BEDFORD, MA, April 12, 2005 — Grey Healthcare Group (GHG) ranks near the top among the world's largest healthcare communications companies. AstraZeneca, Aventis/P&G, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis and Pfizer are just a few of the pharmaceutical industry giants on GHG's client roster. GHG's creative teams produce award-winning advertising and promotion graphics for these and other clients in its extensive studio facility on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue. Their work covers a wide spectrum of communication materials from brochures and magazine ads to exhibit panels and posters for medical conventions. While GHG is responsible for all of the creative work, the files prepared for each job are, in most cases actually turned over to their pharmaceutical clients for printing production. Because the work leaves their hands for production elsewhere, GHG's creative staff places a tremendously high priority on the accuracy of the proofs that it sends along with the files. "We're not always sure what paper stock or line screens our clients are planning to use for their final product," says Jodi Sholinsky, Manager of GHG's Retouching Department. "So we must provide an accurate and consistent proof that gives our clients the best possible representation of what we want the final color to look like, so they can match it as closely as possible." GHG had been using traditional analog and inkjet proofing systems, but was seldom happy with the results. Inaccuracy and inconsistency were constant problems, she says. "I would get a proof one day that would look one way, and the color on the same proof the next day would look entirely different because the vendor's system was out of calibration. It constantly caused a significant waste of time and money." Early last year, the printer of one of GHG's biggest clients came to the agency with a new job specification. They wanted GHG to provide Latran Prediction digital halftone proofs with each job to assure a match with their Prediction proofing system. To comply with the new spec, GHG found an outside vendor to provide the Prediction proofs. GHG quickly concluded that a Prediction system delivers far more than accurate digital proofs. It was a breakthrough proofing solution that could provide important time and cost savings for all of the proofing work handled by the studio. Working with A.I. Friedman Co., one of New York's leading graphics suppliers, a Prediction system was installed in the GHG Proofing Department. "The day the Prediction arrived, we calibrated it and were using it for live jobs that same day," Sholinsky says. "And the calibration holds. Not having to constantly re-calibrate the system is a major advantage for us. That was a big selling point for the system, and it has performed exactly the way Latran said it would. The consistency and repeatability are fabulous." "For me, it's also a timing issue," she adds. "Being able to do the high-res work, retouching, color correcting, and having a Prediction proof within 20 minutes after I'm done with a job to see the results right then and there is tremendously valuable to us. I no longer send out jobs, then wait until they return from vendors to see my results. And, of course, there are no rush charges for in-house proofs." Sholinsky says her Prediction unit is also helping GHG save costs in other ways as well. She positions many different images on a single 13x19” proof sheet. As in most advertising environments, the pressure for fast job turnarounds is extremely intense. Having cost-effective, high-quality proofs to work with whenever they're needed at every step of the production process provides GHG with unprecedented flexibility and control of both production time and costs. During a busy week, the Retouching Department may run as many as 30 to 40 proofs on the Prediction system, and Sholinsky makes it clear that it has the capacity to easily handle a lot more work if necessary. She says that with few exceptions, proofing is now done in house. Sholinsky notes that the accuracy of Prediction digital proofs is remarkable. "With its actual halftone dot, we see every color, every gradation. It’s a tremendous tool to work with in the retouching process. And our art directors are very happy with the results." Two different sets of Prediction CMYK ink sheets are being used to obtain the highly accurate color results of their proofs. Latran's SWOP ink sets are used to proof jobs that will be run by commercial printers. For magazine ad proofs, GHG uses Latran's publication ink set and proofs directly on Fortune Gloss publication stock. Just about everyone in GHG's Retouching Department - retouchers, production people and the production manager - can operate the Prediction system. It is a high-quality proofing resource available on demand for the entire department. Latran's training and support of the Prediction system also received high marks from Sholinsky. "From the sales rep to the toll-free tech support people, they're always available and knowledgeable," she says. "Latran is one of the best companies I've ever worked with in terms of customer service. It's a great product with great support." Prediction 1420 incorporates the advanced technology of Latran's entire family of digital halftone proofing systems, producing real dots, and using real inks on real substrates to produce high-resolution proofs that match actual press sheets with unparalleled accuracy. Proofing directly to press stock, the system keeps halftone dots extremely crisp. The result is controllable dot gain, high repeatability and the ability to proof both standard and stochastic screening from a variety of screening technologies. Pigment-based ink sheets provide stable and accurate hue, color gamut and fidelity. The system offers the widest range of industry standard based ink sets for an accurate press match and faster make-ready. Prediction also renders true color directly on the final printing stock, removing the variability of stock color. With its 2540 or 2400 dpi resolution, Prediction matches the output quality of leading platemaking systems, providing an excellent match between proof and press.