Powerful new suite designed to help creative,=20
publishing and prepress workgroups achieve better=20
results, faster, and with less effort.
IOWA CITY, Iowa - September 12, 2006 - Today=20
MetaCommunications, a leading developer of=20
software management solutions for the graphic=20
arts industry, announced the immediate=20
availability of Workgroups 2006, a powerful new=20
cross platform process and productivity=20
management suite for creative, publishing and=20
prepress.
The Workgroups 2006 suite provides today's=20
creative and production workgroups with process=20
automation and management tools to help them=20
achieve better results, faster, and with less=20
effort. As creative and prepress environments=20
seek greater efficiencies and diversify their=20
product and service offerings, their workflows=20
become more numerous and complex. Workgroups 2006=20
provides the unique tools necessary to=20
streamline, automate, and manage the diverse=20
workflows employed in these environments. The=20
result is increased productivity, creativity, and=20
efficiency.
Workgroups 2006 includes new versions of its=20
tightly integrated flagship products: the award=20
winning Job Manager 4.0, Virtual Ticket 7.0,=20
Digital Storage Manager 2.0, and brand new=20
Approval Manager 1.0 (see press release at=20
http://www.meta-comm.com/news/releases/060912/approval_manager.htm=20
) solution. Key capabilities include:
- Financial productivity management
- Project & workflow management
- Collaborative approval management
- Document storage management
"Process automation and management are sorely=20
missing in creative and production environments.=20
While production tools have gone from the camera=20
room to the digital desktop, the tools to=20
automate and manage the process are still missing=20
in most environments. Workgroups 2006 is the=20
first solution engineered from the ground up to=20
not only manage the process, but help the users=20
excel individually and as part of a team." says=20
Robert Long, Executive Vice President of=20
MetaCommunications.
With Workgroups 2006, creative and production environments will:
- Improve efficiency, capture revenue, and put more on the bottom line
- Connect projects, people, and workflow
- Speed, organize, and automate proof approvals
- Find, share, and store files, anywhere
Workgroups 2006 is scalable from a few users to=20
thousands of users over multiple locations.
Workgroups 2006 components can be purchased=20
individually or as an integrated suite. A JDF=20
Solutions Framework is available for Virtual=20
Ticket, allowing it to be used as the front-end=20
graphical user interface to JDF enabled=20
production workflows. Additional optional=20
integrations are available for Kodak Prinergy and=20
Artwork Systems Nexus CTP systems.
Solution Libraries
Workgroups 2006 is the only solution that offers=20
powerful built-in graphic arts functionality=20
combined with the ability to fully customize and=20
extend the product capabilities. Since one size=20
never fits all, we made Workgroups extensible=20
using Solutions Libraries. Solutions Libraries=20
add customizable pre-built functionality and are=20
available from MetaCommunications or third party=20
developers. Solutions Libraries can easily be=20
imported and include pre-built forms, finds, and=20
reports. Solutions Libraries are currently=20
available for:
- Brand Management
- Creative Workflow Forms
- Digital Asset Management Libraries
- Trafficking and Scheduling
- Prepress Job Tickets (Commercial, Gravure, Flexo)
- Preflight Integration
- Catalog Page Production
- Commercial Print
- Media Buying
- Sales Management
- Customer Relationship Management
- Video Production
- Print Procurement
New Products & Upgrades
Workgroups 2006 consists of new fully integrated=20
versions of its Job Manager, Virtual Ticket,=20
Digital Storage product lines and a new product=20
called Approval Manager.
- Job Manager 4.0 - New Version Job Manager's=20
powerful financial management tools enable=20
creative and production workgroups to accurately=20
create estimates and quotes, monitor job costs,=20
quickly generate on-demand reporting and=20
invoices, and share information with industry=20
leading accounting systems. Version 4.0 includes=20
a new cross platform browser based client,=20
usability enhancements, and full integration with=20
the Workgroups suite. Complete details can be=20
found at:=20
http://www.meta-comm.com/products/job_manager/feature-new.htm.=20
- Virtual Ticket 7.0 - New Version
Virtual Ticket is the only solution available=20
today that combines powerful project and workflow=20
tools into one simple to use solution for=20
creative, publishing, and prepress workgroups.=20
With Virtual Ticket workgroups bring together all=20
the components of work in a centralized location,=20
including project briefs, job tickets, customer=20
info, all the associated document files, and=20
more. From this one location Virtual Ticket=20
provides advanced workflow tools to help manage=20
and automate processes. Version 7.0 includes=20
interface enhancements, an integrated and=20
improved form editing tool, Find categories,=20
Adobe Creative Suite 2 and Mac OS X Finder=20
plug-ins, simplified deployment tools, support=20
for Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services,=20
enhanced JDF support, and full integration with=20
the Workgroups suite. Complete details can be=20
found at:=20
http://www.meta-comm.com/products/virtual_ticket/feature-new.htm.=20
- Approval Manager 1.0 - New Product (See press=20
release at=20
http://www.meta-comm.com/news/releases/060912/approval_manager.htm=20
)
Inspired by customer demand and designed with the=20
recommendations of an advisory panel comprised of=20
recognized leaders in the graphic arts industry,=20
Approval Manager masters the inherent difficulty=20
of managing, tracking, and scheduling any=20
approval process within and across creative and=20
production environments. Approval Manager's=20
innovative design and features put you back in=20
control of any approval process, from the=20
simplest to the most complex. With Approval=20
Manager, traditional difficulties involved with=20
keeping an approval process consisting of=20
multiple rounds, multiple reviewers, and tight=20
deadlines on track are simplified and automated.
- Digital Storage Manager 2.0 - New Version
Digital Storage Manager is a powerful storage=20
management solution specially designed for=20
creative, publishing and prepress workgroups.=20
These workgroups generate thousands of digital=20
document files during the creative and production=20
process. As the number of files grow, so do the=20
challenges faced by the professionals who need=20
them. Digital Storage Manager helps users and=20
system administrators to find files anywhere,=20
regardless of location, assign useful metadata=20
automatically, automate workflow, and store &=20
retrieve files from online and offline media.=20
Version 2.0 includes interface enhancements, an=20
improved forms editing tool, find categories,=20
simplified deployment tools, support for=20
Microsoft Report Services, and full integration=20
with the Workgroups suite. Complete details can=20
be found at:=20
http://www.meta-comm.com/products/digital_storage_manager/feature-new.htm.=
=20
Technology & Platforms
Workgroups 2006 is a multi-user server based=20
solution built on Microsoft SQL Server and .Net=20
technologies. Client applications are available=20
for both Mac OS X and Windows operating systems.
Pricing & Availability
Workgroups 2006 is available immediately and is=20
priced affordably with complete multi-user suite=20
bundles starting at $4995. Workgroups component=20
applications, Job Manager, Virtual Ticket,=20
Approval Manager and Digital Storage Manager may=20
be purchased individually, starting at $1695.=20
MetaCommunications products are available from=20
authorized resellers, system integrators,=20
distributors and OEM partners. MetaCommunications=20
will be providing the first public exhibition and=20
demonstrations of the Workgroups 2006 suite at=20
Graph Expo =9206. For more information, call=20
319-337-8599 or e-mail sales@meta-comm.com.
About MetaCommunications
MetaCommunications (http://www.meta-comm.com) is=20
a leading software developer of cross-platform=20
management and process management and=20
productivity solutions for the graphic arts=20
industry, including the award-winning Job=20
Manager, Virtual Ticket, Approval Manager and=20
Digital Storage Manager applications. These=20
products are customizable and scalable from=20
two-user workgroups to hundreds of users in a=20
multi-site enterprise environment.=20
MetaCommunications has thousands of users of its=20
software worldwide, helping some of the world's=20
top creative agencies, corporate marketing=20
groups, printing and prepress firms, and=20
publishers work more efficiently and profitably.=20
MetaCommunications was founded in 1991 and is=20
headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa. For more=20
information, please visit=20
http://www.meta-comm.com.
