BIRMINGHAM, AL—Xanté is in the process of completing a pair of deals that sees it acquire RIPit Imaging Systems of Citrus Heights, CA, and Exxtra Imaging Systems of Hauppauge, NY. Terms of the deals, which are expected to be completed by next Friday, were not disclosed.RIPit Imaging Systems produces software raster image processors (RIPs) designed…
BY MARK SMITH Technology Editor Industry vendors continue to weave a convoluted web of interconnecting technologies and business relationships. Imagine, for a moment, if all of such connections between exhibitors at PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 had been represented physically by running strings between their booths. The result likely would have rivaled the work of even the most industrious spider. Quiet a few new strands would have been added just at the show, particularly in the areas of interfacing offset and digital workflows and marketing of new plate technologies. Though not expressly sold as JDF (Job Definition Format) solutions, that technology generally
BY MARK SMITH Technology Editor Printers in growing numbers are having second thoughts about their computer-to-plate (CTP) systems. First-time buyers are still the dominant force in the market today, but the aging installed base is rapidly driving up the percentage of shops looking to invest in a second, or even third, generation of technology. By the end of 2004, the installed base of CTP devices in North America had reached nearly 12,000 units, including metal and non-metal systems, according to a new plate market study recently published by PRIMIR (the Print Industries Market Information and Research Organization). Completed by State Street Consultants in
Heidelberg Outlines PRINT 05 Plans KENNESAW, GA—Heidelberg announced plans for its 76,000-square-foot booth at next month's PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 exhibition in Chicago during a pre-show press conference held here recently. One of the main attractions will be the XL 105 Theater—a large-screen theater for live presentations that will house Heidelberg's new Speedmaster XL 105. The first product introduced in the company's new series of high-end offset presses known as the "Maximum Performance Class," it boasts speeds to 18,000 sph. There will be a total of 10 sheetfed presses, in various sizes and configurations, within the Heidelberg exhibit. Outside the XL 105
