T he New Face of Graphic Engravers!

Originally a manufacturer of zinc and copper engravings, Graphic moved into the flexographicprinting plate business in the 1970s and early 1980s, molding rubber plates at a second facilityjust off the Chicago “Loop.” All of our operations were consolidated in Bensenville in 1984.

In 1985, we launched our photopolymer platemaking division, utilizing a small BASF exposureand wash-out unit. Over the years, this operation evolved in size and in importance to ourcompany. We replaced and improved our equipment to meet our customers’ requirements.Today, we are capable of producing 42" X 60" digital flexographic plates.

Graphic Engravers has started in a new direction. Now referred to as GEI, we are the samehands on, customer related company that we have been for sixty years, but we are lookingtowards the future of Flexographic printing. We strive to give our clients the best servicepossible. Staying abreast of the latest technologies available to us is our responsibility.

Enclosed in this packet is a variety of information compiled to help you get a better idea ofwhat our company is capable of. Whether you are a printing industry professional or an enduser, GEI is here to help you to make your flexographic plating experience a pleasant one.

Thank you,

The GEI Team

Welcome!

Our Prepress Department

Our current Graphic Department employs six people, withover 60 years experience, combined in the Flexographicindustry. Attention to detail is their number one priority.The Macintosh-based department is highly skilled in thelatest state of the art equipment and desktop programmingavailable, while also applying “old school” methodology tothe final pre-press output to create the most accurate, yetprinter friendly, final product.

The department is also capable of helping clients in theirpackaging design needs. From design to final plates, theproduct is handled with accuracy and attention to detail,while working within the constraints of the flexogaphicprinting industry. Our artists are skilled in complex colorcorrection of photographic images. This ability allows yourfinal package to look the best it can possibly look.

GEI enlists a number of Macintosh based programs tocreate final files for the Nexus Workflow. GEI is capable ofhandling a number of different files. Below is a listing ofcurrent programs:

Adobe Creative Suite 3Illustrator CS3 • Photoshop CS3Acrobat 8 Professional • InDesign CS3

Quark Express 7

Macromedia Freehand MX

Microsoft Office 2004Word • Excel • Powerpoint

Our Quality Control Department

GEI prides itself on the ability to provide our clients withthe most accurate final product available. Our qualitycontrol is our greatest asset. With a full time proofreadingdepartment that studies every job that goes through ourfacility, we are able to locate and correct any errors thatare made before the client even sees the first proof. Thisdepartment is also responsible for checking each jobelectronically at all proofing and plate stages to ensurethat any trapping, separation, minimum dot andregistration issues are taken care of before final plating.

FILE INTEGRITY – ARTWORK SYSTEMS NEXUS

WORKFLOWThis workflow system gives us the ability to do a true “RIPOnce, Output Many” (ROOM) scenario. Once a file is sentinto the system, it will be RIPped and trapped in a one upformat. This RIPped file can now be viewed on screen(soft proofed) or output for proofing.

The high-resolution, one-up file will not be touched unlesschanges are made. Instead, a low-resolution proxy file willbe used for step and repeat. The benefits are two fold:

File Integrity – The same proofed file will be output to theplate setter. There is no chance of elements moving orchanging from proof to plate.

Speed – We are not RIPping the same file multiple times.The system will simply apply the RIPped, high-resolutionfile to the stepped layout.

QC LABGEI has created a quality control lab to enhance the serviceswe offer to our clients. The lab has the abilty to test the“fingerpints” of presses to determine the best way toreproduce plates. Color profiling for proofing allows clients toachieve accurate results on press. The lab is also responsiblefor the research and development of any future printingprocesses. Data output is an integral part of this process.

Our Customer Approval Process

Our customers are provided with several approval optionsthroughout the prepress process. The first option is, ofcourse our PDF proof. This proof is created using theNexus workflow, allowing you to see the artwork on yourcomputer screen as it would be produced. After this initialthe client has the option to request an Epson proof, digitalcolor keys, a Kodak Approval and also a final steppedEpson proof showing how the plates will be imaged beforethe plates are made.

DIGITAL PROOFING – INKJET, COLOR KEY ANDHALFTONE DOTWith the utilization of the AWS “RIP Once, Output Many”workflow, we can all be confident in the integrity of theproofed and plated digital file. This confidence is crucial inour proposed digital environment since we are not usingfilm to make the proof and plates. The proofing and digitalplate output help to bring standardization, bulletproofintegrity and efficiency into the process. GEI isconsistently looking towards new proofing technology,and we are currently looking at obtaining the Fuji FinalProofing System to better enhance our ability to giveclients color accurate proofs.

EPSON STYLUS PRO 9600 WITH ULTRACHROME

INKS COUPLED WITH THE GMG PROFILER AND THE

MONACO PROFILERThis inkjet system will generate a full size (42”),continuous tone proof that will be profiled to match yourindividual press color gamut reproduction characteristics.

It will not re-RIP the filesthat are sent from AWSNexus, but will only applycolor management tomatch the proof to PMSand CMYK matches. GEIcurrently owns three Epson7600 and two Epson 9600Color Inkjet printers. Theseprinters provide our clientswith initial “one-up” Epsonproofs, as well as final “stepped Epsons and digital colorkeys on transparent film.

KODAK APPROVAL XP4.The Kodak Approval is a revolutionary advanced proofingdevice that makes analog proofmaking look like child’splay. This high end proofing system makes real lifepredictions, providing clients with a more precise samplingof the final package.

Separate digital color files are sent from our Nexus Serverto the Kodak computer. Second, we create recipes that

match the requiredhue of each color andfinally, the image istransferred often tothe actual substrateand laminated toproduce a replica ofthe final product.

Our Digital Plating Department

The benefits of Direct-to-Plate go beyond the print qualityimprovements you will soon recognize. Today, printersrecognize the financial advantages to running digitalplates as the most significant benefit of this technology totheir business. These include:

Quality, which approaches Rotogravure or Offset at a fractionof the cost to produce offering competitive, cost advantage.

A 30-40% reduction in print-to-proof color matching timeon press creating higher productivity, less waste and ahigher revenue generating opportunity.

Perfect Plate-to-Plate Registration due to the integrity offirst-generation digital information and the elimination offilm negatives.

Greater press latitude for more consistent printing – the“bullet” shape of the dots and thickness uniformity of theplate reduce run waste. Minor changes in impression don’tresult in major shifts in color tone. Better roll-to-roll andorder-to-order print consistencies are a result.

Elimination of the analog proof and two sets of film,substituted with CIELab color management and DigitalProofing is a much more effective and efficient press predictor.

DIGITAL PLATE OUTPUT – ESKO GRAPHICS

SPARK XT.Esko-Graphics is a leading global supplier of digitalprepress and pre-production products and services to thegraphic arts and packaging industry. The CDI Spark XTflexo imager is the premier and most productive device forflexo imaging, and specifically addresses the small andmedium volume label and folding carton flexoplatemakers and converters. Based on the FTA and GATFaward winning technology the DuPont Cyrel™ DigitalImager (CDI) surpasses all others in the industry.

This device will image Digital Photopolymer plates. Anablation of the Lams layer of the plate leaves the dot areato be exposed to UV light. The digital data that theimager uses is supplied from Nexus. This is the same datathat was used for proofing and sign-off earlier in theprocess – to ensure file integrity from proof to print.

DIGITAL PLATE PROCESSING – CYREL FASTThe Cyrel Fast is a revolutionary platemaking system thatuses dry, thermal processing to produce high qualityprinting plates. It is the world’s first solvent-free,flexographic plate processor. With the elimination ofchemical processing and drying requirements, Cyrel Fastcuts processing time by two thirds.

In the patented Cyrel Fast technology, the plate isproduced by thermal processing, completely withoutchemicals and drying times. Front end exposure andfinishing steps remain the same. Aqueous solutions,organic solvents and their handling, storage andreclamation are eliminated with this system.

Our Future/Our Vision

GEI’s vision is to build unparalleled businessrelationships with customers looking for solutionengineering along with prepress consulting anddevelopment from design to print. GEI’s point of focusis expanding from wide web, to narrow web, to enduser. We are passionate about where we are, and wherewe want to be.

At GEI our broad range of industry professionals havea mission in mind. Our mission is to use the best andmost qualified employees the industry has to offeralong with our broad range of resources to seek outand keep up with the very latest technologies so we canassess and achieve our customers needs in the mostefficient and urgent way we know how. Whether youhave cost savings or process management in mind, GEIhas the ability to service you to the highest standardswhether you are local to the Chicagoland area, or anational account. We are set up to give you the qualityservice today’s market demands, all the while knowingthe future of GEI depends on our ability to keep upwith tecnological advances in all aspects offlexographic printing.

GEI is constantly searching for and testing new andimproved proofing technology. The Fuji Final Proofingsystem, which is similar to the Kodak proofingtechnology, is currently in the testing phase, andinstallation is planned for first quarter 2008.

Another new product that GEI is currently in theprocess of installing and preparing for implementation,is the new Taskero Universe. This software produced byFujiFilm is unparalleled in the control of color profiling.This software eliminates the time, money and materialsthat are wasted on a day to day basis because of badcolor proofing. Taskero Universe is designed to providecritical, up-to-date information on every part of theprint production process. This software monitorsproofers, inkjets, CTP devices, plates, color output andcolor monitors from the prepress stage through to thepressroom while offering a method for controlling andmaintaining consistent quality throughout all phases ofthe printing process.

With the installation of new plating equipment in 2007,GEI gained the ability to produce photopolymer sleeves.The ability to produce sleeves cost effectively for ourclients is an exciting prospect. Currently, only ahandful of companies posess the technology to producethese sleeves. While actual production is still in thefuture, GEI is confident that our product will besuperior to our competition.

Finally, GEI plans to focus attention on on-siteplatemaking in 2008. Having a plate facility on-site atyour location allows us to get your plates to you fasterand more accurately than if we produce the plates atour facility in Bensenville. In some cases this couldreduce wait time for plates up to twenty-four hours.Any of our sales representatives would be happy to setup an appointment to discuss with you further theadvantages and options of placing a GEI plate facility atyour on-site location.

Frequently Asked Questions

WHY GEI?GEI is a service based company that prides itself init’s customer relations. With the expertise of all of ouremployees, we are able to provide our accounts withthe most up-to-date information available to us. If wedon’t have the answer to your questions, rest assuredwe will find it promptly.

WHAT IS A NORMAL TURNAROUND TIME?Under most circumstances, the time it takes to receiveyour first proof is three days. From there, we usuallyrequire twenty-four hours for each additional proof orfor any alterations that need to be made to theoriginal art. Once the final art is approved, you shouldexpect your finished plates to be delivered to theprinter within three days.

WHAT SERVICES DOES GEI PROVIDE?GEI is capable of providing our clients with all servicesneeded before a project prints. From initial consultation,through design, proofing and plating, GEI’s ability togive you the final product that will leave consumerswanting more. If needed, our staff will even makethemselves available for press runs to ensure our platesare producing the best possible printed product.

WHY IS THE DIGITAL WORKFLOW SO MUCH BETTER

THAN THE CONVENTIONAL PLATING PROCESS?The digital workflow allows us to “lock” in yourartwork the first time we work with it. There is nochance the artwork will change after the first proof issent to you. The “RIP Once, Output Many” theory hasallowed us to strengthen our commitment to quality.Unless there is an alteration requested from the initialproof, what you see on the first proof, is what youwill see on the final plate.

WHAT TYPE OF DESIGN SERVICES DOES GEIOFFER?

Our experienced prepress department has thecapability to design original packaging designs thatare not only highly marketable, but also printerfriendly. The prepress department is also responsiblefor inspecting and color correcting all four colorprocess images withing existing art files to achieveaccurate reproduction on press.

WHAT COMPUTER FORMAT DOES YOUR PREPRESS

DEPARTMENT USE?Our prepress department is Macintosh based. We havethe ability to work with PC based art, however, we doask that a final hard copy or PDF proof accompanythe art file to ensure that all of the art transfers intoour system properly.

HOW SHOULD I SEND ARTWORK?GEI can accept your artwork in many forms. Weaccept artwork via email, or FTP site as well as bycompact disk and DVD. We do ask that all artwork beaccompanied with either a hard copy proof or PDF.When sending files, please include all fonts andplaced images. If working in a program such as AdobeIllustrator, it is helpful that the fonts are outlinedbeforehand to ensure there are no copy issues as thefile proceeds through the prepress department.

WILL GEI CONTINUE TO PROVIDE MAGNESIUM AND

RUBBER PLATES?GEI is committed to servicing all of our current andfuture accounts. As long as we have a call formagnesium and rubber plates, GEI plans to providethat service.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact a Sales Representative.It would be a pleasure to speak with you about your Flexographic Printing needs.