Print Week articles from August 2010

Print Week archives from August 2010

HSE urges printers to focus on safety after 2 workers injured.
August 20, 2010... The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has warned printers not to relax health and safety protocols, following two incidents in the space of a week at UK print firms. In the more severe of the two, a number-one minder at Poole-based...

Colourworld bosses set up new printing firm.(Colourworld Print Solutions )(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... The former directors of failed printer Colourworld Winchester, which traded as Colourworld Print Solutions (CPS), have set up a new print business, Rooster Digital. CPS closed its doors last month when the Lloyds Banking Group pulled its...

EFG lending drops amid claims of 10-year low.(Enterprise Finance Guarantee)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... The Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) has come under fire again after figures from the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) revealed a sharp reduction in lending. According to figures released by the BIS, lending under the...

Litho Supplies will pay creditors.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... The administrator for failed consumables supplier Litho Supplies has said that unsecured creditors are likely to receive a payout, although it will only amount to 'a few pence in the pound'. However, it could be as long as nine months before...

Phoenix shuts with 20 staff let go.(Phoenix Print Finishing )(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Finishing house Phoenix Print Finishing has ceased trading and will go into liquidation next month. The company's 20 staff were made redundant on 6 August. A meeting of creditors will take place on 6 September 2010, at which insolvency...

Promotion for Craig Nethercott.(Oce promoted Craig Nethercott as director)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Oce has promoted Craig Nethercott to director of production printing, while Stephen Lynch has been named director of document printing. Nethercott was previously sales director of production printing. -------------------- Did you find this...

Shares issued.
August 20, 2010... Tangent Communications has issued a total of 4,158,333 shares of 1p each to be admitted to trading on AIM at 8am on Friday (20 August). The shares represent the final payment due in respect of its acquisition of C360 UK in July 2006....

Healeys to install additionakl inking system.
August 20, 2010... Healeys is to install additional handyfill inking systems to a Heidelberg machine it installed to take it into the B2 market. The secondhand Speedmaster CD 74 will get five of the units, as well as guide rail kits, from Technotrans after the...

England shirt giveaway.(Alpha Media Solutions donates to charity One in a Million)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Alpha Media Solutions has given away 33 England shirts through the Bradford-based charity, One in a Million. The Yorkshire-based company gave the shirts away as part of a World Cup promotion, which gifted one shirt to charity and one to the...

Schawk Uk wins award.
August 20, 2010... Schawk's UK division has won an International Grand Prix Cyrel award in the corrugated pre-print category for its pre-media work on Swedish outdoor power tools manufacturer Hussqvarna's products. The award-winning entry, which was printed by...

Fujifilm relaunches Print!(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Fujfilm has relaunched its customer magazine as a biannual publication under the title Print!. The 44pp-plus-cover magazine replaces its predecessor Imaging and is printed by Gloucestershire-based Severnprint, which was listed among the...

KCS Print appoints Gordon Leer.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... KCS Print has appointed Gordon Leer as the company's new managing director, replacing Terrye Teverson who will take on the role of chairman of the board of directors. Leer joined the firm as business development director four years ago with a...

De La Rue silent as shares drop on surprise Hussey departure.
August 20, 2010... Uncertainty continues to dog De La Rue after last week's shock announcement that chief executive James Hussey had quit due to ongoing problems with banknote paper production. The world's largest security printer will not comment on...

CSDM collapsed owing almost pounds 1.4m - report.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Charity donation management company CSDM went into administration owing almost pounds 1.4m to creditors, it has emerged. Of that, pounds 740,000 was owed to companies that hold CSDM director Chris Stoddard as a director, while the other major...

Print margins hit as fourth rise in 12 months set for paper prices.
August 20, 2010... Print margins will take another hit next month as paper merchants gear up for what will be, for some, their fourth round of double-digit price rises in the past 12 months. Printers will be left facing price hikes of between 5%-10% from 6...

Boost for security printers after Q2 brings upturn in voucher demand.
August 20, 2010... Security printers are experiencing a boom in orders for paper vouchers from high-street retailers, despite the fact the market is in decline due to the ongoing migration to plastic loyalty cards. According to figures from the UK Gift Card...

Unite blasts potential end for Time to Train.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Unite has called for the coalition government to do more for training not less, after it announced a review of the Time to Train Scheme. In April, workers in businesses with more than 250 employees were given a legal right to request time off...

Polestar agrees to cut fewer jobs.
August 20, 2010... The number of redundancies at Polestar Applied Solutions has been slashed to 12 after Unite agreed a number of cost-cutting measures. Initially, the print giant announced that 30 employees would be made redundant at the company's Nottingham...

DMA publishes sector report.
August 20, 2010... The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) has released its first Value of DM report, revealing that direct marketing contributed more than a third of sales to the retail sector in 2009. The report, which polled 412 companies engaged in DM across...

Dealers use Paisley firm as base for drugs racket.
August 20, 2010... Drug dealers have used a Paisley-based company, which operated as The Print Finishers, as a base to supply around pounds 3.5m worth of cannabis across Scotland. More than one tonne of cannabis resin was seized in a raid on the site on 24 July...

Newsquest in pensions talks.
August 20, 2010... Newspaper publisher Newsquest has entered into consultation with its employees over the cancellation of its final-salary pension scheme. PrintWeek understands that employees were informed of the decision last week. The announcement has...

Reader reaction: Are lending conditions improving for the print industry?(Viewpoint essay)
August 20, 2010... We ask whether you agree with last week's BBA research that said lending was still limited. Stationery Printer Alasdair Browne, director, Abbot Print 'I have had an annual meeting with the bank and they have made it clear that should I...

Design 2 Print buys into local graphics agency.
August 20, 2010... North Wales printer Design 2 Print has taken a 52% stake in nearby graphic design agency Designbanc as part of its strategy to increase both margins and turnover. Reece Owen, managing director of the print business, which has always had a...

Glamour magazine goes regional.
August 20, 2010... Conde Nast's Glamour women's magazine has regionalised its September edition with eight different versions. Alongside eight different covers, each of the versions, which cover Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Northern Ireland, Scotland,...

Royal Mail launches DM initiative.
August 20, 2010... Royal Mail has unveiled a campaign to encourage advertisers to use tailored and targeted direct mail campaigns when vying for new business. The mail operator is offering a complementary consultancy service and lower postage costs for...

Legal Notices.(Public notice)
August 20, 2010... This information is extracted from the printand publishing-related notices that appear in the London Gazette. Further Information is available from its website at www.gazettes-online.co.uk. Winding Up Orders Keniston Print Ltd Co.No:...

ECRM moves to Milton Keynes.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Pre-press manufacturer ECRM has moved its European headquarters to Milton Keynes after 17 years at its former home in Watford. The company's new centre of operations will house ECRM's sales, service and customer support personnel, as well as...

Emtone Print gets eco boost after switch to Avalon N4 and Azura TS.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Boutique litho printer Emtone Print has installed an Avalon N4 platesetter and signed a contract for Agfa's Azura TS chemistry-free plates. Bath-based Emtone, which counts The Soil Association and The International Institute for Environment...

Dalim launches Apple app for Dialogue ES.
August 20, 2010... Dalim Software has launched a mobile approval app that will allow graphic arts professionals to view and interact with project files remotely on their Apple iPhone and iPad. Dialogue Touch is the mobile approval client for Dialogue ES,...

Workflowz unveils Metrix 2010 with new cost-saving modules.
August 20, 2010... Software distributor Workflowz has hailed the arrival of LithoTechnics' Metrix 2010 automated imposition and production planning tool. The latest version of LithoTechnics' software allows users to create an optimised imposition by importing a...

Inc Direct hires Stralfors' Gray.(Inc Direc appointed Mark Gray as sales team member)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Inc Direct has appointed Mark Gray to its sales team to assist in its bid to double the company's turnover to pounds 10m by next year. Gray, who was most recently business development director at Stralfors, brings with him 15 years of...

IIJ to take on toner with new inkjet label printer.
August 20, 2010... Cambridge-based inkjet specialist Industrial Inkjet (IIJ) has launched a UV digital label printer that it claimed would demonstrate the cost-effective nature of inkjet label printing. The TIJ 2048C/400 machine has been developed in...

Thames Print in green vans buy.
August 20, 2010... Digital printer Thames Print Room has invested in a fleet of Peugeot Bipper vans to help boost its environmental credentials. The Reading-based company, which is ISO 14001 and 9001 certified, said one of the key factors that influenced the...

Melville adds direct-to-substrate capability after pounds 500k investment.(Melville Graphics)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Exhibition services specialist Melville Graphics has invested pounds 500,000 in moving into direct-to-substrate wide-format production. The spend included printing and cutting equipment, modifying its factory to accommodate the equipment and...

CMP buys Nuvera 288 for short-run work.
August 20, 2010... Digital printer CMP (UK) has increased its mono production capabilities by nearly 50% after investing in a Xerox Nuvera 288. Paul Dawe, director of the 15-staff, Dorset-based company, said the investment followed a rise in demand for the...

Colourpoint brings longer runs in-house with StitchLiner buy.
August 20, 2010... Commercial printer Colourpoint has continued a move into B2 litho printing with the installation of a Horizon StitchLiner from Intelligent Finishing Systems. The Bourne End, Buckinghamshire-based company was a short-run digital specialist...

Minprint first NI TH 56 owner.
August 20, 2010... Belfast printer Minprint will become the first Northern Irish company to install a Heidelberg TH 56 Stahlfolder. The company is investing in the machine because it is moving from collated to folded-section work to feed a recently installed...

Don Valley offers Maxima calendar production lines to the UK market.(Don Valley Graphic Equipment )(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Finishing equipment supplier Don Valley Graphic Equipment has launched the Maxima WS and WM calendar production lines into the UK. According to Don Valley managing director Derek Wood, the machines have an advantage over individual collators,...

Friedheim takes on UK M7 folder system sales.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Finishing equipment supplier Friedheim has launched Herzog + Heymann's latest folding system, the M7, into the UK. The miniature folder can be customised depending on the user's needs, including the use of roundor flat-pile feeders. It...

Sappi puts up coated fine paper price for the third time this year.
August 20, 2010... Paper manufacturer Sappi has said it will put up the price of its coated fine papers by a minimum of 7% and its uncoated fine papers by at least 10% - the grades' third increase this year. The increases will take place as of 1 September,...

Recycled papers demand surges by 140% at Arjowiggins' Graphic arm.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Arjowiggins Graphic has reported a 140% increase in demand for its recycled paper grades since the division was established at the start of last year. It found that, for the first year of business, following its launch in January 2009, the...

Mondi takes first place in WWF's paper league.
August 20, 2010... Paper and packaging manufacturer Mondi has been rated the top company in WWF's voluntary rating tool for paper companies reporting on their global ecological footprint. The assessment criteria included use of recycled fibre, energy use and...

Newsprint 'falls 14% in a year'.
August 20, 2010... Total Western European deliveries of newsprint have fallen by 14% over the past year, according to the latest Cepiprint figures. The Association of European Publication Paper Producer's 25th edition of Cepiprint Demand and Supply Statistics...

Editorial: Buyers must help print companies foot the bill.(Editorial)
August 20, 2010... Some 'good news' for those of you fed up reading about paper price increases and the difficulty of obtaining credit - there will be no issue of PrintWeek next week. In case you're wondering, this isn't because we too are sick to the back...

Comment: Why waste is a waste of money.
August 20, 2010... Forgotten fivers Reading the recent article 'Cash in the trash' I was reminded of a conversation that took place the best part of a decade ago. While visiting a print site, the factory manager said that from his point-of-view 'a bin of waste...

Comment: Talking business - Don't leave it too late to engage your business with a sustainability policy.
August 20, 2010... I have been following the recent news articles in PrintWeek regarding paper prices, while at the same time watching the increased interest from the finance industry in forestry. Are the two likely to become increasingly linked in the future?...

Analysis: Partnerships - Building alliances to better businesses.
August 20, 2010... Mergers and acquisitions are not the only way to increase competitiveness, finds Helen Morris. In the past month, financial experts have been talking up the benefits of strategic alliances for the print industry. In the spirit of our new...

League Table: Finance - Breaking down lending barriers.
August 20, 2010... Printers face many hurdles when it comes to accessing capital in the current economic climate, says Jo Francis, but there are banks still lending and ways to improve your business's chances. Three years on from events that sparked the global...

Business Inspection: Spear Europe - Comment.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... The benefit to a company signing up to a BPIF compliance scheme is that each scheme is bespoke to that company. To enable the BPIF health, safety and environmental adviser to devise such a scheme, the adviser first undertakes a tour of the...

Business Inspection: Spear Europe - Diary.
August 20, 2010... September Heidelberg Lean Champion Passport Location: Tamworth Date: 30 September More information: www.britishprint.com October British Book Design & Production Award Location: London Date: 5 October More information: www.britishprint.com...

Business Inspection: Spear Europe - Spear stays safe & healthy.
August 20, 2010... Health & safety has suffered a character assassination in the press, but it's an accepted and crucial part of this Welsh printer's business, finds Jon Severs. Such are the frequency in the tabloid press of furious tirades against what...

Product Portfolio: Product of the week - Heidelberg Eurobind Pro.(Product/service evaluation)
August 20, 2010... This binder is breaking new ground for the manufacturer and if it has got its timing right, Adam Hooker says it could prove a popular option for a number of sectors. With the Eurobind Pro, Heidelberg has entered into a new arena where it will...

Product Portfolio: Me & My ... Konica Minolta C5501.(Roddy Darroch)(Interview)
August 20, 2010... Roddy Darroch, owner of Paisley-based Visual Imaging, tells Anna Jackson that when he decided to offer high-quality smaller-format work, this machine fitted the bill perfectly. - Describe your business We're a digital large-format printer...

Product Portfolio: Tried & Tested - Kolbus HD 150.(Product/service evaluation)
August 20, 2010... The firm's first three-knife trimmer was suited to high-end publications with its attention to faultless book transfer, finds Nosmot Gbadamosi. Kolbus has been building bookbinding machines at its headquarters in Rahden, Germany, since 1900,...

Product Portfolio: Buyers' Guide - Stitchers & sewing machines.(Product/service evaluation)
August 20, 2010... The sector has had few new innovations, but has much to offer printers looking to bring more processes in-house, finds Nosmot Gbadamosi. It's fair to say that the stitchers and sewing machine market has seen little true innovation in recent...

Product Portfolio: Diary.(Brief article)(Calendar)
August 20, 2010... September YMP NATIONAL TRAINING WEEKEND 2010 Date: 10-12 September Location: Derbyshire More information www.ymp.org.uk PRINT FOR BUSINESS Date: 21-22 September Location: Birmingham More information: www.ipia.org.uk October BRITISH BOOK, DESIGN...

Product Portfolio: Jo's Help Line - Printing books fit for a novice.(Product/service evaluation)
August 20, 2010... Jo Francis tracks down the solutions to your technical troubles. Q: We've offered some training to a youngster and although he hasn't started yet he has asked if I can recommend any books he could read about printing. I have plenty of books,...

Product Portfolio: Technical Tutorial hosted ftp in your workflow.(Product/service evaluation)
August 20, 2010... For a printing operation in the modern age, some form of high-speed data transfer system is an absolute essential. The first such system printers used was ISDN. However, this is now too slow and requires the client to have similar facilities....

Post Script: Print's summer charity drive continues apace.
August 20, 2010... Perhaps there is something in the water, or possibly it was the welcome summer weather embracing parts of the UK, but print and charity endeavours are two things going very much hand in hand at the moment. By the time you have read this,...

Post Script: Memory lane.
August 20, 2010... One year ago: Rumours of a possible merger between Heidelberg and Manroland resurfaced Five years ago: Nearly 40 jobs were to go after Printpack Europe invested pounds 1m in new equipment... Quebecor revealed plans to spend pounds 100m on...

Post Script: Print's past - Auguste Lepere.(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... In the 1890s, Auguste Lepere began to champion the art of wood engraving. 'We are witnessing,' he wrote at that time, 'the conquest of the book and the magazine by photography in all its forms and in all its horrors Open a book. What does one...

Post Script: Q&A - Jason Harris.(Thames Print Room)(Interview)(Brief article)
August 20, 2010... Jason Harris is sales and marketing manager at Reading-based printer, Thames Print Room. The 41-year-old is married and the father of two daughters. Harris says his main hobby is playing football, although these days his involvement is at an...

Lending picked up in summer but overall image still gloomy.(British Printing Industries Federation)(British Bankers' Association)
August 13, 2010... Bank lending to SMEs has eased slightly in recent months, according to separate research by the British Bankers' Association (BBA) and the BPIF. BBA figures revealed that new loans to small firms increased by pounds 75m between May and June...

KBA boss sparks rumour of Manroland tie-up.
August 13, 2010... KBA chief executive Helge Hansen has hinted at a possible merger with Manroland in an interview with German magazine Handelsblatt. During the interview, Hansen ruled out a merger with Heidelberg due to the rival press manufacturer's 'debt...

Unite takes legal action over Sessions staff cuts.
August 13, 2010... Unite is taking legal action against failed label printer William Sessions, which traded as Sessions of York, as well as the three companies that bought elements of the business after it collapsed. Although the employment tribunal claim is...

TimeHarvest launches iPad MIS app.
August 13, 2010... Digital and short-run MIS specialist TimeHarvest has taken advantage of its FileMaker software architecture to create Apple iPad and iPhone MIS apps. 'FileMaker Go is an app for the iPhone and iPad that allows you to access FileMaker-based...

Confusion at Ocean as Jomel fails.(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... The trading status of Coventry-based commercial printer The Oceans Group remains uncertain after its registered entity went into liquidation. Jomel, which traded as The Oceans Group, went into liquidation with Richard Frank Simms and Carolynn...

Agreement on redundancies not made.
August 13, 2010... Polestar Applied Solutions and Unite have yet to come to an agreement over the number of redundancies at the site after the plans hit a stumbling block. PrintWeek understands that the deal was not overwhelmingly welcomed by Unite members, while...

Archant posts profit after reduction in operating costs.(Archant Ltd.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... Archant, the regional newspaper publisher, has posted a profit after a reduction in operating costs. In the six months to 3 July 2010, the company made a pre-tax profit of pounds 2.5m, up from a pounds 629,000 loss in the same period last year....

HP chief executive resigns.
August 13, 2010... HP chairman, chief executive and president Mark Hurd has resigned his positions at the company following a sexual harassment claim made against him by a former HP contractor. Chief financial officer Cathie Lesjak has been appointed interim chief...

Pyramid Visuals helps Chevrolet.
August 13, 2010... Pyramid Visuals has helped car manufacturer Chevrolet to transform its Spark super-mini into a 'Woody Wagon' for the recent Boardmasters surf festival in Newquay, Cornwall. Pyramid printed and applied a three-quarters vinyl wrap to the car. ...

PressXchange.com targets growth in the Americas.(Bill Litviak)(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... PressXchange.com is targeting growth in the Americas following the appointment of industry veteran Bill Litviak. Litviak joined as sales manager North and Latin America. His key task is to utilise his insight in the international used machinery...

Metro Bank installs cheque printing software.
August 13, 2010... The Tall Group's cheque printing software Checkprint Solution has been installed at Metro Bank, the first new high-street bank in the UK for more than 100 years. The software enables Metro Bank to produce personalised and encoded cheque books,...

Wyndeham Group awarded certification.(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... Wyndeham Group has been awarded the Fogra Process Standard Offset certification for colour management. According to the company, it is the first heatset web offset printer in the UK to achieve Fogra certification. Group technical director Barry...

DST's purchase of Dsicmm will create pounds 100m-plus supergroup.
August 13, 2010... Dsicmm has secured its financial future after the completion of its acquisition by DST Systems, a deal that creates a new pounds 100m-plus operation in the UK. The buyout, announced in July, has concluded with DST Systems, the US parent of...

Contract win prompts pounds 500k APS renovation.
August 13, 2010... Print management business APS Group has completed a pounds 500,000 renovation of its Edinburgh facility. The 2,415m2 plant in Leith, Edinburgh, houses the group's new operations and document management centre, which includes a quartet of...

Howard Hunt sales up 8% despite profit dip.(Howard Hunt)(Financial report)(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... According to its latest accounts, direct mail house Howard Hunt is weathering the financial storm, posting an 8% sales boost to pounds 45m, even though pre-tax profit dipped to pounds 400,000. Profits were down some 25% for the year ending 30...

Flint raises ink & coatings prices.
August 13, 2010... Flint Group is to raise the price of its UV-curable inks and varnishes and water-based coatings by up to 15% next month. As of the 1 September, UV-curable inks will increase by 6%, UV varnishes by 7%-15% depending on the product, and...

Envelope firms SCR and Tower Supplies merge to up capacity.(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... Envelope overprinter SCR Envelopes has merged with rival Tower Supplies to create a pounds 10m-turnover company. As a result of the deal, all of Bury-based Tower Supplies' production department will move to SCR Envelopes' facility in Leeds,...

Pardy takes on Ryobi 920 press.
August 13, 2010... Catalogue printer Pardy & Son has taken delivery of the UK's first Ryobi 920 Series SRA1-format press in a bid to keep more work in-house. The Ringwood, Hampshire-based business opted for the 925 five-colour model, supplied by Apex...

Reader Reaction: Is it right that over-65s can no longer be forced to retire?(Discussion)
August 13, 2010... The government has scrapped the compulsory retirement age, we ask if it's good for print. DIGITAL PRINTER - ANDY RUDDLE, sales and marketing director, Real Digital International 'Age is not a question we consider when taking a decision to...

Legal Notices.
August 13, 2010... This information is extracted from the printand publishing-related notices that appear in the London Gazette. Further Information is available from its website at www.gazettes-online.co.uk APPOINTMENT OF LIQUIDATORS Finishing House (London)...

Fosco doubles site and buys HP Scitex FB7500.
August 13, 2010... Trade wide-format printer Fosco Hayes & Hurdley has doubled its factory size and invested in an HP Scitex FB7500 printer to cater for a growing demand for rigidsubstrate work. The Birmingham-based business has opted for the flatbed...

London Fancy Box 'first' for FSC/PEFC.(Brief article)
August 13, 2010... London Fancy Box (LFB) has laid claim to being the first rigid packaging producer that is FSC and PEFC certified. The Kent-based business said there were 'substantial' advantages to having both certifications, as it proved that it bought...