Düsseldorf (Germany), May 29, 2008 - Alwan Color Expertise, a world leader in color management and standardization software, will present the latest innovations in their line of color management solutions for the desktop environment. A new series of ICC color management software will be unveiled at the drupa innovation park, Hall 7/7.0C.

The new ICC color management software builds on the success of the Alwan CMYK Optimizer servers, now installed on over 400 printers worldwide. Alwan Color Expertise has a firm commitment to making color management affordable to all market segments via the use of its ICC device and Dynamic DeviceLink profiles.  This approach will enable small, medium and large sized companies to find creative solutions that deliver the best "value for money".

Elie Khoury, President of Alwan Color Expertise, comments: "ICC Color Management still generates a lot of confusion in the industry, a misconception that is maintained and amplified by some proprietary systems vendors. Users are often convinced ICC color management is inefficient, inappropriate for print workflows and unable to preserve black text and images or any primary ink purity.  As an ICC member and strong advocate and supplier of standardized color management solutions, Alwan will continue to further develop ICC profile-based solutions that address the needs of the graphic arts industry. Drupa represents the perfect opportunity for our company to show 'real life' samples to potential customers, enabling them to assess the results from real applications."

Bringing affordable color management tools to the desktop environment

Adobe Photoshop plug-ins

Alwan will launch two new Adobe Photoshop plug-ins at drupa. Version v2.0 enables Adobe Photoshop CS3 users to apply ICC DeviceLink Profiles within Photoshop for print-oriented workflows. The new plug-ins sophisticated functionality reflects Alwan's expertise in high-end color management, enabling non-color experts to easily and effectively benefit from advanced features such as the calculation of individual inks and the total ink consumption to print an image.

Alwan Color Processor

The Alwan Color Processor sets itself apart as the most powerful and cost-effective color management solution available on the market today. This hot folder-based application is a new server-based solution using standard ICC profiles.  Users gain the capability to automate the application of an ICC Device and DeviceLink Profiles in color management workflows – with virtually no limits. The result is exceptionally accurate and efficient optimization and management of images and PDF files for digital and analog printing applications.

The Alwan Color Processor comes complete with a predefined set of Device and DeviceLink profiles, ensuring that non-color experts can easily reap the advantages of Alwan's technical expertise.

Alwan Color Processor and LinkProfiler – Alwan's award-winning DeviceLink Profiles builder- are available as a combined package at a bundle price.

CMYK Optimizer 3.5

During drupa, Alwan Color Expertise will present its full range of world leading CMYK Optimizer software, emphasizing the unique benefits and technical innovations that distinguish Alwan's software solutions. Product demonstrations will highlight technical strengths, such as preflight features, problem-free printing of documents and advertisements, dynamic analysis and calculation of optimal total area coverage (TAC) of ink, Dynamic DeviceLink profiles building and XML reporting.

Alwan's standardization and optimization software for color separation of PDF files will be updated to version 3.5. The new user-friendly interface feature allows non-expert users around the world to automatically define the correct color settings in order to produce ISO compliant and colorimetrical accurate PDF/X files.  New optimization capabilities in its Adobe PDF embedded library generate increases of up to ten times in software speed, depending on the file content.

Alwan Color Expertise will also update its four CMYK Optimizer packages. These different editions are adapted to address the different color management and standardization needs of each segment of the graphic arts industry. Alwan has repositioned its CMYK Optimizer product range in terms of product naming and pricing. The company now serves the color management and standardization needs of all market segments from small to large companies and offers the best 'value for money' solutions in the industry.

Patrick Van Dam, Worldwide Marketing and Sales Director, states: "The strategy of Alwan is to become a major player in all market segments and to offer the best product for each profession at the lowest possible price.  Simultaneously with the new pricing, we will also facilitate set-up with the support of pre-defined settings included in the installation procedure.  Even for non-experts, the product will be much easier to use."

The CMYK Optimizer product range consists of:

CMYK Optimizer Photo is specifically aimed at photographers and small agencies. It delivers images according to specific color standards and optimizes RGB and CMYK images for output on CMYK devices. Immediately available and priced at Euro 1.990.

CMYK Optimizer Prepress is the first pre-flight standardization and optimization software for color separation files. Producing quick and accurate high-quality four-color separation files for a wide range of publications, it is the ideal solution for preparing files for publishers, agencies and small sheet-fed printers.  This solution has immediate availability and is priced at Euro 5.990.

CMYK Optimizer Press is ideally suited for small to medium sized printers who require custom GCR and increased automation to optimize their files for printing processes. It is immediately available and priced at Euro 9.990.

CMYK Optimizer ECO answers the needs of large offset and gravure printers. It comes equipped with Dynamic Black generation that delivers substantial ink, paper and energy waste savings.

All versions will enable users to implement color management of their files using state-of-the-art ICC Device and Device Link profiles.

About Alwan Color Expertise

Alwan Color Expertise was founded in Lyon, France, in 1997 by the current President Elie Khoury and his vision - to demonstrate how important standardizing and controlling color throughout every stage of production are - has resulted in the company becoming a world leader in standardization and color management implementation.  Today, Alwan provides software and consultancy to key players throughout the graphic arts industry, from printers to publishers and from software developers to hardware manufacturers.  Alwan Color Expertise offers a choice of four full-featured software solutions within the Alwan CMYK Optimizer product family. Each delivers specialized capabilities that enable all partners along the graphic production line to guarantee the color accuracy of their work, while ensuring optimum production further down the line. The different editions of Alwan CMYK Optimizer can seamlessly communicate with each other enabling photographers, publishers and printers to work using the same standards very securely.

Alwan Color Expertise has appointed specialist distributors for each of the targeted market segments. An ever-growing number of leading pre-press manufacturers are either bundling Alwan software with their products or recommending it with their systems, such as Dalim, EskoArtwork, PerfectProof and Compose Systems.

Visit www.alwancolor.com for info.