Houston, TX and Itasca, IL, July 10, 2008 - Consolidated Graphics Inc., one of the largest North American general commercial printing companies, has purchased three Xeikon 6000 1200 dpi digital color presses. With annual revenues of $1.2 billion, Consolidated Graphics has 70 printing businesses in the United States and Canada, as well as a facility in Europe, and is a renowned leader in the use of digital printing technology. The unique combination of uncompromising quality (1200 dpi at 4 bits/spot), size capabilities, speed, and productivity offered by the Xeikon 6000 made it the obvious choice.

The company took its first Xeikon 6000 press into production in June of last year. The plan is to upgrade this press to 1200 dpi as well, to bring it to the same level. The three additional presses will be used to print high-quality dust jackets for photo books and will provide the high-quality capacity required to meet the sharp increase in demand for the company's already significant photo book printing application.

"The unique capabilities of the Xeikon presses in general, and the Xeikon 6000 in particular, are key enablers for the development of even better and more sophisticated applications and profitable business opportunities," says Joe R. Davis, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Consolidated Graphics.

"This deal is another important step in our strategic relationship," says Bram Bourgeois, President and CEO of Punch Graphix Americas, "We are delighted that a company of this caliber has chosen to continue using our technology. Business is clearly booming for them and we in turn can provide new, advanced technologies to support their growth. Their choice is an excellent endorsement of our benchmark print capabilities. I look forward to a long and fruitful relationship as both our companies continue to flourish."

Consolidated Graphics' sophisticated application requires a sophisticated solution. Being web-fed and with an imaging width of up to 19.7 inches and virtually unlimited image lengths, the Xeikon 6000 offers exactly the size and format capabilities Consolidated Graphics is looking for. The Xeikon 6000 is not only fast (39 feet per minute/170 letter-size pages per minute), with an uptime of 80%, it is extremely robust and reliable, and therefore ideally suited to support Consolidated Graphics' growth.

As important as format flexibility and productivity, is the consistently superior print quality achieved by the Xeikon 6000. The engine is now equipped with a 1200 dpi imaging head, which was initially developed for the Xeikon 8000. This revolutionary, high-precision LED-based imaging head combines true 1200 dpi resolution and 1200 x 3600 dpi addressability with variable dot density. The unique combination of high resolution, high addressability, and multi-bit depth results in the finest commercial print quality with exceptionally sharp and crisp details, superior definition, and smooth tone transitions. Given the application, it is obvious why image quality is paramount.

The photo book application also imposes stringent requirements on color management; the inside pages being printed on different presses. The Xeikon 6000 comes with the latest generation of Xeikon's unique X-800 digital front-end, and has exactly what it takes to meet these requirements. Based on open standards, the X-800 enables the implementation of flexible and fully automated workflows in any production environment while its scalability makes it the benchmark for high-end variable data production and allows it to grow with a company's future needs. More important still, the X-800 offers ICC color management, supporting CMYK as well as RGB workflows, and allows post-RIP color adjustment, minimizing downtime while offering great flexibility, ensuring a perfect match between the images on the dust jacket and the ones inside the photo book.

Finally, another essential requirement imposed by Consolidated Graphics' specific application, is being able to guarantee quality and color consistency regardless of where a dust jacket is printed, as the new Xeikon 6000 presses will be installed at different production plants. With two in-line densitometers and high-performance process algorithms, providing uniform and accurate colors and perfect color registration, the Xeikon 6000 guarantees absolute color consistency, not only from job to job, but also from press to press.

In brief, the Xeikon 6000 offers:
•    Resolution: 1200 dpi @ 4 bits/spot - addressability: 1200 x 3600 dpi
•    Screening: powerful Pericles screening library
•    Top speed: 170 letter-size ppm - duty cycle: 5 million pages per month
•    One-Pass-Duplex printing for perfect front-to-back registration and data integrity
•    Scalable substrate width up to 20 inches, substrate weight up to 350 gsm (122 lb cover), and image width up to  
19.7 inches
•    Xeikon FA toner for cost-effective, Pantone certified, high-quality printing
•    5th color stations for spot colors and security toner
•    Powerful digital front-end X-800
•    Optional IPDS Controller for high-performance transactional and transpromo printing
•    Roll-to-roll or roll-to-cut sheet configuration.