Founded in Hartford, Connecticut, USA at the end of the 19th century, Finlay has gone through 133 years. Award-winning and currently employing over 100 people, Finlay is one of North America's most successful and innovative print and marketing solutions providers. Finlay's customers are basically large companies in various fields, including education, community, retail, financial services and design. The company's client list includes some of the most respected companies, brands and organizations in the United States, including Callaway Golf, Stanldy Tools, Yankee Candle Co., Yale University ( Yale University), Nine West, New Balance, Guinness, Smithsonian Museums, etc.
Over the years, Finlay has always been committed to providing customers with products and services of higher value, so as to ensure its own development and continuous profit. Kevin Kalagher, CEO of Finlay, said: "Finlay's success is largely due to our continuous investment in professional technology, so as to be able to provide customers with a complete set of turnkey project management solutions from concept design to final delivery."
In the past few decades, Finlay's core printing business has expanded significantly, and it is an early company that provides printing peripheral services such as scanning, typesetting, and die-cutting. These peripheral services are well integrated into our entire workflow. Recently, Finlay has launched some new services, such as project implementation, digital printing, photography and design services, which further expand the company's business scope.
"Although our customers come from different industries, their expectations of the company are somewhat similar. They all hope that we can respond to their needs in real time and provide them with professional services. Remember: they all hope that we will pay close attention to details and ensure the highest quality. standards," Kalagher said.
Like other companies in the printing industry, for Finlay high quality is synonymous with accurate colour. "If a company can accurately describe, formulate and reproduce color, it attracts customers; if it doesn't, it loses customers. We realized early on that color management should be a top priority in our business process. If we To buy professional equipment, we need to ensure that these equipment will get accurate color on time, every time, so as to maximize workflow efficiency.”
To this end, Finlay appointed Rich Lawrence as the company's quality manager in 1999, responsible for managing the company's technology investment and maximizing the investment.
"When I was appointed, the job description I got was simple (at least on paper): Make sure that the colors are exactly the same at every step, so that the quality of the product is guaranteed. I need to make sure that the colors displayed on the color monitor and printed on different presses The color of the sample is exactly the same as the color of the proof. However, when I saw the pile of waste paper next to the printing press, I immediately realized that this job is not easy. So, I quickly contacted X-Rite and asked about some color measurement equipment. price."
Over the next few years, Finlay purchased a complete set of color management solutions from X-Rite, including spectrodensitometers (500 series), color calibration instruments (i1 solutions), plate measuring instruments (ICPlate2) and ICC color Profile creation software (Monaco PROFILER) for a true end-to-end color management workflow.
"Consistent color management brings predictability and control over print results. With the right color measurement tools in place, we can more accurately predict how our equipment will print and better reduce unpleasant issues ’ said Lawrence.
Color management is now one of the main features of Finlay. “We have a reputation throughout the industry for our color capabilities. We understand exactly what our clients want and want when it comes to color, and where they focus on a particular image. We can reproduce exactly any image a client wants, which One that makes us very proud.”
Finlay adopts a 100% closed-loop color management concept, which improves the control of colors. "Using X-Rite products, we create color profiles for printing on coated and uncoated papers," says Lawrence. "We have a color profile for every machine, every quality grade and every paper type Profiles. So, no matter what kind of print job we're dealing with, even those that require two-color or three-color process printing, we can prepare a specific color profile for each new image to ensure that we get accurate color."
According to Lawrence, there is a great advantage in having a fixed gauge and then matching the actual proofs that come out of the press to that. “This speeds up press setup and proof approval, so the entire print job runs smoothly. Sometimes it even reduces waste and improves efficiency,” he says.
Product quality and color fidelity are key value propositions for companies like Finlay that work in high-end print, artwork or photography reproduction. “Throughout our history, Finlay has always been the first to try new technologies. The choice of color control and color management technology is certainly no exception,” said Lawrence.
"With the solution provided by X-Rite, we can further ensure that color information is transmitted consistently and accurately throughout the entire workflow, and product quality has also been significantly improved--shorter production cycles, more efficient color data transmission, and less waste. Color control has become faster and more accurate. The result: increased efficiency, consistent overall quality, and increased customer satisfaction – distinct advantages that allow us to succeed in today’s highly competitive market,” concludes Kalagher.
About Finlay
Finlay, founded in 1876, is a marketing and printing solutions provider. The company offers a wide range of services including digital asset management, design, online booking systems, sales automation systems, variable data printing, digital printing, high-quality sheet-fed printing, project implementation and mailing services. Finlay's consultative approach is designed to help clients achieve their sales and marketing goals.
About X-Rite
(NASDAQ: XRIT) X-Rite Corporation has now acquired Pantone, Inc., a color player in the design industry, to become a global color science and technology player dedicated to the development, production, marketing and support of Innovative color management solutions including color measurement systems, supporting software, color standards and services. With its professional advantages in color ideation, selection, measurement, preparation, communication and matching, X-Rite helps users get the desired color accurately, timely and effectively, realize product optimization and reduce costs. X-Rite customers in all walks of life, including printing, packaging, photography, graphic design, video, automotive, paint, plastics, textiles, dental care and medical industries.
