New York, NY; December 1, 2003 – Toppan Printing Company America, a wholly owned subsidiary of $10-billion world print industry leader Toppan Printing Co. Ltd, Japan, has adopted the Remote Director SWOP-certified monitor-based contract proofing system of Integrated Color Solutions (ICS) to support its move to an all-digital workflow and cut job turnaround time for top-shelf fashion, art and other color-critical clients including Avon Products, Merck, Merrill Lynch and Sotheby’s.  Headquartered in New York City, Toppan Printing Company America operates a modern, 210,000 square-foot plant in Somerset, NJ, where it employs 175 people and operates around the clock six days a week. Totally devoted to the quality of its people and plant in satisfying customer demand, Toppan is one of only three U.S. printers that have received dual certification for ISO 9002 Quality Control and ISO 14001 Environmental Systems. “With the rise of the Internet and digital workflow initiatives that now include order entry, job tracking and web-to-print solutions, our client base has expanded beyond our traditional 200-mile radius to locations around the country and internationally. Although electronic file delivery today is a snap, the slow turnaround time and difficulty in collaborating with distant clients on proofs became a real problem. We needed an innovative proofing solution that provided fast turnaround and allowed us to collaborate, while maintaining our stringent standards for high-end color quality, ” said Al Starzyk, Senior Vice President of Sales, Toppan Printing Company America. “Remote Director is the only soft proofing system that meets our high expectations for consistent, quality color whether we run to SWOP, GRACoL or any other requirement. That, plus its low up-front investment, easy installation, the freedom to conduct proofing sessions through a direct link without web hosting and the ability to match to paper proofs if we need it made Remote Director the easy choice,” Starzyk added.  Jeffrey Silverman, President of ICS commented, “We couldn’t be more pleased that Toppan chose the Remote Director system as the best, long-term approach to support their vision of an all-digital workflow. The Remote Director system fits perfectly with Toppan’s dedication to color quality and customer service by giving Toppan and their global customers monitor-based contract proofing that’s easy to implement and use.” Remote Director is the first SWOP-certified, monitor-based contract proofing system that applies advanced color management to verify the accuracy of every monitor and every proof.  Running on commercially available hardware, Remote Director Software allows multiple reviewers in dispersed locations to view, collaborate and comment on color as well as content and build a digital record of the proofing process from start to finish including final legal sign-off. Reviewers can collaborate in real-time or work at their own convenience, allowing photographers, agencies, clients, prepress shops and printers to communicate more effectively while accomplishing in hours what used to take days.   Uniquely supporting both RGB and CMYK workflows, this flexible proofing system can be used for proofing content, imposition, critical color and predicting press results, as well as for the final contract proof. Downloadable via the Internet, the software is easy to install, easy to use, and integrates into any proofing workflow.  For these achievements, ICS won the 2003 GATF InterTech Award for Innovative Excellence and most recently a Must See íems award at Graph Expo 2003. Toppan Printing Company America joins a growing list of companies converting to color-accurate, monitor-based contract proofing using the Remote Director system. These include TV Guide magazine, prepress provider C-t-PLUS, and other leading prepress firms, commercial printers, catalog firms and publishers.