Print Week articles from August 2003

Print Week archives from August 2003

Sneddon appointed as new Pindar MD.(Mark Sneddon promoted to managing director)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Pindar's main Eastfield site in Scarborough has a new managing director. The group has promoted commercial director Mark Sneddon to the position. Andrew Dalton had been combining his role as group chief executive with the acting...

Printers opposed to recycling plan.
August 7, 2003... Printers say a new direct mail Producer Responsibility Scheme is 'ridiculous' and a government 'red herring'. An agreement to reduce direct mail waste, by increasing recycling from 13% to 70% by 2013 through kerbside pick-ups or drop-off...

Blaze threat to paper industry.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The fires devastating parts of Portugal and Canada could cause problems for both countries' pulp and paper industries if they get worse. As PrintWeek went to press Portugal had declared a national calamity, while 335 fires were burning...

Cropper hit by fine over death.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... James Cropper, the Kendal-based specialist papermaker, has been fined pounds 20,000 by Kendal Magistrates after the death of an employee last year. Stephen Grainger, an engineer who was married with two children, died 16 days after being...

AGT sold to US firm.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Applied Graphics Technologies, which owns Seven, has been bought by a US finance firm. It is part of a plan to reduce its debt and gain capital to grow the business. 'Recapitalisation gives us a tremendous opportunity,' said AGT...

STOP PRESS: Hermstedt UK managing director ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Hermstedt UK managing director Andy Eakins is among several staff to leave the communications specialist's UK office. He has decided to look for a new challenge and hopes to stay in the comms or publishing sectors.

STOP PRESS: Adare company Halcyon Business Solutions ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Adare company Halcyon Business Solutions has picked up Abbey National's procurement operations' Financial Printer of the Year 2002 award. Halcyon manages the entire PIN process from receipt and processing of data to base stationery printing and...

STOP PRESS: Bezier is poised to commission a Thieme 5060 ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Bezier is poised to commission a Thieme 5060 fully automatic screen press, equipped with five 2.15mx1.57m units, at its Bristol site, one year after it installed a Thieme 5040 UV four-colour line at its Wakefield POP production centre.

STOP PRESS: Bruce Closs Printing in South Ockendon, Essex, ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Bruce Closs Printing in South Ockendon, Essex, has installed a 12-colour B1 Heidelberg Speedmaster.

STOP PRESS: Peterhurst in Wembley has called a meeting of creditors ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Peterhurst in Wembley has called a meeting of creditors to be held tomorrow (8 August) at BDO Stoy Hayward in Hatfield.

BPIF says training needs urgent work.(British Printing Industries Federation)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... BPIF chief executive Michael Johnson has warned that the industry could be left without a training infrastructure within three years. Johnson, who wants to address the problem through the Print Education Forum (PEF), which he announced at...

Struggle for Vertis during Q2.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Vertis has declined to comment on the performance of its UK operations, but the US-based direct mail group's latest results show an overall slump so far in 2003. Net sales for the quarter ended 30 June fell 7.7% on the same period last...

St Ives secures Striker printing.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... St Ives Edenbridge has won the deal to print Striker, a standalone colour weekly comic about the football star who has appeared in the Sun for 18 years. Steve McKenlay, managing director of publisher Striker 3D, said: 'We've had an...

GPMU campaigns at Gardners.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The GPMU has launched an anti-bullying campaign at Gardners Books in Eastbourne following allegations of workplace bullying from members. 'We started getting a barrage of calls over the past month, which has consistently grown since,' said...

SHORTS: Appointment at Confederation of European Paper Industries.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Teresa Presas will replace Marie Arwidson as director general of the Confederation of European Paper Industries from 1 September. Presas is vice president of Tetra Pak Europe. Arwidson returns to Sweden as director general of the Swedish Forest...

SHORTS: Aylesford Newsprint chief executive Alan McKendrick ..(donation to Kent Air Ambulance Trust)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Aylesford Newsprint chief executive Alan McKendrick has donated the company's publicity trailer to Kent Air Ambulance Trust. Chairman of the Trust Mark Baker (second left) said: 'It will help with our fundraising and promotions work.'

SHORTS: Sun Chemical has developed a range of inks ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Sun Chemical has developed a range of inks for the flexible packaging sector under the brand name Marsupial. The inks can be used on boil-in-the-bag foods.

SHORTS: Smurfit Cartons in Witham is installing a used KBA Rapida ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Smurfit Cartons in Witham is installing a used KBA Rapida six-colour press. The press is a late 1990s model but only has 36m impressions.

SHORTS: Advanced Vision Technology's sales for Q2 rose 50% to pounds 3m ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Advanced Vision Technology's sales for Q2 rose 50% to pounds 3m (dollars 4.2m). The supplier of inspection systems for the printing industry recorded an operating profit of pounds 8,070 after three consecutive quarters of losses.

SHORTS: William Reed Publishing production director Christopher Reed ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... William Reed Publishing production director Christopher Reed (left, with M-real UK managing director Dick Dickinson) won M-real's first charity golf day, at the Forest of Arden Championship Course. The event raised over pounds 16,00 for the...

SHORTS: William Jenkins Love, European sales and marketing director ..(Printpack Europe, dies with family in Kenya plane crash)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... William Jenkins Love, European sales and marketing director of flexible packaging printer Printpack Europe, died with his wife, 12-year-old daughter Sarah and nine other family members in a plane crash in Kenya on 19 July.

SHORTS: Ipswich's Healeys Printers is commissioning a Speedmaster SM52 ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Ipswich's Healeys Printers is commissioning a Speedmaster SM52 five-colour to complement its existing Heidelberg presses. The firm plans to invest in more Heidelberg equipment next year including a Prinance MIS.

SHORTS: Appointment at Pulse Roll Labels Products.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Pulse Roll Labels Products has appointed Andrew McGregor as technical sales representative for the Midlands, North of England and Scotland. Vic Scammell, formerly of Sicpa UK and Scanem Cardiff, has been named production manager of Pulse's...

SHORTS: Inglis Allen in Kirkcaldy has produced the 36pp programme and catalogue ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Inglis Allen in Kirkcaldy has produced the 36pp programme and catalogue for the Pittenweem Arts Festival for the second year running.

SHORTS: Version 5.0 of Vio's Digital Workflow Suite ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Version 5.0 of Vio's Digital Workflow Suite has support for the Mac OS X platform, enhanced Vio automation, Vio MultiSend, Vio ISDN From Me and Vio HTTP From Me.

SHORTS: The cash-rich shell of former print and packaging firm Jarvis Porter ..(shares in European Colour sold)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The cash-rich shell of former print and packaging firm Jarvis Porter has sold its 29.73% share in European Colour for pounds 3.91m. It expects to make pounds 1.07m before disposal costs.

SHORTS: Bobst is to trial a breakdown response service ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Bobst is to trial a breakdown response service covering weekends and bank holidays, for users of its SP and SPO die-cutters, and folder-gluers.

Pensord makes UK first with SM102-8P perfector.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Pensord Press has taken delivery of its new Heidelberg SM102-8P eight-unit perfector and the machine should be fully operational by 24 August. The press formed part of chief executive Tony Jones' pounds 2m investment in new equipment after...

Small firms are quicker payers says Experian.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The number of days taken by paper, printing and packaging firms to pay creditors has remained unchanged in the last six months, according to Experian. The business intelligence company, which gathered information from companies' sales...

Communisis chief in biggest pay rise.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The release of a report revealing that two Communisis executives were among the highest paid in the country in 2002 has come at a bad time for the group as GPMU members at Waddington Labels voted for industrial action. According to the...

EFI announces new Exchange client interface.(Velocity Exchange)(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... EFI has announced details of Velocity Exchange, an online interface between printers and customers. Exchange provides internet job submission, tracking, proofing and approval for clients, and order management and tracking for printers. It...

Top trio to share stage at PPA.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 7, 2003... The PPA has lined up a debate between three of the industry's leading lights at its Magazine Production Conference. St Ives managing director Brian Edwards, Polestar chief executive Barry Hibbert and Wyndeham chairman and chief executive...

Bowne second-quarter income is hit by costs of restructuring.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Restructuring costs, including redundancies at its UK operation, hit second-quarter income at financial print specialist Bowne. The New York-based group reported net income of just pounds 160,000 (dollars 258,000), down from pounds 6.9m in...

Ormolu reshuffle of Manchester ops.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Ormolu has restructured its Manchester operation, Trafford Press, in a bid to align its operations more closely with those of sister companies Pillans & Waddies and Greenaways. Trafford Press Corporate Finance has merged with Greenaways,...

Training for ex-Biddles staff.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Staff made redundant from Biddles' Guildford site are being offered retraining in an initiative backed by the GPMU, Learndirect and the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA). The book printing arm of W&G Baird Group ceased...

Appointment at St Ives.(Patrick Martell appointed executive director )(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Clays managing director Patrick Martell has become an executive director of parent group St Ives. Martell joined Clays, the group's book printing division, in 1980 as an apprentice printer. He was appointed managing director in 2000 after...

Sunstreet is to be wound down.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Sunstreet is unlikely to be sold as a going concern, according to its administrative receiver. Deloitte & Touche's Angus Martin said the Keighley-based company had stopped taking orders last Friday and would probably be wound down. ...

Mirror's print jobs to go after review.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Print and production jobs are among the 550 cuts announced by newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror as part of chief executive Sly Bailey's plans to increase profitability. The cost-cutting programme is expected to save Trinity Mirror pounds...

AFE and GMB near resolution.(Amcor Flexibles Extrusion )(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Amcor Flexibles Extrusion (UK) could be close to a settlement with the GMB union after two days of strikes last week over pay. The action was taken by 39 GMB members at the Digby Street site in Ilkeston after a change in shift pattern at...

R6 to offer advice on mailing.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Two former Deutsche Post Global Mail employees have set up a logistics and mail consultancy to offer companies help dealing with distribution and postal networks throughout the world. R6 Consultancy, based in Burton Upon Trent,...

LEGAL NOTICES.
August 7, 2003... This information is extracted from the print- and publishing-related notices that appear in the London Gazette. Further information is available from its website at: www.london-gazette.co.uk WINDING-UP PETITIONS Greenwater Publishing Ltd...

Gravure plans are revealed by Creo.
August 7, 2003... Creo revealed that it's entering the gravure market and will unveil a range of new products at upcoming trade shows as it released its third-quarter results. It's been working with Italian firm Acigraf to develop a gravure cylinder...

Broughton extends Brillia deal.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Broughton Printers, the Preston-based newspaper printer, has signed an extension to its deal to use Fujifilm's Brillia LP-NN2 CTP plate. The firm is imaging the Brillia LP-NN2 plates on one of its three DiamondSetter 435 CTP platesetters,...

WAM!NET is bought by Savvis.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... WAM!NET has been bought by Savvis Communications. It paid pounds 1.86m (dollars 3m) up front for WAM!NET's commercial business, which serves printing and publishing markets. Savvis will pay more starting next year, although the...

SHORTS: Print Plus in Bradford hopes to save pounds 100,000 a year ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Print Plus in Bradford hopes to save pounds 100,000 a year in outwork costs after making a pounds 300,000 investment in Agfa pre-press kit, including Apogee workflow, a Sherpa digital proofer and Xcalibur 45 thermal B1 platesetter. Owner...

SHORTS: London advertising pre-press firm The Fusion Group ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... London advertising pre-press firm The Fusion Group has published a guide to digital pre-press for advertising. It outlines each stage of the process from creative development to file output and archiving. The firm has sent copies to advertisers...

SHORTS: Ivanhoe Printing Company in Musselburgh has gone CTP ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Ivanhoe Printing Company in Musselburgh has gone CTP with a B1 Fujifilm Luxel Vx-9600 violet platesetter. The company, which counts blue-chips like Standard Life as customers, claimed it had upped production speed five-fold since the...

SHORTS: Appointment at Quark.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Quark has a new president. Kamar Aulakh, who joined the firm in 1995, was the recent vice president of R&D. Chairman and chief executive Fred Ebrahimi has also given greater responsibilities to executives Jurgen Kurz, Debra Hansen and Susan...

SHORTS: Bristol's Hartcliffe has diversified into B1 ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Bristol's Hartcliffe has diversified into B1 point-of-purchase poster printing after installing a thermal PlateRite 8600 platesetter with Trueflow front-end from Screen. The firm, part of Havelock Europa, is now able to meet the tight deadlines...

SHORTS: Extensis has released its Pro Photo Raw Image Filter ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Extensis has released its Pro Photo Raw Image Filter for its Portfolio 6 digital asset management system. Using the filter, it can generate thumbnails and previews from unprocessed image files created by high-end digital cameras from Nikon,...

SHORTS: The AdsML Consortium has made public its Advertising Standards Matrix ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The AdsML Consortium has made public its Advertising Standards Matrix project in a bid to make its imminent AdsML 1.0 standard as inclusive as possible. It hopes to identify and survey all existing and emerging standards that address...

SHORTS: Pomeroy Pressroom Products has launched its NDI CTP Plate Cleaner ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Pomeroy Pressroom Products has launched its NDI CTP Plate Cleaner for use with both conventional metal plates and CTP. The firm said it quickly removed ink, semi-dried ink and gum streaks without damaging the plates. Visit: www.pomeroy.co.uk.

SHORTS: Cacidi Systems has launched Autocalc 4.0, a plug-in for Adobe InDesign ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Cacidi Systems has launched Autocalc 4.0, a plug-in for Adobe InDesign that, when combined with Extreme 4.0 Basic, is designed to automate design for very large catalogues, price lists and phone books.

SHORTS: Dalim Software's Dialogue server application won a Macworld Best of Show Award ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Dalim Software's Dialogue server application won a Macworld Best of Show Award after making its debut at the Macworld CreativePro Conference & Expo from 16-18 July in New York. Dialogue is now compatible with Mac OS X and allows online remote...

NUR quits substrate sales in profit plan.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Struggling wide-format printer company NUR has decided to stop selling media as part of a plan to return to profitability by the end of the year. 'As digital wide-format printers have become more widespread, substrates have become a...

Dotrix to show its SPICE unit at Brussels expo.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Dotrix, the developer of digital ink-jet technology, will show its Single Pass Inkjet Colour Engine (SPICE) on a Mark Andy DT2200 narrow web press at Labelexpo Europe next month. The SPICE unit will be working live as part of Mark Andy's...

Heidelberg offers wire comb binder.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Heidelberg will launch an on-demand wire comb binder later this year that can be fitted inline to its Digimaster. The Probinder makes each comb on-the-fly after automatically measuring the book to be made. According to Heidelberg the...

M&M launches MailCrafter MIS.(Mailing and Mechanisation )(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Inserter supplier Mailing & Mechanisation has developed an MIS for its MailCrafter range that can be networked to monitor all aspects of the inserting line. The MIS was developed to allow a customer using eight C4 and C5 MailCrafters to...

Absolute Digital Printers, a Kendal-based start-up, ..(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Absolute Digital Printers, a Kendal-based start-up, has installed a range of Morgana Systems equipment, including a DigiFold creasing and folding machine and a Junior folder, to finish work from its five-colour Indigo press. The firm also has...

CPI is pleased with progress of inquiry into PRNs.(Packaging Waste Recovery Notes )(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) says the government investigation into allegations of inappropriate issuing of Packaging Waste Recovery Notes (PRNs) has been a worthwhile exercise. CPI director of external affairs Kathy Bradley...

Worsleys wins distribution of Garnett range.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Independent inter-merchant Worsleys has been made a distributor for Garnett's Alchemy range. Alchemy is Garnett's new range of metallic, pearl and glitter paper and board grades. There are 17 shades in the range, all produced in...

Sappi hit by fall in its profit margins.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Sappi had to contend with a 'rapid deterioration' in margins in its European fine paper business during the quarter to June. The South African manufacturer said European orders excluding overseas exports fell 3% compared to the same period...

Extensions for three Premier Paper staples.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Premier Paper has launched new lighter weights of Galerie Art and whiter shades of its Diamond and Evolution ranges. Triple blade coated Galerie Art paper and board is now available in 90gsm and 100gsm. The grade is primarily used for...

Newsprint is static in spite of 'wishful thinking'.
August 7, 2003... The newsprint market remains 'static at unhealthy levels' and continues to be hampered by low advertising levels and a lack of business confidence, finds John Davies. This position was typified by Pearson's interim results, which revealed...

EU TENDERS.
August 7, 2003... Please read the important notes at the foot of the page, as PrintWeek cannot supply any additional information or pass on your details. The tenders below are abridged. It is essential that you obtain a full copy of the tender before contacting...

Buckleys adds to Heinz labels deal.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Label printer Buckleys has been awarded Grade A supplier status by Heinz and has had its contract extended by 50% to 60m labels a month. The Stockport-based printer has worked up from a C status in 2001 following an audit of its quality...

Marie Claire turns to Impact.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Wyndeham Impact in Basingstoke has printed a commemorative gold embossed cover for the 15th birthday issue of women's lifestyle magazine Marie Claire. The firm printed the cover on a 16pp Heidelberg M600 web, while the gold foil blocking...

Matatak prints London aerial.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Matatak International in Dunstable has produced a 150 sq m aerial floor graphic of London for the reception area at the Greater London Authority building on the capital's South Bank. The full-colour graphic, which is made up of 600...

COMMENT: Don't build yourself up by putting others down.(Column)
August 7, 2003... When I'm not being the executive editor of a printing magazine, I'm often being a customer of various retail outlets (usually of the shoe selling variety) and a number of service providers. Occasionally my consumption levels have been...

OPINION: Internet can be key to customer relationships.(Brief Article)(Column)
August 7, 2003... The internet has shrunk the globe and made international communication much easier, but it also holds the key to getting closer to customers at a personal level. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is the talk of the boardroom. It...

PROFILE: Wace: judge us by what we do, not just by what we're called.
August 7, 2003... Despite the gossip, Wace is still here and doing well, and MD Angus Steel just loves it. On Angus Steel's first day at Wace (Wace Corporate Print as was) in 1997, the company had a call from an aerated customer complaining, in rather...

WALLIS: Yesterday's young apprentice tells of how times change.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... On Monday, 7 March 1949 I started a six-year apprenticeship as a letterpress compositor at a jobbing printers in south-east London. Initially I had expressed a wish to be a journalist, but was adjudged not bright enough by the school's careers...

ANALYSIS: GMWN gets smart with its property ads.(Greater Manchester Weekly Newspapers )
August 7, 2003... Sansui's SmartProperty software has been an unmitigated success at GMWN, finds John Davies. According to BBC Radio 4's Today programme estate agents, along with MPs, lawyers and, rather surprisingly, journalists, are the least-liked...

ANALYSIS: National's works of art get on-demand treatment.
August 7, 2003... Barney Cox follows up the launch last week of the National Gallery's new print-on-demand service. Last week's launch of the National Gallery's print-on-demand service is a near-perfect application for digital. Customers get a wider...

Spending power.(PaperlinX's bid to acquire Buhrmann's merchants )
August 7, 2003... PaperlinX's bid for Buhrmann's paper merchants is just the start of major consolidation, finds Andy Scott. It's tempting to compare Australian paper merchanting group PaperlinX to Chelsea Football Club - in terms of spending power at...

PRODUCT PORTFOLIO: Product of the Week - HighWater Python.
August 7, 2003... The HighWater Python has been gaining a stream of fans since its Northprint launch, finds Barney Cox. At Drupa 95, CTP was a must-see bleeding-edge technology. It was expensive, unproven and at the time portrayed as being a solution that...

PRODUCT PORTFOLIO: Me & My Machine - Tech-ni-Fold Spine-Creaser.
August 7, 2003... Ray Randall found the solution to his creasing problems in the Tech-ni-Fold Spine-Creaser, writes Gordon Carson. The Tech-ni-Fold Spine-Creaser is 'simplicity itself', says Ray Randall, a director at Southampton's Portswood Colour Press....

PRODUCT PORTFOLIO: Buyers' Guide - Mailroom equipment.
August 7, 2003... Direct mail is the fastest-growing sector of the print industry. Darryl Danielli assesses the market. According to the Direct Mail Information Service (DMIS) 5.2bn items of direct mail were sent in 2002. The direct mail market has...

JO'S HELP LINE: Jo Francis tracks down the solutions to your technical troubles.
August 7, 2003... CANADIAN QUERY Q: I would like to take a year out and go and work in Canada. I'm a fully qualified number one printer working B1 presses. Could you give me any information on where to look for a job in printing in Canada? Matt, Via e-mail...

INSITE: www.pressrental.com.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Exel Graphic Services' recently launched pressrental.com is useful, despite the site's poor first impression. The secondhand kit rental specialist's main page is all white background and simple fonts, which while clear doesn't grab your eye as...

DIARY DATES.(Brief Article)(Illustration)
August 7, 2003... IGAS 2003 22-28 September Tokyo, Japan Contact www.igas2003.jp PPMA Show 23-25 September NEC Birmingham Contact www.ppma.co.uk Labelexpo Europe 2003 24-27 September Brussels Contact www.labelexpo-europe.com ...

PRODUCT PORTFOLIO: Tried & Tested - Drent Gazelle 9.
August 7, 2003... Following on from the established Gazelle 4, the Gazelle 9 is still proving a hit, finds Darryl Danielli. Drent Graphic Machines has been manufacturing rotary offset presses since 1938, and in 1990 it launched the Gazelle 9 - a development...

PRINT'S PAST: Chapbooks.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... Sixteenth century Chapbooks resemble 21st century tabloid newspapers. Chapbooks were pocket-sized booklets full of popular history, at once fantastic and entertaining; they carried political scandals, gossip pages, horoscopes, and reported on...

POST SCRIPT: Dropping the pounds adds to HRH's value for De La Rue.(Brief Article)
August 7, 2003... The last thing that security printer De La Rue needed, with speculation that chief executive Ian Much could be heading for an early bath, was a high-profile cock-up. But, as if wanting to appear on the next instalment of It'll be Alright...