X-Rite Pantone, Sun Chemical, and CMA Imaging has announced the commercial availability of the CanJET digital proofing ecosystem for North America.

Designed for beverage brands, can makers, and packaging converters, the connected workflow brings measurable colour and opacity matching to actual cans, offering a faster, more flexible alternative to conventional pilot-line proofing and prototyping. The solution helps packaging teams reduce iterations and accelerate design approvals before production begins. 

Recognised with the Bronze Innovation Award at METPACK 2026, the CanJET workflow brings together CMA Imaging’s CanJET printing system, Sun Chemical extended colour gamut inks, PantoneLIVE digital colour references, and X-Rite measurement technology.

“On metal, matching a colour also means matching its opacity, because the reflective surface contributes to the final appearance,” said Gerardo Cerros, Founder and CEO of CMA Imaging. “By bringing together our patented reflective technology and AI-powered colour matching with PantoneLIVE, X-Rite colour measurement and Sun Chemical’s ink expertise, CanJET transforms a traditionally complex, equipment-intensive proofing process into a connected digital workflow. Brands can measure, refine, and validate both colour and opacity directly on the can against shared digital targets, reducing repeated sampling and enabling faster, more confident design decisions.”

“We use the CanJET digital proofing workflow because we need accurate proofs and flexibility in color development. It allows us to explore new color references with brands and assess Pantone colors directly on metal cans, making colour research part of the design and printability conversation,” said Renaud van Cauter, Operations Director, KCP Connexion (KCP), a global packaging design and premedia company headquartered in Belgium.

Connecting Color from Target to Approval

PantoneLIVE metal decoration libraries provide more than 4,000 achievable colour options across metal packaging formats and finishes, giving brands and their supply chain partners objective digital targets for colour development. Using spectral data captured with the X-Rite Ci64 handheld spectrophotometer, Colorportal’s cloud-based platform enables remote proofing and uses AI-powered colour matching to optimise colour and opacity against PantoneLIVE references or customers’ own brand colour libraries. CanJET then combines high-resolution direct-to-can printing with Sun Chemical extended colour gamut inks to produce proofs and prototypes directly on open, closed, and necked cans. Packaging teams can assess appearance on the actual can before it goes into production, supporting faster, more confident approvals.

Powered by Sun Chemical inks and colour expertise, CanJET forms part of Sun Chemical’s SunDigiProof service within SunColorBox, its integrated colour management toolkit. SunDigiProof enables colour-accurate inkjet swatches and mock-ups to be printed onsite and on demand, allowing brands and supply chain partners to explore colour and design options and verify achievability. 

“PantoneLIVE provides a shared digital colour target based on what can realistically be achieved in metal decoration,” said Jason Campbell, Product Manager, X-Rite Pantone. “When paired with spectral measurement and direct-to-can proofing, it helps align design intent with production expectations.”

“As part of our SunDigiProof service, CanJET helps packaging producers reduce trial work, improve control over colour approval and protect their customers’ brand equity,” said Richard Hayden, Sales and Business Development Manager, Sun Chemical.