Blank Product Creation Guide
Product Creation Specialist for Kornitˣ
Introduction
The following document has been written to instruct our customers on how to create Blank Products within the Kornitˣ Platform.
The guide outlines the steps necessary to successfully create blank products in the Kornitˣ platform that can be used
How to access Categories
Each Blank features a ‘Print area’ for each position on the garment that is available for decoration e.g.: Front, Back, Left Sleeve, Right Sleeve, Neck Tag.
All blanks for a customer should be created and found available within their own blank products category.
Important note: Please ensure that you choose the correct Blank for your intended decoration method e.g.: DTG (Standard) / XDI. Accessing Categories
To view available categories, head to the "Settings" cog wheel in the bottom left corner of the Kornitˣ Platform. Click on the "Categories" option which is shown in the below screenshot.
Some categories you may have "read" access to whilst others have "read/write" access to, this access is determined by your user permissions. For example, all blank product categories will be read access while all virtual products created will be read & write access.
What is a Blank Product?
The term 'Blank' stems from how the Products can be used as a template that the fulfiller can add artwork to whilst still conforming to their print specification. This process creates Virtual Products that can be published and sold online, with the order automatically routed to the associated Fulfiller.
Top Tip: In this document, we will be creating T-Shirt samples. You can also use the values in the screenshots to easily follow the steps and create your Blank Products.
Creating a New Product
From the pop-up Creation Menu, Click 'Blank'
The main option for to be using is 'Manual'
From the Product Details Menu, specify the Fulfiller, Fulfiller SKU, Product Name, Category and Classification. These details are required for new products to be created on the system (this information can be changed at a later date if needed).
Click 'Create Product' to confirm - this will take you directly to the new Blank Product for you to begin to configure.
Adding your Preview specifications
'Preview' allows you to determine how your product will display on screen by uploading suitable preview images.
Critical: These image files are used for on screen preview purposes only, and should be formatted based on the following:
- Square: Uploaded product preview images MUST be square.
- Image Size: 800x800 pixels is the recommended guideline size for preview quality and performance reasons.
- Supported File Types: PNG or JPEG format.
- File Size Limit: Upload limit is 1mb, but we recommend all images are less than 500kb.
All preview-based images must be added to an 'Aspect'.
Begin by clicking Preview > Aspects > + Aspect to add a new Aspect.
Add your Aspect Name. Generally, Aspect Names are used to indicate the side of the product you intend to represent for the garments we are making we should use ‘Front' or 'Back'. In this example we are creating a T-Shirt, so we have used 'Front'.
NOTE: A product can have one or multiple Aspects. e.g. a garment product might have an Aspect for the Front, Back, Left Sleeve, Right Sleeve, etc.
Click to '+ Option'
NOTE: An Aspect option is the visual preview image of the product. Each Aspect can have one or multiple Aspect Options associated. (e.g. if creating a T-Shirt, you might want to offer a range of colours by adding multiple options and uploading the relevant coloured images.)
Upload your product preview image to the 'Main Image' slot.
Top Tip: Masks can be uploaded to offer a solution when there are elements in the image that cover or obstruct the printable area, e.g. hair, arm position or pull strings. In these scenarios, adding a mask makes the preview more realistic by ensuring that these elements are not just covered by uploaded artwork - instead the artwork will only display in accordance with the mask shape. This is an optional step.
The Aspect Option properties can then be set, e.g. Option Name / Option SKU. This is because some products may have multiple Aspect Options to represent different colours / materials / finishes etc.
These steps can be repeated for adding additional previews such as Back, Front Sleeve, or Right Sleeve. This is shown in the below example.
Adding your Print Areas
For each required output file, a Print Area must be created on the product - this process allows you to set a specific output size (in mm) and position the area in relation to the products Preview. It is this process that connects the live preview and the artwork generation together.
Important Note: Print Areas are used to determine the output print file size and highlight the available personalisation area on-screen in relation to the live preview.
To create a Print Area:
Name – We recommend setting the same name as the aspects so “Front” or “Back”.
Aspect - the product preview that the Print Area is to be associated with. In this example we want to set the Print Area on the 'Front' Aspect that we have just created.
Print Size (in mm) - this determines the size of the artwork files that the system generates. In this example we are using standard Kornit Pallet of 396 x 498mm.
Preview Size (in pixels) - this determines the size of the personalisation area in relation to the product preview image. You can set the pixel sizes using the input fields, or interactively within the preview.
The goal here is to get a matching Aspect Ratio between the Print Size and Preview Size elements, thus connecting the preview to the artwork generation. The simplest way to do this is:
Input your Print Size values in mm
Copy the same values into the Preview Size fields. This will automatically give you a matching Ratio (note the size of the area in the interactive preview may be incorrect).
Use the interactive tools to position and uniformly scale the on-screen Print area so that it 'fits' the product preview.
Critical: Print Size (in mm) and Preview Size (in pixels) should share a matching AR to within a 0.05 tolerance threshold. Failure to do so will prompt an error message on any attempted save.
You may have precise print guidelines, and you can upload a template file against the Blank product in the platform. This allows Brands / retailers to download the file and refer to the guidelines when creating artwork to apply to the Blank. This is an optional step.
Adding Functionality
In this example we will configure an Image Area for the purposes of photo upload.
To add an Image Area, click Functionality > Images > + Image Area
This will bring up the Image Area setup screen, whereby you can specify:
Name - if multiple Image Areas are configured this name will appear in the Smartlink, so make them relevant.
Print Area - this allows you to specify the Print Area that the uploaded image will be applied to.
Position - this determines the location and size of the area that the user can upload an image to. By default, these values will auto-populate when a Print Area is selected, meaning that any uploaded image will apply to the entire Print Area by default. This can be manually changed via the input fields or the interactive preview, if required.
Print Testing
Important Note: Print Test is accessible at any stage during the product configuration. We highly encourage frequent testing to minimise the likelihood of any issues.
Print Test can be accessed from the Contextual Actions in the top right of the interface. The below is the correct button to press for this.
Clicking it loads a pop-up window showing the product preview and configured functionality.
In this example we have uploaded an image and added text using the simple functionality options from the previous step.
Clicking 'Generate Artwork' will then produce a series of example output files in several formats that can be downloaded and compared vs product thumbnails to ensure accuracy between preview and output.
Using what you have learned you can continue creating more Blank products to populate your product range on the system.
Creating a Thumbnail image
Whilst the system will automatically generate a thumbnail image based on the initial image uploaded, occasionally there will be need to replace this as the product evolves.
To create or add a thumbnail, head to the "Assets" section in the "General" menu as shown below.
The section will display the "Product Image".
For standard DTG you can use the "eye" tool which will allow you to create a thumbnail based on the preview image.
Click on the eye button and a popup will appear. Simply click Save to save a thumbnail of the preview that you see on screen. The view buttons below the preview can be used to select a view other than the Front if necessary.
Once saved you will receive a message stating that you have "Successfully Uploaded Asset". Click OK to return to the product.
Still Need Help?
You can access raise a ticket with our technical support teams using the buttons below.
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