Across the Nation
Current Users Describe Opportunities Wide-Format Digital Printing Provides
OAK BROOK, IL—Wide-format printing may be just the offering you need to enhance your company's value proposition—and avoid the commodity trap. Printing Impressions' recent "Opportunities in Wide-Format Digital Printing" colloquium—sponsored by Fujifilm North America, Inca Digital and ColorGATE—provided Chicago-area commercial printers with a blueprint on adding high-margin products such as digital signage, banners and point-of-purchase/point-of sale output to their capabilities.
The luncheon and networking event began with a keynote presentation by Dan Marx, vice president of markets and technologies at the Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA), and included an expert user panel moderated by Mark Michelson, editor-in-chief of Printing Impressions.
Panelists included Tom Fitzgerald, vice president of sales support operations at Yunker Industries in Lake Geneva, WI; Erik Landrowski, COO at NGS Printing in Elgin, IL; Brett Levitt, co-owner of Oakley Signs & Graphics in Des Plaines, IL; and Todd Meissner, president at Color Ink in Sussex, WI.
Panelists shared their real-world, wide-format printing challenges and successes. They covered topics ranging from how to first get started with wide-format services, color management, and creating sales compensation plans.
Print Shop for Dental Manufacturer Has Something To Smile About with Its New Pharmaceutical Folder
SOUTH JORDAN, UT—To complement the internal print shop that was added in 2011, Ultradent Products, which specializes in the dental manufacturing markets, has installed a GUK FA45 FL2 folder from G&K-Vijuk.
The folder takes #50 offset sheets and folds them down to sizes that fit in the company's extremely small medical-device packaging. After only five months, the folder had already produced more than 10 million folded pharmaceutical instructions, with the runs ranging from 5,000 to 30,000.
Gary Gillett, director of materials management, notes, "We are now offering our unused capacity in a second shift to local printers that have similar outsourcing limitations."
FLORIDA
Largo—PrimeNet Direct Marketing Solutions successfully completed the Service Organization Control (SOC 2) Type 1 compliance examination,earning it a top data security rating. The third-party audit was executed by 360 Advanced.
St. petersburg—Replacing an older Kodak model, C&D Printing installed a Kodak NexPress SX2700 digital production color press, which includes a long-sheet option and a Kodak Fifth Imaging Unit.
ILLINOIS
Bloomington—An eight-color, 41˝ KBA Rapida 106 perfector has been added at BOPI. It includes the ErgoTronic color control system, QualiTronic in-line color control and a LogoTronic management system.
Tinley Park—A Pitney Bowes FlowMaster RS inserter with folding capabilities has been installed at Liberty Creative Solutions, along with the addition of an MCS Perfect Match/Inkjet system.
LOUISIANA
New Orleans—Advance Central Services Louisiana purchased two NELA fully automatic vision punch benders with plate sortation for its Goss web press.
MICHIGAN
Bloomfield Hills—Maestro Media Print Solutions recently completed a 2,200-page catalog for Independent Distributors Inc., a Canadian cooperative. Maestro produced 33,500 copies in both English and French.
MINNESOTA
Chanhassen—An Inveloper wrap-based finishing system is now producing more personalized outer envelopes at IWCO Direct's facility here. It uses roll paper stock that wraps around the contents of a direct mail package, which is then sealed to create the outer envelope.
NEVADA
Las Vegas—A&B Printing and Mailing has purchased Midnight Printing, a short-run, full-color specialist.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Concord—Concord Litho has rebranded its fundraising division as Concord Direct.
Hooksett—The Better Business Bureau of New Hampshire awarded Polaris Direct with its 2014 Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics.
NEW YORK
Amityville—This year marks the 43rd anniversary of Envelopes.com, started in 1971 by Ken Newman under the name of Action Envelope.
Staten Island—The Staten Island Advance purchased a fully automatic NELA edge register punch bender for its Goss new Magnum Compact press.
OHIO
Brooklyn—A NELA VCP vision punch bender with plate sortation has been added at Plain Dealer Publishing.
PENNSYLVANIA
Greensburg—Fotorecord Print Center has added a Heidelberg Speedmaster 52-5P3+LX, along with additional Xerox production digital presses. The company is also celebrating its 20th anniversary.
West Chester—Star Printing & Mailing purchased two digital copiers, a Morgana DigiFold folder and a Formax ColorMax inkjet envelope printer.
VIRGINIA
Sterling—A six-color EFI VUTEk QS2 Pro UV hybrid roll/flatbed inkjet printer has been acquired by ColorNet.
WISCONSIN
Madison—Webcrafters Inc. has installed a second Muller Martini SigmaLine digital book manufacturing system.
