IDEAlliance, the leading certifier of skills, systems, materials, and facilities in media production, has affirmed that CMA Imaging's Contract Proofing System, built for Epson 4900, 7900, and 9900 models and available immediately, is the first to be certified to GRACoL 2013 with M1 Measurement in the IDEAlliance Proofing System Certification Program. The M series of measurement illumination conditions, defined by the ISO and CGATS, allows color management of Optical Brightening Agents used in substrates to be refined to an unprecedented degree.

"Having been tested to GRACoL 2013 and M1 specifications, as established by the IDEAlliance Print Properties & Colorimetric Committee and tested by the Printing Applications Laboratory at RIT, the CMA Imaging Proofing System was awarded IDEAlliance Proofing Certification. Congratulations to Gerardo Cerros and his colleagues at CMA Imaging," says David Steinhardt, President and CEO of IDEAlliance.

"We are grateful to the hard-working people at IDEAlliance and RIT. They care about quality, and getting the job done correctly. No one watches the clock. It's a labor of love; a passion that we at CMA Imaging recognize. We are proud to be the first to be awarded Proofing System Certification to GRACoL 2013, and are eager to share the positive outcome with our customers around the world," Cerros, CMA Imaging Chief Technology Officer, says.

The CMA Proofing System, comprised of the company's CMA ColorPortal RIP software and CMA Contract proofing substrates, is available immediately via xpedx, LLC, a Veritiv Company.

"Compensating for the Optical Brightness of the proofing substrate is essential to achieving accurate color matching suitable for the critical and often stressful proofing stage, when all eyes are on the brand owner, and his or her eyes are on you," says Cerros, who explains that while the Optical Brightening Agents (OBAs) have been added to improve papers' brightness and the appearance of the printed product, the OBAs make color management difficult because they cause color perception differences when prints are viewed under different light sources, and especially when some of these sources contain UV.

Steinhardt concurs, saying, "M1 opens the door to a new way of measuring. Previously, color management did not work well with optically brightened substrates. M1 gives us the promise of proofing and press-matching with brightened stocks." "Now premedia, agencies, and printers can be sure that proofs shown in any conditions will match. It's a first!" Cerros exclaims.