Business

Agfa Graphics has announed the planned closure of its printing plate factory in Manerbio, Italy.  The Manerbio plant produces analogue offset plates and negative CtCP plates, both product lines for which market demand is in decline.

“This decision is part of our strategy to improve our operational efficiency, margins and competitive position in the highly competitive prepress market,” says Stefaan Vanhooren, President of Agfa Graphics.

After having considered all options, Agfa Graphics has now informed Manerbio's employees as well as the trade unions that it intends to close down the factory impacting 123 employee positions. A redundancy plan will be developed for the employees that currently work in Manerbio

Aura Graphics of Lowestoft, Suffolk, has used its HP Scitex TJ8350 Industrial Press to print graphics displayed on two First Great Western power cars running daily on some of the country’s most popular business routes, as part of a major experiential campaign for the new HP ElitePad 900.

The two train wraps were printed and installed in just three days and formed the centrepiece of the HP ElitePad 900 campaign targeting business travellers. The vibrant graphics will be displayed for the entire six-month campaign and be seen by passengers and bystanders as the branded train cars travel over First Great Western’s rail network from Paddington to South Wales, the West Country, and large parts of southern England.

The HP ElitePad 900 campaign is aimed predominantly at business travellers, which account for the majority of First Great Western’s customer base. In addition to the train graphics, it also incorporated social media activity and direct customer engagement with live demonstrations of the new HP ElitePad on board the wrapped trains.

“The campaign has many different elements but the train wraps create the first, big impression on the target audience so, although it required a quick turnaround, the print quality couldn’t be compromised,” said Mark Rowland, regional business manager Greater Western Europe & UK&I, HP Scitex. “With the two wrapped trains operating an average of three routes a day, that’s 12,000 people per day who will have the opportunity to see the train graphics. This initial impact is key to creating an immediate buzz around the new product, helping the HP ElitePad teams to then start direct communications with passengers during the journey. This campaign perfectly demonstrates how high-quality print can play a crucial role in the success of an integrated campaign.”

Aura Graphics is a European leader in delivering graphics, signage, paint and refurbishment services for transportation, retail, promotional, architectural, events and petroleum markets. The company’s core business is to provide large, high-visibility graphics such as public transport vehicle wraps, fleet graphics, and large scale displays at major public venues including airports and railway stations.

“There are often many challenges when producing graphics for high-profile, blue-chip brands and turnaround times and print quality are always among them,” said Andrew Pritchett, key accounts manager, Aura Graphics. “We have two HP Scitex TJ8350 Industrial Presses. We’ve had the first one for eight years, and the second was installed in 2012. The speed, print quality and reliability of these printers make them ideal to meet these challenges and deliver high-impact graphics within a short deadline. This particular project was printed in just one hour and installed on the trains over three days.”

The graphics are printed on an opaque white self-adhesive vinyl film and laminated with a clear film. For jobs like this, Aura Graphics carefully measures the train units, digitising them and creates templates for the graphics in this case, specific to First Great Western’s Class 43 HST power cars.

“With First Great Western’s distinctive rich blue livery, it was essential that the wrap was completely opaque as the graphics’ design was predominantly white,” explained Pritchett. “The TJ8350 prints from roll-to-sheet, and the wrap was assembled from panels with a total area of about 75m2 for each set. The excellent coverage and colour reproduction achieved with the HP printer, plus the combination of substrates used, ensured that the white background was sufficiently dense and the end result met the expectations of First Great Western and the HP ElitePad team.”

In addition to the requirement for opacity, the ink and media must be able to withstand wind, rain and sunlight as well as adhere to the train at high speeds for the duration of the campaign. Print quality was also of prime consideration as text and images will be viewed from station platforms to distant horizons.

The versatile HP Scitex TJ8350 Industrial Press uses a rotating drum to print at speeds up to 480m2/hr (5166ft2/hr), or 80 165 x370cm (65 x 145in) sheets per hour, making it capable of 24,000m2/month (260,000ft2/month) production. This unique drum technology also applies up to six colours simultaneously, delivering high output quality without compromising speed.

“Over the years, the TJ8350 has proved itself a reliable workhorse, suitable for a large percentage of the jobs we do,” concluded Pritchett. “The HP ElitePad campaign is just the latest of the colourful and eye-catching initiatives we create with this powerful press.”

More information is available at www.youtube.com/hpgraphicarts

Drytac has acquired adhesive coating company, Multi-Tac Inc.  Based in Toronto, Canada, Multi-Tac has grown over the past 25 years to become an industry leader in the manufacture of high-quality pressure-sensitive products and custom coating solutions. The company operates two coating lines and serves a number of markets including flexible packaging, graphic arts, and unique label and tape applications.

“The combined operation will result in improved efficiencies, greater flexibility and shorter development time from customer concept to finished product,” states Hayden Kelley, managing director of Drytac Europe Ltd. “With expertise in a variety of industrial and label markets this acquisition positions Drytac for expansion into markets that require more sophisticated adhesive coatings.”

He adds, “In addition to a comprehensive range of branded and OEM films and adhesives, we can now offer aqueous, solvent and hot melt coatings suitable for a variety of substrates. We are also able to adhesive and top coat up to 61 inches (1550 mm) wide.”

Going forward, current Multi-Tac customers in both Europe and the Middle East will be able to source products from Drytac Europe, which is based in Bristol, United Kingdom.

For further information regarding the acquisition, please contact Hayden Kelley at haydenkelley@drytac.com (European, Middle East, and Asia enquiries) Paul Filippelli at paulfilippelli@drytac.com (Canada inquiries) or Jerry Hill at jerryhill@drytac.com (U.S. inquiries).

For more information, please visit www.drytac.com.

RadTech Europe (RTE), the industry association supporting UV and EB curing technology, has announced details of the conference programme for RadTech Europe 13, its 25th Jubilee Conference and Exhibition that will take place on 15th - 17th of October in Basel, Switzerland. The conference will highlight some of the innovations the UV/EB technology has delivered so far and look to the future for the innovations to come. The parallel exhibition during these days, is the leading business event for UB/EB curing in Europe. With attendees from around the world the RadTech Europe exhibition provides an excellent forum for delegates to meet and network with key players engaged in the radiation curing technology and coatings applications. 

Growing through Innovation

According to Dawn Skinner, chairman of RadTech Europe's conference programme committee, "the growth of UV/EB curing over the years has clearly shown that as a technology, it delivers innovation to a wide range of industries and applications, from the automotive industry to printing and packaging, from coil coating to consumer electronics. Innovation with the UV/EB technology has not only enabled the creation of new markets, but has been delivering benefits of reduced energy consumption, faster processing and improved properties."

There has been innovation in raw materials with great focus on improved sustainability, in the skill of formulators to deliver inks, coatings and adhesives that meet challenging performance specifications, and in the creativity of the UB/EB equipment providers to deliver systems that meet ever greater demands in the manufacturing environment.

Fully packed conference programme

From the many papers received, RadTech Europe has selected 78 papers that will be presented by international experts, coming from Europe, and oversees including China, Japan, Korea and USA.
The presentations, which will be held in parallel sessions during this 3-day conference are grouped around mayor themes reflecting the latest industry trends in:

• Advances in photochemistry and polymerization,
• Adhesion and adhesive,
• Developments in metal, plastic and automotive,
• EB processing,
• Development in formulations and coatings,
• Innovations - new chemistries
• HSE (Health, safety and environment) and safe use of UV/EB technology,
• Developments in UV Curing Equipment and Process Control,
• New applications,
• Graphic Arts

Honouring Award Winners

Every two years, RadTech Europe nominates and celebrates the Paul Dufour and Innovation award winner at their conference. Papers presented at the RadTech Europe Conferences are always of high scientifc and/or technical standard. Chosen by the conference programme committee, the best paper of the RadTech Europe 2013 Conference is being honoured with the Paul Dufour Award. The award is named after Paul Dufour, the founding father of RadTech Europe.

The Innovation awards competition is the platform for honoring the innovation award winners of 2013, acknowledging the efforts and investments companies make in bringing the benefits of UV and EB curing on to an even broader raft of applications areas.

Closing date for entries is 15 September 2013. All details on the conference, exhibition and award submission can be found on www.radtech-europe.com or www.european-coatings.com/radtech

With almost two years still to go, FESPA Brasil 2015 has 80% of its floor space already committed following the success of the inaugural show earlier this year in March.  The second FESPA Brasil show takes place between 18th and 21st March 2015 at the Expo Center Norte in Sao Paulo as a joint venture with ExpoPrint Digital.

The launch of FESPA Brasil 2013 exceeded expectations including visitor attendance, which has led to the organisers increasing the floor space for FESPA Brasil 2015. The event will have a strong focus on digital printing, but will also grow the representation of garment and textile printing as well as screen printing so visitors can explore the variety of applications and benefit from a valuable overview of these potential new business opportunities.

FESPA Brasil 2015 is a joint venture with Brazilian event company APS and will take place alongside ExpoPrint Digital 2015 – a focused narrow format printing event in Latin America.  Confirmed exhibitors for the show so far include Alko, BG Solucoes, Digi+, F1 Suprimentos, Fix Imperssoras, Fotolia, GMG, Glory Laser, Grafiara, Imprimax, IS Suprimentos, J-Teck, Metalnox, Mimaki, Nova Dampex, Potencial Laser, Pro Transfer, Sign Supply, Sitari, Trotec and Vitor Ciola. Complementing the line-up of these exhibitors ExpoPrint Digital 2015 also has confirmed exhibitors Alphaprint, Canon Océ, Comprint, Heidelberg, Hicoat, IBF and Mecanográfica.

Reinhard Kulterer, Trotec, comments, “We are delighted that FESPA has come to Brazil. We exhibit at FESPA events across Europe and Mexico. FESPA has always been a great success for us.”

FESPA Brasil 2013 exhibitors were enthusiastic about the inaugural event. Walter Tolosa, Sales Manager, Fujifilm, commented on the show, "For us, FESPA Brasil 2013 was extremely professional with a very high number of visitors and interested potential customers.” While Markus Runk from Sign Supply remarked, “It has been a very positive show where we have closed sales deals and seen a large flow of people.”

Consistent with all FESPA events, FESPA Brasil 2015 will feature high-quality educational content tailored to the Brazilian market’s needs. Proving extremely popular during the inaugural event, the International Congress will return in 2015, offering visitors technical sessions, creative ideas and business solutions. Crowd magnet, Wrap Cup Masters will also return providing vehicle wrappers the chance to compete to be the best, as well as offering technical sessions on vehicle wrapping.

FESPA Managing Director, Neil Felton comments, “After the exceptional launch of the inaugural show we’re excited to return to Brazil in 2015. FESPA Brasil 2013 welcomed over 13,000 visitors, half of which was made up of senior decision makers, and the overall feedback was overwhelming with many exhibitors immediately signing up to the second show.

“With the 2016 Olympics being hosted in Brazil, the exhibition is perfectly positioned for the wide format print sector to prepare their business to harness the opportunities of the increased demand in printed collateral and signage.”

For more information on FESPA Brasil 2015, please visit www.fespabrasil.com.br

Georgia Andreadi a freelance designer from Greece, was voted the winner of FESPA Fabric’s Design-a-Tee competition, 2013, bagging the grand prize of €2,000 at FESPA 2013.

The 2013 competition received entries from over 25 countries worldwide. A final list of 16 nominees was chosen to face the public vote. Visitors to FESPA Fabric 2013 had the opportunity to see all final entries and vote for their favourite at the show.

This is the second time FESPA Fabric has hosted the design competition, following the success of the inaugural competition at FESPA Digital 2012.

The competition was part of the pre-event marketing campaign to engage with garment enthusiasts illustrating the design capabilities and opportunities that garment decoration and textile printing presents. The competition was open to budding designers to showcase their creative talents.

The competition was sponsored by Brother Internationale, DecoNetwork and Fruit of the Loom. Brother Internationale provided the machine to print the t-shirts, DecoNetwork hosted the online platform for the t-shirt competition and Fruit of the Loom provided a selection of men’s T's for the top designs to be printed on and showcased at FESPA Fabric 2013.

Lynda Sutton, Marketing Manager, FESPA, comments: “We’re thrilled with the success of this year’s design competition. We received an immense number of entries, all showcasing how imaginative garment decoration can be. The aim of Design-a-Tee was to encourage budding designers to be creative with the technologies available to them and to highlight the endless opportunities of the garment industry.”

Heiner Rupperath, Product Manager IPM (Industrial Printing Machines), Brother Internationale comments: "We are proud to be sponsors of FESPA’s design competition as it highlights innovative graphic designers from around the world, who could be the customers of the future. The final t-shirt designs are excellent and all show a clear message entwined with their creative ideas. We’re delighted to see so many graphic designers entering this competition showing how innovative t-shirt design can be."

Gillian Suggett, Business Development Manager, DecoNetwork, comments: “FESPA’s Design-a-Tee competition has embraced the current need for online technology and with FESPA we have been able to offer a platform for creative expression, whilst being directly relevant to the internet environment we’re immersed in.

“The final designs have shown creative flare and originality and we’re delighted to see submissions from across the globe. The competition has created a platform for personal expression and technical excellence. The industry needs inspirational thinkers and responsive organisations with vision and FESPA has created a vibrant and relevant event in FESPA Fabric.”

Kirsty Button, Marketing Communications Manager, Fruit of the Loom Europe comments: “FESPA Fabric is a destination show for anyone working in garment decoration and textile printing and we are delighted to support activities that promote creativity and technical ability. Within our industry we were very impressed by the response the Design-a-Tee competition received. As a brand famous for T-shirts, this was an excellent opportunity to present our t-shirts to our target audience.”

For more information and to see the final design and 16 finalists, please visit: http://fespa.deconetwork.com/home.