How to add printer compatible cut lines to professional artwork

Roland DG is a well-known manufacturer of printers and cutting machines that are widely used in the printing and sign-making industries. To produce high-quality printed and cut graphics, it’s important to define the cut line and perf cut line using specific spot colours that are recognised by our Roland machines. In this guide, we’ll show you how to add a cut contour and a perf cut line using Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign, with spot colours defined by Roland DG.

Adding a Cut Contour in Adobe Illustrator

To add a cut contour in Adobe Illustrator using the spot color defined by Roland DG, follow these steps:

  1. Open your artwork in Adobe Illustrator and create a new layer for the cut contour.
  2. Go to Window > Swatches to open the Swatches panel.
  3. Click on the New Swatch icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel.
  4. In the New Swatch dialog box, set the Color Type to Spot and enter “CutContour” as the name.
  5. In the Color Mode dropdown, select the appropriate color model for your project. For example, if you’re working with a Roland DG printer/cutter that uses CMYK colors, select CMYK Color.
  6. Enter the specific values for the CutContour color as provided by Roland DG. The values may vary depending on the machine and material you’re using.
  7. Click OK to create the CutContour swatch.
  8. Draw your cut contour line on the newly created layer using the Pen tool. Be sure to set the stroke color to the CutContour swatch you just created.
  9. Once you’ve drawn the cut contour, you can group it with your artwork by selecting both objects and pressing Command+G (Mac) or Ctrl+G (Windows).
  10. Save your file in a format compatible , such as PDF or AI.

Adding a Perf Cut Line in Adobe Illustrator

To add a perf cut line in Adobe Illustrator using the spot color defined by Roland DG, follow these steps:

  1. Create a new layer for the perf cut line.
  2. Go to Window > Swatches to open the Swatches panel.
  3. Click on the New Swatch icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel.
  4. In the New Swatch dialog box, set the Color Type to Spot and enter “PerfCutContour” as the name.
  5. In the Color Mode dropdown, select the appropriate color model for your project.
  6. Enter the specific values for the PerfCutContour color as provided by Roland DG.
  7. Click OK to create the PerfCutContour swatch.
  8. Draw your perf cut line using the Line Segment tool. Be sure to set the stroke color to the PerfCutContour swatch you just created.
  9. Once you’ve drawn the perf cut line, you can group it with your artwork by selecting both objects and pressing Command+G (Mac) or Ctrl+G (Windows).
  10. Save your file in a format compatible with your Roland DG machine.

Adding a Cut Contour in Adobe InDesign

To add a cut contour in Adobe InDesign using the spot color defined by Roland DG, follow these steps:

  1. Open your artwork in Adobe InDesign and create a new layer for the cut contour.
  2. Go to Window > Color > Swatches to open the Swatches panel.
  3. Click on the New Swatch icon at the bottom of the Swatches panel.
  4. In the New Swatch dialog box, set the Color Type to Spot and enter “CutContour