Printing Industry Commentary & Analysis

Around the Web: Decade Dilemmas. Fiber Fallout. Paper Packing. Tentacle Trouble. Nifty Notebooks. Clever Keyboard. Helping Hive.

Published December 20, 2019

What are technology’s biggest challenges for the next decade? What are the top emerging technologies? Are natural fibers better for the environment than artificial fibers? Paper-based alternative to Bubble Wrap. The eternal struggle: eagle vs. octopus. For sale: Alaskan newspaper. Cost: $0. A teenager installs a 1,500-pound mainframe computer in his parents’ basement. A portable roll-up keyboard for smartphones and tablets. The rebirth of cursive writing? Bees as service animals. Rejoice: Gary Larson’s “The Far Side” is now online! All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

The Smart Factory Comes to Australia’s CMYKhub

Published December 17, 2019

Dayne Nankervis of Australian trade printer CMYKhub talks about the company's automation efforts, and how it is helping address the challenge of finding qualified staff. Ease-of-use allows staff to operate multiple machines, and gain new skills as they move around the company.

Around the Web: Gaga for Graphene! Vexing Valuation. DNA Data. Explaining Ecommerce. Sham Shipping. Stalking Signage. Mysterious Millinery.

Published December 13, 2019

A graphene jacket. A costly typo in Utah. Merriam Webster’s Word of the Year. The DNA of things”—creating materials with built-in memory. Intricate paper sculptures of microorganisms. Free shipping isn’t always free. User-tracking billboards—and with whom they share data. Who is putting hats on Las Vegas pigeons? KFC’s chicken-scented yule log. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

October Printing Shipments: Raise a Glass of Holiday Cheer

Published December 13, 2019

The value of printing shipments for October 2019 was $7.65 billion—a pretty big jump from September’s $7.14 billion. October has become the biggest month of the year, and this is the best October the industry has had since 2016.

Understanding Quality Inkjet as the Sum of its Parts - Free Download

Published December 12, 2019

Our most recent white paper, sponsored by RICOH, examines the many factors that combine to create a quality inkjet solution for a particular market need. The production workflow and quality sensitivity varies significantly from one application segment to another. While some companies may be replacing one technology platform with another, others are challenged to maintain compatibility between inkjet and toner or offset platforms.

The “Orders of One” Industry

Published December 10, 2019

Julian Marsh, Digital Print Expert, talks about the latest challenges facing digital book printers. Customers want highly customized and complex books with faster turnaround than ever—the “Amazon effect.” At the same time, book printers are facing a skills shortage. Enter automation and the smart factory approach to book manufacturing.

Domtar Paper on Educating Designers to Grow Pages - Video

Published December 9, 2019

Ashley Maydak of Domtar Paper talks to Elizabeth Gooding about helping printing organizations help their customers with selecting papers in order to manage expectations and grow pages.

Around the Web: Crafty Carlsberg. Couture Clash. Fatal Fashion. Local Losses. Sham Shipments. Brainy Brush. Cuneiform Cookies. Purring Professors.

Published December 6, 2019

Carlsberg Group replaces plastic ring carriers and shrinkwrapping with innovative adhesive dots. The environmental toll of haute couture. A textile-based horror movie. The death of local news. An interactive look at the graphic design and development of New York City’s subway map. An AI system attempts to write about printing shipments. “A fitness tracker for your mouth.” A new look at Marco Polo’s last year in Venice. A Welsh password generator. Cats teaching economics. A $1 hotel room—exhibitionists preferred. A smoke-breathing Godzilla Christmas tree. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly, Baby Yoda-free miscellany.

First Look: Industry Business Conditions 2019

Published December 6, 2019

Preliminary results from our 2019 Business Outlook Survey show that one-fourth (24%) of survey respondents reported that, compared to 2018, revenues for 2019 were up more than 10%. That’s the highest this has been since we started our annual survey in 2015. Elsewhere, though, things are a bit more muted.

Bookmasters Brings the Smart Factory to Book Production

Published December 3, 2019

Brad Sharp, Director of Manufacturing for Bookmasters, talks about the company’s implementation of the “smart factory,” not only in the front end, but also in printing and finishing, leveraging automation to tie together as many work centers as they can for short-run, on-demand book production.

Plumb Marketing on Data, Diversification and Inkjet - Video

Published November 26, 2019

Plumb Marketing charts a course for continued growth through investment in multiple types of inkjet technology and diversification of their services and applications.

Memjet and COASO Announce the iCueLabel Press

Published November 25, 2019

COASO utilizes Memjet’s DuraFlex™ printing technology to develop a new class of high-performance label printer

October Jobs: Production Down, Managerial Up

Published November 22, 2019

In October, overall printing employment dropped -0.3% from September. On a year-over-year basis, though, it was down -2.4%. Production employment was down -0.7% from September to October, but year-over-year was down -4.8%. On the other hand, non-production employment was up +0.7% from September to October, and year-over-year was up +2.9%.

Around the Web: Publishers’ Peril? Gargantuan Gannett. Assessing AR. Female Pirate Printer. Festive Footwear. Shirt Supreme. Goofy Gravy.

Published November 22, 2019

What happens when a print publication goes all-digital? Has Apple News Plus cannibalized publications’ own digital efforts? Gannett and GateHouse to merge and create the biggest newspaper publisher in the US. What is in store for AR in 2020? Well, not Apple Glasses. Manhole cover-based art. Painting on Vans loafers. Hacking into pet dishes? A unique way to drug your Thanksgiving guests. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Inkjet Printing Helps Drive a Growing Personal Care Market

Published November 21, 2019

Release from Kodak on growth in the personal care market, a $188B industry, expected to grow to over $230B by 2022. Inkjet Printing Solutions now offer the same advantages as flexographic printing in terms of speed, quality and cost with both digital hybrid printing in this market.

Importance of Clear Communication with Print Providers

Published November 20, 2019

Mike Todryk, Color Technical Specialist for IWCO Direct shares three of the biggest client communication gaps impacting Production Service Provider's ability to reproduce brand colors correctly. Educate your customers, educate yourself and get colors right the first time.

Christine Erna on Intelligent Mail

Published November 20, 2019

Christine Erna of Strategic Postal Advisors provides some updates on the mailing industry, specifically "full-service intelligent mail." Intelligent mail offers mailers many benefits, such as address change services, secure destruction, and informed visibility data, although many mailers may not be aware how to take advantage of it.

Canon’s Versatile imagePRESS Technology

Published November 19, 2019

Canon USA’s Matthew Poliniak talks about the company’s imagePRESS technology—specifically the imagePRESS C10000VP and C910 Color Digital Presses—and the wide range of applications imagePRESS technology can produce, achieving the same high quality on uncoated and coated stock, as well as textured and other specialty substrates.

Xanté Introduces InfoMark, an Alternative to QR Codes

Published November 19, 2019

Robert Ross, CEO of Xanté, introduces InfoMark, a simple four-digit alphanumeric code designed to replace the QR code. InfoMark gives publishers, designers, packagers, and others a simple digital link to quickly access audio, video, PDF, and any other digital content from a printed piece using a desktop computer, smartphone, or tablet.

Software Binds Together All the Elements of an Automated Workflow

Published November 19, 2019

Ray Duval of Ultimate TechnoGraphics talks about the concept of the “smart factory,” how virtually any print process can be automated, and how software is the glue that holds together all the different parts of the automated workflow.

Planning for Long Run Inkjet Success - Video

Published November 18, 2019

A look at the planning, onboarding and post sales initiatives at Canon Solutions America that go into ensuring long-term success with an inkjet investment.

With the Ricoh TF6250, It’s a Whole New Ballgame for MAC Specialties

Published November 18, 2019

Mark Cohen, President of MAC Specialties, talks about the wide-format and specialty printing services his company offers, and explains how they produce custom cellphone stands. MAC Specialties recently installed a Ricoh TF6250 UV LED Flatbed Printer which allows them to print on materials other than flat sheets or boards—such as foam footballs.

Paperboard Container Manufacturing Establishments—2016

Published November 15, 2019

In 2016, there were 1,971 establishments in NAICS 32221 (Paperboard Container Manufacturing). One-half of these establishments have 50 or more employees, and three-fourths have 20 or more employees.

Around the Web: Looming Automation. Tough Lung Love. Fantasy Fabric. Sea Silk. Tangled Tapes. Cochlear Craziness. Olivetti Oddity. Missing Millennials. Canine Conversation.

Published November 15, 2019

An automated digital weaving loom. Hemp cigarettes are apparently a thing. A hat made of silk from mollusks goes up for auction. The Zagat Guide is back in print. Cassette tapes are coming back into fashion, for some reason. Send your ear data to Sony, for some reason. The bizarre tale behind the first desktop computer. Is online advertising the new dot-com bubble? There’s no such thing as a Millennial—or even a Boomer. Salvador Dalí’s Tarot deck. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Pixelle Specialty Solutions to Acquire Specialty Paper Business From Verso Corporation

Published November 14, 2019

Pixelle Specialty Solutions has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire specialty paper mills in Jay (“Androscoggin”), ME and Stevens Point, WI from Verso Corporation.

Teaching Millennial Marketers About Direct Mail

Published November 14, 2019

Jeana Garms, VP of Marketing for SG360°, talks about her experiences as a Millennial working for a direct mail company. Her age cohort tends to think in terms of digital media first, so she finds that marketers who entered the workforce in the last 10 years need a lot of education about print direct mail.

Finishing Automation is Becoming a Critical Investment

Published November 14, 2019

Bob Flinn from Standard Finishing talks about why, with the current labor market, investment in automation within binding and finishing is imperative.

Horizon International Introduces IoT Capabilities in its Finishing System

Published November 13, 2019

Yoshihiro Oe, General Manager at Horizon International Inc., talks about the "ICE Concept" that Horizon International introduced at the Think Smart Factory event. The concept brings Internet of Things (IoT) interconnection to finishing equipment to provide real-time data analytics, predictive maintenance, remote service, and support. Horizon is collaborating with customers to determine which type of IoT functionality is most useful within an automated print factory.

Transformation and Transition at Kodak

Published November 12, 2019

Patti Smith, VP, WW Business Development & Marketing, Digital Inkjet Printing, for Kodak, talks to David Zwang about the latest developments at Kodak, the company's new CEO Jim Continenza, and the renewed emphasis on understanding—and replicating—the transitions customers are undergoing.

Think Smart Finishing Showcases Automated Print Production

Published November 12, 2019

2019 Think Smart Finishing, organized by Horizon International, showcases automated print production from order to finished product. WhatTheyThink spoke to Yasuo Taketsugu of Horizon International about bringing 14 industry partners together across software, print, and finishing to show a fully integrated print environment.

Textiles means Growth for Commercial Printers - Video

Published November 11, 2019

Cary Sherburne and Elizabeth Gooding talk about the growing market for on-demand textiles and opportunities for commercial printers to get in the game. If you're interested in this market, Cary says "Do it now!."

Tri-Win Direct Wins with Continuous-Feed Inkjet from Ricoh

Published November 11, 2019

Andy Chagan of Tri-Win Direct talks about the direct mail company's humble beginnings in a second-floor apartment and now, 22 years later, mails 350-400 million pieces a year. The company uses predominantly Ricoh equipment and, in 2015, the company transitioned from cut-sheet to continuous-feed, and the Ricoh VC60000 was a game-changer.

No Fall for Printing Shipments

Published November 8, 2019

Heading into Fall 2019, the value of printing shipments for September 2019 was $7.14 billion—up from August’s $7.10 billion. It’s not a huge rise, but given that for the last few years September shipments declined from August’s, we’ll take it.

Around the Web: Talking Twistronics. Smartphone Subscriptions. Magenta Monopoly. Sadistic Stacks. Elusive Ebooks. Sumerian Stew. Banishing Blind Spots. No Mo’ Mona. Dean of the Dead.

Published November 8, 2019

Researchers turn graphene into a superconductor. Are subscriptions next for the iPhone? Deutsche Telekom claims to own the color magenta. An old sewing machine repair shop accidentally became a New York museum. Queens’ new library is all but inaccessible if you’re not an elite athlete. Culinary archaeologists recreate ancient recipes. A 14-year-old inventor solves the problem of cars’ blind spots. “Take down the Mona Lisa!” James Dean to star in a new movie, for some reason. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

The Coolest Thing About Inkjet - Video

Published November 5, 2019

We asked Marco Boer of I.T. Strategies "what is the coolest thing about inkjet?" His answer might surprise you.

Koenig & Bauer Looks Ahead to drupa 2020

Published November 5, 2019

Koenig & Bauer’s Mark Hischar previews what Koenig & Bauer will be showing at next year’s drupa 2020. The company will have two booths in Dusseldorf to showcase how the company has grown and the new technologies and product lines they have been developing.

Announcing New Inkjet Finishing Finder - Free Tool

Published November 4, 2019

Inkjet Insight's Finishing Finder can help to quickly narrow the field of finishing equipment for further evaluation based on specific search criteria such as company, functionality, and roll or sheet input. Access it here: https://apps.inkjetinsight.com/finishing-finder/

EFI’s Jeff White Talks Workflow

Published November 4, 2019

EFI’s Jeff White talks to Kelley Holmes about the importance of workflow tools to make print businesses more efficient, and discusses EFI’s MIS and workflow solutions for commercial print providers, mailing operations, and superwide format printers.

Dave Fellman on Driving the Sales Cycle

Published November 4, 2019

Longtime Printing News contributor Dave Fellman talks to Kelley Holmes about driving the sales cycle: prospecting, quoting, and taking the first few orders. It’s a rule of thumb that you’ll lose about 10% of your customers each year, so to grow, you need to add 12–20% new customers.

Experience, Relationships and Inkjet in the Commercial Printing Marketplace - Free Download

Published November 1, 2019

Get the latest Inkjet Insight white paper "Experience, Relationships and Inkjet in the Commercial Printing Marketplace." Download for free compliments of Komori.

Paper Bag and Coated and Treated Paper Manufacturing—2010–2016

Published November 1, 2019

In 2010, there were 825 establishments in NAICS 32222 (Paper Bag and Coated and Treated Paper Manufacturing). By 2016, that number had declined for a net loss of -12% to 730.

Around the Web: Terrifying Typeface. Edgy Analytics. Green Garments. Techy Teens. Expensive Eagles. Grotty Gifts. Candy Crushes.

Published November 1, 2019

Hellvetica unleashed. The edge will transform sporting events—and perhaps everything else. Apps for recycling used clothing. A study of mobile technology use by today’s tweens and tweens. Where eagles dare, roaming charges follow. Gift recipients may like poorly wrapped presents better. A hierarchy of candy. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Adding Value to the Industry—and Print Customers

Published November 1, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to Thayer Long, President of APTech, about some of the strategies and initiatives that APTech is pursuing to help add more value to the industry—and help print providers add more value to their customers—as the print industry goes through major changes.

RMGT: Alone with the Crowd

Published October 31, 2019

Chris Manley, President of Graphco, talks to Kelley Holmes at PRINTING United about how RMGT has the only offset press on the show floor—and that demos have drawn standing-room-only crowds.

Previewing drupa 2020

Published October 30, 2019

drupa’s Sabine Geldermann previews some of the highlights visitors can expect at next June’s drupa 2020, and some of the event’s new innovation partners. In the drupa cube, bestselling author Michael Gale, author of “The Digital Helix,” will talk about the digital transformations in other industries and how they apply to the printing industry.

RISO Valezus Visits Dallas - Video

Published October 29, 2019

We picked up some new pricing and details on the RISO Valezus T2100 in Dallas last week. Check out this overview and video of the RISO booth at Printing United.

RISO's Color Printing at PRINTING United

Published October 29, 2019

Brianna Makarevich and David Erwin of RISO Inc. give a tour of the RISO booth at PRINTING United showcasing the variety of devices on display, including the FW Series, which includes a multifunction finisher; the GD Series, which features a Fiery RIP to provide greater color capabilities; and the new Valezus T2100, the latest entry in RISO’s portfolio of print production systems.

Hybrid Software on Packaging Prepress

Published October 29, 2019

Mike Rottenborn, President and CEO of Hybrid Software, talks about how prepress for packaging has changed over the years, and how Hybrid Software has developed prepress solutions for flexo, offset, digital, and hybrid packaging printing.

Canon Invests in Field-Upgradable Inkjet - Video

Published October 28, 2019

Francis McMahon and Eric Hawkinson of Canon Solutions America discuss overcoming the challenge of delivering value when customers don't fully understand requirements and the need to deliver continuous innovation in the form of field-upgradable inkjet platforms.

Meet the EFI BOLT Digital Textile Printer

Published October 28, 2019

EFI's Textile Product Manager Micol Gamba walks us through the capabilities of the EFI BOLT single-pass digital textile printer in this video sponsored by EFI. As the world's fastest digital textile printer running at up to 90 meters per minute, the EFI BOLT was shown running at the recent ITMA trade show in Barcelona and four units had already been sold at that time.

Jeff Jacobson and the EFI Ecosystem

Published October 28, 2019

Jeff Jacobson, new Executive Chairman and CEO of EFI, talks to Cary Sherburne about what attracted him to take on the leadership role at EFI, and the changes in store as EFI transforms from being a public company to a private company.

The View from the Other Side: Print Buyers’ Revenues

Published October 25, 2019

Publishing and advertising are among the biggest print-buying markets. Last month, the Census Bureau released its Quarterly Services Survey, which reported revenues for these markets. Publishers’ revenues continue their long decline, while the up-and-down of advertising revenues indicate the extent to which the nature of advertising is changing.

Around the Web: Graphene Has its Own Conference. Grin and Bear It. Write About Happiness. Where Have All the English Majors Gone? The Internet in 2030. Epic Flight. IKEA Tarot Cards.

Published October 25, 2019

The 14th Graphene Conference meets in Silicon Valley. Bear Naked and Sustainable Pouches. Using digitized books to gauge happiness. English majors are down 25%. What will the Internet look like in 10 years? What does 19 hours on a plane do to the human body? All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Keypoint Intelligence on Textiles

Published October 24, 2019

Keypoint Intelligence - InfoTrends’ Ron Gilboa talks about the different kinds of textile printing applications and how print service providers can add more value for their customers by getting into textile printing.

Komori Impremia NS40 Beta Site Announced - B1 Sheet Inkjet

Published October 23, 2019

Scott Eganhouse Talks About TEC Mailing Solutions’ Strong Suits

Published October 22, 2019

Scott Eganhouse of TEC Mailing Solutions talks about the company’s cloud-based USPS-certified cloud solution for the address hygiene and mailing industry—and cloud-based dye-sub-printed trade show attire.

EFI’s Red Hot Fiery Technology at PRINT 19

Published October 22, 2019

Giselle del la Moriniere Product Marketing Manager in EFI’s Fiery Group talks about EFI’s Fiery partners, the Red Hot Technology Award-winning FreeForm Create software, and the integration of the Fiery digital front end with Duplo’s spot coater and slitter/cutter/creaser.

Marco Boer on Sheet-Fed Inkjet Trends - Video

Published October 21, 2019

Where are OEMS most likely to invest their R&D dollars? Marco Boer of I.T. Strategies joins again for an overview of the factors impacting investment in B1, B2 and B3 sheet-fed presses from OEM and customer perspectives.

CJ Graphics Sweeps the Bennys

Published October 21, 2019

Jay Mandarino, President and CEO of Mississauga, Ontario’s CJ Graphics, talks about his company’s having won a record 22 “Benny” Awards, the most in the 71-year history of the PIA’s Premier Print Awards.

Why Solimar ReadyPDF is a Game Changer - Video

Published October 18, 2019

Many print organization struggle with large or poorly formatted PDF files that drag down the whole production process. This was the driver behind Solimar ReadyPDF.

Paper Bag and Coated and Treated Paper Manufacturing Establishments—2016

Published October 18, 2019

In 2016, there were 730 establishments in NAICS 32222 (Paper Bag and Coated and Treated Paper Manufacturing). Nearly four out of 10 (39%) have 50 or more employees, and 59% have 20 or more employees.

Around the Web: Nano Novels. Ultra Ubik. Definitive Dracula. Arcade Arcana. Feline Festivity. Spotify Style. Tooth Tech.

Published October 18, 2019

Read classic books on the NYPL’s Instagram. Deluxe edition of a classic Philip K. Dick novel. A compendium of classic arcade typography. An immersive edition of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. An Advent calendar for cats. Custom T-shirts based on Spotify data. The current science of CBD. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Automated Color Control for Legacy Offset Presses

Published October 18, 2019

John Sweeney of Lithec USA introduces the company, which has just launched in the US, and the LithoFlash, the only retrofit inline closed-loop color control system for legacy sheetfed offset presses.

Marco Boer: drupa 2020 Should Be Part of Your Trade Show Plans

Published October 16, 2019

Marco Boer from I.T. Strategies provides his perspective on why North American printing company executives should attend European trade shows and what to expect at the upcoming drupa 2020 event.

IWCO Direct's Seamless Inkjet and Offset Environment - Video

Published October 15, 2019

Kurt Ruppel of IWCO Direct talks about their mixed-process environment and why is pays to think of an inkjet device as a press.

Kirk-Rudy Launches the Memjet-Powered FireJet 4C

Published October 15, 2019

Kirk-Rudy’s Bob Mills showcases the new FireJet 4C, a Memjet-powered four-color inkjet printing system that can print at 1600 x 1600 dpi at speeds up to 150 feet per minute. It uses pigment aqueous ink and is designed to cost-effectively print envelopes, bags, packages, napkins, and other items.

Shift Happens- Machine Speeds Affect Print Quality

Published October 14, 2019

The faster you run, the less time the ink has to spread (wet out). When setting top end chroma for your primary colors through ink management during linearization, you are also determining the amount of ink for proper spread.

Hunkeler's New Flexible Stacker

Published October 14, 2019

Hunkeler’s Hans Gut talks about the products the company was demonstrating at PRINT 19, including the Red Hot Technology Award-winning Hunkeler LS8-30 Long Stacker, which is designed to cut and stack a wide variety of print products.

Graphco: “The Unfair Advantage”

Published October 14, 2019

Graphco’s Chris Manley talks about the technologies the company was demonstrating at PRINT 19, including its chemical embossing system for RMGT offset presses, Foliant laminating, and GEW LED UV technology.

Designing for New Digital Possibilities

Published October 11, 2019

Elizabeth Gooding will be presenting "Designing for New Digital Possibilities" as part of the 2-day Brand United, Digital Printing for Professionals. The session will be delivered in Dallas on Wednesday October 23 at 2:30 p.m. as part of the 2019 Printing United event. See the full session description and get a free pass code below.

Around the Web: Paper Back. Mechanical Paper. Graphene—Again! Gambling on RFID. Water Warning. Dog Talk. Real Robocop.

Published October 11, 2019

Mechanical paper sculptures. A book about Graphene. Did RFID playing cards help a poker champ cheat? LED-based art helps gauge NYC’s water quality. Tech is helping animals communicate better. Real-life Robocop is no hero. Scotch pods?! All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Printing Shipments: The Dog Days of Summer Didn’t Bite

Published October 11, 2019

The value of printing shipments for August 2019 was $7.1 billion—up from July’s $6.8 billion. As we head into the autumn, 2019 is shaping up to be the best year for the industry in three years.

Xanté launches their new full color specialty printing solution based on HP FI-1000

Published October 9, 2019

Mark Priede of Xante previews the new full-color specialty printing solution based on the HP FI-1000, which prints 170+ envelopes a minute and uses Xanté’s iQueue software, and discusses the benefits of partnering with HP.

HP SPS OEMs launch wide format, full color solutions for mail and specialty printing applications

Published October 9, 2019

Paul Barton from HP Specialty Printing Systems (SPS) talks about the SPS division and how it allows OEMs to leverage HP’s engineering and manufacturing scale to bring products to market. At PRINT 19, HP SPS introduced the Fixed Imager (FI) 1000, a print engine that allows boxes, bags, corrugated, and cardboard to be printed at the desktop level.

Printware announces their new full color mail solution based on HP FI-1000

Published October 9, 2019

Printware’s Tim Murphy talks about a new entry in the company’s iJetColor line of benchtop and industrial inkjet printing systems: the iJetColor Pro, a light industrial press based on the FI-1000 printhead technology from HP SPS, allowing customers to create short-run, personalized packaging.

What Does It Mean to Invest in the Industry? - Video

Published October 8, 2019

We caught up with Eric Hawkinson and Francis McMahon of Canon Solutions America at thINK Ahead 2019 to talk about what it means to invest in the industry. It's a wide-ranging conversation about using customer interaction and feedback to direct CSA's industry leading R&D funding to the initiatives that matter most to customers.

Standard Finishing's Red Hot Technologies

Published October 8, 2019

Paul Steinke of Standard Finishing Systems showcases two Red Hot Technology Award-winning products Standard was demonstrating at last week’s PRINT 19: the Horizon VAC-L600H Air-Suction Collator and the Hunkeler LS8-30 Long Stacker.

Test New Inkjet Applications on Yourself

Published October 7, 2019

Inkjet Tip of the Week: Want to broaden your business reach with postcards, or posters? Signage or something else your inkjet device can deliver? Create a campaign for yourself that tests the quality limits of your environment and mail it, post it on your walls, give it to your sales reps or talk about it online. In addition to learning about new opportunities with your inkjet solution, you gain a marketing campaign, make your sales team more comfortable and streamline future implementations. So test, test, test and win, win, win!

Business Cards and Shoe Leather—Larry Vaughn Talks About His Memoir

Published October 7, 2019

Larry Vaughn of Thomas Printworks talks about his memoir “Business Cards and Shoe Leather: How Dyslexia Helped Me Found One of the World's Premier Business Cooperatives.” The book, published earlier this year, comprises stories culled from Larry’s 40+ years in the printing industry.

Koenig & Bauer Expands Into Corrugated

Published October 7, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to Mark Hischar of Koenig & Bauer about the company’s expansion into virtually every printing technology and application, from commercial to all kinds of packaging—especially new forays into corrugated.

Paper Supply Alert - Domtar to Reduce Papermaking Capacity at Two Mills

Published October 4, 2019

Domtar to reduce papermaking capacity at two mills. These measures will reduce the Company’s annual uncoated freesheet paper capacity by approximately 204,000 short tons, and will result in a workforce reduction of approximately 100 employees. Closure of the Ashdown paper machine is effective as of the date of this announcement and the closure of the Port Huron machine will be completed by mid-November.

Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing Establishments—2010–2016

Published October 4, 2019

In 2010, there were 491 establishments in NAICS 322212 (Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing). By 2016, that number had declined for a net loss of -8% to 451.

Around the Web: Unmade Made. Bawdy Billboard. Brilliant Bins. Some Summoning. Autonomous Vehicle Repellent. “Spocking” Fivers. Escalator Etiquette. Scented Scissors?

Published October 4, 2019

Dennis Amorosano launches Dendog Strategy Insights. Avery Dennison and Unmade partner for apparel manufacturing. Hackers have an electronic billboard play porn. Getting a smart jacket to work properly. A smart trash bin takes itself to the curb. Tesla’s Smart Summon and the chaos that is the modern parking lot. Keeping robot cars away from bicyclists. The Bank of Canada finds “spocking” $5 bills to be highly illogical. Escalator etiquette is wrong. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Brand Print Americas to Launch in 2020

Published October 4, 2019

Thayer Long, President of APTech, talks to Kelley Holmes about APTech’s recent partnership with Tarsus and offers a preview of 2020’s inaugural Brand Print Americas, an event designed to offer business and brand owners the full range of print options when taking their product or services into the marketplace.

Color Learning Materials at a Black-and-White Price Point

Published October 3, 2019

Chuck Werninger, Senior Manager of IT Administrative Services at Houston Independent School District, talks about his adoption of a Canon Océ VarioPrint i300 inkjet press to improve the quality of educational materials for Houston ISD students.

Sun Solutions Quickly Gets Up to Speed on Inkjet

Published October 2, 2019

Bridget Fisher of Sun Solutions in Columbia, S.C., talks to Kelley Holmes about the company's inkjet journey. As a general commercial printer, Sun Solutions had been looking for a cut-sheet inkjet solution, and several months ago installed a Canon Océ VarioPrint i300. They were surprised by the kinds of applications they have been able to transition from offset to inkjet.

Intellus’ Inkjet Journey

Published October 1, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to MJ Ortiz of Intellus, an omnichannel marketing company that has been growing rapidly over the past three years. When a flagship direct mail customer wanted to make the move to digital, Intellus acquired a Canon Océ VarioPrint i300 and transitioned them from offset to production inkjet.

Printing Shipments: Summer Surprise

Published September 27, 2019

The value of printing shipments for July 2019 was $6.8 billion—up from June’s $6.6 billion. Breaking with seasonality, what has typically been one of the lowest months of the year for printing shipments actually came in pretty good.

Around the Web: Go to Noto. Post-Modern English. Meddling Milton. More Moore. Dart DRM. All Over Alexa. Fancy Feast. Celery Salves. Robot Tuna. Minnow Message.

Published September 27, 2019

IKEA changes its typeface. An op-ed from the future comments on 23rd-century English. A scholar discovers a John Milton-annotated volume of Shakespeare. Animation compares Moore’s Law to actual CPU speeds. DRM for Nerf darts. “Highlights” from Amazon’s hardware announcements. Nestlé introduces $17 “luxury KitKat” bars. Celery juice: a magic cure-all? Sherwood Schwartz sticks it to Newton Minow. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Attracting Millennials to the Printing Industry

Published September 24, 2019

Jeana Garms of SG360 shares with Kelley Holmes some of the highlights of a panel discussion she moderated at the thINK Ahead Conference about some of the misconceptions about Millennials in the printing industry, and how to better attract them to print businesses.

Larry Vaughn on Where thINK Is Today

Published September 23, 2019

Kelley Holmes talks to thINK board member Larry Vaughn about how educational events like the thINK Ahead Conference pull together print business owners and employees to help them understand today’s print marketplace.

Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing Establishments—2010–2016

Published September 20, 2019

In 2010, there were 1,356 establishments in NAICS 322211 (Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing). By 2016, that number had declined -12% to 1,200.

Around the Web: Surf’s Up. Sonar Gloves. Wearable Chair. Cardiac Keister. Earthquake Bed. Self-Repairing Robots. Inadvisable Burger.

Published September 20, 2019

Graphene: is there anything it can’t do? Inside the University of Minnesota’s Wearable Technology Lab. Lose all shred of dignity with a wearable chair. Monitor your heart health with a smart toilet seat. The grueling, physically demanding world of...chess. “Hope you enjoy your stinking phones.” KFC’s Chicken and Donuts Sandwich. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.

Marco Boer on thINK Ahead 2019

Published September 19, 2019

Marco Boer from I.T. Strategies discusses the highlights from the thINK Ahead 2019. thINK is this user community of Canon Solutions America production inkjet customers, solution partners, and print industry experts. Marco also shares his perspective on user groups and vendor evenets versus general public trade shows and why both are important for the industry.

Marco Boer on thINK Ahead 2019

Published September 19, 2019

Marco Boer from I.T. Strategies discusses the highlights from the thINK Ahead 2019 event. thINK is this user community of Canon Solutions America production inkjet customers, solution partners, and print industry experts. Marco also shares his perspective on user groups and vendor evenets versus general public trade shows and why both are important for the industry.

Industry Profits: Mind the Gap

Published September 13, 2019

Annualized profits for the second quarter of 2019 were down from $3.61 billion in Q1 to $3.05 billion. However, the gap between large and small printers has only narrowed very slightly.

Around the Web: Chameleonic Kicks. Twisted Twister. Fooling Facial Recognition. Plastic Priests. Kaput Cameras.

Published September 13, 2019

Sneakers that put on a light show. An inflatable Twister mat may be just what your next party needs. Adversarial fashion takes on face recognition systems. A.I. priests. A.I. passes an 8th-grade science test. An animation tracks the rise and fall of web browsers. Camera sales fall off a cliff. All that and more in WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany.