MELBOURNE, Australia--May 26, 2005-- Quickcut LLC, the leading international provider of digital advertising workflow solutions, together with EFI, the world leader in digital imaging and print management solutions, announce AssureProof(TM), a simple and efficient approach to provide a hardcopy proofing workflow that can be verified against publisher specifications throughout the production process. AssureProof, the first result of the companies' newly formed strategic relationship, is a hardcopy proofing and verification system. The solution allows content creators at advertising and design firms to generate a hard copy proof of an ad that is verified against all the specifications of the destination publication, from physical dimensions to specific ICC color profiles. Proofs generated by the AssureProof workflow contain measurement values written to a JDF file that are fed back into a fully validated and automated workflow all the way to print. Once a proof has been verified, agency personnel, publishers and printers at any location with an Internet connection can use AssureProof software to generate the color-validated hard copy proof, thereby closing the production loop. "AssureProof is unlike any other proofing solution available today," said Quickcut Chairman Grant Blanchard. "As part of a Quickcut workflow, a proof generated by the AssureProof solution on any supported and properly calibrated ink jet printer is verified to conform to the mechanical and color specifications for a specific ad in a specific publication produced anywhere in the world." "AssureProof marks the first time that a hard copy proof can be verified as conforming to the specifications of the destination publication," said Ghilad Dziesietnik, chief technology officer, EFI. "Proof information is carried in a JDF job ticket all the way through to print, enabling customers to drastically improve quality in ink jet proofing - and quality assurance is a remote proofing prerequisite." In an AssureProof workflow, the content creator uses Quickcut's QuickPrint software with Adobe InDesign or QuarkXPress to design an ad for a specific publication guided automatically by that publisher's mechanical requirements and the correct color profile, which AssureProof uses to enforce proper color management throughout the process. When the completed ad is ready to be proofed, the QuickPrint software automatically checks the layout document to the selected publisher specifications -- verifying size, color, fonts, resolution, ink weight, and CMYK separations. Accepting the job for proofing automatically triggers Quickcut's Q-Automate software to create and send a PDF/X file with the publisher's color profiling to EFI Colorproof(TM) XF software for proofing without any additional RIP set-up. A color bar printed on the hardcopy proof is measured using EFI Color Verifier(TM) software, and its accuracy verified using a spectrophotometer. If the printer is properly calibrated and the colors accurate against the specified profile information, AssureProof automatically verifies the proof, writes the measurement values into a JDF file that is sent back into the Quickcut workflow, and records the verification status into a PDF/X file that it sends to the QuickPrint database. Upon downloading the file, the verification status and the measurement values are shown automatically in the Quickcut PageStore software interface. A verified color-accurate proof can then be generated on a supported device at any remote site, giving agency users the flexibility to generate hardcopy proofs for client approval or agency reference, and providing publishers with an added level of quality assurance to support digital ad delivery while eliminating the need for advertisers to send a hard-copy proof with the file. Because the AssureProof hardcopy proofing solution employs field-proven software from Quickcut for workflow and EFI Colorproof XF for the RIP, users of either company's products can easily implement it through a simple software upgrade. In addition, the AssureProof workflow supports more than 30 ink-jet printers from Canon, Epson and HP, including the popular Canon W2200 and 8200, Epson Stylus 4000, and HP DesignJet 30 and 130 series. The printers compatible with the AssureProof workflow have been chosen for their ability to cover the color gamut required to simulate print output by a wide range of printing presses, and users may already own a supported printer, further easing the transition to AssureProof color-verified remote proofing. The AssureProof verified hardcopy remote proofing solution will be available through Quickcut direct sales and through the international EFI reseller network. AssureProof is being unveiled for an exclusive preview at PacPrint 2005, allowing visitors to Quickcut on stand 1747 or to DES/EFI on stands 939/940 to see the system demonstrated.