Print Week articles from November 2008

Print Week archives from November 2008

Goodman in administration as buyer sought for Borcombe SP.
November 7, 2008... HS Printers' six week tenure in the print industry ended in debacle this week as the company put Goodman Baylis into administration while Borcombe SP's future hung in the balance. As PrintWeek went to press, HS Printers was in advanced...

Bezier cuts 73 jobs in Bristol site consolidation.
November 7, 2008... Bezier has entered into consultation over the loss of 73 jobs as it proposes the closure of its Bristol-based manufacturing arm. Bezier said it will consolidate the site's operations into its 13,500m2 Thurrock, Essex premises. The...

Communisis teams up with rival Williams Lea.
November 7, 2008... Communisis has announced a surprise partnership with arch-rival Williams Lea, following the publication of its interim management statement last week. In the report Communisis revealed that it had been appointed a 'preferred vendor for...

Nampak invests pounds 4m in Leeds site.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Nampak Cartons has invested pounds 4m at its folding cartons site in Leeds as part of a move into B1+ format. The site, which produces cartons for the frozen and chilled foods markets, has taken delivery of a six-colour Heidelberg...

HH wins massive Asda printing deal.
November 7, 2008... HH Print Management has won a print management deal with supermarket Asda, rumoured to be worth pounds 20m per annum. HH described the deal, which encompasses everything from technical print buying services to fulfilment and mail outs, as...

Appointment at Etrinsic.(Farooq Hassan-Hussain appointed as client services manager)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Etrinsic, the print management and marketing outsource specialist, has appointed Farooq Hassan-Hussain as client services manager. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and had previously held positions with rival print...

FujiFilm launches high-speed thermal plate for newspaper applications.
November 7, 2008... FujiFilm has launched its high-speed thermal plate for newspaper applications, the Brillia LH-NN2, at Ifra Expo 2008. The company described it as a high-quality, environmentally friendly range of digital plate products, that now consists of...

Benson Group wins two awards.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Benson Group, the Leicestershire-based packaging specialist, won two awards at this week's 2008 UK Packaging Awards. The company took home the crown of Packaging Company of the Year and Cartonboard Packaging Award at the event, which was hosted...

Simply Cartons signs up for two Heidelberg Diana Pro folder-gluers.
November 7, 2008... Simply Cartons has signed up for two Heidelberg Diana Pro folder-gluers to replace three of its four Vega lines. Managing director of the Nottingham-based printer, Craig Mather, said the change of supplier was a big decision, but the right one....

Sun Chemical signs deal.(Sun Chemical signing a deal to become a UK distributor for the Apollo series of multi-functional UV wide-format printers)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Sun Chemical has signed a deal to become a UK distributor for the Apollo series of multi-functional UV wide-format printers. The range consists of four models that have a width ranging from 1.6m to 3.2m, and are available in both four- or...

Service Point signs national agreement with Shred-it.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Service Point, the document BPO firm, has signed a national agreement with Shred-It, the provider of mobile on-site certificated document destruction. The agreement will provide customers with on-site certification destruction of printed...

Clarification.(Correction notice)
November 7, 2008... Clarification: in a recent Contract update article (PrintWeek, 10 October 2008) it was mistakenly reported that the awarding authority behind a pounds 4.8m print framework was Leicester City Council when in fact it was Leicestershire County...

Cooper Clegg bought by BIMBO team aiming for 'stability first'.
November 7, 2008... Cooper Clegg was sold this week to a buy-in management buy-out (BIMBO) team led by 'turnaround specialist' and former A&R Carton UK managing director John Wood. Wood, who was most recently managing director of point-of-sale printer Diam...

DSR Group encounters supplier animosity.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... DSR Group has experienced a backlash from the suppliers of its predecessor, DSR Print Management, following its pre-pack administration last week. Former suppliers of DSR Print Management, who were left with substantial debts after the...

Confusion at Immerse over administrator.(Immerse Group)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... A legal battle has broken out after Immerse Group, the Milton-Keynes company that was launched following last year's closure of Loudwater, went into administration last week. The reasons behind the group's collapse have yet to emerge, but...

Heidelberg global job cuts look set to include UK redundancies.
November 7, 2008... Press manufacturer Heidelberg has announced it is to cut 2,500 jobs worldwide and that further UK redundancies 'may be unavoidable'. Heidelberg announced the plan last week as part of a bid to cut annual costs by around EUR200m (pounds...

Domino plans to reduce UK staff.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Subdued demand for coding and marking products has led to Domino Printing Sciences planning to cut 70 UK jobs. The move is part of a cost-cutting exercise by the inkjet manufacturer, which will result in 200 jobs lost worldwide, delivering...

Nipson calls in administrators at French manufacturing subsidiary.
November 7, 2008... VaryPress manufacturer Nipson Digital Printing has placed its main operating subsidiary into redressment judiciare, the French equivalent of administration. Nipson SAS, the France-based manufacturing arm of the company, had experienced...

PaperCo management reshuffle completed.
November 7, 2008... PaperCo's newly appointed managing director Steve King has initiated a number of changes within the paper merchant's operating divisions and reduced the size of its top management board. Simon Pilkington, managing director of Masons Paper...

Direct mail sent to the deceased.
November 7, 2008... Nearly 60m pieces of direct mail are sent each year to people who have died, according to The Deceased Preference Service (DPS). The group, which was set up in 2002 to help prevent cases of unwanted direct mail and the theft of deceased...

Printers urged to take data security seriously.
November 7, 2008... Printers have been warned not to take data security lightly after the Information Commissioner called for 'stronger powers, resources and sanctions' to curb data breaches. Information Commissioner Richard Thomas revealed last week that 277...

KBA poses news printing query.
November 7, 2008... KBA has said there is a market for commercial printers to contract print newspapers overnight and commercial work during the day. Following widespread investment from the UK's newspaper printing industry, large players like Newsprinters and...

Reader reaction: Would you support a move to a late-binding RGB workflow?
November 7, 2008... We ask whether pre-separated workflows should be replaced in the digital pre-press era. - Publisher Darren Jones, pre-press manager, Haymarket Customer Media 'My concern would be in proofing and conversion. If we are proofing CMYK...

Unite's Dubbins retires after 32 years at union.(Unite Group PLC)(Tony Dubbins)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Unite stalwart Tony Dubbins has retired after an illustrious career in the industry spanning two generations. Starting out in the National Graphical Association at the Chiltern & Thames Valley branch, he rose through the ranks becoming...

Northend is PEFC and FSC certified.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Commercial printer Northend has said it is on the acquisition trail after bolstering its environmental offering with FSC and PEFC accreditations. The Sheffield-based printer was awarded the accreditations by BM Trada on 29 September and is...

Religious Imagery.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Leeds-based Electronic Print Services (EPS) has installed what it claims is one of the largest ever single-standing printed sheets at York Minster cathedral. The 14x27m item depicts the cathedral's stained glass window, located on the east side...

Legal Notices.
November 7, 2008... 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.gazettes-online.co.uk APPOINTMENT OF ADMINISTRATORS MFK Information...

Agfa's Roberts urges calm as UK moves towards recession.(Agfa Graphics UK managing director Laurence Roberts)
November 7, 2008... Agfa Graphics UK managing director Laurence Roberts has urged calm in the face of the current economic slowdown, amid fears the industry could talk itself into a worse situation. Following publication of Agfa's third-quarter results,...

Kodak cuts 2008 profit forecast.(Financial report)
November 7, 2008... Kodak has slashed its 2008 sales and profit forecast in response to the 'challenging economic climate', according to the company's chairman and chief executive Antonio Perez. In its third-quarter results, the manufacturer announced a 2%...

Darling makes pounds 4bn available in bid to restore 2007 credit levels.
November 7, 2008... Chancellor Alistair Darling announced last week that a fund of pounds 4bn would be made available to businesses, a move which he claimed restored credit levels to that of 2007. The money, which will come from the European Investment Bank...

Fuji hit by raw material prices and strong yen.
November 7, 2008... Fujifilm's Information Solutions division, which incorporates its graphic arts business, has reported a decline in its second-quarter revenue, which fell 0.2% to Yen541.5bn (pounds 3.4bn). Fujifilm blamed the slump on factors including the...

Alwan and Enfocus release PDF ISO-accurate colour preflighter.
November 7, 2008... Colour standardisation software specialist Alwan Color Expertise has teamed up with Enfocus to launch PDF Standardizer, a new software package that extends pre-flighting and correction to include colour. PDF Standardizer produces files that...

Leaner Presstek turns Q3 profit.(Financial report)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Presstek has announced third-quarter earnings of dollars 48.5m (pounds 29.9m), down 16% year-on-year, due to weakness in US equipment and consumables sales. Presstek said the weakness in the US had been partially offset by increased sales...

River to extend F1 offshore repro deal after successful mag trial.(River Publishing)(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... River Publishing has been revealed as one of the first clients for F1 Colour's managed offshore repro service, which it launched in partnership with Express KCS in July. Following a successful trial with Weight Watchers' Irresistible...

X-Rite raises operating funds with share issue.
November 7, 2008... X-Rite has completed its dollars 155m (pounds 94m) capital raising bid after shareholders approved the plans at a meeting in Chicago last week. Shareholders agreed the sale of 28.5m shares of common stock to One Equity Partners (OEP) -...

Roland's Versa gets SGIA award.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Roland DG's VersaUV LEC-300 UV printer has triumphed at the SGIA Expo, picking up the 2008 Digital Printing and Imaging (DPI) Association's Product of the Year accolade. The company scooped the award in the Output Device Poster Category...

Kirklees fits out new inplant with Xerox kit.
November 7, 2008... Kirklees Council has signed a five-year contract with Xerox for a raft of high-volume digital kit for its new centralised print and mailing centre, Document Solutions. Xerox is supplying a range of equipment through the agreement with the...

Preview installs Truepress 344.
November 7, 2008... Design and repro business Preview Cromatic has made its first foray into high-volume print after investing in a Screen Truepress 344 direct imaging (DI) press, which it said would bring 70% of its print in-house. The Stevenage-based company...

Oce reveals new VarioPrint 4000 series to plug productivity gap.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Oce has unveiled a new range of cutsheet presses, the VarioPrint 4000 series, which the firm said was designed to plug the gap between light- and high-production machines. The first machines in the range are the mono 120ppm 4120 and 106ppm...

KIP releases Color 80 aimed at CAD market.
November 7, 2008... KIP has targeted the growing full-colour Computer Aided Design (CAD) market with the launch of what it claims is the world's first toner-based, wide-format printer, the Color 80. The machine, which KIP UK managing director Chris Hill...

Martins finishes pounds 300k spend with CP Bourg BB3002 binder.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Book printer Martins the Printers has completed a pounds 300,000 finishing upgrade with a new perfect binder from Terry Cooper Services. The Berwick-upon-Tweed-based company, which has traditionally focused on longer run work, has bought...

Total PFS reveals new website.(Website overview)
November 7, 2008... Finishing equipment supplier Total PFS has launched a new website dedicated to hand-held and desktop finishing equipment. The new site will enable customers to purchase equipment from the company's small-format brands, including Stago,...

B&B Press credits card cutter buy with impact equal to new presses.
November 7, 2008... B2 Printer B&B Press has said that investing in a new card cutter has been just as important as the pounds 1m spend that preceded it. The Rotherham-based company purchased a new Kirikko SK21m card cutter from UK distributor Graphic Arts...

Gemini Press invests in a Varimatrix 105.(Brief article)
November 7, 2008... Gemini Group-subsidiary Gemini Press has invested in a new Varimatrix 105 die-cutter from Heidelberg, which it said had substantially increased its die-cutting capacity. Nigel Holmes, chairman at Gemini, said: 'We needed to increase both...

International Paper results up despite further cost increases.
November 7, 2008... International Paper (IP) has reported 'solid' preliminary third-quarter results, which it said was a reflection of its previously announced price increases. The paper and packaging giant's net sales for the quarter were dollars 6.8bn...

JMG unveils new uncoated grade.
November 7, 2008... The James McNaughton Group has launched Perfect Image, a white uncoated pre-print paper and board range, available as FSC-accredited. The paper merchant said the grade has the 'widest range available in the market', from 80-400gsm, and can...

Wood products jobs threatened as Stora cuts production capacity.
November 7, 2008... Over 500 staff could be affected in Stora Enso's wood products division as the paper giant starts negotiations over temporary lay-offs. The Finnish company has said it will implement additional production curtailments in the division,...

Sodra blames poor Q3 results on wood prices.(Financial report)
November 7, 2008... Sodra has posted a weak operating profit in its third-quarter results, which the Swedish paper manufacturer said was driven by a fall in demand in the wood products market. Operating profit for January to September 2008 was pounds 68m...

Contract Update.
November 7, 2008... Newsworld Corporation has chosen the New York branch of the Pindar-owned AlphaGraphics franchise, to print copies of the Daily Mail in New York. The company announced in July this year that it had signed a contract with Associated...

Client audit: The England and Wales cricket board.
November 7, 2008... The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was established in 1997 as the governing body for all cricket in England and Wales. It has its headquarters in Lord's Cricket Ground, London. Oliver Mott is one of the organisation's print buyers. He...

Editorial: Enterprise Act is failing staff and suppliers alike.(Editorial)
November 7, 2008... Events over the past two weeks have exposed the pressing need for reform of the UK's system of company administrations. The failure of Goodman Baylis and the pre-pack of DSR are two damning indictments of the 2002 Enterprise Act, but for...

Comment: Printer's devil - Local responses to global turmoil.
November 7, 2008... Exchange rate battles The yen recently reached a 13-year high against the dollar. Although it has slipped back a bit since, it is still at a level that will make life more challenging for Japanese printing equipment manufacturers who have...

Comment: Talking business.
November 7, 2008... Unsustainable claims on sustainability will eventually drive customers away. I don't know about you, but I don't believe most of the green marketing claims that I read. Perhaps it's because many of the advertised benefits seem so...

Profile: Purfect Binding Company.
November 7, 2008... Staying true to its size and local to its clients has reaped this finisher rewards. Reg Walwyk has found himself back where he started, but now he has his own company, finds Adam Hooker. Little did the young Reg Walwyk know when he went for...

Analysis: Newspapers - Could digital muscle in on newsprint?
November 7, 2008... The use of the technology to print newspapers is fast becoming a reality, says Adam Hooker. With the UK newspaper industry's billion pound investment in web offset printing presses, one would assume that the future of the newspaper sector...

Ron Hughes: A sleight of hand.
November 7, 2008... Ron Hughes is one of the few master hand engravers left, but George Mitton finds that the practice is far from dying out. Instead, it is much in demand and managing to hold off the digital challenge. Ron Hughes is a perfectionist and, in...

Better business: Cartels - Law cracks down on print's fixers.
November 7, 2008... Business regulators, now more than ever, are gunning for price fixers, says Philip Chadwick, but anti-competitive activity is still poorly defined, easy to get caught up in and difficult to police. Four years ago, several paper firms...

Technology report: Colour management - Next dimension?
November 7, 2008... Barney Cox discovers that ICC device link profiles may provide a cost-saving method of achieving the ISO 12674 colour standard, preserving secondary and tertiary colours better than rival methods. Colour can be confusing enough when on the...

Product Portfolio: Me & My ... Duplo DC-445 DuCreaser.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... Simon Jones of east London-based Trilogy Print Solutions has solved the problem of cracked toner with this creaser for the short-run market. What does the machine do? The DC-445 DuCreaser is a fully automated, highly productive,...

Product Portfolio: Tried & Tested - Steinemann Topspot 102.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... This coater was designed to add value to print through creative finishing options, finds Nosmot Gbadamosi. When Swiss varnishing and laminating specialist Steinemann launched the Topspot 102 coater back in 1991, its main aim was to prove to...

Product Portfolio: Product of the Week - Canon imagePrograf 6200.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... This large-format offering aims to slot in between its rivals, finds Karen Charlesworth. Graphic arts hardware developers are increasingly moving towards adopting the smaller-and-more-often spend cycle of consumables, rather than the...

Product Portfolio: Buyers' Guide - Sheetfed offset & screen process inks.(Buyers guide)
November 7, 2008... High-pigmentation ink will last longer on the press but choosing the right ink for an application is key, finds Nosmot Gbadamosi. It goes without saying that inks are part and parcel of achieving good quality print; if the quality of the...

Product Portfolio: Joanne's Help Line - Vinyl lamination & press passing.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... Joanne Gardner tracks down the solutions to your technical troubles. Q: I am looking to source a company that is able to overlaminate 70-micron Avery clear vinyl (on reels) to 3M base vinyl material (sheets). I know of one company in the...

Product Portfolio: Diary.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... November BAPC Conference Date: 7-8 November Venue: Crowne Plaza Hotel, Marlow, Buckinghamshire Price: pounds 120 Contact: tony.honour@bapc.co.uk/020 8736 5862 British Book Design and Production Awards Date: 12 November Venue:...

Product Portfolio: Technical tutorial - uncoated paper.(Product/service evaluation)
November 7, 2008... There was a time when choosing an uncoated paper could mean taking risks with image quality, often resulting in dark shadow areas and flat uninspiring mid-tones. Good planning is the key and, with current pre-press and press technology,...

Post Script: Print-related presents set for your stocking.
November 7, 2008... In the approach to the Christmas season, shops tend to fill the shelves with novelty tat from the worlds of golf or football and the like, hoping to snag stumped present-buyers into an easy purchase Thankfully, print has previously escaped the...

Post Script: Memory Lane.
November 7, 2008... ONE YEAR AGO: M-Real chief said paper prices 'must double' .. Charterhouse grabbed a pounds 12m contract with motor giant BMW... Adare opened a Moscow office... FIVE YEARS AGO: RR Donnelley overtook Quebecor World as the world's largest...

Post Script: Print's Past - Cabinet des Poincons.
November 7, 2008... The Cabinet des Poincons is a punch-cutting workshop in Paris where engravers both restore and create typographic punches. Throughout the 20th Century, a lively and essential school of engravers practised their craft in the Cabinet in...

Post Script: Q&A - Kirstie Whitehead.(Interview)
November 7, 2008... Kirstie Whitehead is Key Recruitment UK's sales director. She has 13 years' experience in the print industry. She claims that a book of her life would be a 'very interesting read' and the fact that she has been on Blind Date twice suggests she...

MPG Books purchases Biddles in pre-pack administration deal.
November 14, 2008... MPG Books has bought the assets and business of Biddles for an undisclosed amount, safeguarding all 98 jobs at the King's Lynn-based short-run book printer. Biddles was acquired by the newly-incorporated MPG Biddles in a pre-pack deal out...

Big firms accused of exploiting SME credit terms.
November 14, 2008... Blue-chip clients changing payment agreements are causing 'havoc' in the print industry, a credit-checking expert has warned. Ian Carrotte, managing director at ICSM, said that large companies are increasingly altering payment terms to...

GI Solutions in turnover boost aim after buyout.(Brief article)
November 14, 2008... Direct marketing company GI Solutions Group has targeted a pounds 20m increase in turnover in two years after being bought out by private equity investor Grove Industries for an undisclosed sum. GI Solutions managing director Robin Welch...

MetalFX parent company pulls plug.
November 14, 2008... Metallic colour specialist MetalFX is to close after parent company Ciba Coating Effects decided the business did not fit in with its core operations. The Leeds-based company will close on 19 December, although a telephone support line...

Krauss steps down from Prinovis.(Stephan Krauss stepping down as chief executive of prinovis)(Brief article)
November 14, 2008... Stephan Krauss has stepped down as chief executive of printing giant Prinovis, just over three years after the company was formed. He will become managing director of 'an independent company focused on improving the energy efficiency of...

In brief: Advantage Digital Print receives media attention.
November 14, 2008... Advantage Digital Print in Dorchester has received a bout of media interest after printing a calendar for Jurassic Jewels. The calendar, which was printed on an iGen4, features a collection of females in artistic renderings. It has received...

In brief: Greenhouse Graphics crowned BAPC Business of the Year.
November 14, 2008... Greenhouse Graphics was crowned the BAPC Business of the Year at the trade body's annual conference held last weekend. Close to 150 delegates attended the two-day event, which included presentations from business expert Adrian Webster, London...

In brief: Pensord strengthens sales team.
November 14, 2008... Pensord has strengthened its sales team by bringing in former Friary Press managing director Jon Parvin. Parvin said: 'Naturally, I've been aware of Pensord for some time and have admired the way the management team has gone about its task in...

In brief: Technotrans mourns death of Phil Bond.(Obituary)(Brief article)
November 14, 2008... Technotrans, the ancillary print equipment supplier, is mourning ex-employee Phil Bond, who has passed away at the age of 53 after a short illness. His funeral will take place at Oxford Crematorium on Monday, 17 November at 1.30pm. To...

In brief: CDMS to host free seminar.
November 14, 2008... CDMS in Merseyside is hosting a free seminar entitled Treating People as Individuals on 20 November. The event will take place at the Radisson Edwardian Hampshire Hotel in Leicester Square, London and will look at the steps that businesses need...

In brief: Conde Nast uses Cellocover service for Vogue.
November 14, 2008... Conde Nast Publications has used Celloglas's new Cellocover service for renowned fashion magazine Vogue. Cellocover provides multiple affects in one pass and was used for the magazine's September 2008 cover, which was printed by St Ives. ...

In brief: First 4 Print Finishing to donate to Children in Need.(Brief article)
November 14, 2008... First 4 Print Finishing will donate 1.5% of all orders it received for trimming, folding and saddlestitching this week to Children in Need The company will then top this up by doubling the money raised. -------------------- Did you...

Datateam buys Borcombe SP in its second acquisition this year.
November 14, 2008... Borcombe SP has been bought out of administration by Datateam Publishing, the contract publishing and direct mail business. The deal was signed last Friday (7 November) following HS Printer's decision to put the business up for sale due to...

Beale takes control of Print Search after MBO.
November 14, 2008... David Beale has led a management buyout (MBO) at print management company Print Search from founder Grant Hendry. Beale, who declined to comment on the value of the deal, now has 100% control of the 41-strong Manchester-based company. ...

'We alone can sustain mag pricing,' says BGP.
November 14, 2008... Web offset printer Benhamgoodheadprint (BGP) has claimed that it has the only sustainable business model in the UK magazine printing sector at current market prices. Bicester-based BGP's comments follow Pindar's recent sale of Cooper Clegg...