Count Machinery

Quebecor World Endures Loss MONTREAL—Embattled printing giant Quebecor World was socked with a loss of $21.1 million for the second quarter, or 20 cents a share. That is more than three times the $6.5 million (11 cents) net loss from the same period in 2006. Even so, Wes Lucas, Quebecor World president and CEO, reported that the North American operations produced significantly improved earnings, especially in the book and magazine divisions, where the firm’s retooling and restructuring program has been completed. Fire Strikes NJ Newspaper TRENTON, NJ—Contractors dismantling a printing press at The Times of Trenton accidentally ignited a fire, that newspaper reported. There were no injuries

Here’s an exclusive, PRE-SHOW PREVIEW showcasing new products submitted by many of the exhibitors that will be displaying their wares next month in Chicago. Colter & Peterson will showcase the BASA 3, which features an automatic jogging system that can automatically form layers of printed sheets, align them accurately and transport them to the subsequent cutting process. The BASA 3 is appropriate for paper from 16-lb. bond to 125-lb. tag, and is effective when combined with a modern, rear-table-feeding system. Existing gripper transport systems can be retrofitted. Visit www.piworld.com/infocenter: enter #377 MBO America will introduce the Super KTZ, featuring a knife-folding unit that

BY MARK SMITH When business conditions get tight, it's natural to think about just hunkering down and waiting for the market to turn around. It may hardly seem like the right time to make a significant investment in new equipment. However, doing just that can provide short- and long-term benefits. Postpress operations are prime targets for performance improvement, since they traditionally have been labor-intensive and highly mechanical. Folding definitely falls into that category, so anteing up for a new floor-model folder with automation features can provide a big payoff, manufacturers say. Potential benefits include lower operating costs, by enabling the use of less-skilled

BY ERIK CAGLE Accessories are to folding machines what cherries are to cheesecake—sweet. Then there's chocolate cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake, blueberry cheesecake. On the folder side, there's the need for product/card tipping, product sampling with peelable gluing, plow folding and the like, not to mention old standbys like scoring, slitting and perforating. Make no mistake about it, printers and trade finishers still seek units that are easy to operate, with short setup times, quick makereadies and capable of outstanding production levels. But auxiliary equipment can greatly augment the humble folder. The aforementioned features are among the most requested by customers, according to Wayne Pagel, president

Folding machines are advancing by leaps and bounds, as many companies will prove this month at DRUPA 2000, in Dusseldorf, Germany. BY CHERYL A. ADAMS "A new breed of folder . . . " dreams the printer who dozes off on his flight to DRUPA. "Smaller . . . Cheaper . . . Faster . . . Easy to set up . . . Easy to operate . . . Rugged enough to handle whatever jobs I throw at it . . ." In his dream, the printer is en route across the DRUPA fairgrounds complex, pushing past crowds, catching quick glimpses of