Technology & Research

Q1: Why should I submit my products for JDF Certification?

A1: Many printers, prepress service professionals and other graphic arts users have found buying JDF systems to be a complex proposition. It’s been asked of CIP4 many times to establish a product certification program that can help the users quickly identify systems that are known to be JDF compliant. By submitting your products for certification you are making it easier for prospective customers to buy your systems and software solutions.

Q2: Do I have to provide a copy of my systems or software to Printing Industries of America?

A2: Not necessarily. If yours is a software only solution, it may be the easiest thing to do. If your system is embedded in heavy equipment, it may be cost prohibitive to ship equipment to Printing Industries of America. Once you’ve registered for certification, a Printing Industries of America representative will contact you to work out the most cost effective method of setting up testing of your system or software.

Q3: Can my product be certified to more than one ICS?

A3: Although not necessary, a single system can be certified to more than one ICS, but the system must be registered for testing for each ICS individually and multiple testing fees will be required. For instance, there are ICS documents for Management Information Systems: MIS to Prepress, MIS to Postpress, and MIS to Conventional Printing (Sheetfed). An MIS vendor may choose to test to one or all three ICS documents.

Q4: What happens if my product fails a certification test?

A4: If your system or software fails certification testing you will get a detailed report from Printing Industries of America specifying the failure. If the failure is something that is obvious and immediately apparent, Printing Industries of America may ask the vendor for an immediate resubmission at no additional cost. If testing is completed and a product fails, the vendor may resubmit the product for testing at a re-testing fee equivalent to the “OEM: No Modification” fee.

Q5: Do I need to certify my product for each version of JDF?

A5: JDF is backwards compatible, so if your system or software is tested for a JDF 1.3 ICS, then your system should be interoperable with all versions of JDF after 1.3. As new versions of JDF are published, you may want to re-test your system to ensure it is current.

Q6: How long is certification good for?

A6: JDF Certification does not expire. The date of certification can be found on at www.cip4.org by searching the roster of JDF Certified products by the certification number found on the logo issued by CIP4 for use by the product’s manufacturer.

Q7: If I update my product with a new version, is its certification still good?

A7: It is up to you to keep your system current. Please be aware that the product version can be found by users on at www.cip4.org in the information published in the JDF Certified products roster. If you believe that you are making significant changes to a product, it is probably wise to re-test the product. If CIP4 or Printing Industries of America are advised to interoperability problems with new versions of products, then they may cite on the CIP4 website that your certification is limited to a particular version of your product.

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