-- Powerful Network Preprint Production Solution Specifically Designed to Bring Maximum Efficiency to Printing Operations -- NEWTON, MA - October 29, 2002 - Shira Computers, Ltd., a creator of automated preprint production and workflow management solutions for the worldwide prepress, printing and publishing markets today announced the unveiling of XPRESSI(tm), a powerful network preprint production and management solution for both Raster and PDF workflows. Visitors to Graph Expo saw a demonstration of XPRESSI in booth 4861. "XPRESSI will help the industry leverage existing infrastructure investments and other technologies such as the Internet and broadband," said Scott Champeau, Shira Vice President of Marketing and Product Management. "Shira prides itself on being able to help customers and partners make the most of their production challenges and business opportunities. XPRESSI is device independent and is designed to plug into existing configurations for easy scalability" Straight out of the box XPRESSI provides a powerful solution in configurations that support both CEPS raster and PDF workflows. As a network-based system, XPRESSI easily and swiftly moves jobs through a virtual production environment. XPRESSI Highlights: -- Innovative, Automated, Collaborative Workflow: XPRESSI empowers prepress and print production teams while enhancing efficiency to digital workflows. Creators and originators submit jobs, monitor progress, and approve jobs over the network. System administrators set the secure access permissions by client, workgroup, and jobs. Predefined authorization ensures that jobs move quickly and accurately through the system. -- Streamlined Anytime, Anywhere, "Virtual Workflow Environment" (makes Prepress Anywhere(tm) a reality): XPRESSI can be accessed locally or over the network. XPRESSI provides powerful management capabilities of user and group privileges, job submission and flow definitions, job ticket template creation and delivers any industry standard prepress output file format to any networked device or destination. -- Easily plugs into existing configurations and workflows (device independent design): At the core of Shira's XPRESSI technology the system utilizes native PDF and/or Raster files. The files are processed in a totally output device independent manner. Housed in XPRESSI are an array of versatile automated engines and modules including; Job Submission, Job Ticket, Template, Preflight, RIP, Trap, Normalize, CEPS2PS, CEPS2PDF, Imposition, remote Soft Proofing, OPI Resampler, OPI Resolve, and Job Download.. XPRESSI accepts virtually any standardized file format, including Postscript L2 & PS3, EPS, TIFF, JPEG, G4, Native Photoshop, PDF 1.3 & 1.4, PDF/X-1a, TIFF/IT, CTHS & LWHS, Native CT&LW, NCT & NLW, DCS1 and DCS2 and delivers ready to image, predictable data. -- LightsOut(tm) Workflow: Delivers exceptional control, hands-off processing, and feedback for every job XPRESSI offers an automated lights-out workflow that is comprised of various essential building blocks: Network job submission, automation and management, powerful Preprint workflow engines including preflight, file conversion RIP, CEPS2PS, CEPS2PDF, trapping, normalizing, proofing and true page independent imposition. XPRESSI outputs to any device at any remote destination - regardless of manufacturer. All the while XPRESSI tracks job information for reporting needs. -- Easy Scalability for Maximum Efficiency (ensures control for capacity today and in the future): With XPRESSI the user decides how much power to put behind the solution. Users supply the server hardware based on their individual requirements. XPRESSI will run multiple processing queues and keeping in sync with XPRESSI's scalability, users have the option to increase queues as needed. XPRESSI can be scaled by software application and by hardware. As customers grow, XPRESSI Power Servers can be integrated to help control process bottlenecks in key production areas like preflight, RIP and Trap. XPRESSI Availability and Pricing: XPRESSI is available immediately from Shira. Pricing varies depending on configuration.