Pittsburgh, Pa., July 23, 2004 -- PIA/GATF is pleased to announce thirteen recipients of the 2004 GATF InterTech Technology Awards. A panel of independent judges chose this year's recipients from a roster of thirty-three submissions. Once again, GATF's InterTech Technology Award recipients reflect a unique cross-section of industry innovations, from consumables like blankets, paper, and plates to a classification system for folding, and software that enhances the design process while reducing file size. "The 2004 awards show that even small companies can develop a highly innovative technology deserving of an InterTech Award," said PIA/GATF Research Director John Lind. Although the digitization of print and print processes is a highly recognizable underpinning to the 2004 awards, not every award went to a digital technology. "The 2004 InterTech Awards prove that technological innovation can and does occur in basic areas that many of us have taken for granted over the years," said one judge. This year's InterTech recipients also concentrated on making equipment and processes ergonomic, environmentally friendly, and profitable. One notable trend, starting with the 2003 InterTech recipients and continuing into 2004, is the increasing number of nominees who seek creative ways to make new, sophisticated technologies user-friendly and bring them within the reach and pocketbooks of small and medium-size printers. The multilayered Lucite InterTech stars recognized industrywide as a symbol of technological innovation and excellence will be presented to the 2004 recipients at an Industry Awards Dinner, November 13, 2004, at the Ritz-Carleton Buckhead, in Atlanta, Georgia.  The InterTech Awards Annual showcasing all of the current year's nominated technologies will be available at Graph Expo, which is being held October 10-13, 2004 in Chicago, Illinois. For more information about the 2004 InterTech Technology Awards or the 2005 program, contact John Lind, Director of Research, PIA/GATF, 200 Deer Run Road, Sewickley, PA 15143-2600. Phone: 412/741-6860 ext. 585; email: [email protected].