Sappi’s 2011 Printers of the Year Contest Now Open to Entries

BOSTON—Jan. 11, 2011—Sappi Fine Paper North America has opened the call for entries for its North American Printers of the Year awards for 2011, a competition that recognizes print excellence and innovation in 10 categories for work produced on Sappi papers. Through the awards, printers have the opportunity to win up to $20,000 in support of their marketing and brand initiatives and to be featured in Sappi’s new searchable online database for designers, printer buyers and corporations.

This award recognizes the fine art of print production and the ability of an elite group of printers to achieve perfection within a complex manufacturing and production environment. The judges review dot fidelity, cross overs, binding, color consistency across forms, and overall print integrity within 10 categories. All entries for Sappi’s 2011 North American Printers of the Year must be received by the Feb. 28, 2011 deadline.

Entering this competition is easy—printers can enter any existing work printed between Jan. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2010 that uses Sappi paper as the dominant stock and is printed on a Sappi paper in the U.S. or Canada. For each entry, six copies of the printed piece must be submitted by mail along with one copy of the entry form. An online version of the entry form and downloadable pdf entry form are available online. For more details and the entry form, visit: www.sappi.com/na/poy or contact us at (800) 882-4332.

“Through Sappi’s North American Printers of the Year competition, we are proud of our longstanding commitment to promote the vitality and relevance of print communications, by supporting the best of the best among printers today,” said Patti Groh, Director of Marketing Communications, Sappi Fine Paper North America.

Award Categories

Printers may submit entries for one of the following 10 categories: Annual Reports, Books, Brochures, Calendars, Catalogs, Digital Print, Magazines (sheetfed), Magazines (web), Printer's Own Promotions, or General Print (any printed material not included in the other categories). Each printer may submit an unlimited number of entries but each entry must be accompanied by its own entry form. All entries will be judged on overall impact of the piece; degree of difficulty in the printing techniques; and technical excellence.

Rewards of Excellence

• Gold Award winners in each category are Sappi Printers of the Year. The 10 Gold winners receive up to $20,000 in support of the printer's marketing and brand initiatives, and additionally up to 5,000 lbs. of paper provided by Sappi to support their sales and marketing projects.

• Gold, Silver and Judges' Award winners will be profiled through their own updatable web page on Sappi's Printers of the Year online resource to better connect them with designers, print buyers and corporations.

• Bronze Award winners will be included in the Printers of the Year online resource, with their contact information available to all users.

Judging

The judging has been carefully planned to ensure the highest possible standards and integrity. The judges, none of whom work for Sappi Fine Paper North America, define the standards for print quality based on their technical expertise. A panel of judges were chosen from recognized print institutions and trade professions, including: Bill Garno, Director of Rochester Institute of Technology's (RIT) Printing Applications Laboratory (PAL); Malcolm Kief, professor in the Graphic Communication Department at Cal Poly; Ken Lantz, North American Managing Director of the Business Unit Hi Resolution for Kinetic in New York; and Lauren Elliot, Principal of Wicked Good Print Production.

For more information, visit www.na.sappi.com/aboutus/news/2011-01-11

About Sappi Fine Paper North America
Sappi Fine Paper North America is a preeminent North American producer of coated fine paper used in premium magazines, catalogues, books and high-end print advertising. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Sappi Fine Paper North America is known for innovation and quality. Its brand names, including McCoy, Opus, Somerset and Flo, are some of the industry's most widely recognized and specified.

Sappi's mills in North America are triple chain of custody certified to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). Over 80 percent of the energy used by Sappi's North American mills comes from renewable resources, resulting in one of the lowest carbon footprints of any major North American coated paper supplier.

Sappi Fine Paper North America is a division of Sappi Ltd. (NYSE and JSE), a global company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, with manufacturing operations on four continents in 10 countries, sales offices in over 40 countries, and customers in over 100 countries around the world. For more information about Sappi Fine Paper North America, visit: www.sappi.com/na.

Source: Company press release.