ISM International Sign Magazine

DPLenticular, supplier of Lenstar lenticular plastic sheets and rolls for the graphic arts industry is the new name of the former LPC-Europe (The Lenticular Plastic Company of Europe).
Lenstar is exclusively distributed in Europe by DPLenticular to creative agencies as well as commercial offset and digital printers for use in applications such as POP designs, packaging, direct mail, promotional and various card formats.

The International Sign Association (ISA) has called its 2008 International Sign Expo ’the biggest sign show ever.’ Held March 26-29, 2008 in Orlando, the event attracted 20,000 attendees and showcased 1,952 exhibit booths, representing 563 companies demonstrating the newest technologies in the electronic sign, printing and graphics industries.
Over 75% of next year’s Las Vegas show (April 15-18) has been reserved.

Online digital print production specialist Ultimate is opening an office in Gent, Belgium, to better serve European dealers. The move aims to enhance channel development and provide technical support training and integration assistance to dealers and their customers.
The office will be shared with sales and marketing services outsourcing firm Four Pees who, under boss Tom Peire will lead European channel development for Ultimate.
‘With more focus on consultancy the European graphic arts sales channel has changed,’ says Peire. ‘Even local vendor sales organizations are increasingly looking for software solutions that add value to their customers and help them drive equipment sales’.

Leading lenticular 3D software developer, HumanEyes Technologies, will be introducing its latest software solution at DRUPA.
Producer3D offers an array of new lenticular tools and ’industry first’ prepress features that aim to simplify the preprint process, greatly improve lenticular productivity and provide superior lenticular print quality. Producer3D, which will replace HumanEyes 1.3 currently embedded in the PrintPro 2.0 product family, has been chosen for live lenticular printing demonstrations by five partners on their stands throughout the event.

Eddie Tucker has joined Durst in the UK as a senior service engineer. Eddie, who will be based in the north of England, brings the number of factory trained technicians covering the UK and Ireland, to eight.
Eddie joins Durst with a background of 18 years experience in a service role and is a very technical and highly qualified sales engineer. His experience includes working for some of the largest names in the industry as well as running a successful independent servicing organisation.

Print finishing equipment and consumables company GBC Commercial Laminating Solutions has installed the first GBC 620os on-demand laminating system at Jackson Media Services in High Wycombe, UK.
The machine provides the company with in-house finishing for products printed on its new HP Indigo 3500 Digital Press.
With high productivity speeds of 15m/minute and a maximum sheet size of 53cm x 76cm, the unit was considered ideal for short runs and fast turnarounds.

Drytac has acquired Advanced Finishing Solutions (AFS), an OEM provider and distributor of aqueous/UV-curable coating machines and liquid coatings. This strategic move will position Drytac to leverage the growing demand for liquid laminating among users of flatbed inkjet printers, digital print-on-demand presses and photo printers, as well as operators of gicleé and fine art studios.
Advanced Finishing Solutions offers aqueous and UV coating equipment, with formats ranging from 3.2m down to models the size of a copy machine. The company markets its products under trade names including VERSA-Coater, PhotoMate, PressMate and DocuMate UV, Cyclone UV, AFC Liquid Coaters, ENDURACoat and INSTACure liquid coatings
As a leading manufacturer of dry mounting tissues and Heatset overlaminating films, Drytac is well positioned to increase the visibility of the AFS brand in Europe, North America and Asia. ’The liquid coater line enhances our position as a one stop post print finishing resource for the graphics and display markets,’ says Marc Oosterhuis, president of the Drytac Group. ’It will also allow us to expand into markets such as screen printing and on-demand printing.’

Leading digital signage solutions business Dynamax Technologies has joined the recently-formed Digital Signage Association (DSA), an international industry advocacy group dedicated to the interests of manufacturers, resellers, distributors and solutions providers within this sector.
Dynamax hopes to collaborate with other players to address issues and challenges facing the industry.
‘As this sector grows rapidly worldwide, it is important for members to develop solutions that will positively impact the industry,’ says DSA executive director David Drain.

The UK’s Hampshire Flag Company is amongst the first manufacturers to offer recyclable banners made from DuPont Tyvek.
Md Graham Wilkinson says: ‘Our customers receive a high-quality product at no additional cost and the environment doesn’t suffer.’
The DuPont Tyvek banner is very hard-wearing and almost impossible to tear thanks to its construction of a random pattern of polyethylene fibres, making it ideal for external use.
DuPont’s Ian Davis says the banner is a strong competitor within the PVC banner market. ’The recyclable material meets all three ’R’s recommended by the Government – it is reusable, recyclable and reduces carbon footprint.
The material is available in large format sizes up to two metres in height and in widths up to 40m. Hampshire Flag offers full colour UV printing, single or double sided, on the 110gsm material.

Wide-format inkjet printer manufacturer Mutoh Europe has added new models to its popular line of ValueJet Eco-Solvent Ultra roll-to-roll printers. Two new printers are now available – the ValueJet 1304 54” four colour printer and the ValueJet 1614 64” four colour printer. Both incorporate Mutoh’s award-winning Intelligent Interweaving print technology.
Application possibilities encompass production of outdoor posters & signs, banners, long-term backlit signage, building and construction announcements, POS displays, as well as durable prints for indoor use.
The 54” ValueJet 1304 printer complements the ValueJet 1204 at entry level position in the ValueJet range. It has a media width of 1371.5mm and a print width of 1336.5mm. The printer is specifically targeted at starting-out sign makers as well as commercial printers looking to replace existing water-based inkjet printers.
The 64” ValueJet 1614 printer model replaces Mutoh’s existing ValueJet 1604 model. The machine has a media width up to 1625mm and a print width up to 1615mm. The printer is specifically targeted at the sign and display market.

Retail designer Ignite Retail Design International has used 3M’s Vikuiti Rear Projection Film in its work for Hidden Hearing, a leading provider of hearing healthcare.
Elliptical Vikuiti displays measuring 1.2m x 0.9m are being installed in six branches of Hidden Hearing at a time when merchandising means more than simply showing a product. ‘We are now able to communicate sophisticated and complex offers at the point of sale,’ says Paula Dowie at Ignite.
Allied with multimedia, the film attract and hold people’s attention sufficiently to convey numerous offers and branded messages. The film is attached directly to the insides of shop windows without the need for mounting brackets or electrical supply.

Robert Horne Group has strengthened its presence in the UK plastics market with the acquisition of Vink Plastics UK, a national distributor with a key presence in the sign and graphics industry.
Dave Allen at Robert Horne Group says the move: ’Signals our commitment to sustained growth within the plastics market which compliments our position as market leader in the graphic display industry. We will continue to develop this market both by organic growth and possible future acquisitions.’
For Vink customers, this means business as usual, but with the added benefit of access to a wider range of specialist brands and added value services.

Colourgen reseller Image2Output has supplied a ColorSpan 5460uv (now known as the HP DesignJet H35500) UV-curable flatbed printer to Resource Print Management (RPM) in High Wycombe, UK.
Since the installation, RPM has carried out a number of projects, printing on a range of substrates, including Foamex, rigid PVC, banner vinyl, mesh, display boards and even MDF. ’Our customers have shown a real interest,’ says RPM’s Darren Britnell.
RPM is also gaining business from some of the printers it usually gives business to. ’Not many companies have the capability to deliver what we can with the DesignJet H35500 and this has not gone unnoticed by our own suppliers. The incremental business that the printer has given us has been considerable. It’s well on the way to paying for itself,’ he adds.

FESPA’s second Digital Printing Europe exhibition - which took place at Geneva’s Palexpo in April - attracted similar visitor numbers to the inaugural event in 2006, with 12,817 visits recorded over three days.
With just under 8,000 individual visitors, more than 50% devoted two or more days to the show. The exhibition space also enlarged by 40% on the previous event in Amsterdam.
Exhibitors expressed satisfaction with the international spectrum of visitors, and their decision-making authority, says the organiser.
’FESPA events have a special resonance for the wide format community, and our events provide a unique environment in which suppliers and print service providers can connect with one another’, says FESPA’s Frazer Chesterman. ’Our research shows that this sector is buoyant and willing to invest, seeing digital production as a major opportunity for growth, to complement traditional processes for existing applications, and to help them evaluate new applications and revenue streams.’
Many exhibitors have already committed to next year’s event in Amsterdam (May 13-15).

The merger of Antalis Visual Communications and McNaughton Printall has prompted new appointments.
New divisional director for Antalis Printall Tony Marshall has significant sales and management experience within the sign and display market.
New product manager Chris Green is responsible for ensuring a range of leading brands are available to customers in the sign and display market. And new sales director Colin Palazzo has spent the last three years as the national sales manager in the Visual Communications division.

Andrew Wilson is the new md at UK-based B&P Graphic Systems , taking over from David Burton who has moved on to Fujifilm Sericol as its European sales director.
Wilson, who has been with B&P for over a decade, was previously sales director. ’We’re going to concentrate on what we do best,’ he says. ’Our strong relationships with manufacturers such as Agfa and Mutoh give B&P a very strong advantage with entry-level and mid-range systems which use UV-curable and solvent-based ink technologies. Additionally, we’re going to boost the potential available with digital textiles, a market sector which is growing in the UK.’
Wilson plans to develop what he describes as a fresher and more friendly approach.

Wide-format printer manufacturer Mutoh Deutschland has inaugurated its new office in Düsseldorf. As well as larger office space, the facility has an extensive demonstration centre staging all latest Mutoh wide-format printer and cutter equipment.
’Germany is one of our key countries,’ says Arthur Vanhoutte, md of Mutoh Deutschland and Mutoh Europe. The facility, he says, ‘Will better accommodate the needs of our successful Mutoh Certified Partner program in Germany. We also installed a technical service department for after-sales support and hands-on service training of our local partners.’
’Partners from all over Germany will be able to book demos for interested customers. The premises will also enable us to organise dedicated dealer events, product launches and application training for the German-speaking market. With Düsseldorf airport only 15 minutes away, the office will also be convenient for resellers within neighbouring countries.’

Océ’s CS9000 series of high quality display graphics printers were shown for the first time at the Sign & Digital UK event.
The CS9160, CS9265 and CS9050 were all designed to suit customers’ varying needs, says Océ. The 64” CS9160 provides reliability, superior print quality and increased productivity, says the firm. Environmentally safe, it can produce both indoor and outdoor durable prints, making it ideal for those just starting in digital print.
The CS9265 is ideal for companies wishing to expand production capacity for both indoor and outdoor jobs. It offers print speeds of up to 40m2 per hour in production print mode, with top print speeds of up to 80m2 per hour. The CS9050 is ideal for commercial shops that want to offer outdoor printing, and for corporate customers, who want to produce graphics in-house.
Derek Joys, Programme Manager, Display Graphics Systems, Océ UK, said: ’These customers need an affordable, high quality, environmentally safe and easy-to-use system that offers indoor and outdoor versatility. All these printers in the CS9000 series suit these needs.’

Visual comunications equipment specialist GCC has won the 2008 Outstanding Photonics Product Award, presented by the Photonics Industry & Technology Development Association (PIDA) for its advanced large working table metal marking system, the GCC LaserPro S290.
GCC continues to enjoy great success globally. It successfully developed and produced the S290 system which, it says, can be used in a wide range of applications. Whether it is a graphic on metallic surfaces, plastic surfaces, or simply barcodes on metal tools, the S290 produces excellent marking results and excellent output quality, according to GCC.

Leading design and pre-press solutions provider EskoArtwork, has installed a CDI Spark 4835 digital flexo platemaker at Creation Repro, UK - a supplier of prepress origination for the packaging sector in Europe.
The investment is underpinned by a full EskoArtwork workflow solution, including FlexProof and FlexRip.
‘Continuous strategic investment is the only way to improve and streamline our production process in order to remain competitive,’ says Matt Francklow, Creation Repro’s md. ‘The installation of the CDI Spark 4835 is a key building block. Its high speed and reliability gives us a leading edge and the quality of the plates and sleeves cannot be faulted.’