Heidelberg

Anniversary Open House Draws Crowd MAULBURG, GERMANY—Approximately 250 people recently attended the anniversary open house event, "40 years of Muller Martini Presses," in this town in southern Germany. Group Chairman Rudolf Müller, Group Divisional Manager Dr. Peter Merkli and Managing Director Dr. Jürgen Dillmann took the opportunity to thank all the guests for their long-standing relationship. Muller Martini then demonstrated two new variable-size web presses, the Alprinta and the Concepta. Introduced at Drupa, Muller Martini's new variable-size printing insert maximizes the format flexibility of a standard Alprinta by simply exchanging the plate and blanket cylinders, while the cartridge is still installed in the

EU Services of Rockville, MD, has expanded its inside sales division by hiring Chris Duron and Barrett Watson. Hi-Liter Graphics, Burlington, WI, has added Mark Toole to its sales team in the capacity of account executive. Holding 18 patents and with more than a quarter century of experience in the technology industry, Mike Wash joins the Government Printing Office (GPO) as Chief Technical Officer and co-director of the Office of Innovation and New Technology. After spending a decade with Congressman Robert Ney, former Joint Committee on Printing Staff Director Maria Robinson makes the move from the House Administration Committee to the GPO as the agency's deputy

Future of Print Extends Beyond PI 400 Printers Although this special issue features our annual ranking of the 400 largest printing companies in the United States and Canada based on annual sales, the future of print itself is a topic that's just as important to the quick printer located in Anytown USA as it is to the establishments that made the Printing Impressions 400 list. Printers of all sizes must unite to support various initiatives that help promote our industry. One still-emerging effort is The Print Council, a business development initiative dedicated to promoting the greater use of print media through education, awareness, market

Signing Highlights Graphic Communications Day NEW YORK CITY—One highlight of Graphic Communications Day (GCD), held recently at Madison Square Garden, was a signing ceremony between the Association of Graphic Communications (AGC) and Fairleigh Dickinson University launching an Executive MBA in Graphic Communications degree program. arizona PHOENIX—O'Neil Printing, a 96-year-old company, is now running an eight-color Heidelberg Speedmaster SM 102 long perfector with aqueous coater. The 40˝ Speedmaster perfector—reportedly the only press of its kind in the Phoenix market—allows for four-over-four color printing in a single pass. CALIFORNIA CHATSWORTH—S2K Graphics has celebrated its 15th anniversary. Formerly known as Signs 2000, S2K Graphics

By Mark Michelson Editor-in-Chief Don't chalk up the sprint-speed pace of buying activity reported by many Graph Expo and Converting Expo 2004 exhibitors to the Chicago Marathon that just happened to coincide with the opening day of the show. More likely, credit the desire for printers to make capital expenditures again to signs that the U.S. economy and graphic arts industry are finally rebounding, as well as the fact that Graph Expo provided U.S. printers with the first chance to see state-of-the-art Drupa introductions in action. Perhaps nowhere was this more apparent than within the booths of traditional sheetfed and web offset press

arizona PHOENIX—Heidelberg USA has installed its Prinect Prinance Print Management System at Steve Woods Printing. The Prinance package works seamlessly with another manufacturer's digital prepress system and a trio of large- and small-format presses, as well as with its Heidelberg/Polar 137 cutter, and TD66 and TD78 folders. california Los Angeles—Sinclair Printing, owned and operated for 75 years by the Sinclair family, has stepped up its booklet production by adding a new BravoPlus saddlestitching system from Muller Martini to its full-service bindery. Roseville—Master Color is now running a two-color Heidelberg Printmaster QM 46. The new equipment is being used to produce stationery, brochures and newsletters.

BY MARK SMITH Technology Editor Scientists have challenged its veracity, but the "boiling frog" legend endures. Here's a short version: Drop a frog into a pot of boiling water and it will immediately jump up. Place a frog into a pot of temperate water, then slowly turn up the heat, and it will stay in the pot until it is overcome. Admittedly, the dire consequences of this cautionary tale are overblown when it's applied to the current status of digital printing. Nonetheless, it does give one a visceral sense for how the slow pace of a change can mask its magnitude over time

by chris bauer Managing Editor If you still think of the bindery as a labor-intensive segment of the print shop where manual operations are the norm, then you obviously were not paying close enough attention at Graph Expo and Converting Expo 2004. Exhibitors touting the next generation of finishing equipment proved that bindery gear is now just as automated and digitized as equipment in prepress departments and pressrooms. Muller Martini, for example, showed printers and finishing professionals how to make the most of computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) in their binderies and pressrooms. Under the theme "Integration—Solutions from A to Z," the company introduced a

CAPE TOWN, SA—Anderson Lithograph President Mark Tennant traveled from Los Angeles to the southern tip of the African continent to compete as a finalist in the Sappi International Printer of the Year awards and to tack on a little vacation time. But he didn't need to go on a safari to still come close to an elephant. That's because Cenveo Anderson Lithograph captured the elephant trophy as Sappi 2004 International Printer of the Year for its Cadillac XLR 2004 brochure entry. The award was announced Oct. 22 during an elegant awards gala hosted by South Africa-based Sappi Ltd. at the Vergelegen wine estate located near

by chris Bauer Managing Editor Many printers report seeing the demand for UV offset printing continue to rise—a bright light in a sometimes gloomy commercial printing landscape. One reason given by printers for this trend is the growing desire of print buyers and designers to create high-end consumer packaging, displays and marketing materials. This change in marketing approach by print buyers has had an effect on printed materials, causing a need to provide high-quality results. UV printing is opening up new doors for commercial printers. When it comes to intangibles such as gloss, feel, protective qualities and scuff resistance, UV-printed products are often