How to Submit a Large Format Zund Cut File

From a post-production printing standpoint, unless your project is a simple 8.5 x 11 flyer or spiral-bound manual printed on 8.5x11 paper, most printed products will need to be cut down from larger sheets into the intended finished sizes (i.e. business cards printed multiple-up on a large sheet and cut down to 3 x 2.5). Many print projects such a post cards, business cards, flyers, brochures, etc. can be cut on our traditional straight-edge knife cutter. On the other hand, if your print project is, for example, a large foam board sign or vinyl banner that prints on materials requiring a large format printer, the cutting will need to be performed on a machine capable of handling these various materials. That’s where our in-house Zund cutter literally “makes the cut”.

Other than the fact that the Zund can cut large format materials (and a wide variety of materials, at that), one of the primary benefits of the Zund as compared to the more traditional “straight edge” cutter is that it can cut in almost any shape that your project requires. Whether it be, for example, a 24 x 48 square display sign, a circle floor graphic, the shape of a flower or even the cut out of your favorite person’s portrait, the Zund can handle it with ease.

In order for the Zund to produce the required cut out, a “cut file” needs to be provided along with the artwork to be printed. The artwork itself can be provided in Adobe Acrobat PDF form with appropriate crop marks and bleeds (please see section Submitting a Print Ready PDF on our website for more information). We will also need a separate PDF file for the cut file itself.

For the cut file (“outline” shape), we ask that it be created using any Pantone PMS color, such as Reflex Blue. If you have a more complicated print and cut project, such as a box or large standee sign, please include not only the required cut lines (i.e. Reflex Blue), but also any crease, score or perf lines in separate PMS colors (i.e. crease/score = PMS green, perf = PMS Rodamine Red).

Please note: If the print project has multiple cut, score and perf requirements, it might be helpful to supply a separate reference PDF file which identifies these requirements so there is no confusion.

For those clients that are well versed in the use of Adobe InDesign and/or Illustrator, the layers function within these programs can make file submission a bit easier. So, for example, printed artwork can be provided on layer 1 and the cut file on layer 2. If you choose to provide a description or legend as a cutting reference, you can place that on layer 3. Our in-house graphics team can then separate these layers into the appropriate PDF files needed for print and cutting.

If your project was created using Adobe Photoshop, we would ask that the final cut file be generated outside of Photoshop and provided as a separate PDF file. However, a separate layer within Photoshop can be used to show cut file positioning as a reference.

As always, we are here to help with any questions as you prepare your print project to be submitted for production. Please feel free to contact us.

Execuprint, Inc.: (818) 993-8184

Email: prepress@execuprint.com