MALVERN, Pa.--May 1, 2006-- IKON Office Solutions, the world's largest independent channel for document management systems and services, today announced it has received a "Highly Valued Partner" award from Konica Minolta for achieving a record number of placements for the IKON CPP(TM) 500, IKON's award-winning color solution for commercial, graphic arts and corporate print environments. The IKON CPP 500 was a joint effort with Konica Minolta, building on the success of the co-branded IKON CPP 8050, and received the Better Buys for Business 2005 Editors' Choice Award. "IKON is a trusted partner and our largest independent channel for high-speed, high-quality color solutions for commercial, graphic arts and corporate print environments," said Akio Kitani, President of Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc. "IKON's aggressive placement of products such as the IKON CPP 500, coupled with its unparalleled service expertise, has enabled us to meet our mutual goal of putting affordable color at customers' fingertips while expanding the market reach of our products through IKON." The IKON CPP 500 is the latest in a series of successful IKON private-label color products and systems. In 2004, IKON partnered with Konica Minolta and EFI to launch the IKON CPP 8050 - a 50 page per minute color system - in months becoming Konica Minolta's largest independent channel for that technology. In 2005, IKON launched the IKON CPP 500, the successor to the IKON CPP 8050, and the IKON BusinessPro(TM) 500c, a color system designed to meet the demands of the office environment. These successful products were complemented by the 2005 introduction of the IKON PrintCenterPro(TM) 1050, a 105 page per minute copy, print and image system that received Buyers Laboratory Inc.'s Pick of the Year award for Outstanding Segment Six Multifunctional Imaging Systems. "IKON is committed to providing best-in-class technology and solutions for every document management need," said Cathy Lewis, senior vice president of marketing for IKON. "As the demand for color solutions grows, IKON's partnership with Konica Minolta enhances our color portfolio and provides customers with an extremely powerful digital color printing solution, helping them leverage the power of color to differentiate themselves from competitors at an affordable price." IKON's product portfolio is backed by its team of over 6,000 highly trained and tenured service professionals. IKON also represents the industry's broadest portfolio of document management services: outsourcing and professional services, on-site copy and mailroom management, fleet management, and customized workflow and imaging application development.