It completed its membership of the Creo-led NGP last Friday (7 November). It also joined the PrintCity alliance in June.

At Drupa, Global Graphics will show a JDF-enabled version of the Harlequin RIP, controlling a remote proofer taking files and JDF instructions from Agfas Delano, as part of PrintCity in hall 6.

Global Graphics chief technical consultant Martin Bailey, who is also chief executive of CIP4, the organisation that oversees JDF, explained why the firm hadnt yet announced its own JDF-enabled products.

"We didnt feel there was any point putting out a product just to be buzzword compliant," he said. "We needed to make sure it could reliably interface with other products, and were only getting to that situation now. Thats not because its inherently difficult, its just because firms have been learning how to use JDF."

Global Graphics has been planning and working on its own JDF implementation for more than a year, since the publication of the first workable specification, JDF 1.1a.

Bailey also said PrintCity and NGP were both working hard to develop products that could work together, allowing CIP4 to concentrate on developing the specification of the next version of JDF.

"PrintCity is thought of as a marketing organisation, because it was originally, but it has a very good activity group that is doing a lot," he said.

"NGP has the benefits of PrintCity with different partners. I cant tell you if its going to deliver on its promise, but the promise is therethe combination of NGP and CIP4 is going to lead to some good solutions. PrintCity has already been working closely with CIP4 and feeding back information."

Later next year Global Graphics will also launch JDF-enabled versions of its PDF Courier job delivery workflow and of its PDF Library.

The JDF version of PDF Courier will build on the current versions instructions on creating XML job tickets to include JDF job tickets. An unnamed OEM has already implemented this itself, the firm said.