A special feature from Zaikio

Imagine getting a tool at a hardware store. You need a specific device to finish an exciting, important project you have been working on for weeks. Unsure about your purchase, you describe the task to the clerk – and they hand you a tool you have never heard of before.

It is nice, feels lightweight yet strong, and is made of high-quality materials.

You decide to get it. The store’s return policy is amazing, so why not?

Bursting with excitement, you drive home to try it out. Once back, you plug it in, turn it on, and BOOM – it works! It’s exactly what you have been looking for!

Easily, you finish the final steps of your project and ask yourself how you’ve been living without this tool. It becomes an essential part of your toolbox from now on.

On top of that, you recommend the tool to your neighbour, who shares the same experience: purchase, plugin, success!

Imagine this magic tool is your company’s print job source software. What if your customers were as excited by their software integration as they are by said device?

Sounds great? But impossible? Well, then keep on reading...

Wait, what actually is the problem... and how did the print industry get here?

Real talk: The print industry is special. It is coming from an age where printing was a highly manual process and considered a craft. Nevertheless, the industry has managed to transform along with the fast-paced technical progress and development worldwide.

Naturally while keeping up, it neglected some areas. First and foremost is data compatibility and exchange between the technically advanced machines.

Mainly because of an underlying problem: Progress by consensus is difficult to reach. Vendors started to interpret standards like JDF or xJDF in their own ways, which made data unpredictable and complicated.

There’s a Futureprint podcast episode dedicated to this topic and how it is related to sustainability.

Tune in here to listen

Data is blocking progress – what?!

In order to exchange data, software needs to be connected. But the status quo of software integrations in the print industry is cumbersome. All software comes with its own data model. Hence, data connections are mainly based on individual, non-scalable integration projects which fewer and fewer printers can afford. Often, integrations are one-way streets where data is sent, but none is received.

And that is not the only problem print industry software companies face.

To avoid costs, project management, or the frustration that can come with integration projects, printers sometimes roll out their own solutions. Others stick to pen and paper, whilst some use software that comes with their computers.

Most are simply hesitant to try new software.

And let’s face it: This situation is hindering progress.

What print shops around the globe need is software that seamlessly interchanges data and works together.

Integrate once, interoperate everywhere.

“Integrate once – interoperate everywhere”. This is the credo of Zaikio, the data exchange platform. What sounds too good to be true is already becoming a reality for the many companies that are currently joining the platform.

The idea is simple: Leave the cumbersome individual integration projects behind and move towards universal connectivity with just one integration.

The biggest advantage? Print job software companies that connect to Zaikio can automatically exchange data with all other software that is connected to the platform.

And that is already possible today!

The Secret: One data model to connect them all.

It is that simple because all data which Zaikio receives is validated by the platform to make sure it complies with its semantic data model.

This automatically means that data that runs through Zaikio is exchangeable! All connected software can provide, receive, read, interpret, and understand all data.

Print shops are surprised by what software will be able to do. Suddenly, MIS, Web2Print, and ERP systems will exchange information! Status updates, progress notifications or general automation become the standard.

Of course, requirements are taken into consideration as the data model develops. But these additions will be unified and available for all software which is connected to Zaikio.

The platform kicked off at the end of 2022. “Mission Control”, the app that visualises data and which includes the user interface for printers, will be available in 2023.

Some companies have just started integrating with Zaikio, others already shared their experiences at a conference called ZaiCon in January 2023. Calibrate’s Peter Kleinheider shared his progress and is sure: "The data model that we have today is for sure not complete, but it's built in such a way that it can grow healthily."

Define your strength: a big business opportunity

In addition to saving a lot of work and easily interchanging data with other systems, Zaikio allows print shop software providers to develop software which sets them apart from their competitors.

They do not have to stick to their status quo and connect all parts of their software to the platform. If that is what they are looking at – that is great! Software providers can pick the data bits and pieces their customers need and scale up. The platform is ready for this.

But a project like this gives them the opportunity to step out of their daily business and ask themselves: “What is our biggest strength? Why do printers use our software? What makes us unique?” And that is what they’ll develop for Zaikio.

This will give print software providers the chance to change the industry.

It often does not require a big data model change. Companies can sometimes connect to the platform by mapping their data to the Mission Control standard.

A recent example is the MIS Keyline. Through a simple mapping of Keyline's internal data model to Zaikio’s semantic data model, the first usable connection was set up within 10 days. The development team also only needed to make minimal additions to the source code.

How to get started

Numerous sources are available to those who are looking to join the progress. Zaikio, the company behind Mission Control, provides documentation for developers. It includes a _first-steps_ guide, an introduction to the API, and much more. This should be your first step.

Check out the Mission Control Developer Docs.

Do you want to talk to others who are currently joining Mission Control? There is a separate Zaikio Slack Workspace for you. It is also a direct link to the Zaikio Development team.

Join the Community

Do you prefer human contact? No problem, Zaikio has that covered, too. Reach out to their partner managers directly!
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