Screen capture of the Color Atlas library in ASE file format available for open access in most design software. Photo Archroma
Archroma recently announced that the 5’760 color references of its Color Atlas library will be available in ASE file format for open access to the users of most design software for fashion, apparel, and textiles. With this, designers and stylists are given open access to the largest library of colors for cotton and polyester.
ASE or .ase (for Adobe Swatch Exchange) files are used to upload, share and access colors through the swatch palette of design software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, and most CAD (Computer-aided design) systems.
The Color Atlas by Archroma was launched in 2016 to provide fashion designers and stylists with off-the-shelf color inspiration that can be implemented in production with just a few clicks.
The Color Atlas continues to evolve in line with Archroma’s commitment to sustainability through innovation. The company describes its approach as “The Archroma Way to a sustainable world – safe, efficient, enhanced, it’s our nature”.
All color references available in the Color Atlas have been formulated with products that comply with leading international eco-standards and can be selected based on the desired sustainability profile.
“We are proud to open our vast online collections of colors to brands, designers, and mills, and thus help them create clothes and articles that are both desirable and sustainable,” says Chris Hipps, head of Color Management Services, at the Archroma Brand Studio. “With the Color Atlas by Archroma, they can finally dream of a color, find it quickly within their design software, and then specify it with the confidence that their design intent will be executed swiftly and reliably in their global supply chains.”
2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India
Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and
multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.
The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry.
While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately
their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book
printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.
The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.
Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.
Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.
Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.