File types

We can accept many different kinds of files but the main type supplied throughout the print industry is PDF (Portable Document File). Most software can produce these files through the export or print options. As well as PDF, we can accept EPS, or Illustrator (AI) files, all fonts must be embedded in these.

You can also supply us artwork from InDesign, QuarkXPress or Publisher but make sure you supply all links and fonts as well in separate folders.

Work created in Word we only recommend if the content is mainly text-based.

We can also accept most image files including JPEG, TIFF or Photoshop (PSD) documents. If these contain any layers they should be 'flattened' before saving. Please make sure that they are at least 300dpi resolution and no compression is used, see the Images section for more information.

 

The PDF/X standard eliminates many of the colour, font, and trapping variables that could cause printing problems. PDF/X makes it possible to deliver files ready for print production to nearly any print service provider with the highest possible confidence that they will print as you intended.

If you are using any of the Adobe Creative Suite applications then you should have the PDF/X preset available to you. We strongly recommend that this standard be used when supplying us with PDF documents.

There are different variants of PDF/X file formats to choose from, Pagefast can accept any of these, but to ensure that the PDF is 'fully compliant' we recommend using PDF/X-1a:2001 as this also flattenes all content.

For more information on PDF/X, see this article from Adobe.

 

Sending files to us

When sending large amounts of data you are advised to write these to disc or a USB drive and post it to us with relevant instructions.

We can accept files over the Internet as email attachments or you can upload to your own webspace via FTP (File Transfer Protocol) or any online storage service. Let Pagefast have the URL link to your files and we will download direct. Any large attachments too big for email can also be sent using MailBigFile.com or any other Internet service that offers to send large files.

Most attachments under 12MB will get through via email, but remember to follow these points;

1. Send emails to print@pagefast.co.uk
   
   
2. When sending lots of files, especially links and fonts, compress the files whenever possible, this protects the file against corruption over the Internet as well as keeping file size down. Windows and OS X can do this, usually via a contextual menu that refers to archiving, compressing or zipping depending on system used.
   
   
3. Keep attachments to 12MB each or they may be rejected by our mail server - use FTP or MailBigFile.com instead.
   
   
4. Ensure you send all the files and let us know exactly what you are sending in the body of an email
   Best to send a separate email without the attachments in case the original email is too large and bounces.
   
   
5. Let us know the software (and version number) you used and preferably add the .xxx suffix to all files,
   Mac users take note! Mac File info can be lost over the internet and adding the extension helps identify
   the file type. It is good practice anyway to ensure easy cross-platform accessibility.
   
   
6. Always let us know your company name and details of the job in the email text.

Our connection to the internet is via broadband - which means we can receive very large files at fast speed without a problem. However you should always optimise the size of file attachments before sending. Windows and OS X can compress your documents to a Zip file to keep file sizes down.