Printcafe Software

Printcafe Software, Inc. operated as a pivotal provider of enterprise software tailored for the global printing industry. The company was established in 1999, with its headquarters in Pittsburgh, PA, through the strategic combination of several firms, including ProGraph Management Systems, which was co-founded by Marc Olin. Olin, who served as President and CEO, and co-CEO William Guttman, were instrumental in the company's trajectory. Guttman, an entrepreneur with a background as an economist and management consultant, led significant fundraising efforts, securing over $125 million from backers including Mellon Ventures and HarbourVest Partners.

The firm's business was centered on developing and providing integrated software solutions that managed the entire print supply chain. Its clients included both printers and print buyers within the printing and publishing sectors. The business model focused on delivering enterprise resource planning (ERP) and collaborative supply chain software that enabled clients to reduce operational costs and enhance productivity. For print buyers, the company offered procurement applications to facilitate web-based collaboration with printers. For printers, Printcafe provided self-service applications, allowing them to create web storefronts and manage customer interactions more efficiently.

A core product was the PrinterSite suite, which included modules to automate internal sales processes, allowing sales staff to focus more on clients than administrative tasks. This software captured job specifications in a customizable electronic format that flowed directly into the print management system's estimating module, improving accuracy and response times. The company was also a proponent of the Job Definition Format (JDF), an open standard for electronic job ticketing designed to streamline information exchange throughout the printing cycle. This commitment culminated in a swift journey to the public markets, with an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Nasdaq under the symbol PCAF in June 2002. Less than a year later, in February 2003, Electronics for Imaging (EFI) announced its intention to acquire Printcafe, a transaction that was finalized in October 2003. The acquisition was a strategic move by EFI to merge its digital imaging and workflow solutions with Printcafe's enterprise management software, thereby creating a comprehensive, end-to-end solution for the converging traditional and digital printing markets.

Keywords: print management software, enterprise resource planning, print supply chain, JDF, printing workflow, procurement applications, print automation, web-to-print, print MIS/ERP, publishing software