ANN ARBOR, MI – August 31, 2005 – Flint Ink Corporation, the world's largest privately-owned ink manufacturer, has released a powerful new interactive training tool to help offset printing customers use the most effective procedures to achieve and maintain ink/water balance, thereby improving productivity, reducing downtime, and cutting waste. Ink/water balance issues are known to contribute to 80% of the press run problems encountered by offset printers. Written and produced by Flint Ink's team of experts in the field, the exclusive CD is titled "Mastering Ink/Water Balance." The content includes an explanation of the importance of ink/water balance to achieving quality in printing, and covers the full spectrum of ink/water issues, including plates, dampening systems, fountain solutions, blankets, tinting and toning, and color balance. The PC and Mac-compatible CD also includes a PDF file of Flint Ink's comprehensive Troubleshooting Guides that can be referenced quickly onscreen or printed out for later use. "Our new CD provides customers with a unique, valuable tool for both training and troubleshooting," said Kathy Marx, vice president and chief marketing officer of Flint Ink. "It reflects our strong commitment to supporting Flint Ink customers by sharing our expert knowledge to help their production operations consistently achieve the best possible results with optimum efficiency." The CD is designed with flexibility that allows the information to be used as a full, continuous presentation for groups or as a user-friendly, play-and-pause training course for individuals. In either mode, the tool can be used for basic training applications to significantly reduce the learning curve for new employees or as a quick refresher course for experienced press operators. Illustrated with high impact animation, photographs, and videos, "Mastering Ink/Water Balance" presents vital points in an easy-to-understand and entertaining format that lets viewers quickly grasp and retain the information. A quiz segment follows the instructional portion of the CD to test the trainees' knowledge of the material they have covered. The program automatically prints out a "Certificate of Completion" for trainees who score well. For those who do not, the program indicates which material needs review. To aid in classroom presentations, the CD includes a Summary Sheet that outlines the full content, and a Question-and-Answer Printout for trainees who want to take the test from a hard copy or facilitators who want to review answers. For its international customers, Flint Ink is producing a multi-language version of the CD, with the visual and aural information in Spanish, Portuguese, and German, as well as English. Attendees at Print 05 can preview the "Mastering Ink/Water Balance" CD at the Flint Ink booth (#857). Flint Ink customers can request copies of the CD by contacting their Flint Ink representatives.