Portfolios

Variable Data Publishing Portfolio Gallery

Welcome to a presentation of Active Lightning’s portfolio of automated publishing projects. Each showcase in the gallery features information on a variable data publishing project done by Active Lightning. These projects involve data-driven production of printed marketing communication, including catalogs, a circular, and factsheets. PatternStream automation can also be used to generate html and xml files.

Examples of recent catalog automation can be found for two of our active clients:

Cox Hardware and Lumber, a catalog for each department

Whitehead Industrial, a catalog for each category

The portfolio of variable data publishing projects from the past are described below.

 

Customized Product Catalogs
Outdoor Interactive, Inc.
(shown here with dummy product images)

thumbnail image of a Outdoor Interactive Customized Product Catalog cover, imposed

thumbnail image of a Outdoor Interactive Customized Product Catalog, 2 center body pages, imposed


Product Catalog
Cox Hardware + Lumber

thumbnail image of a Cox Product Catalog left page

thumbnail image of a Cox Product Catalog right page


Promotional Circular
Cox Hardware + Lumber

thumbnail image of Cox circular Sept. 2003 edition front page

thumbnail image of Cox circular Sept. 2003 edition back page


Annuity Generic Single Sheets
MFS Investment Management
Insurance Products Group

thumbnail image of an Annutiy Generic Single Sheet, first page

thumbnail image of an Annutiy Generic Single Sheet, second page


Annuity InfoFax
MFS Investment Management
Insurance Products Group

thumbnail image of Platinum InfoFax


thumbnail image of Annuity postcard for Choice product line - outside page
thumbnail image of Annuity postcard for Choice product line - inside page


Architect Single Sheets
MFS Investment Management
MFS International Ltd.

thumbnail image of an Architect Single Sheet front page

thumbnail image of an Architect Single Sheet back page


Bank Trust Single Sheets
MFS Investment Management
MFS Trust Group

thumbnail image of a Bank Trust Single Sheet, first page

thumbnail image of a Bank Trust Single Sheet, second page


MFS Equity Characteristics
MFS Investment Management
MFS Trust Group

thumbnail image of Equity Characteristics report for Bank Trust mutual funds - outside page

thumbnail image of Equity Characteristics report for Bank Trust mutual funds - inside page


Meridian Single Sheets
MFS Investment Management
MFS International Ltd.

thumbnail image of a Merdian single sheet, first page

thumbnail image of a Meridian single sheet, second page


MFD Single Sheets
MFS Investment Management
MFS Fund Distributors, Inc.

thumbnail image of a MFD Single Sheet, first page

thumbnail image of a MFD Single Sheet, second page


MFD InfoFax
MFS Investment Management
MFS Fund Distributors, Inc.

thumbnail image of MFD InfoFax, Class A


MFD Update Performance Pages
MFS Investment Management
MFS Fund Distributors, Inc.

thumbnail image of MFD Update Performance, Class A

Some noteworthy features of these projects include:
  • Rules-based processing—the automated publishing utilizes different: queries, publication elements, and formatting, depending on the data values returned from the database
  • Publishing machines do NOT need changes to accommodate database version upgrades (eg. MFS Investment Management upgraded from Oracle 8.0.5 to 8.1.7 and their publishing machines did not need to be modified)
  • Ability to publish to multiple layouts using a single info machine (see Annuity InfoFax)
  • Ability to utilize manually-produced and automation-produced pages in a single pdf file (Quarterly publication called "Update" is composed of MFD Single Sheets, MFD Update Performance Pages, and manually-produced pages from MFD's design group)
  • Number of documents and/or pages is data-driven, not fixed