Training and Education

THERE WILL be more than just tons of political “hot air” emitted in Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul during the respective Democratic and Republican national conventions in the coming weeks. So will, literally, be tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Despite efforts by both parties to appear politically correct by “greening” their conventions and their marketing efforts, neither campaign has bothered to address the carbon footprint of their political advertising and events. And they constitute a big footprint, indeed. PQ Media reports that political ad spending is expected to rise 43 percent to an all-time high of $4.5 billion during the 2008 election cycle. Direct

NEW YORK—Hammer Packaging’s James Hammer will receive the Power of Communications Award for Printing at the 2008 Franklin Event, to be held September 10 at Chelsea Piers in the Big Apple. The Franklin Event will attract about 500 CEOs and senior executives from the printing, publishing, advertising and graphic arts-related industries. During the gala, the prestigious Franklin Award for Distinguished Service will be given, though event host Printing Industries Alliance (PIA) would not divulge the recipient. Also receiving Power of Communications Awards for other sectors are Ken Lantz, DRAFTFCB-New York (advertising), and Tom Fox, American Express Publishing/Time Inc. (publishing). Winner of the John Peter

WESTMONT, IL—Large-format printing was the center of attention during a manroland open house held at its corporate headquarters here on June 24. The manufacturer’s Print Technology Center featured a pair of Roland 906LV presses, including one with an in-line foiler Prindor, which provided six demonstrations throughout the day.Among the presentations was a panel discussion that…

WARNING! I am about to get on my soapbox! Having recently return-ed from Drupa, where the printing industry gathers for its global Olympics every four years, I had a strange sort of déjà vu (or premonition) type of experience. Remember 1984? Not the book, but the year Apple stormed the world with the breakthrough Macintosh and its PostScript printer? Desktop publishing heralded disruptive change for the printing industry and started a shift that has turned into a virtual avalanche today. The avalanche gained steam as the Internet became ubiquitous through the 1990s. While we can blame the economic downturn at the beginning of this

RESTON, VA—Commercial printers will get the inside scoop on new business opportunities and gain insight into how to add value to client projects through the GRAPH EXPO® Seminar Program, to be held October 26-29 in Chicago’s McCormick Place South during GRAPH EXPO 2008. More than 70 educational sessions, as well as hands-on computer labs featuring the latest in software solutions, will provide commercial printers with real lessons that can be put to use as soon as they return to the printing plant. “The successful commercial printer of the future will offer service that is customized to their clients’ specific needs, by

ALEXANDRIA, VA—July 7, 2008—The Print Services & Distribution Association (PSDA) announced today a strategic alliance with Mid-Atlantic Freelance, a Knowledge Broker™ out of Alexandria, VA. PSDA is an international trade association supporting business printing executives in the print distribution industry. Many of PSDA’s members are print distributors – companies and/or individuals who buy print and print services to resell to a print buyer/end user. Mid-Atlantic Freelance provides pre-qualified freelancers in the fields of: graphic design, copy, editorial and technical writing, website development, and photography. “Traditional print distributors and print brokers have long been members of PSDA. This alliance allows us to reach out to

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY—Laminating equipment specialist GBC achieved a new Guinness World Record at Drupa on June 2 by establishing the fastest time to laminate 100 square meters of paper. The GBC team was able to laminate 102.2 square meters of paper in 40.53 seconds at its stand in Hall 11. The new GBC 8500HS Cyclone laminating system and GBC High Bonding Strength (HBS) film, both of which debuted here, were put to the test in the laminating challenge. Gareth Deaves, an adjudicator from the Guinness Book of World Records, confirmed the time of the lamination run and presented an award to the GBC team.

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY—On the opening day of Drupa, Maria Manns paid a visit to the Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) booth, and Bernhard Schreier, CEO of Heidelberg, was on hand to welcome Drupa’s most senior visitor. Manns was born in September 1910 in Düsseldorf and was sent to work in the print shop run by her father, Hermann Stapperfenne, at the age of five. The company mostly produced account books for wholesale companies on a Tiegel press from Heidelberg. Over the years, the print shop invested in a Heidelberg four-color press and, in 1945, Manns took over her father’s business, which she continued to run

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY—While exact figures aren’t available, safe sales estimates from exhibitors will easily exceed $15.5 billion for Drupa 2008 when the final orders have been processed. The exhibition, held from May 29 through June 11, drew about 391,000 visitors from 138 countries, excluding the 3,000 journalists that made the pilgrimage here. The international visitor tally…

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY—The PrintCity Alliance called Drupa 2008 its most successful show ever. With its 40-plus members and partners exhibiting in Hall 6, show traffic was so great that PrintCity had to reprint its Hall 6 guide midway through the show due to strong demand. Highlights of PrintCity Alliance activities included seven Competence Centers and two…