Guide for print shops
A proof approval workflow, step by step
A proof approval workflow is only as good as its weakest step: a check nobody ran, a proof of the wrong file, or an approval that was never written down. Here is the order Drapress follows.
How it works in Drapress
1. Upload and arrange
The file arrives on the job, and its pages are arranged on the page board. The original is always kept.
2. Check and proof
The file check reports what it finds, and a proof is built for the product: a flip-through, front and back, flat, or a fold preview.
3. Approve and lock
The customer approves when the short checklist is complete. The approval is locked to the exact version of every page, with the person, the role and the time.
4. Hand off to production
Prepress receives a job package built from the approval, and the job continues on the production board and its job ticket. Recurring publications add a final proof approval for each issue.
What it does not do
The workflow records and enforces the order of the steps; it does not decide for your prepress team, and the file check reports without changing the file.