The standard recognises that the business has implemented a colour management system into its production process.

Andrew Jones, group managing director of the 220-staff company, said he found the process to be very stringent.

He said: "Being awarded it is another illustration of our continued investment in technology. Only six other printing companies have achieved the ISO 12647-2 standard."

S&G's technical manager Mike Donavan said achieving the standard was a credit to how the company's pressroom had grasped the new technology.

ISO 12647/2:2004 specifies process parameters when preparing colour separations for four-colour offset printing or when producing four-colour prints by heat-set web, sheetfed or continuous forms process printing.