CIP3/CIP4 presetting is one of the cheapest ways to shorten makeready: it opens your ink keys from prepress data instead of from zero. Here is how it works, where it helps most, and where its limits are.
What CIP3/CIP4 presetting does
During ripping, the prepress system calculates how much ink each zone of the press will need, based on the image area in that zone. The press reads that file and sets its ink keys before the run starts, so the first sheets land far closer to target than a manual default would.
PPF versus JDF
CIP3 uses the older PPF format, carrying ink-key presetting data. CIP4 extends this with JDF, a richer job ticket that can also carry register, scheduling and production data. Both serve the same core purpose at the press: start close, not from zero.
Where it pairs with closed-loop
Presetting gets you to the doorstep; closed-loop walks you through it. Presetting opens the keys to roughly the right place, then closed-loop measures the printed sheet and fine-tunes each zone into tolerance, in fewer pulls than either method alone.
Limits to know
- Presetting is open-loop: it does not see the printed result, so it cannot correct drift on its own.
- Accuracy depends on clean prepress data and a well-characterized press.
- Substrate, ink and press condition still move the target during the run.