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Axpa PX System Integrates Web4Print Technology

15 November 2004

Axpa Elektronik AB, based in Sweden, has been supplying software solutions for the printing and publishing industries since 1992, including such products as Xcluder, the PostScript optimizer that reduces OPI processing time, and the Traxtion software package, a workflow solution adapted to high volume catalogue production.

Recently Axpa has been working on customized workflow and image database systems, primarily for in-house prepress clients. One of the installations is at Oriflame in Malmoe. The AXPA system is key to their catalogue production ranging over 50 languages and 50,000 pages per year.

Last year, Axpa's Mikael Nordanaker was introduced to Web4Print. "I was very impressed with Web4Print's capabilities," he recalls. "I hadn't seen anything before that could automate layout this well, especially with the ability to handle typography at an expert level -- I immediately saw the possibilities for integration with the work we had been doing."

The addition of Web4Print has allowed Axpa to bring their existing image database system to the next level, culminating in a new product called Axpa PX - Originals on Demand. Three systems have now been implemented in Norway. With Axpa PX, databases can be created and associated, so that, for instance, product images can be linked automatically to prices and descriptive copy. Then the text and images are automatically processed by Web4Print to instantly produce print-ready documents. The system also produces PDFs for print production.

Web4Print uses XML to define the variable components of a document for user customization. Axpa PX then uses the XML data to create a relationship between user input, image libraries and product or article data, such as prices. The user-selected components are then fed back into the relevant Web4Print template in the form of an XML file. Next, the Web4Print engine processes the text and images to produce output.

Bill McConnell, Web4Print: "We have two great unique products. Axpa's existing image file management system offers great flexibility in organizing large numbers of images and associating them with pricing spreadsheets and so forth. Web4Print puts together custom documents based on user input. Together, these features make a very versatile, powerful product in Axpa PX. Once again we see Web4Print's power both as a standalone system and as an integral part of other solutions."

For more information about Axpa PX see www.axpa.se or contact info@axpa.se.

For more information about integrating Web4Print with existing technologies, contact info@web4print.com.