Getting Started

Colorants are the parts of printing ink which give it color and consist of two main type – pigments and dyes. Colorants define the restrictions for color usage and are linked to production groups which represent the various presses. You set up Colorant Types to configure the basic information for calculating ink consumption for each type of machine.

You use Color records to specify the names and other relevant characteristics of various colors, including standard colors, spot colors, varnish, and coatings. You can then assign multiple colors to each colorant type. Likewise, multiple colorant types can include the same color records.

Each color and colorant combination make up a specific Ink raw material that iQuote uses in estimate calculations. This combination represents the color characteristic of an ink and its use restriction, respectively (in other words, the printing machines where you can use the ink.)

Refer to the diagram below for a visual overview of the relationships among colorants, colors, and inks:

Diagram
Description automatically generated

EXAMPLES

In the following Scale Process Color record, no Main Color was selected, which indicates the color does not belong to any other color record:

On the other hand, this Scale process color has been selected as the main color for these five other color records:

The system creates each new ink based on a combination of one color and one colorant.

If the color in the Ink record is a single color, iQuote creates only one record for the combination. However, if you select a main color, iQuote creates records for all the other “child” colors inside of the main “parent” color.

EXAMPLES

Single color

To create a new ink, you select Offset sheetfed as the colorant type and Varnish for the color. Since the Varnish record is a single color, iQuote generates only one ink for the given combination:

Colorant type	Color	Ink
Offset sheetfed	Varnish (single)	Offset sheetfed – Varnish

Main color

For the second ink, you select the same colorant type, but a different color, Process. There are four other colors in the system that belong to the Process main color: Magenta, Yellow, Cyan, and Black.

In this case, iQuote generates an Ink record for the Offset sheetfed x Process combination, as well as the inks for all other “child” colors under the “Process” parent color:

Colorant type	Color	Ink
Offset sheetfed	Process (main color)	Offset sheetfed – Process
	Magenta (child color)	Offset sheetfed – Process – Magenta
	Yellow (child color)	Offset sheetfed – Process – Yellow
	Cyan (child color)	Offset sheetfed – Process – Cyan
	Black (child color)	Offset sheetfed – Process – Black

Requirements

Before you begin, you must complete the following requirements:

Install and set up iQuote.

Experience working with materials in iQuote.