The BPIF scheme is claimed to be the first of its kind in the world, in that it has been designed to meet the requirements of the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), although UKAS has yet to assess the scheme.

Mark Kerridge, managing director of Benson Group, said: "We are delighted to be the first printer in the world to be awarded an independently assessed ISO 12647-2 certification.

"It has provided a positive impact in many different areas of production, including job make-ready times, reduced wastage, consistency of colour, reduced press pass time, and an increased confidence when talking to customers about colour quality issues."

PMC Director Jon Stack stressed the importance of having a scheme that was backed by UKAS or another national accreditation body, as oppossed to current alternatives such as Fogra, which has been criticised for having the potential for a commercial bias.

"The difference to other certifications for ISO 12647-2 is that our approach is one of a third party, completely independent and impartial, with no conflicts of interest, and the accreditation we will be seeking from UKAS will demonstrate that this is the case," he said.

"It is only through UKAS-accredited certification that customers of the industry can have full confidence in the validity of a claim of ISO 12647-2 compliance, when it is made to them by a printer or print manager."

According to Stack, UKAS is just beginning the process of accrediting ISO 12647-2 certification schemes and a verdict on the BPIF's offering is expected to come through early next year.

Mike Owens, general manager at Benson Group, said that working to ISO 12647-2 had resulted in a "significant reduction in waste" as well as keeping tighter control of production costs and speeding up press pass times.

He cited a recent customer visit, which resulted in 13 press passes in a single day, which he claimed would have been impossible "without the print quality focus provided by ISO 12647-2".

"It helps to make sign-off a faster and more straightforward process when the customer is comparing the approved GMG produced proof to the actual on-press print," he said.

Andrew Brown, director of corporate affairs at the BPIF, added: "We wish to congratulate Benson Group as the first company to meet the requirements of the BPIF ISO12647-2 Scheme in what will be a fast growing community of printers that know that this is the only clear and effective way to demonstrate not only that they can print to ISO12647-2 but crucially, that they have the systems in place to sustain that standard, and that it has been rigorously assessed by an accredited and independent third party."