Association for PRINT Technologies
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1933
- HeadquartersReston, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Association for PRINT Technologies firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Association for PRINT Technologies
- Legal name
- Association for PRINT Technologies
- Website
- https://printtechnologies.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1933
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Association for PRINT Technologies industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Industry Standards and Trade Association Services
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Standards Development & Publishing (SDOs, Technical Standards) (MPAJACAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Engineering & Technical Standards (Civil, Mechanical, Electrical; Codes & Standards) (EDAGAGAC)
Keywords
Where Association for PRINT Technologies is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Reston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Association for PRINT Technologies business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Association for PRINT Technologies product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Association for PRINT Technologies (APTech) is an ANSI-accredited standards development organization that administers national and international standards committees for the commercial printing industry. It serves as Secretariat to the Committee for Graphic Arts Technologies Standards (CGATS) and the B65 Safety Standards committees, and acts as the U.S. Technical Advisory Group to ISO/TC 130. APTech develops and publishes standards, technical reports, characterization data sets, and computational tools covering color management, file exchange formats (PDF/A, PDF/X, PDF/VT, TIFF/IT, PPML/VDX), process control, and safety for printing, publishing, and converting technologies.
Product overview
Association for PRINT Technologies (APTech) operates as a standards development organization rather than a traditional product company. Its portfolio consists primarily of industry standards programs (CGATS, B65 Safety Standards, USTAG to ISO/TC 130, Brand Packaging Council, and ICC), along with supporting technical documents and tools. The core offerings include: (1) Standards development programs that create and maintain national and international standards for printing and graphic technologies; (2) Technical Reports and Recommended Industry Practices documenting methods for color characterization, process control, and print quality; (3) Various file format standards including PDF/A, PDF/X, PDF/VT, TIFF/IT, PPML/VDX, CxF/X, and PRX for print data exchange and archival; (4) Computational tools and demonstration suites for developers implementing standards; and (5) Characterization Data Sets providing color reference data for different printing conditions. APTech is ANSI-accredited to administer standards development groups.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Committee for Graphic Arts Technologies Standards (CGATS) National standardization and coordination effort for printing, publishing and converting technologies. Develops standards relating to metrology, terminology, process control, electronic transmission, digital data exchange, color data definition, design workflow for packaging, ink and color characterization for packaging, plates, and pallet loading of printed materials. Targeted at standards developers, printers, suppliers, and brand owners.
- B65 Safety Standards Safety-related American National Standards for printing presses, binding and finishing equipment, bindery cutting machines, platen presses, and ink making equipment. Addresses design of controls, guarding and interlocking of guards, mechanical safety devices, symbology, and safe practices. Targeted at equipment manufacturers and print production operators.
- U.S. Technical Advisory Group (USTAG) to ISO/TC 130 Advisory group providing guidance to ANSI on U.S. positions for international standards relating to graphic arts, including terminology, evaluation of visual appearance, product quality, data exchange, process control, management, conformity assessment, and environmental impacts. Targeted at U.S. industry experts and international standards bodies.
- Brand Packaging Council Forum for brand owners to discuss and develop best practices for consistent design intent on packaging, providing requirements to printers and measurement equipment manufacturers and contributing to packaging-related standards development. Targeted at brand owners in the packaging supply chain.
- International Color Consortium (ICC) Consortium devoted to promoting open, vendor-neutral, cross-platform color management systems, maintaining the ICC profile specification for cross-platform device profile format enabling color data translation between devices and operating systems. Targeted at software developers, OEMs, and color management users.
- Technical Reports Technical reports providing guidance in colorimetric characterization data, tone reproduction and near-neutral gray-scale aims, evaluation of conformance, and characterization data for printing on various paper types. Targeted at print production engineers, color scientists, and prepress professionals.
- Recommended Industry Practices Collection of articles and documents on characterization data set development and color measurement, including procedures for color measurement system process control and inter-lab coordination. Targeted at print production professionals and laboratory operators.
- Characterization Data Sets Color characterization data sets developed by CGATS for various printing conditions including offset lithography, newsprint, and coated papers (GRACoL, SWOP). Includes Characterized Reference Printing Conditions (CRPC) for universal printing conditions. Targeted at printers, prepress operators, and color management implementers.
- Computational Tools Data extraction and adjustment tools to support ANSI/CGATS 21, including spreadsheet tools to adjust color characterization data for substrate changes, extract process control data, and reorder color characterization data. Targeted at standards implementers and color management specialists.
- Demonstration Suites Files for developers to use as part of testing and development process, including CGATS.17-2005, ISO 28178, and IT8.7/3 and IT8.7/4 test target files. Targeted at software developers implementing APTech standards.
- The BlueBook Standards handbook providing reference to standards activities in the printing, publishing, and converting industry, covering both U.S. and international standards with overview and links to additional resources. Targeted at print industry professionals seeking a consolidated reference for applicable standards.
Companies that use Association for PRINT Technologies
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Association for PRINT Technologies technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature9 records
Association for PRINT Technologies partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves4 records
Association for PRINT Technologies competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Idealliance: Idealliance is a US-based print industry standards and specifications organization that co-hosts joint CGATS/US TAG meetings with APTech. It operates the Print Properties Committee (PPC) and develops certification programs like GRACoL, SWOP, and G7, directly overlapping with APTech's color characterization and process control standards work.
- TAGA (Technical Association of the Graphic Arts): TAGA is the Technical Association of the Graphic Arts, which produces technical conference proceedings and research publications for the printing industry. It hosts the TAGA NextGen conference where APTech leadership presents, making it a peer in print research and technical knowledge dissemination.
- Ghent Workgroup: The Ghent Workgroup is an international consortium of graphic arts industry experts that develops practical specifications and best practices for PDF/X-based workflows in prepress and print production. It directly competes with APTech in the print workflow standards domain.
- FOGRA: FOGRA (Forschungsgesellschaft Druck e.V.) is the German research institute for printing technology that develops process standards, characterization data, and color management specifications widely used in European and global offset and digital printing. It is a direct peer in the international graphic arts standards ecosystem.
- WAN-IFRA: WAN-IFRA is the World Association of News Publishers, representing the global news publishing industry. It produces standards and best practices for newspaper production including color and print quality, serving as a peer in print and publishing standards development.
- Intergraf: Intergraf is the European federation for printing and graphical industries, representing the European print industry at EU and international levels. It develops industry positions on standards and regulations, making it a peer for industry consortium and standards advocacy work.
- ECI (European Color Initiative): ECI is the European Color Initiative, a group of European print industry stakeholders developing color management profiles and workflows. It is a regional peer in the same color management specification space where APTech secretariats the ICC.
Broad incumbents
- International Organization for Standardization (ISO): ISO is the international standards body under which Technical Committee 130 (TC 130) operates, covering graphic arts and printing technology. APTech administers the US TAG to ISO/TC 130, positioning ISO as the broader multilateral standards body in which APTech operates.
- American National Standards Institute (ANSI): ANSI is the US national standards accreditation body that accredits APTech as a Standards Developing Organization. ANSI is the broader incumbent in the US standards ecosystem that delegates authority to APTech for graphic arts.
Others
- NPES The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies: NPES is the historical predecessor organization to APTech, which was renamed/restructured as the Association for PRINT Technologies. While now largely the same entity, references to NPES appear in industry archives and serve as a comparison point for APTech's institutional evolution.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Association for PRINT Technologies social profiles
Digital presenceAssociation for PRINT Technologies compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Association for PRINT Technologies financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Association for PRINT Technologies leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Association for PRINT Technologies subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Association for PRINT Technologies funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
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Association for PRINT Technologies M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
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Frequently asked questions about Association for PRINT Technologies
What does Association for PRINT Technologies do?
Association for PRINT Technologies (APTech) is an ANSI-accredited standards development organization that administers national and international standards committees for the commercial printing industry. It serves as Secretariat to the Committee for Graphic Arts Technologies Standards (CGATS) and the B65 Safety Standards committees, and acts as the U.S. Technical Advisory Group to ISO/TC 130. APTech develops and publishes standards, technical reports, characterization data sets, and computational tools covering color management, file exchange formats (PDF/A, PDF/X, PDF/VT, TIFF/IT, PPML/VDX), process control, and safety for printing, publishing, and converting technologies.
Is Association for PRINT Technologies a public or private company?
Association for PRINT Technologies is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Association for PRINT Technologies founded?
Association for PRINT Technologies was founded in 1933. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Association for PRINT Technologies based?
Association for PRINT Technologies is headquartered in Reston, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Association for PRINT Technologies's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Idealliance, TAGA (Technical Association of the Graphic Arts), Ghent Workgroup, FOGRA, WAN-IFRA, Intergraf and ECI (European Color Initiative). Broad incumbents are International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and American National Standards Institute (ANSI). NPES The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies is listed as an others.
Does Association for PRINT Technologies have an API?
No public API is recorded for Association for PRINT Technologies.
What industry is Association for PRINT Technologies in?
Association for PRINT Technologies's product category is Industry Standards and Trade Association Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJACAB, Standards Development & Publishing (SDOs, Technical Standards), with a secondary code of EDAGAGAC, Engineering & Technical Standards (Civil, Mechanical, Electrical; Codes & Standards). Its SIC code is 2741.