There are so many elements involved in bringing an item of packaging to the supermarket shelves. For starters, a brand has to brief its roster of creative agencies to come up with a concept. And then the brand managers, designers and printers all need to have their say as to how realistic the project is. It's a complicated road, with several groups to keep updated and consulted throughout.

"You may end up with around 300 pieces of artwork," explains Julian Backhouse EAMER solution sales manager
at Kodak. "Then it needs to be finally approved before going to press."

That's where Kodak's Design2Launch software comes in. The product essentially pulls together the various parties involved, to the benefit of printers who are brought into the fold at an earlier stage than normal.

"The markets we play very well to are packaging, retail and life sciences," says Backhouse, "The product has the ability to manage the entire project from cradle to grave."

Development of the web-based Design2Launch began as far back as 2001. By 2003, it made its appearance onto the market as what was essentially an asset management tool. It's since been developed to incorporate workflow.

Kodak bought Design2Launch from its founders Roy and Alison Malloy in 2008, a move that's enabled the team to broaden the product's reach and services. "We are now on the cusp of version 7.0," explains Backhouse.

Core offering
The current 6.5 version has a set of core modules: digital workflow and project management; project tracking and reporting; visual asset management; online mark up and collaboration; routing and approval; and supplier submission. In addition, users have several other add-on modules to consider: file converter; advanced reporting; content certification; video management and web review and annotation.

"It's an all-in-one collaborative solution," explains Backhouse. "It allows you to reduce the time to market."

This is an important point as the pressure to roll-out promotional packs in a short time span has increased over the years. With Design2Launch, the theory is that the whole process is more transparent, as everyone involved can see exactly what stage a project is at, making it quicker to reject ideas, as well as enabling mock-ups to be given the green light.

According to Kodak, Design2Launch's visual asset manager supports every area, from artwork, promotional and advertising materials to packaging. It's a secure web-based system for indexing, storing and retrieval of the ‘in-process' and finalised files. The supplier submission element allows clients to review and catalogue all the digital assets that are submitted by outside agencies and suppliers.

Time reduction
"The number of status meetings can be reduced by 45%," adds Backhouse. "We've found that, on average, every marketer can spend around one and a half hours a day chasing files. Design2Launch can get this down by 65%."
According to Backhouse, Design2Launch is able to ensure that colours are accurate, that registration is correct and that logos are the right size. Consistency is crucial and the product's Smart Review addition is able to colour correct content - it effectively calibrates the file.

The soft proofing element is based on Kodak MPC, enabling users to view large images by compressing and transmitting only the data needed for on-screen viewing. The technology also provides instant colour separation, including views of spot colours, bleeds and traps.

Backhouse says that Design2Launch gives more visibility to projects "through all the output channels". "It's bringing in suppliers upstream - effectively six months earlier than usual," he says.

Design2Launch is a multiplatform product and is compatible with Mac or PC. Guy Wickenden, technical consultant for enterprise marketing and brand execution at Kodak, adds that users don't have to install any additional software to make it work. He and Backhouse are also keen to point out that this isn't an off-the-shelf product.

"Different users will have different levels of training," adds Backhouse. "Approval stakeholders can be trained in 20 minutes. But for system administrator level, you require a deeper level of understanding. Training for this usually takes a day and a half. We produce the interfaces for them to configure. They don't have to pay for expensive customer coding - we've tried to keep that down."

The price of Design2Launch varies and, as it's not an off-the-shelf product, Backhouse is reluctant to give a ballpark figure. It's a bespoke product, he says, and one that can be tailored to suit the individual customer's needs.

"For example, email notes can be themed up and styled quite dramatically. Customers can have access to some rich information. But the price depends on how many users there are. We work very closely to integrate our system into what the client already has."

The future of Design2Launch appears to be bright and not just steeped in print. Although there is no word on when version 7.0 will be launched, the chances are that it will have even more multichannel functions.

 "It is coming on leaps and bounds and anyone can make use of the software," says Backhouse. "It includes video campaigns and audio."

"There are so many different channels emerging. We can realistically push into new areas," adds Wickenden.

New sectors
In fact, the software has already pushed into some very unusual sectors; it's been used in developing anti-counterfeiting technology, as well as the cement and paint markets. "The technology can go off into crazy tangents," says Backhouse.
Perhaps more conventionally, precision marketing and one-to-one campaigns are other tangents Design2Launch can veer into. These particular segments are logical; Kodak's expertise in these areas means that Design2Launch can take advantage of its wide-ranging portfolio of products.

The core packaging market has benefited most from Design2Launch and Kodak hopes that will continue to be the case. The product has a strong following and an online community bears testament to that - the product even has its own Facebook and Linkedin page.

Thanks to the web, keeping track of complex packaging projects is no longer the logistical nightmare it used to be. Those involved can have their say at any stage of the project and the ability to view the job online reduces the need for hard proofs to go back and forth. Hopes are high that the next level of development for Design2Launch will take it into a wider assortment of markets and customers.

SPECIFICATIONS

Platforms Mac and PC

Core modules digital workflow and project management;project tracking and reporting; visual asset management; online mark up and collaboration;routing and approval; and supplier submission

Additional modules file converter; advanced reporting; content certification; video management and web review and annotation

Price on application

Contact Kodak 0845 602 5991  www.graphics.kodak.com

THE ALTERNATIVE

Esko Webcenter

If anything, Design2Launch competes with in-house software, but there is another product on the market that can effectively project manage packaging or print pages: Esko Artwork's Webcenter incorporates an online approval system and allows various parties to collaborate. The JDF- compatible product is, unlike Design2Launch, an off-the-shelf system. According to Paul Bates, regional business manger at Esko, some customers even run Design2Launch alongside Webcenter. Version 10 is set to be unveiled at Ipex and its latest incarnation incorporates 3D visualisation and approval. Webcenter supports Explorer, Safari and Firefox.

Platforms Mac and PC

Price circa £20,000 depending on log ons and user licences

Contact Esko Artwork 01527 585 805 www.esko.com