A CEBU printing company has achieved full ISO certification for its quality printing.

Basic Graphics, Inc. (BGI) is the first Cebuano-owned printing company given full ISO 12647 certification for both pre-press and sheet-fed offset printing.

It is one of three IS0-certified printing companies in the country, and one of only 20 in Asia, as evaluated by Fogra partner Sinapse Print Simulators assisted by Asian Printmedia Consultancy Group president Frits Beurskens.

Edmun H. Liu, chief executive officer of BGI, said they worked for the certification for two years, investing in upgrading both people and equipment.

He said they trained staff to produce high quality prints using high-end machines that the company gradually set up since it started operations in 1997.

?For 12 years we have emphasized quality. That's why we always invest in the best machines and took time to train our creative team. We believe the best machines can't achieve best results if the person operating them is not well trained,? Liu said.

Liu said that over the years they have invested close to P100 million in machines and people.

?We have worked so hard to gain the reputation as a printing company in the Third World producing quality prints at par with that in Singapore and Hong Kong where most companies go to have the best print collaterals produced.?

Liu said that 85 percent of their clients are in the Visayas-Mindanao area and only 10-15 percent are in Luzon.

?The printing industry is a very dispersed market. There are so many clients and there are more printing companies competing so the market is divided.?

Based on a survey done by the University of the Philippines, there are 5,000 to 6,000 printing companies in the country, but only three are ISO-accredited.

BGI wants to focus their company brand as one that can produce the best quality prints at a competitive price range.

Liu recounted one experience with a friend to illustrate his point.

He said he offered her a competitive price for her project but she declined the offer.

?She went ahead and had it printed in Singapore. One of her staff had to stay there for three months to facilitate. It was actually double the price that I gave her and she told me that she just realized that for any revisions done, the Singapore company would charge her additional [fees],? Liu said.

Liu said while a few companies in Cebu were upgrading their machines, he still wishes that there was more of a commitment to make Cebu known for companies doing world-class printing.

?I also hope that they will consider getting ISO accreditation to standardize the quality of our outputs,? Liu added.

The ISO 12647 certification expires two years after it is granted.

Seventy percent of all companies in Germany who apply for it fail in their first attempt, just like BGI when it first applied in July this year.

BGI finally passed in its second attempt in September.

?So that means, from this date, we have to either maintain or improve our quality,? Liu said.

Liu also announced their latest investment: a digital printer that according to him will not replace offset printing.

He said both have their own share of the market.

?There are collaterals best done using offset and there are also those who wants to have it printed in minimal time so we have the digital printer for that. That's why it's called print on demand,? Liu said.

The latest investment cost BGI a substantial amount of money.

?Multi millions,? Liu said, declining to give an exact amount to protect his supplier.