Production Print Preview (P3): Review and Approval

A Production Print Preview, or P3, allows your organization to review the complete production batch before physical badges are printed. The eXpress badging® Production team generates the entire print job as a PDF and provides it via an approved secure delivery method.

A P3 is a production-data verification tool—not a badge-design proof.

The approved formal proof controls the badge design and documented production specifications. The approved P3 controls the record population, visible variable data, photographs, badge assignments, front-and-back pairings, quantity, and production order.

Do not approve a P3 while corrections, unanswered questions, or missing records remain.

Index

1. When a P3 Is Recommended
2. What a P3 Verifies
3. What a P3 Does Not Replace
4. P3 Review and Approval Process
5. How to Review the P3
6. Reporting P3 Corrections
7. Design Changes Discovered During P3 Review
8. Additional P3 Rounds and Charges
9. P3 Approval and Reprint Responsibility
10. Protecting P3 Information
11. Final P3 Approval Checklist

When a P3 Is Recommended

A P3 may be included or recommended for:

• Large production orders
• Projects containing multiple badge designs or badge types
• Orders requiring a specific record, grouping, or sort sequence
• Duplex projects requiring front-and-back verification
• Projects involving high-cost card materials
• Orders printed on RFID, contactless, smart-card, or other technology card stock

Reviewing a P3 is especially valuable before printing on RFID or other expensive card stock because visible data, photograph, badge-assignment, and record-population errors can be identified before those cards are consumed.

Whether a P3 is included and the number of review rounds provided are determined by the approved project specifications.

What a P3 Verifies

The P3 allows your organization to review whether:

• The correct individuals are included in the production batch
• Any records are missing or duplicated
• Names, titles, identification numbers, expiration dates, and other visible variable information are correct
• Each photograph is assigned to the correct record
• Any required photographs are missing
• Photographs are cropped, positioned, and displayed appropriately
• Each record is assigned to the correct badge design or badge type
• The correct front and back are paired for every duplex badge
• Long names, titles, and other information fit and remain readable
• Visible barcodes, QR codes, identification numbers, and other record-specific elements contain the expected information
• The expected number of badges is included
• The production and sort order are correct

Review the P3 at a readable magnification. Do not rely only on thumbnail images or a quick page-by-page scan.

What a P3 Does Not Replace

A P3 does not replace:

• A Veonics® Virtual ID preview
• A formal badge-design proof
• A scanned production proof
• A physical printed sample
• Card-technology, encoding, or reader testing

Because the P3 is a PDF generated from badge-production software, it may not accurately represent:

• Exact printed color
• Card-surface appearance
• Dye-sublimation printing characteristics
• Lamination appearance or tolerances
• Precise edge-to-edge alignment
• Rounded physical card corners
• Slot-punch results
• RFID or other card-technology performance

A badge image may appear slightly off-center within the PDF page or production-software frame. That placement does not necessarily represent its precise position on the finished card.

However, do not disregard content that appears clipped, displaced, missing, or inconsistent with the approved formal proof. Report the concern before approving the P3.

A P3 also does not verify RFID encoding or cloning, chip functionality, antenna performance, card-reader compatibility, barcode or QR-code scanning, magnetic-stripe encoding, or other card-technology functions. Complete the applicable testing separately when those functions are included in the project.

For information about the preceding design-approval process, see ID Badge Proofing and Production Approval.

P3 Review and Approval Process

Unless otherwise specified in the approved project requirements, the P3 process is:

1. The applicable badge designs and production specifications are formally proofed and approved.
2. The customer provides or approves the complete production data and photographs.
3. The eXpress badging® Production team imports the records and prepares the production batch.
4. The complete production batch is generated as a P3 PDF.
5. The P3 is provided through an approved secure-delivery method.
6. At least two authorized and qualified individuals review the complete P3.
7. The customer submits any corrections as one consolidated and clearly documented list.
8. A corrected P3 is prepared when required.
9. An authorized customer representative signs the final P3 approval.
10. Physical badge production begins after all required approvals have been received.

P3 approval authorizes the eXpress badging® Production team to print the records shown in the approved P3 using the previously approved badge designs and documented production specifications.

How to Review the P3

Review the production population

Confirm that:

• Every intended individual or record is included
• No unintended or duplicate records are included
• The total quantity is correct
• The production, grouping, and sort order are correct

Review the visible data

Confirm that:

• Names, titles, identification numbers, expiration dates, and other variable values are correct
• Capitalization, punctuation, abbreviations, and number formatting are correct
• Long values fit and remain readable
• Visible barcodes, QR codes, or identification numbers contain the expected information

The P3 displays customer-provided production data. Verify that the information shown is correct; do not assume that earlier sample data represents the final production records.

Review the photographs

Confirm that:

• Each photograph belongs to the correct person
• Every required photograph is present
• Photographs display in the expected shape and position
• Cropping, rotation, and orientation are acceptable
• No photograph is incorrectly duplicated or assigned

Review badge assignments and pairings

Confirm that:

• Each record uses the correct badge design or badge type
• Badge types and controlling values produce the expected designs
• Color-coded designs are correctly assigned
• The correct front and back are paired for every duplex badge
• Records appear in the required production sequence

A correctly rendered example does not confirm that every record has been assigned correctly. Review the entire production population.

Reporting P3 Corrections

If an error is discovered, do not approve the P3. Review the remainder of the file and submit one consolidated correction list whenever possible.

For each correction:

• Identify the P3 version
• Identify the affected page
• Identify the affected record, employee, member, student, or identification number
• State the existing information
• Provide the exact required correction
• Identify any record that must be added, removed, or moved
• Explain whether the correction affects the source data, photograph, badge type, front-and-back pairing, quantity, or sort order

Do not approve the P3 with the expectation that a correction will be made afterward. All known corrections must be completed and shown in the final approved P3 before physical production begins.

Review the complete corrected P3. A correction may affect record order, page count, badge assignments, front-and-back pairings, or another production record.

Design Changes Discovered During P3 Review

The P3 is not intended for badge-design development or design approval.

If a badge-design correction is requested or discovered after the applicable formal proof has been approved:

1. The project is placed on hold.
2. Approval is withdrawn for each affected badge design.
3. The corrected badge design is prepared and formally re-proofed.
4. The corrected formal proof is reviewed and approved.
5. A new P3 is generated using the newly approved design.
6. The new P3 is reviewed and approved before production resumes.

A change affecting one badge design does not necessarily invalidate unaffected designs. The eXpress badging® Production team will identify the affected proofs and P3 pages.

Design revisions, re-proofing, and regenerated P3 files may require additional production time and approved charges.

Additional P3 Rounds and Charges

The initial P3 and the number of included review rounds are determined by the approved project specifications.

Additional P3 files required due to customer-supplied data corrections, incomplete review, newly submitted records, post-review changes, or corrections not consolidated may incur a charge starting at $25 per additional P3.

Any additional charge will be disclosed and approved before the additional billable work begins.

A customer will not be charged to correct a P3 that does not accurately reflect the information, files, instructions, or approved badge designs properly provided to the eXpress badging® Production team.

P3 Approval and Reprint Responsibility

P3 approval authorizes physical production of the records shown in the approved P3.

The approving representative must have authority to approve the organization’s production records and authorize badge production.

Reprints required because of an error visible in an approved P3, incorrect information approved by the customer, or a customer-requested change made after P3 approval will be produced at the customer’s expense.

This responsibility does not apply when the finished badges fail to conform to the approved P3, approved formal proof, or documented production specifications. Eligible production errors remain subject to the applicable eXpress badging® Reprint Guarantee.

If information changes after approval, notify eXpress badging® before production whenever possible. A change may require a corrected P3, new approval, additional production time, or an approved charge.

Protecting P3 Information

A P3 may contain photographs, identification numbers, employee or member information, and other sensitive data.

Your organization should:

• Limit access to authorized reviewers
• Use the approved secure-delivery method
• Avoid forwarding the P3 through unsecured email
• Store downloaded copies only in approved locations
• Delete or dispose of review copies according to applicable organizational privacy and records-retention requirements

Do not distribute the P3 to individuals who are not responsible for reviewing or approving the production batch.

Final P3 Approval Checklist

Before signing the final P3 approval, confirm:

• We reviewed the complete P3 at a readable magnification.
• At least two authorized and qualified individuals reviewed the P3.
• The correct production population is included.
• No records are missing or duplicated.
• Names, titles, identification numbers, expiration dates, and other visible data are correct.
• Every photograph is assigned to the correct record.
• Every required photograph is present and displays acceptably.
• Each record uses the correct badge design or badge type.
• Frontside and backside records are paired correctly.
• Long names and other variable information fit and remain readable.
• Visible barcodes, QR codes, and identification numbers contain the expected information.
• The total badge quantity is correct.
• The production and sort order are correct.
• Every requested correction appears in the final P3.
• No unanswered questions or unresolved concerns remain.
• The signer is authorized to approve production.

If any item remains uncertain, do not approve the P3. Document the concern and request confirmation or correction from eXpress badging®.