Hainburg, Germany (November 29, 2005) – In an exacting evaluation of 14 digital proofing systems conducted at the University of Wuppertal, Germany, ORIS Color Tuner placed first in both measured color accuracy and visual comparison to press sheets. The tests were conducted in October under the supervision of faculty and students at the University's prestigious Department of Printing and Media Technology, using the demanding Altona test suite for both measurement-based and visual evaluations. Just another shootout? The Wuppertal tests were especially meaningful because system vendors had no direct influence on the outcome. Each vendor was asked to submit names of customers using their systems but, unlike previous competitions, did not supply color specialists or other direct assistance to achieve favorable results. Wuppertal students went to each of the sites, to supply the test files, supervise test conditions, and collect the output for expert evaluation. All test output was created under real-world production conditions and time constraints, by actual end users skilled in using their respective systems. The measurement and visual evaluations were also blind in nature. Judges were not given any indication of the 14 systems' product or manufacturer names. Results The only system to receive a “Very Good” rating from the judges was ORIS Color Tuner, using Epson 4000 output on CGS proofing media. The entry, submitted by d and d digital data repro GmbH, of Oeynhausen, Germany, was given an overall rating of 8.2 out of a possible 10 for measured accuracy. As the judges noted, “The best system is that of d and d digital data repro GmbH, with an average delta-E of 1.1” The same company was also rated first in the visual evaluation, with a score of 7.55 out of 10. Another ORIS Color Tuner system, using an Epson 7600, at Repro Schmitz Kommunikationen-Service AG in Cologne, Germany, won third place in the measured color test with a score of 7.3 out of 10. “The Wuppertal test mirrors what ORIS customers are experiencing around the world,” said Heiner Müller, CGS' sales director for Europe. “Under real-world conditions, ORIS Color Tuner is consistently the best and most cost-effective contract proofing system on the market. The objective nature of the test, and the absence of vendor-employed experts, makes it a valuable indicator of proofing performance.” The University of Wuppertal's Department of Printing and Media Technology had been the place to host the very first German Digital Proofing Forum some five years ago, including subsequent alternate-year responsibility for that event, now conducted solely at the Stuttgart Media University, Germany (HDM). Other digital proofing systems, including many that had done well in vendor-controlled events, did not perform as well as ORIS in the Wuppertal event. Possibly in light of the results, two of the participating companies declined permission to have their names published.