When managing high volumes of print orders, accuracy and speed are everything. But what happens when customer input isn’t perfect? A product name might be misspelled, abbreviated, or written differently than the master file. Traditionally, this forces teams to waste time digging through file libraries or re-keying data – slowing down production and creating room for error.
That’s where Fuzzy Matcher comes in.
What is Fuzzy Matching?
The term fuzzy matching comes from the field of computer science and natural language processing. Unlike exact matching, which only connects two items if they’re spelled identically, fuzzy matching uses algorithms to determine the closeness or similarity between words or strings of text.
This approach has long been used in search engines, spell-checkers, and data cleanup processes. By applying a “fuzziness factor,” systems can identify that “color” and “colour,” or “PosterA1” and “Poster A-1,” are likely intended to mean the same thing.
Shown: Fuzzy Matcher to look up spot colors, where the search term is “1795-C” and then finds the most optimal match to that search string: “PMS: 1795-C”.
Our Fuzzy Matcher app for Enfocus Switch builds on this principle. Its name reflects the very function it performs: bringing flexibility and intelligence to search and file matching, so that automation workflows can handle the imperfections of human input.
How Fuzzy Matcher Works in Print
Developed as part of Significans Automation’s “Works with Enfocus Switch” ecosystem, Fuzzy Matcher intelligently links user input with the correct assets inside Switch workflows.
- Flexible input recognition – Matches incomplete, misspelled, or inconsistent data to the correct record.
- Automated file retrieval – Finds and connects the right artwork or PDF, even from massive libraries.
- Smarter workflows – Reduces bottlenecks where manual intervention would normally be required.
In effect, Fuzzy Matcher acts like a bridge between how humans naturally type or label things and the precise, structured way machines need data to be.
Case Study: Work House Signs
For Work House Signs, a fast-growing sign producer handling thousands of online orders, manual searching was a daily pain point. Each order came in with product names from different storefronts, and staff had to hunt through tens of thousands of files to match artwork with jobs.
By deploying Fuzzy Matcher inside Enfocus Switch, that bottleneck disappeared. Now:
- Customer product names at checkout are automatically linked to the right PDF artwork.
- Hundreds of daily orders flow straight into production without admin delays.
- Staff time is freed up for value-adding tasks instead of repetitive searches.
The results speak volumes: a leaner order fulfilment process, fewer errors, and faster throughput.
As Significans VP of Technology, Sean Davis explains:
“Fuzzy Matcher applies AI-like logic to simulate human understanding in language processing. It ensures that users find what they’re looking for – even when they don’t express it perfectly.”
Beyond Search: Why It Matters
While the app solves an immediate search problem, the real value is bigger. By embracing intelligent, forgiving automation apps like Fuzzy Matcher, printers can:
- Eliminate error-prone manual tasks
- Improve customer experience with faster turnarounds
- Scale production without adding staff overhead
- Build smarter, more resilient digital workflows
For Significans Automation, it’s a perfect example of their guiding philosophy: customized automation is the only path forward.
From Webinar to Workflow
Following our recent Enfocus + Significans “Deep Dive” webinar, it’s clear that the demand for apps like Fuzzy Matcher is only growing. Print businesses are realizing that automation isn’t just about rules and rigid inputs – it’s about making technology adapt to the real way humans work and type.
Takeaway
The Fuzzy Matcher app may sound like a small utility, but for businesses processing hundreds or thousands of daily orders, it can mean the difference between chaos and flow. By removing friction at the point of data entry, it unlocks efficiency across the entire workflow.
Learn more and get Fuzzy Matcher on the Enfocus Appstore.
