In this article, you will learn
- which default settings can be configured in advance for the Approval Project,
- which default settings can be configured for the Approval Portal, and
- how to store customer-specific information.
1. Introduction
Before creating an Approval Project, the required configurations must be completed and the relevant settings defined. These settings form the foundation of the approval process and ensure consistent and reliable operation.
Before an Approval Project is created, it is recommended to define the initial settings and configurations in advance. Regardless of how the print data is later sent to the customer for approval – either manually via e-mail or through the Online Approval Portal – the following preparatory steps must be completed:
- Configure the basic settings for the Approval Project
- Configure the basic settings for the Approval Report
- Configure the settings for the Online Portal – if it is used and licensed – and
- Create the customer to include customer-specific information in the approval process.
2. Configure Preliminary Settings
To configure the process for creating Approval Projects, system-wide default settings can be defined. For this purpose, open the menu item Administration > Settings > Reports > Approvals. The values defined there are applied as default settings for newly created Approval Projects and support a consistent and time-efficient creation process of Approval Projects.
Define Default Values
All values defined here are used as default values for creating Approval Projects and are automatically applied when a new project is created. Deviating values can be adjusted at any time during the creation of an Approval Project without changing the stored default values.
In the tab Approvals, various configuration sections are available. These are used to configure Approval Projects and Approval Reports, as well as to set up the Online Approval Portal. Each configuration section can be edited using the button Edit [1].
Figure 1: All configuration settings in the tab Approvals
2.1. Approval Project Settings
The section "Approval Portal Settings" is available for configuring the Approval Project itself. Here, basic information such as the Project Name, Approval Report Name, Expiration Date, and more can be defined. The use of placeholders, which dynamically insert information for each Approval Project, helps standardize the naming of Approval Reports and Approval Projects. The following options are available in this configuration section:
- Project Name [2] – define the desired name for the Approval Project here. Configure the Project Name by combining placeholders [3] with static text, and then insert the complete string here as the default value for the Project Name.
Example:${motif.name} ${approval_project.external_id} [${approval_project.project_item_count}] reports [${approval_project.expiration_utc}] - Approval Report Name [4] – define the desired name for the Approval Report here. Configure the file name by combining placeholders [5] with static text, and then insert the complete string here as the default value for the file name.
Example:${motif.name} ${motif.external_id} report-v${approval_project_item_report.version_nr} - Comment [6] – optionally enter a comment for the Approval Project here.
- Days until expiry [7] – define after how many days the Approval Project should expire.
- Expiration Time [8] – define the time at which the Approval Project should expire on the expiration date.
Figure 2: The settings section Approval Project Settings with all available options
2.2. Approval Report Settings
There are currently three settings sections related to the Approval Report. These sections are used to define, among other things, the information on Spot Colors to be included in the report, the report template, and the unit of measurement to be used. The following settings sections are available:
Approval Report Configuration Settings
In the settings section Approval Report Configuration, you can define, which Spot Colors, Technical Colors, and Colors Output as Separations – e.g., White, Varnish, and Primer – are displayed on the report overview page. Additionally, you can specify whether dedicated information pages should be added for certain Spot Colors. The following options are available in this section:
Print Item Preview
- Process Colors + Spot Colors [9] – enable this option if the Process Colors and Spot Colors used should be listed on the overview page. Up to 12 Spot Colors can be placed in the report.
- Technical Colors [10] – enable this option if the Technical Colors used should be listed on the report overview page.
- White, Varinsh and Primer [11] – enable this option if all used Spot Colors that are Output as Separations – e.g., White, Varnish, and Primer – should be listed on the overview page.
Please note that at least one of the above options must be selected.
Additional Pages
- for Technical Colors [12] – enable this option if a dedicated page for Technical Colors should be added to the report. This additional page lists all Technical Colors along with supplementary print file information.
- for White, Varnish and Primer [13] – enable this option if a dedicated page for White, Varnish, and Primer should be added to the report. This additional page lists these Spot Colors as well as additional print file information.
- Attach Print File [14] – enable this option if the print file should be attached at the end of the report.
Please note that attaching the print file may cause the Approval Report to exceed storage limits, which can prevent it from being sent.
Figure 3: The settings section Approval Report Settings with all available options
Approval Report Engine Settings
In the section Approval Report Engine Settings, you can define which application is used to generate the Approval Report and which Report Template is applied. The following configuration options are available:
- Application [15] – select from the dropdown menu which application should be used to generate the report. Currently, only InDesign is available.
- Language [16] – select the desired language for generating the report.
- Approval Report Template [17] – select the desired Report Template to be used for generating the report. Four standard Templates are included in the application by default. By clicking Add [18], a new Template can be added by selecting the corresponding file path where the created Template is stored.
Figure 4: The settings section Approval Report Engine Settings
Approval Report Settings
In the Approval Report Settings, you can define the unit of length and an optional comment for the Approval Report. These configurations will affect the report output. The following options are available:
- Length Unit [19] – select the unit of length to be used for the report from the dropdown menu. The following options are available:
Point (pt)Millimeter (mm)Centimeter (cm)Inch (in)
- Comment [20] – optionally enter a comment. In the standard Report Templates, this comment is displayed in the header section.
Figure 5: The settings section Approval Report Settings
2.3. Settings for the Online Approval Portal
If you use the Online Approval Portal, the corresponding default settings can be configured here. If you do not use the Approval Portal, you can simply ignore the settings below.
There are currently three settings sections available for the Approval Portal. These include general Approval Portal settings, e-mail creation settings, and the information to be transferred to the Approval Portal. The following configuration areas are available for the Approval Portal:
Approval Portal Settings
In the section Approval Portal Settings, you can define in advance whether each Approval Project should be published to the Approval Portal and which Approval Portal should be used for this purpose. The following settings are available: :
- Publish to Approval Portal [21] – enable this option if every created Approval Project should automatically be published to the Online Approval Portal.
- Approval Portal [22] – select from the dropdown menu which Approval Portal should be used to publish the Approval Projects.
Figure 6: The settings section Approval Portal Settings
No Approval Portal Available for Selection
Please note that, in this case, the interface to the Approval Portal must first be configured under Administration > Interfaces.
Approval Report E-Mail Settings
In the settings section Approval Report E-Mail-Settings, you can define whether customers should automatically be notified by e-mail when a new Approval Project becomes available in the Online Portal. The following options are available:
- Send E-Mail [23] – enable this option if an e-mail notification informing the customer that an Approval is available should automatically be sent after the Approval Project has been uploaded to the Online Portal.
- E-Mail Template [24] – select from the dropdown menu which Template should be used to generate the e-mail.
- E-Mail Account (Sender) [25] – select from the dropdown menu which e-mail account should be used to send the e-mail to the customer.
Please note that both the corresponding E-mail Account and a customized E-mail Template must first be created under Administration > Settings > E-mail.
Figure 7: The settings section Approval Report E-Mail Settings
Information to be transferred to the Approval Portal
In the settings section Information to be transferred to the Approval Portal, you can define which information is displayed to the customer in the Online Approval Portal. In addition to excluding Spot Colors, you can also define additional descriptive information for the Approval Project, which can be dynamically populated using placeholders. The following options are available:
- Allow to use Annotations [26] – enable this option if customers should be allowed to add annotations in the Online Approval Portal.
- Allow to Upload Files [27] – enable this option if customers should be allowed to upload new print files in the Online Approval Portal.
- Upload all separations of color type "Output as Separation" [28] – enable this option if all Spot Colors Output as Separations – such as White, Varnish, or Primer – should also be uploaded and displayed as information in the Online Approval Portal. If you want to exclude specific Spot Colors that are Output as Separations from being uploaded to the Approval Portal, select the respective Spot Color in the dropdown menu Exclude separations from upload [29]. The excluded Spot Colors will not be displayed in the Online Approval Portal.
- Upload all separations of color type "Hybrid Colors" [30] – enable this option if all Hybrid Spot Colors – e.g., gold foil – should also be uploaded and displayed as information in the Online Approval Portal. If you want to exclude Hybrid Spot Colors from being uploaded to the Online Approval Portal, select the respective Spot Color in the dropdown Exclude separations from upload [31]. The excluded Spot Colors will not be displayed in the Online Approval Portal.
- Upload all separations of color type "Technical Spot Color" [32] – enable this option if all Technical Spot Colors – e.g., Dieline, Crease, or Kiss Cut – should also be uploaded and displayed as information in the Online Approval Portal. If you want to exclude specific Technical Spot Colors from being uploaded to the Online Approval Portal, select the respective Spot Color in the dropdown Exclude separations from upload [33]. The excluded Spot Colors will not be displayed in the Online Approval Portal.
Figure 8: The settings section Information to be transferred to the Approval Portal
In the section Information to be displayed on the Approval Portal, you can additionally add as any number of entries or information related to the Approval Projects. To add additional information, proceed as follows:
- To add a new entry, click on Add Entry [37].
- You can add two types of labels and assign placeholders to the labels. The following label types are available:
- Subheading [34] – used to create a heading for a group of information. In the Approval Portal, this is displayed with a line beneath the subheading.
- Text line [36] – used to display specific information about the Print Item or Order.
- After selecting the desired label type, a Placeholder Label [35] must be selected. This label will also be displayed in the Approval Portal.
- Finally, define the Placeholder Content [38] either by selecting a placeholder or by entering static text. To assign placeholders to labels, click Insert Placeholder [39] to open the dialog Select Placeholder.
- In the dialog that opens, select one or more desired placeholders. Placeholders are available in the following categories – Order, Order Line, Print Configuration, Color Policy, Global, Customer, Substrate, Substrate Category, Print Item and PDF Information.
- Clicking a placeholder adds it to the input field.
- Click the list or text icon [40] to change the display mode of the placeholders or to display only a specific text area of the content. The desired text area can be selected by double-clicking the placeholder.
- Click Save to apply the settings.
Figure 9: The dialog Select Placeholder with the available placeholders
3. Create Customer
To store customer-specific information in both the Approval Report and the Approval Project, a customer must first be created and all available customer information must be entered. When creating an Approval Project, the previously created customer can then be selected so that all customer-specific information is processed accordingly.
3.1. Create Customer
To create a customer in the application, proceed as follows:
- Navigate to the menu item Administration > Customers. There you will find an overview of all customers that have already been created.
- Click Add [41] to create a new customer. This opens the dialog Add Customer.
Figure 10: The menu item Customer with an overview list of all customers
- The application distinguishes between companies and individuals (private customers). Therefore, first select whether the customer is a company or a individual [42]. In this example, a company is being created. Please note that the dialog changes slightly when creating an individual.
- Then complete the dialog by entering all required customer information. Finally, click Save [43] to save the customer.
Figure 11: The dialog Add Customer with all required customer information
3.2. Add Contact Person
After a customer has been created, it can be selected in all areas where customers are available for selection. For companies, it is additionally possible to add contact persons. Proceed as follows:
- Navigate to the menu item Administration > Customers. In the overview list, all created customers – both individuals and companies – are available.
- Select the desired company and open the detail view by clicking the Name [44] or by selecting Go to Detail View [45]. Alternatively, a contact person can also be added outside the detail view via Edit [46]. To do this, open the dialog Edit, switch to the tab Contact Persons, and fill in the corresponding fields.
Figure 12: The menu item Customer with an overview list of all customers
- In the detail view, switch to the tab Contact Persons [47].
- In this tab, click Add [48] to create a contact person for this company. This opens the dialog Add Contact.
Figure 13: The tab Contact Persons in the detail view of a customer
- Then complete the dialog by entering all required contact person information. Click Save [49] to save the new contact person.
Figure 14: The dialog Add Contact
Article Update: $PRODUCT_NAME_WORKFLOW 2.0.0 – 05/2026