Rochester, New York, June 23, 2008 – Durst’s ambitious new web-based service program, which offers multiple service levels plus the tools to gain full value from them, has attracted the attention of the leading professional conference devoted to service excellence. Field Service, at its 2008 annual conference last month, cited Durst’s service offerings and delivery system – the Durst Service Portal and its EDSON (Enhanced Diagnostic & Service Online Network) system – as “Best Service & Support Strategy Implemented in 2007.”

“Field Service not only honors us with this recognition, it validates all of our thinking and efforts in working to deliver the best service experience to our customers in the commercial imaging industry,” said Tim Saur, Senior Vice President of Operations, Finance & Service for Durst U.S. “Durst customers choose from four levels of service that meet their specific needs, utilize tools and training that give them more control over service activities and costs, and gain access to it all via a highly efficient, easily understood online delivery system.”

“A company can offer a variety of service contracts,” Saur added. “But if you don’t also provide the tools that actually give customers more efficient ways to tackle service issues – preventative maintenance modules, online tutorials and the like – then multiple contracts doesn’t mean very much. Our strategy ensures that Durst customers have legitimate service-level choices, as well as easy access to the tools they need to support their choice.”

The award winner is selected based on an overall evaluation of its service program by the judges, who look at such factors as innovations to improve delivery of service, first-time fix rates, response times, program efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and descriptions and data that demonstrate how the program is evolving to meet the changing needs of its industry and clients, according to Field Service’s description of its award criteria. Judging was conducted by Field Service’s Conference Director Jonathan Massoud; Michael Niesen, Vice President of Technical Support for Heidelberg; and Sandeep Kulkarni, Director of Hardware Support Operations for Hewlett Packard.

“Field Service’s panel of judges found Durst’s EDSON program to be well-deserving of the ‘Best Service & Support Strategy Implemented in 2007’ for allowing for increased uptime, optimized self-service capabilities, a consistent recurring revenue stream, and knowledge transfer of step-by-step solutions for worldwide service training – all resulting in an overall customer satisfaction rate above 96 percent,” Massoud said.

“The Field Service Awards were created four years ago to recognize individuals and companies that make a significant contribution to the advancement of the service industry, and honor those who support the customer experience and their overall satisfaction through service initiatives, programs and processes,” Massoud added. “All of us here at Field Service and our conference attendees will be interested to hear an update from Durst next year at Field Service 2009, April 27-30 in Palm Springs, California.”

Durst Service Portal
A first for the imaging industry, the Durst Service Portal is a web-based, “co-service” program that employs a variety of leading technologies and processes to help customers control service costs and reduce equipment downtime. Its centerpiece is EDSON, with its web-x functionality, which gives customers access to online training, trouble-shooting procedures, sophisticated animations and other online assistance to help them solve problems themselves inexpensively and quickly, Durst said.

EDSON allows customers to work directly with Durst telephone support technicians, or they can work independently, to troubleshoot their equipment and solve problems via an innovative, cost-effective solution to efficiently address service issues, Durst said. This knowledge management system, launched last year, has been augmented this year by a new preventative maintenance module that, among other tasks, proactively alerts the customer to upcoming equipment checks, the company said.

These systems and tools, Saur said, support four service levels that fully enable customers to determine for themselves how much they will rely directly on Durst, and how much they will take on themselves using the tools Durst provides – delivered clearly and immediately via the Durst Service Portal. The imaging business can choose the right service contract for its needs, Saur noted, based on budget, in-house expertise, geographic location and other specific factors.

High Scores for Service
The Field Service award comes on the heels of a recent independent survey of Durst customers about the quality and effectiveness of after-sale technical support. Nearly 350 customers were surveyed, and the overall result was a customer satisfaction score of 96.2 percent. In particular, respondents were impressed with the knowledge, expertise, courtesy and professionalism of Durst’s telephone support and field service representatives, the survey findings indicated.

Durst recently received more recognition for its customer satisfaction – being counted among a select group of enterprises whose customers are overwhelmingly likely to recommend them to others, as measured by the respected Net Promoter Score metric. The Net Promoter Score, developed by leading management consultant Fred Reichheld, has been hailed as perhaps the most important new metric to accurately determine business performance and success.

Pricing and additional information on Durst products, service and solutions is available by calling Durst at 1-888-480-3588, or e-mailing Durst at info@durstus.com.

About Durst
Durst Phototechnik AG is a leading manufacturer of professional digital imaging systems for graphic, pre-press, signage, commercial / retail display, packaging, industrial and photographic applications. Headquartered in Brixen, Italy, the company operates manufacturing facilities in Brixen and Lienz, Austria; has major offices in the U.S., France, United Kingdom, Germany and Mexico; and partners with exclusive agents in 120 countries. Durst’s worldwide reputation for quality, precision, innovation and reliability spans more than 70 years.

Durst Image Technology U.S., LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Durst Phototechnik Group, is the exclusive distributor and service provider for all Durst professional digital imaging equipment in the United States and Canada. Durst’s professional imaging products include the renowned Lambda laser imagers, Rho and Gamma large-format UV inkjet printers, Theta roll-to-cut print photo imagers, photo album creation systems, and other products.

Contact
For information on Durst Image Technology U.S., LLC or any of Durst’s products and services, contact Christopher Howard, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing: phone (585) 486-0340 ext. 5250, fax (585) 486-0350, e-mail choward@durstus.com. Or visit Durst U.S. online at: www.durstus.com.