Muller Martini

For Mike Welsch, strength and flexibility are the keys to building a successful postpress business. The Muscle Bound Bindery president credits the durability of his products for building the reputation his Minneapolis-based bindery enjoys. Strength and flexibility also characterize Muscle Bound's growth from an extension of a publishing house to one of the leading case binding and Otabind producers in the country. From left, Muscle Bounders Jeff Deutsch, plant supervisor; Mike Ertle, plant manager; Jerry Hanson, former president; and Mike Welsch, president.Muscle Bound Bindery was founded by Jerry Hanson in 1967 as the hardcover book binding arm of Lerner Publishing. The company quickly outgrew

Direct Mailer Installs 20 Inserters SWEDESBORO, NJ—Direct Group (DG), a provider in the high-volume, time-sensitive segment of the direct mail industry, has purchased 20 new BÖWE Bell + Howell DemandWorks CMC-250S high-speed inserters. Each new machine inserts as many as six items into envelopes at speeds up to 18,000 hour. The new inserters feature interchangeable shuttle and rotary feeders to accommodate the weight and order of items that need to be inserted into a package. All will accommodate envelopes up to "stretch," or 6x11˝. Some will also accommodate up to jumbo envelopes while still reaching speeds of 16,000 per hour. These new inserters will help Direct

SEWICKLEY, PA—A panel of independent judges dubbed 17 innovative technologies worthy of 2005 PIA/GATF InterTech Technology Awards. The winners were chosen from a field of 52 technology nominees. Winners will be presented with Lucite InterTech stars during an annual banquet at the 2005 PIA/GATF fall administrative meetings, November 10-13, in San Francisco. The following is a list of the companies and their honored technologies: Metrix v1.5, LithoTechnics Pty Ltd. and Alterio Associates; Chameleon, Böttcher America; PDF Compare and PDF Merge, Creo Inc.; in-line coating for digital presses, NexPress Fifth Imaging Unit Solutions (Eastman Kodak); in-line coating for digital presses, Xeikon Print Protector, Xeikon International/Punch Graphix; Arrowlith UV,

Stitcher Installation a First in the States HARTFORD, WI—This month, Quad/Graphics will become the first printer in the United States to install a high-performance Muller Martini Supra saddlestitching system. The Supra will be located at the Quad/Graphics printing center located here. Featuring a newly developed and highly advanced pocket wheel feeder, the new Supra stitcher, shown to the public for the first time at Drupa 2004, offers production speeds of up to 30,000 cycles per hour. Quad's Supra is rated at 25,000 cycles with the new 416 feeder. "Our finishing operations are characterized not just by speed, but by flexibility and efficiency," explains Thomas Quadracci, Quad/Graphics

Flint Ink, XSYS Print Merge ANN ARBOR, MI—Flint Ink and XSYS Print Solutions of Stuttgart, Germany, have agreed to merge. The combination creates a global ink supplier with revenues of roughly $2.6 billion and with about 8,000 employees. Pending regulatory approval, the deal is slated to be finalized around September 30. XSYS was created by the 2004 merger of BASF Printing Systems and ANI Printing Inks. Finnish Paper Lockout Ends HELSINKI, FINLAND—Finland's major paper manufacturers and unions representing more than one million forest industry workers finally reached a labor agreement after being urged to return to the negotiating table by Finland Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen. The

Gämmerler to Build Manufacturing Plant HANOVER PARK, IL—Material handling and inline finishing equipment manufacturer Gämmerler plans to build a 80,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Palmetto, FL. Scheduled to open in April 2006, company officials say that the new facility will house the latest in automation equipment, provide roughly 35 percent of annual global production capacity and significantly improve Gämmerler's operational efficiency. "The decision to build the new plant was based on an increase in demand for Gämmerler's products in North America and a desire for a more flexible and efficient international manufacturing platform," says Gämmerler CEO Gunter Gämmerler. "The Palmetto plant will complement our existing production

Web Printers Hit The Race Track DALLAS—Sun Chemical offered Web Offset Offset Association Conference attendees the opportunity to climb into a NASCAR race car for a high-speed ride around the track at the Texas Motor Speedway. Of the 250 guests in attendance at the event, nearly 160 people elected to ride as passengers in the stock cars, which reached speeds of 170 miles per hour as they sped around the oval track. DiMS! organizing print's entire European staff have relocated to a brand new, purpose-built, state-of-the-art office building in Lichtenvoorde, the Netherlands. The building is equipped with ultra-modern demo spaces and well-equipped training classrooms. KBA North America

By Erik Cagle Senior Editor Digital printing, by all accounts, isn't what it was even two years ago. Likewise, any similarity between today's digital printing presses/output devices and short-term future technologies will be purely coincidental. Scratch that last statement, for there's one notable exception: the quality of digital printing already has improved and is certainly on the fast track to mainstream acceptance for any type of job, not just those pigeonholed as "digital friendly" applications. More commercial applications are continuously being realized. The masses have certainly gotten that point and are mobilizing the back end of the operation with equipment geared toward the finish

Show Shines for Manufacturers ORLANDO—With 150 exhibit spaces of machines and services at Orlando Graphics 2005, held in April, enthusiasm for 2006 has already been expressed with 98 percent commitment by this year's exhibitors. "The quality of visitors, not the quantity, is what generates business for us," says Hans Max, president and CEO of MBO America, an exhibitor at the show. "We were extremely satisfied not only with the immediate sales, but the followup sales and leads produced by Orlando Graphics." MBO ran demonstrations allowing visitors to see more than 20 multiple-machine configurations bringing improved production to the pressroom or bindery. There was excitement over MBO's

Stitcher Added to Get Competitive Edge INDEPENDENCE, MO—Post Press Specialties recently purchased a Vijuk 321-T saddlestitcher from Vijuk Equipment. Owner Andy Humble, plant manager Jacob Bagnell and estimator Bowen Griffitt believe the new stitcher will help them become more competitive in the Kansas City market. Equipment Makes the Cut in Reno RENO, NV—Employees at Registered Ink gather in front of their new Polar-Mohr System 2+ automated cutting system. The medium-sized commercial printer has more than doubled in size, sales volume and capacity since owners Bill and Melissa Gillis purchased the former Herth Printing in 1999. The shop's bindery also features a new Polar PM4-ABV automatic pile