On the Road

The 150 VIP attendees at Heidelberg’s recent President’s event witnessed a mix of high and low energy. The “high” was a kickoff tribute dinner for former president Jim Dunn; the “low” was an educational program focusing on low-energy UV printing.

In an address entitled “Creating New Opportunities for Growth-Explore, Evolve, Execute,” Sandy Alexander’s Michael Graff recounted some of the unsustainable business practices that printers and their suppliers brought upon themselves for several years leading up to the Great Recession.

It was refreshing to see so many printers investing their own money and time at the 12th annual EFI Connect users’ conference in the quest to optimize their workflows and maximize their MIS software and digital hardware investments.

The On Demand Conference and Exposition in Washington, DC, felt more like a conference with an exhibit hall, rather than a trade show with an education track. Much of the show floor had the feel of the tabletop displays at Seybold Conferences.

Since July, Offset Paperback Manufacturers’ Prosper 1000 digital inkjet web press reportedly has been producing books for sale without a single reject. Now, its Prosper 5000XL is set to produce offset-quality, color books for the next book season.

Finch Paper recently opened its mill (and forests) in Glens Falls, NY, to several industry media and analysts, myself included. The tour featured an up-close view of the company’s integrated paper-making facility, which includes a woodyard, pulp mill and four paper machines.