Inkjet for Marketing Collateral - What Matters?

Published March 15, 2018

While the conversion of marketing collateral from offset to digital may not be high, the value for digitally printed collateral is often much higher than other applications, typically driven by shorter run lengths, versioning and personalization. This has created excellent revenue opportunities for commercial printers who specialize in this area.

HP Thermal Print Head Strategy - Video

Published March 12, 2018

Eric Wiesner of HP provides the 4th installment in our print head strategy series. Wiesner provides some history on HPs print head developments and highlights the factors that drove HP to select thermal print heads for their production devices in the graphics market.

Power Play

Published March 7, 2018

Energy efficiency is a big deal – particularly in application-segments with high coverage requiring intensive drying power. Some manufacturers have done an exceptional job of redirecting heat from other areas of the device to drying chambers, thereby reducing energy needed for drying and also reducing energy needed to cool the print engine itself. Many OEMs offer a standard drying option plus variations available based on need. Make sure you are asking about, and testing with, the drying options that are most suitable to your application segment. 

Stick It with Aqueous Coatings - Video

Published March 6, 2018

Marco Boer of I.T. Strategies talks about the component parts of various OEM's aqueous inkjet programs that are enabling inks to "stick it' on challenging surfaces with a particular focus on aqueous coatings.

Julie Shaffer Discusses the Importance of Education at the Association for Print Technologies

Published March 2, 2018

Julie Shaffer, Associate VP of Program and Community Development at the Association for Print Technologies, talks to Gina Testa about why she decided to join the team at the new association and her passion for education and bringing new people into the printing industry.

APTech’s Kelly Kilga Shares Expectations and Education Opportunities the Print 18 Event

Published March 2, 2018

Kelly Kilga, VP Meetings & Events at the Association for Print Technologies (formerly NPES) lays the foundation for expectations and education at APTech’s signature annual event, PRINT®, coming September 30 - October 2, 2018 to Chicago’s McCormick Place.

New Ink Technology Innovations from Ricoh

Published March 1, 2018

Ricoh today announces the development of a new ink technology. This new ink will soon be brought to market as an additional option to current and future clients on the Ricoh Pro™ VC60000 continuous feed inkjet printing platform.

Ricoh Piezo Print Head Strategy - Video

Published February 28, 2018

Another perspective on Piezo. Video ion Ricoh's selection of piezoelectric print heads for their production inkjet devices. Mike Herold, Director of Global Marketing for Ricoh Inkjet Solutions, provides his quick take on the science behind piezo and how it delivers benefits in the form of reliability and efficiency.

Print Business Outlook Survey: Areas of interest in new print-related applications

Published February 28, 2018

WhatTheyThink surveyed printing business owners and executives: "What are your areas of interest in new print-related applications."

Essential Consulting Services – Part 2

Published February 23, 2018

Part two in the series "Essential Services" by Andrew Gordon will discuss activities to drive customer acceptance and revenue including testing, certifications, and business development. There are a lot of services that go into getting an inkjet implementation up and running smoothly. Planning for them in advance helps to avoid surprises and take advantage of OEM buying incentives.

Print Business Outlook Survey: Which of the following investment items have you budgeted for and plan to acquire in the next 12 months?

Published February 20, 2018

WhatTheyThink surveyed printing business owners and executives: "Which of the following investment items have you budgeted for and plan to acquire in the next 12 months?"

Print Business Outlook Survey: In the next 12 months, which of the following will be your biggest business opportunities?

Published February 15, 2018

WhatTheyThink surveyed printing business owners and executives: "In the next 12 months, which of the following will be your biggest business opportunities?"

Mark Hischar talks about the APTech Rebranding Initiative and Print 18

Published February 15, 2018

Mark Hischar, President and CEO of KBA North America and Chairman of the Association for Print Technologies talks about the Association’s rebranding initiative and the upcoming Print 18 event.

Essential Consulting Services – Part 1

Published February 13, 2018

Andrew Gordon discusses the range of services to consider before, during and after a production inkjet implementation that will help to ensure your success with inkjet in the shortest time. (Part 1 of 2 in series)

Commercial Printers Under Pressure

Published February 12, 2018

Marco Boer discusses the surprising array of labor and technology trends that are putting pressure on commercial printing enterprises to invest in production inkjet technology. Includes charts, graphs, trends and the insight decoder ring from Marco.

Apparent Resolution – what does that even mean?

Published February 5, 2018

Contributing author Chris Lynn provides and insightful explanation of "Apparent Resolution": what it means, how it came to be and whether or not it matters for your application segment when evaluating an inkjet press.

Print Business Outlook Survey: In the next 12 months, which of the following will be your biggest business challenges?

Published February 5, 2018

WhatTheyThink surveyed printing business owners and executives: "In the next 12 months, which of the following will be your biggest business challenges?"

Industry Press and Analysts React to Fujifilm Xerox Deal

Published February 1, 2018

Xerox and Fujifilm announced a deal to combine Xerox and the Fuji Xerox joint venture into a single company called Fuji Xerox. Industry Analysts share their reaction to the deal.

Inkjet for Color Books - HP Perspective (Video)

Published January 30, 2018

Video interview with Eric Weisner, General Manager of HP PageWide Industrial. Eric provides an overview of HP in the book market, specifically color books. He describes the market as a "key focus area" for HP and says that HDNA heads were fundamentally designed to be able to produce color books.

EFI's Frank Mallozzi on Textile Portfolio and Strategy

Published January 29, 2018

EFI is going into its third year with the Reggiani portfolio of fabric printing equipment. EFI has recently brought new products to its textile portfolio to ease the transition into digital production including the EFI Reggiani VOGUE and EFI Reggiani ReNOIR FLEXY.

Elizabeth Gooding to Judge 2018 HP Inkspiration Awards

Published January 26, 2018

Elizabeth Gooding, President and Co-founder of Inkjet Insight, will be joining an esteemed group of industry experts in New York City during the first week of February as a judge for the 2018 HP Inspiration Awards Americas. The judging will occur on February 8th at the New York offices of Publicis Groupe. There are 14 awards across both Labels & Packaging and General Commercial Printing segments.

PIA's Color Conference Is the Go-to to Increase Color Knowledge

Published January 23, 2018

PIA’s Color Conference grew attendance by about 30% compared to 2017, with 25% of attendees representing the brand/design community. For anyone with a color-critical role, this is an excellent venue to increase color knowledge, network with peers, and have in-depth in-person conversations with conference sponsors about solutions that can assist with specific challenges.

Printing Forecast 2018

Published January 23, 2018

The Forecast 2018 report provides detailed analysis of the latest WhatTheyThink Printing Industry Survey, the latest industry economic data and macroeconomic trends, as well as industry and cultural technological trends to look out for in 2018.

Mary Schilling to Kick Off Unleashing Print at Dscoop

Published January 22, 2018

Mary Schilling, head of print quality analysis with Inkjet Insight, will be joining the opening panel at the Unleashing Print conference at Dscoop 2018. Mary will be discussing considerations when designing for inkjet and overcoming color ink and graphics challenges.

You Might Be Ready for the Cloud If...(Part 4)

Published January 19, 2018

Are you ready for a cloud migration? Here is the fourth and final post in a four-part series on "cloud readiness" criteria put together by experts.

Zanders Launches Zanjet Inkjet Coated Paper

Published January 18, 2018

Building End-to-End Data Security into Inkjet - White Paper

Published January 17, 2018

The issue of data security is so pervasive that it has moved from an IT and boardroom discussion to become the topic of movies and television shows. More than 7 billion records were exposed through breaches in just the first nine months of 2017, a jump of over 300 percent from the prior year. Five of the top breaches in 2017 were among the largest ten breaches of all time.  With over five million records lost or stolen every day, protecting businesses and consumers from data breaches is a top concern among executives in all industries. While there is a tendency to think of data breaches in terms of the web and digital initiatives, security is no less critical for printing operations.

You Might Be Ready for the Cloud If . . . (Part 3)

Published January 12, 2018

Are you ready for a cloud migration? Here is the third in a four-part series of posts on criteria put together by experts.

Inks are the Blood - Video

Published January 9, 2018

The Truth About the Digital Color Evolution

Published January 8, 2018

It’s been said of the great artist J.M.W. Turner — renowned for pounding out his own colors to create seemingly incandescent oil paintings — that he “painted with tinted steam.” We haven’t reached that point in high-speed production inkjet, but we’ve come a long way since 2007, when the technology was the realm of transactional printers and used primarily for black-and-white applications. (Sponsored Content)

Konica Minolta, Epic Products International Announce Partnership to Promote Digital Inkjet Solutions

Published January 4, 2018

Inkjet Summit - Now Accepting Applications for 2018

Published December 14, 2017

Got Inkjet? Learn How to Evaluate, Optimize, and Grow It with Inkjet Insight

Published December 14, 2017

Elizabeth Gooding, President of Inkjet Insight, talks about the new venture and the ways it can help inform those serious about inkjet about both devices, paper, software, and other equipment. The site brings a lot of information together in an easy to use way and Elizabeth highlights them.

Inkjet Insight Adds Tools for Inkjet Related Software Procurement

Published December 12, 2017

The Advantages of Energy Curing Technologies for Package Printing

Published December 12, 2017

David Biro, Director of Paste Screen and Industrial Inks for Sun Chemical discusses the movement toward energy curing and the advantages associated with this type of curing for packaging applications. He also talks about some of the challenges associated with this kind of curing.

How Digital Technologies are Impacting Package Printing with New Embellishment Tools

Published December 11, 2017

Jeff Peterson, President of FSEA, gives an overview of the association and how it serves members through their Odyssey show, magazine, and webinar events. He also discusses how new digital technologies like MGI and Scodix take specialty effects to the next level as well as a new study done in conjunction with Clemson University that showcases how end users tend to see embellished print first over standard package printing.

How Investing in Workflow Can Help Your Bottomline

Published December 7, 2017

Pat McGrew, Director of Production Workflow Service at Keypoint Intelligence - InfoTrends, talks about how workflow is often underfunded in a printing operation and how proper investment and strategy can increase profits.

The Cloud Lets Printers Go Computer Agnostic

Published December 5, 2017

When we think about the cloud, we think about benefits such as anytime, anywhere access, cost savings from the elimination of servers, and automatic updates. But there is one benefit that many people don’t think about—computer agnosticism.

SAi Drives Sign Making Demand Online using sign.com

Published December 4, 2017

Dean Durhak, Product Manager at SAi talks about their FlexiSign Software and also sign.com, a consumer facing application that drives sign making demand online and routes jobs directly to the nearest production facility.

Overview of the USPS Informed Delivery Program

Published November 30, 2017

Matt Swain, Group Director at Keypoint Intelligence - InfoTrends talks about the benefits for consumers and marketers of the USPS Informed Delivery program.

Collaboration: The Low-Hanging Fruit of Cloud Migration

Published November 29, 2017

Whether it’s for administrative, production, or marketing initiatives, the cloud brings significant benefits to businesses of all sizes. One of those benefits, and one that is the easiest to implement, is collaboration. Let’s take a closer look at this low-hanging fruit from the cloud.

How Consumer Demand Drives Change in Ink Technologies for Packaging Print

Published November 29, 2017

Matt Ellison, Senior Ink Chemist at Dart, talks about the importance of the ability to recycle and low migration ink given their focus on disposable packaging products. He also discusses the changing nature of inks in the print for packaging industry.

Inkjet Insight Adds Free Tools for Inkjet Equipment and Paper Evaluation

Published November 28, 2017

Inkjet Insight announces free tools for inkjet device and paper evaluation. The production inkjet market is evolving at an astonishing rate providing opportunities for print organizations to enter new markets and improve operating margins. With more companies entering the market and new higher quality options from existing suppliers, buyers are challenged to identify all of the inkjet options that meet their needs.

How HP PageWide Industrial was Formed - Video

Published November 28, 2017

Developing the Next Generation of Packaging

Published November 27, 2017

Todd Fayne Principal Engineer at PepsiCo talks about major trends affecting consumer packaged goods and the technical considerations required for next generation packaging that includes interactivity, functional advancements, and other consumer focused features.

Inkjet Head Technology Innovation at Konica Minolta Opens Up New Applications

Published November 22, 2017

Gavin Jordan-Smith Vice President, Industrial Print and Graphic Communications at Konica Minolta provides an update on Konica Minolta lastest advancements in inkjet head technology and new applications these advancements are enabling in industrial and commercial printing.

Graphic Arts Alliance Helped Modern Litho Save Money

Published November 21, 2017

Darrell Moore, President at Modern Litho, talks about his printing business and how he's saving money through the Graphic Arts Alliance purchasing cooperative.

What's the Best Drying Option? - Video

Published November 20, 2017

We asked Mike Herold, Director of Global Marketing for Ricoh Inkjet Solutions, "how can customers figure out the best drying option for their application?" Mike gave a succinct overview of Ricoh's approach to tailoring drying technology on their various devices and a nice breakdown of how different drying options work.

PrintIQ's Approach to MIS and Workflow

Published November 16, 2017

Mick Rowan (Director) and Adrian Fleming (Sales Director) at PrintIQ share their vision and approach to a cloud based management workflow system that goes beyond traditional MIS.

Benefits of Belonging to a Purchasing Cooperative

Published November 15, 2017

John Braceland of Graphic Arts Alliance talks about the member-run purchasing cooperative and how it helps printing companies increase buying power and save money on equipment and supplies.

Ricoh Introduces Ricoh Pro T7210 at SGIA

Published November 13, 2017

Dan Johansen, Marketing Manager at Ricoh, talks about their new Ricoh Pro T7210 flatbed device shown at SGIA. With new ink development, this device is able to produce custom graphics with a large diversity of substrates.

Marco Boer - Apples, Oranges & Inkjet Specs - Video

Published November 10, 2017

Canon Opens Up New Markets with Wide Format Offerings

Published November 9, 2017

Randy Paar, Marketing Manager for Large Format at Canon Solutions America, talks about flatbed printers and the ability to print on different substrates and opening up the possibilities to enter the packaging market as well. He also discusses their High Flow Vacuum configuration which allows printers to enter these new markets.

New Ricoh Pro V20000 series CF inkjet platform

Published November 8, 2017

MGX Copy Approach to Production, Software Development, and Recruiting Tech Workers

Published November 8, 2017

Lawrence Chou at San Diego-based MGX Copy LLC talks about the company's recent expansion into a East Coast facility, their approach to in-house print software development, and attracting tech workers to the printing industry.

Defining Cloud Production for Printers

Published November 7, 2017

Cloud production doesn’t have to be complicated. A simplified definition, along with three ways to use the cloud for business, change the conversation from “why should I?” to “what’s the big deal?”

Update on Unified Océ Product Strategy from Christian Unterberger

Published November 7, 2017

Christian Unterberger, CMO & EVP of Production Printing Products at Océ talks about unification of product development and what that means for Canon's continous feed and sheetfed production printing products. Unterberger hints at the development of a packaging solution.

David Murphy on Inkjet Printed Magazines and Catalogs - Video

Published November 6, 2017

RadTech Hosts First Printing and Packaging Conference in Philadelphia

Published November 6, 2017

Lisa Fine, President of RadTech, joins us from their first Printing & Packaging Conference in Philadelphia to talk about the great interest generated along with a brief overview of some of the content offered to attendees of the event.

Canon Production Inkjet Print Head Strategy - Video

Published November 2, 2017

Lexington's Copy Express Leverages New RMGT 9 Press for Versatility

Published November 2, 2017

Mark Hicks, President at Copy Express in Lexington, Kentucky, joins us from a customer open house event to talk about his production environment and their acquisition of a new RMGT 9 offset press.

Copy Express in Lexington Kentucky Invests in CRON-ECRM for Speed and Efficiency

Published November 2, 2017

Copy Express President Mark Hicks and Prepress operator Allen Wallace talk to us from a recent open house about how they have invested in a new system from CRON-ECRM and the impact it is having on their business.

Production Inkjet Transition at Merrill Corporation

Published November 1, 2017

Pat Foley, Senior Vice President Operations at Merrill Corporation, talks about adopting production inkjet within its operations. Merrill has had 3 phases of inkjet implementations within its operations to address customer applications, offset-to-inkjet, and toner-to-inkjet.

The Importance of Inkjet Coatings and Fluids - Video

Published October 31, 2017

Brian Dollard on Ricoh's Commercial and Industrial Print Strategy

Published October 30, 2017

Brian Dollard, Director of Strategic Planning and Business Development, at Ricoh talks about Ricoh's strategy with the company's newly formed organization that focuses on commercial and industrial printing.

The Cloud: Speeding Receivables for Printers

Published October 26, 2017

Two printer case studies on speeding receivables show another way that cloud business can save print shops money.

NextPage CEO Gina Danner on Industry Recruiting

Published October 25, 2017

NextPage CEO Gina Danner talks about recruiting the next generation of works to join the industry. As the industry continues its transformation there is a need for workers beyond traditional production jobs. Danner shares her insight on staffing at her company.

John Mashia President and COO at IMS Direct talks about Toner to Inkjet Transition

Published October 24, 2017

IMS Direct a provider of critical communications has started to transition from toner to production inkjet with an investment in the Canon Océ i300 sheetfed device. Productivity and uptime is critical factor to meet customer delivery schedules.

PGSF Scholarship Recipient Colby Kibbe Talks About Finding a Career in the Industry

Published October 19, 2017

Colby Kibbe a PGSF scholarship recipient and now a Project Manager at EFI talks about what drew him to the industry. Scholarship and internship programs influenced his interest and growth in the industry.

Bookmasters Turns to Digital and Production Inkjet for Its Book Printing Ops

Published October 18, 2017

Ken Fultz General Manager at Bookmasters talks about how production inkjet printing is changing book production. Bookmasters has gone through three transitions offset to digital toner to production inkjet. Hear their story.

West Linn Paper Company Ceasing Operations

Published October 17, 2017

Professor Erica Walker on Guiding Students into Careers in Print

Published October 17, 2017

Dr. Erica Walker an Assistant Professor in the Department of Graphic Communications at Clemson University talks about attracting students to the industry and helping them match career goals with different training and education levels.

"Have You Heard the Cover"

Published October 16, 2017

Dr. Joe Webb and Richard Romano talk about the production of a special edition of their new book The Third Wave that included interactive print elements.

Debunking the Top 10 Cloud Myths

Published October 12, 2017

Cloud experts Slava Apel and Joseph W. Webb, Ph.D., debunk the top 10 myths about moving to cloud-based production and business workflow.

NPES President Thayer Long on Implementing its 2020 Strategic Plan

Published October 12, 2017

Earlier this year NPES announced a strategic business plan with an ambitious new direction. WhatTheyThink spoke with Thayer Long to talk about its implementation and some the initial programs coming from the plan. These include a new data analysis platform and a partnership with the CMO Council to create a resource for brand marketers call the Brand Inspiration Center.

Darwill Continues its Inkjet Journey with Océ ProStream 1000

Published October 12, 2017

Chicago-based Darwill will be the first US company to install the Océ ProStream 1000. The company selected the ProStream to fulfill customer demand for high quality color applications on coated stock. Mark Deboer talks about how critical it is to have networking and peer education at events like thINK have helped them get up to speed on the evolving production inkjet ecosystem.

Single Pass Document Security in a White Paper Factory

Published October 12, 2017

Chief Technology Officer and Founder of Arcis Solutions talks about single pass document security that can be added to a production print white paper factory.

Inkjet Paper is a Focus Area at Lindenmeyr Munroe

Published October 12, 2017

Wes Clayton at Lindenmeyr Munroe talks about paper for production inkjet and how inkjet device advancements are increasingly producing high quality output on both coated and uncoated stocks.

SGIA President Ford Bowers on Print United Announcement

Published October 11, 2017

Ford Bowers, President of SGIA, talks to WhatTheyThink about the announcement that they'll retire the SGIA Expo brand after 2018 and launch a new show called Print United in 2019 in cooperation with NAPCO.

Canon Solutions America Product and Market Strategy

Published October 10, 2017

During the Océ ProStream US launch and thINK forum kickoff, Francis McMahon Senior Vice President at Canon Solutions America, shared recent management changes and the company’s product and market strategy. In 2018 the company will launch its B2+ production inkjet system as it continues to bring systems to market for the commercial printing segment of the industry.

Print and Paper Packs a Punch in a Digital World

Published October 5, 2017

WhatTheyThink spoke with Phil Riebel, President of Two Sides North America, about recent initiatives at the print advocacy organization. These include advertising outreach in consumer media and a recently completed survey of over 10,700 consumers on media preferences. The results reveal a strong preference for print when it comes to recreational reading with 72% of global respondents indicating they prefer printed books, compared to only 9% preferring e-books.

Marco Boer on Inkjet Print Head Technologies - Video

Published October 4, 2017

The Journey of the Job

Published October 3, 2017

EFI's Nick Benkovich at talks about "The Journal of the Job" a narrative that explores the connected events and systems involved in print production.

Quadient Launches with Integrated Approach to Customer Experience

Published October 2, 2017

WhatTheyThink spoke with Rob Daleman, VP Corporate Marketing at Quadient about the company's strategy and product portfolio after the integration of GMC Software, Human Inference and Satori Software is announced at the beginning of September.

Printing Industries Alliance Launches Print Drives America Initiative

Published September 26, 2017

The Printing Industries Alliance has launched a new initiative that aims to increase the market share of print. WhatTheyThink talked to Tim Freeman, president of the Printing Industries Alliance, and Marty Maloney, Executive Director of the Print Drives America Foundation about the goals of this initiative and how this effort is different from previous advocacy efforts.

Cloud Production in the Printing Industry

Published September 25, 2017

Frank Romano talks to Dr. Joe Webb and Slava Apel about their new book on using the cloud in your print business.

HP Announces Performance HDK Mode

Published September 22, 2017

Canon Announces iQuarius Performance Inks for Q1 2018

Published September 22, 2017

PGSF Launches New Campaign to Inform Student about Careers in Graphic Communications

Published September 21, 2017

The Print and Graphics Scholarship Foundation (PGSF) has launched a new campaign that includes a poster and brochures that show students various career paths in graphic communications. Dr. Joe Webb talks with John Berthelsen, VP of Development about the campaign. Watch to learn more about how you can get involved.

Action at a Distance: Inkjet’s Original Sin

Published September 19, 2017

Print 17: "best show in recent years" but "our work is not done"

Published September 18, 2017

WhatTheyThink sat down with NPES President Thayer Long at the end of Print 17 to talk about what worked with the changes to the Print show and the evolution of graphic communication trade shows in the US.

RMGT 9 Series 8 Color Perfecting Press Live at PRINT 17

Published September 13, 2017

RMGT is running its 9 Series perfecting press live at PRINT 17. Chris Manley, President of Graphco, talks about bringing heavy iron to the show and recent customer placements.

Canon Updates PRISMAsync Color Print Server with Enhanced Workflow and Analytics Capabilities

Published September 12, 2017

Bob Barbera, Senior Manager Marketing at Canon USA, talks about the latest release of its PRISMAsync Color Print Server. The debut PRISMAsync Print Server v5.2 is at PRINT 17.

Print17 Day 2 Show Floor Opening

Published September 12, 2017

A time lapse of the show floor opening on day 2 of Print17 showing the buildup of people waiting to get on to the show floor and the release when the show opens at 10am.

Xerox and Fujifilm Expand North American Reseller Partnership to Include Collective Inkjet Portfolios

Published September 12, 2017

Todd Zimmerman (Division President at Fujifilm) and Andrew Copley (Head of Graphic Communication at Xerox) discuss the details around the recently announced expansion of their reseller partnership.

Memjet DuraLink Video Overview

Published September 11, 2017

CHILI Publish at Print 17

Published September 11, 2017

Live at Print 17: Kevin Goeminne, CEO of CHILI Publish talks the latest products announcements, partnerships, and continued expansion in the US market.

Canon's Mal Baboyian talks about Print 17 and Canon's Exhibit

Published September 11, 2017

Mal Baboyian of Canon U.S.A talks about the portfolio of products and solutions that Canon has on display at Print 17.

Canon Launches the Océ VarioPrint 6000 TITAN at Print 17

Published September 11, 2017

At Print 17 Canon announced the Océ VarioPrint 6000 TITAN. Jennifer Kolloczek, Senior Manager, Product Planning & Marketing; Production Solutions Division at Canon USA talks about the Océ VarioPrint 6000 TITAN and Canon toner-based digital print portfolio.

Announcing Inkjet Device Finder

Published September 6, 2017