Masterpiece Graphix

More and more digital printers come to MGX for security solutions that will print on their digital press. To respond to this growing demand, MGX currently stocks RIT-certified DeterX® Gray “Copy” Security Paper (R1419 as rolls, MGX-1303 as sheets),  a commodity security solution for the HP Indigo. This unique paper is HP Indigo-certified for the WS6000, WS4050, 5000, 5500, and WS45000. This material exhibits a gray/blue pattern that reads “COPY” when duplicated and is perfect for many security applications like checks, coupons, gift certificates, rebates, event tickets and other secure document application. This material can be shipped the same day once ordered, since it is stocked as sheets or in rolls in the MGX warehouse.

In today’s growing marketplace, many digital press users demand a unique, custom security option tailored to their application. Thanks to Masterpiece Graphix’s partnership with Document Security Systems (DSS), MGX can offer a multitude of digital security paper options. With all of the available constructions, you are surely able to find a security paper solution that best fits with your product.

While MGX stocks our 60# Gray “Void” DeterX paper, many other custom constructions are available to fit your needs.  The DeterX technology (a hidden message revealed when the printed piece is scanned or copied) can be applied to a variety of substrates, including papers, board stocks, and plastics.  These hidden message pantographs can come in an assortment of colors, such as blue, red, yellow, and green, and the wording on the pantograph can be designed with a variety of standard messages, such as “void” or  “copy”.  We can even work with you to create a custom message or embed an end user’s logo!

Besides MGX’s stocked gray “copy” DeterX®, MGX in conjunction with DSS offers several other options for the DeterX® stock. DeterX® is a warning paper that contains hidden messages that are revealed once copied or scanned, making the difference between the original image and its copy unmistakable. MGX stocks the paper in a gray “copy: pattern, but the same stock is also available as a custom product in blue, red, yellow, and green. In addition, other messages can be embedded into the copy such as “void” or “unauthorized copy”.

Digital press users who desire a more covert security paper may prefer the DeterX® basket weave option. This paper disguises the hidden message with a complex basketweave pattern that is also pleasing to the eye. The basketweave pattern is available in gray, blue, green, red, and yellow. In addition, this paper stock has the option of adding a custom message to your stock, creating a proprietary digital security stock tailored to your specific application.

Blackout technology can give your secure document an extra layer of protection from unauthorized use. ObsureX is another MGX digital-ready stock available from DSS as a custom product. This gray stock is available with your choice of three hidden messages. What makes this digital security stock unique is its block-out pattern: copies on many high-end color copiers will show up severely distorted or even blacked out and unreadable. This function is very useful for obscuring highly sensitive information in addition to preventing unauthorized reproduction.

All of the MGX/DSS security products listed above can be formulated as sheets or rolls for the HP Indigo. Sheet products can also be made compatible with dry toner technology like the Kodak Nexpress or the Xerox iGen. Other constructions  can be engineered to your specific press technology.

Besides security paper, Masterpiece Graphix has many other substrate options available for security printing applications. Holographic materials, exotic substrates, tamper-evident polyester and self-destructive labeling materials are all available through MGX, ready to run on your digital press. For more information and substrate consultation for all of our security options, please call your MGX sales rep or email the sales team.

With advances in digital printing, photography and scanning technologies, counterfeiters have more tools than ever to mimic a product.  These technologies make it easy to copy a brand and hard to discern a genuine product or document from a counterfeit. As new security printing and packaging technologies emerge, copycats quickly take note and scramble to produce reproductions of the new process. Therefore the brand protection and security market is constantly developing new technologies and processes to stay one step ahead of criminals.

Why do counterfeiters take such extreme measures to produce realistic copies of a product? It’s profitable to copy a successful product, piggybacking on the item’s sales and stealing potential revenue from the original manufacturer. According to the International Authentication Association (IAA), the illegal practice of counterfeiting costs industries anywhere between $200 billion and $600 billion dollars per year (see L&NW article). All industries are susceptible but some face more risks than others: Pharmaceuticals, software, music, automobile/machinery parts, and movies are all markets that currently combat fraudulent reproduction of their products. Even brand-name commodities and licensed products face the risk of counterfeit.

Essentially there are four categories of brand protection strategies that printers and manufacturers can choose to implement individually or as a combination for security printing:

• Overt: This category is obvious to both the customer and the manufacturer, and is classified by the unique packaging or look of the product or brand. One of the most common forms of overt security packaging is tamper-evident labeling. Other examples include complex label graphics that are difficult to replicate, or the use of hard-to-attain holographic or exotic material within the design. This strategy is coincidentally the most complex because in many cases the unique packaging is exactly what the counterfeiter is trying to copy.

• Covert/Forensic: These security features are hard to identify by the customer or even the naked eye. However, covert features are hard to mimic because they are hard to identify without specialized equipment. One application of covert packaging is to incorporate security ink into the printed product so the image fluoresces when placed under ultraviolet (UV) light Kodak Nexpress recently released red florescent ink that is invisible to the naked eye but can be used for security printing applications. A printer may also choose to utilize security paper into the product which when copied, displays a message that deters counterfeiters.

• Numbering/Coding: Digital printers are perfectly poised to utilize variable data as a security feature for their customers. Setting up a system that is unique to each item is a way to be certain that each product is unique and therefore hard to mimic. Utilizing algorithms, sequential numbering or custom barcodes to create a custom label for each product is a way to integrate security as well as information into the product. These forms of variable data can contain useful data such as print date or product origin.

• Information Linkage: Advances in digital technology has allowed manufacturers to use embed “smart” sensors within their products so they can track and identify their items easily. The most common form of information linkage security packaging is radio-frequency identification (RFID). These smart sensors can be embedded in the packaging upon manufacture, which allows for scanning of an item to determine authenticity. RFID tags can even track movement of items within a certain area with the right equipment. RFID technology is an emerging and developing tool which may come to replace conventional barcodes in the future.

Masterpiece Graphix has many substrate options available for security printing applications. Holographic materials, exotic substrates, security paper and tamper-evident polyester and self-destructive labeling materials are all available through MGX, ready to run on your digital press. MGX carries RIT-certified DeterX® Gray Void Security Paper (R1419 as rolls, MGX-1303 as sheets) for the HP Indigo. This unique paper is HP Indigo-certified for the WS6000, WS4050, 5000, 5500, and WS45000. This paper is stocked with a gray/blue pattern that reads “COPY” when duplicated. This digital substrate is perfect for printing checks, coupons, rebates, event tickets and other secure document applications. Custom colors and hidden messages are also available. For more information on DeterX® papers or custom security solutions for your application, please contact your MGX sales rep.

Recently it has come to our attention that there are a few rumors making the rounds about Masterpiece Graphix. As a digital treatment center, we take great pride in our reputation and want to dispel any misconceptions about our business. Below are the actual facts about Masterpiece Graphix, so don’t believe any misinformation to the contrary!

MGX Offers More Than Just HP Indigo Roll Materials: Masterpiece Graphix has been coating HP Indigo roll materials for over a decade. However, MGX is also now offering sheet materials for HP Indigo presses. We keep many stocked sheet material solutions in-house, ready to order and run on your HP Indigo sheet press. In addition, MGX also offers material solutions for the EFI Jetrion industrial label roll press, as well as compatible substrates for dry toner sheet presses like the Xerox iGen and Kodak NexPress. We are continuously adding new digital press technologies to our list of coating capabilities, so if a customer brings a desired material/digital press combination to us, we can help formulate a coating solution.

MGX is More Than Just a “Custom House”: Masterpiece offers turnkey, ready-to-run material solutions for all available HP Indigo press models. Since we’ve successfully coated over 800 different facestock/adhesive combinations for the HP Indigo, we are confident that we can offer HP Indigo-compatible substrates that will run flawlessly the first time. In addition, MGX offers RIT-certified material solutions for many press models like the WS6000. Certification means that the material has been thoroughly tested by the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Printing Applications Laboratory to run trouble-free on a particular HP Indigo model.

MGX Offers Toll Coating, And More: Masterpiece Graphix can ship you digitally-coated, ready-to-print stock from nearly every industry supplier. Of course, you can always ship your desired material to us for coating, but it’s not necessary. Substrates can be ordered directly from us and quickly shipped to you once the material has been coated. Many materials arrive at your location six business days after your order.

MGX Carries Material Mainstays As Well As Exotic Substrates: In fact, MGX carries ALL the industry mainstays like semigloss and BOPP, as well as the tricky, hard to coat substrates. Masterpiece Graphix is essentially a one-stop-shop for Indigo-compatible materials, offering everything from papers to plastics, pressure-sensitives to polycarbonate. No matter the material you desire, MGX has the material you need, at competitive prices. More on this below…

MGX Offers Competitive Pricing on Industry Mainstays: MGX can offer excellent pricing on all the digital material you need, including industry staples like papers and films. You can rely on MGX to provide competitive pricing on all of your needed materials, not just the exotic, hard-to-find stocks. Please don’t hesitate to contact MGX for pricing on any material; we will get it to you quickly, and can answer any questions you have on a particular material. Ordering materials from MGX cuts your bottom line in other ways: running MGX substrates provide increased pip and blanket life on your machine, which in turn lowers your downtime and maintenance costs. Our materials also offer the longest shelf life in the industry.

MGX Provides Customized Stocking Solutions For Your Company: MGX can create a custom stocking option to fit your business model. Substrates can be ordered from us directly, or materials can be drop-shipped to us for coating. If you plan to regularly order the same material, MGX can help you develop a custom stocking solution, ensuring that you always have digital-ready material in-house, the way you want them.

Masterpiece Graphix made a big splash at DScoop5 in Dallas, Texas February 18-20: the company introduced three new business partnerships, and showed off new products and its coating expertise at their booth display.

HP Indigo users had the opportunity to see MGX materials run on the HP Indigo WS6000 demo machine. MGX provided two of its HP Indigo Certified materials: Masterpiece Premium 18 pt. Board Stock (R1275), and Masterpiece Premium 100# Gloss Calibration Paper (R1341).  Both substrates ran flawlessly on the HP Indigo 6000 demo machine and received rave reviews from observers of the print demonstration.  MGX’s 18 pt. Board Stock was even used by HP to create colorful chewing gum packaging with a country-western flair.

Both acpo and Masterpiece Graphix showcased their new distribution agreement at their respective booths. Recently, both companies entered into a distribution partnership, allowing MGX to sell and distribute acpo’s new line of digital overlaminates.  Acpo’s digital overlaminates are unique in that they adhere securely to oil-based digital ink, fixing a recurring issue with laminated digital materials that would eventually de-laminate in the field.

Masterpiece Graphix was also promoting their availability on Tailored Solutions’s Label Traxx version 5.5. MGX materials and services will be available as a pull-down material supplier in the newest version of the software. MGX is currently testing its integration into the Label Traxx system and should be available in version 5.5 within the week.

Document Security Systems (DSS) and Masterpiece Graphix also touted their new distribution partnership, although it wasn’t officially announced until after DScoop. Masterpiece Graphix will coat and distribute DSS Authentiguard® security paper, a unique RIT-certified substrate with embedded features to combat fraudulent reproduction. The partnership was officially announced by DSS in March.

Masterpiece Graphix offered an exciting promotional package at DScoop: sign up as a new MGX Platinum Customer, and receive a free Apple iPad! This promotion does require a six month contract and a minimum material order per month. MGX is extending this offer for a limited time; please contact us for more information.

To learn more about MGX’s DScoop participation and new distribution partnerships, please visit the MGX NewsRoom. Hope to see you at next year’s DScoop6!

RIT’s Printing Applications Laboratory Certifies Second DSS Security Paper Product for use on HP Indigo Digital Presses

ROCHESTER, N.Y. and FENTON, Miss., March 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Document Security Systems, Inc. (NYSE Amex: DMC; “DSS”), a world leader in the development and manufacturing of products and packaging containing optical deterrent and authentication technologies that help prevent counterfeiting and brand fraud from the use of desktop scanners and copiers, is pleased to announce today that it entered into a Distributor Agreement (“Agreement”), with Masterpiece Graphix, Inc. (“MGX”), the largest provider of customized pre-coated, print-enhanced substrates for digital printing, to distribute DSS’s new line of digital press-compatible AuthentiGuard Security Papers to HP Indigo users and other digital press operators.

DSS’s line of AuthentiGuard Security Papers features the most effective patented copy-warning technologies that prevent and deter counterfeiting via copiers and desktop scanners.  Attempted copies or scans of a document printed on this paper will reveal hidden warning words on the copy such as “VOID” or any other warning or graphics the users specify.

On March 4th the Rochester Institute of Technology (“RIT”) Printing Applications Laboratory informed DSS that its new DeterX security paper roll fed stock passed several necessary tests and the paper is now considered an “HP Indigo Certified Substrate” which allows HP Indigo clients to utilize the paper on their HP Indigo ws4050 and ws4500 digital press models.

This is the second of two DSS secure technology papers in the last 6 months that have been certified by RIT for HP Indigo use.  In October 2009, DSS received certification for security sheet fed stock for use in the HP Indigo 5000 and 5500 models.

DSS and MGX plan to distribute the HP Indigo Certified Substrate and other forthcoming digital press compatible papers to world-wide HP Indigo users.

Patrick White, Chief Executive Officer and President of Document Security Systems, Inc., stated:   “With this paper, HP Indigo clients can now manufacture and sell security printing such as coupons, event tickets, personalized prescription forms, gift certificates, school transcripts, government permits, almost any document paper or plastic requiring counterfeit prevention security.  We look forward to working with Masterpiece Graphix and their large client base of HP Indigo owners.”

Doug Watson, CEO, President and Founder of Masterpiece Graphix stated: “We are always looking to enhance and expand our specialty substrate offerings to our clients.  The digital press compatible security papers from Document Security Systems offer new opportunities of growth and gained market share for MGX in the digital substrate supply industry.  Initial HP client demonstrations have been very well received.”

About Masterpiece Graphix

Founded in 1998 by Masterpiece Graphix CEO and President Doug Watson, Masterpiece Graphix (MGX) is a digital coating company, supplying digital-ready materials for liquid toner, dry toner and inkjet press applications. Masterpiece Graphix is the only HP Indigo Certified treatment center for HP Indigo optimized materials in North America. Serving customers with short lead times, certified as well as custom digital material solutions, competitive pricing, and substrate guidance, MGX’s team of coating experts has proven themselves to be the unrivaled competitor in quality and service within the digital materials industry.

With over 20 years of expertise in specialized functional coatings, Masterpiece Graphix excels at sheets and narrow web coating as well as coating plastics, security, hardcoat, pattern, chemical-resistant, static elimination, computer-printable and heat resistant materials.   Masterpiece Graphix is located in Fenton, Missouri which is near St. Louis, Missouri.  www.mgxdigital.com.

About Document Security Systems, Inc

Document Security Systems is a technology company in the security and protection services sector which develops and manufactures products and packaging containing patented and patent pending optical deterrent technologies that help prevent counterfeiting and brand fraud from the use of the most advanced scanners, copiers and imaging systems in the market. The company owns over 30 different patented and patent-pending technologies and products which protect valuable documents and printed products from counterfeiters and identity thieves. The company has 3 manufacturing facilities which produce secure printing, packaging and plastic ID cards.  Document Security Systems’ customers, which include international governments, major corporations and world financial institutions, use its covert and overt technologies to protect a number of applications including, but not limited to, currency, vital records, brand protection, ID Cards, Smart Cards internet commerce, passports, gift certificates and packaging.  Document Security Systems’ strategy is to become the world’s leading producer of cutting-edge security technologies for paper, plastic and electronically generated printed assets.

More information about Document Security Systems, Inc. and its products and services can be found at www.documentsecurity.com , www.plasticprintingprofessionals.com , www.protectedpaper.com , www.dpirochester.com and www.premiercustompkg.com .

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains forward-looking statements regarding expectations for future financial performance, which involve uncertainty and risk. It is possible the Company’s future financial performance may differ from expectations due to a variety of factors including, but not limited to, changes in economic and business conditions in the world, increased competitive activity, achieving sales levels to fulfill revenue expectations, consolidation among its competitors and customers, technology advancements, unexpected costs and charges, adequate funding for plans, changes in interest and foreign exchange rates, regulatory and other approvals and failure to implement all plans, for whatever reason. It is not possible to foresee or identify all such factors. Any forward-looking statements in this report are based on current conditions; expected future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Prospective investors are cautioned that such statements are not a guarantee of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. The Company makes no commitment to update any forward-looking statement included herein, or disclose any facts, events or circumstances that may affect the accuracy of any forward-looking statement.

View original news release at PRNewswire