. Various options are available in the Workflow for performing the color adjustment. Once the appropriate color values have been determined, they must be assigned to the Print Item so that they are taken into account when rendering the print data. The Operation Export Spot Color Report is used in automated Workflows to generate and store a report of the color values used for Spot Color production, allowing these values to be reused for future reproductions.

The Operation Export Spot Color Report is used in Production Configurations that represent a complete Workflow –from uploading the print data into the Workflow through to output – as well as when applying Production Configurations to selected Articles or Print Items.

With the exceptions listed below, the Operation Export Spot Color Report can be inserted flexibly and multiple times within a Production Configuration. The following Operations cannot be used before the Operation Export Spot Color Report:

• Create Impose – as this Operation can only be used to generate a Production Job from an Imposition.
• Create Impose with Auto Nesting – as this Operation can only be used to generate a Production Job from an Imposition.
• Create Production Job – as this Operation is used solely for transferring data to the printer.
• Create Production Job for Tracks – as this Operation is used solely for transferring data to the printer.
• Create Production Job from Imposition – as this Operation is used solely for transferring data to the printer.
• Send to Printer – as no further Operation can be applied to rendered data.
• Export Imposition Report – as this Operation is used only to create and export an Imposition Report after a Production Job has been created.
• Check Print Items and forward to – as this Operation can only be used as the final Operation within a Production Configuration.

The primary function of the Operation Export Spot Color Report is to generate a summary of the Spot Colors used and stored in a file for documentation purposes.

The objective of this step is to automatically create Spot Color Reports for individual Print Items and export them to a local directory, from where they can be accessed or automatically printed on photocopiers.

Before a Spot Color Report can be exported automatically, a share of the type Other Server must be created under Administration > File Management. Further information can be found in the section Setting up the File Management in the article Setting up External Systems.

In the following example, print data will be transferred into a Production Job via Automation > Batch Processing in the Workflow, and a Spot Color Report will be generated and saved for each page of a Multipage Print Item.

To implement this process, a Production Configuration with four Operations must to be created in the following sequence: Check-in Artwork and Normalize, Split Print Item, followed by Export Spot Color Report, and  Create Production Job.

To achieve this, proceed as follows:

1. Select the menu item Automation > Batch Processing.
2. Create a new Production Configuration by clicking the icon Add [16].

Figure 3: The Batch Processing area at the start

3. The Operations Check-in Artwork and Normalize, followed by Create Production Job, are already selected. Assign a descriptive Name [17] to the Production Configuration and optionally enter a Comment [18].
4. Select the Operation Check-in Artwork and Normalize and choose at least one Check-in Preflight and Fixup Template [19]. If additional settings are required, configure this Operation according to your specific requirements.

Figure 4: The dialog Production Configuration for Batch Processing with two Operations that are inserted by default

5. Select the Operation Create Production Job and then configure the following parameters:
   • Job Name [20] – insert the desired placeholder(s) to uniquely identify the Production Job within the Automation process.
   • Ext. ID [21] – insert the desired placeholder(s) to include, for example, a reference to the Order number  in the Production Job.
   • Comment [22] – insert the desired placeholder(s) to include any additional relevant information in the Production Job.
   • Production Date [24] – if you want to set a production date, insert the appropriate placeholder.
   • Shipping Date [23] – if you want to set a shipping date, insert the appropriate placeholder and specify the offset relative to the production date.
   • Output Template [25] – by selecting the output template, you define the Printer, Substrate, and Color Separation for the Production Job.
6. If the parameters of the Output Template do not match with your requirements, you can adjust them by clicking Edit [26]. All other options within this Operation can then be customized and saved.

Figure 5: The dialog Production Configuration for Batch Processing with the Operation Create Production Job selected

7. Use the icon Add [27], add the Operation Split Print Item at the position shown and configure the desired settings. For this example, select the option Single Pages.
8. If the option Use the defined Number of Copies for all Pages [28] is selected and no value is entered in the field Copy [29], the number of copies specified in the Print Item will be retained by default.

Figure 6: The dialog Production Configuration for Batch Processing with the Operation Split Print Item which is required for this example

9. Using the icon Add [30], add the Operation Export Spot Color Report at the position shown.
10. Select at least the Destination [31] where the Spot Color Report should be saved.
11. If you want to store the Spot Color Reports in subfolders within the chosen destination, define the folder structure in Hierarchical Archiving [32]. Use static texts and placeholders, and insert a "/" to create a subfolder for the subsequent placeholdeer.
12. Next, define the Report filename by adding placeholders in Filename after Export [33].
13. Once the final step is configured, save the Production Configuration by clicking Save.

Figure 7: The dialog Production Configuration for Batch Processing with the four Operations required for this example

14. In the tab Execute Batch Processing [34], add the desired files from your local computer using Choose Files [35]. Enter the required number of copies for each Print Item in the field Quantity [37].
15. Ensure that the previously created Production Configuration is selected in the dropdown of the Production Configuration [36].
16. Click Start [38] to begin the Operation Batch Processing.

Figure 8: The settings area of the menu item Batch Processing

17. In the now opened dialog Batch Processing, review the settings once more.
18. Click Start Batch Processing [39] to initiate the Operation.

Figure 9: The dialog Batch Processing for confirming the execution

19. You can track the progress of each Automation Job either in the tab Batch Processing History of the menu item Automation > Batch Processing or via Automation > Automation Jobs.
20. After the job has completed, navigate on your local computer to the designated destination.
21. There, you will find the saved Spot Color Reports [40] – in this example, three files, corresponding to one Report for each split page with Spot Colors.

Figure 10: The destination directory containing the Spot Color Reports for three split pages.