Magazines, digitally-printed and other new print products will be in contention when judging for the next International Color Quality Club starts in January.
Entry is open until the end of the year, and will require submission of monthly test print copies up to and including March 2018, with evaluation to be completed in June 2018.
WAN-Ifra deputy chief executive Manfred Werfel says more newspaper publishers are investing in new print products, some of them magazines which are printed under contract.
"The trend towards magazines as products of newspaper publishers can be seen globally," he says. "In addition to Europe, the Indian market also plays a leading role, as is so often the case. From Canada to Australia, printers produce high-quality products in addition to the daily newspaper. Heatset units, UV systems, waterless offset and varnishing units are used in combination with newspaper printing presses to offer a wider range of products, including magazines."
While both publishers and printers can register titles, organisers expect entries will come from newspaper publishers registering some of their magazine titles, pure magazine publishers will probably participate and all interested parties are welcome.
Print quality is judged in two respects. Firstly, a print control element - the WAN-Ifra cuboid - is measured colorimetrically over three months, with at least two samples for each month. Secondly, a review of the overall print quality is made by a jury of international experts. Publications which secure a minimum score across all the criteria will be eligible for ICQC membership.
Newspapers that print according to standard conditions of ISO 12647-3 are measured at the target values of this international newspaper printing standard. For magazines, consistency of print quality of a total of six print samples is checked, because of the large number of printing processes and substrates used.
Prabhu Natrajan says the competition is a good opportunity to remotivate employees and increase quality awareness. Monthly interim reports during the competition help optimise production processes. The competition makes it possible to benchmark production quality at worldwide standards, but only the names of successful participants are announced.
Companies also win 'stars' for each successful participation, with the Star Club (for those with five) "a kind of 'Hall of Fame' of the best printers in the world," says Werfel. Stars can also be obtained for certificates of standardised printing issued by WAN-Ifra, and Werfel says a competition for the leading position has developed. Of the 36 printing companies represented, the first place is currently marked with 13 stars.
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