Irish Printer Issue 4 2020

D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0 | | T H E V O I C E O F T H E I N D U S T R Y | | W W W. I R I S H P R I N T E R . I E

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YEARS STRONG

P+D’s Ronan Conway on pivoting to meet future challenges

BEST FOOT FORWARD

IPF President Diarmuid Dawson on what lies ahead in 2021

QUADIENT GRAPHICS, AT YOUR SERVICE

Service Graphics’ Dublin expansion made easy by Quadient 000 IP_2020_issue4_Cover.indd 1

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External Sales/Account Managers For more information or to apply, please contact Myles Fitzpatrick E: myles@uniboard.ie T: +353 1 401 0008 Republic of Ireland T: +353 1 401 0008 E: sales@uniboard.ie www.uniboard.ie

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DECEMBER 2020

06 News

A look at what’s happening in the print industry

09 Future-proofing at MSO

Belfast-based MSO Cleland drives the business forward with Heidelberg Press Investment

10 50 years strong

After clocking up 50 years as a leader in the print sector, what’s next for P+D? Managing Director Ronan Conway outlines the company’s ambitions for 2021 and beyond

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Quadient Graphics, at your service The right equipment from the right supplier has made work a cinch at Service Graphics’ new Dublin office

14 Prepress.

Automation.

Web‑to‑print.

Streamline your complete print process with AccurioPro Flux, the flexible solution for all your print

24 Xerox – making every day better

26 Best foot forward for 2021

12 I rish Print Awards

With Covid-19

preventing us from holding the Irish Print Awards this year, here’s a reminder of the firms that triumphed over the years and a look back at the moments that stood out

Xerox has added nine new products and features to its range to boost productivity and profit for print providers

Irish Printing Federation President Diarmuid Dawson talks to Denise Maguire about the ongoing issues affecting the print industry and the new challenges brought about by Covid-19

28 Training

Brian Colleran at DPP Skillnet chats to Irish Printer about moving its courses online and why reskilling is more important than ever

IRISH PRINTER

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Welcome to the December 2020 issue of Irish Printer.

For the final issue of Irish Printer 2020, we caught up with Diarmuid Dawson, IPF President and MD at Innovative Print Solutions Ltd to talk about the year that was. Covid is of course the biggest concern for print firms right now, as we face into a new year with no real certainty over what 2021 will bring. Brexit is another unknown, although it may bring some positivity in relation to work going across the border or to the UK. With border controls going in, it’s possible that less print will be produced in the UK and Northern Ireland and instead, work will go to print firms in the South. Diarmuid also talked about the effect Covid is having on commercial print and how some firms have been able to funnel their creativity into producing Covidrelated products like the Sanilope from Trimfold and VisorLite from Print Media Services.

Also in this issue Ronan Conway, Managing Director at P+D, writes about the company’s ambitions as it celebrates 50 years in the industry. Although the move to digital was an expensive one, he says, the payback was exceptional in that it allowed P+D to become partners to its customers rather than just suppliers. He adds that 30 years ago, the company put ink onto substrates – now it collaborates in the planning, design, printing and execution elements with its clients. For more on P+D’s 50 years in business, turn to page 10.

From all of us here at Irish Printer, we’d like to wish our readers a Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

Thanks for reading! If you have any thoughts on this issue, please drop us a line at editor@irishprinter.ie. Enjoy!

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Editor: Denise Maguire Email: editor@irishprinter.ie Creative Director: Jane Matthews Designer: Anna Wesolowska Production: Ciara Murray Contact: Irish Printer, Ashville Media Group, Unit 55, Park West Road, Park West, Dublin 12, D12 X9F Tel: (01) 432 2200 Web: www.irishprinter.ie McGowans Print Printed by: Printed on: HP Indigo 10000 using Novatech paper supplied by Antalis.

All rights reserved. Every care has been taken to ensure that the information contained in this magazine is accurate.

The publishers cannot, however, accept responsibility for errors or omissions.

Reproduction by any means in whole or in part without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. © Ashville Media Group 2020. All discounts, promotions and competitions contained in this magazine are run independently of Irish Printer. The promoter/advertiser is responsible for honouring the prize.

ISSN 0790-2026

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NEWS Obituary - Peter Geliot Peter Geliot, former Managing Director of Geliot Hurner Ewen (GHE), died recently at the age of 92. Trained as an engineer, his early career included spells with Armstrong Siddeley (later Bristol Siddeley) where he was involved with the Viper jet engine used in the Hunting-Percival Jet Provost aircraft and the Sapphire engine of the Hawker Hunter and Gloster Javelin fighters.

He took over the reins of the family business from his father in the late 1950’s and continued to build on a portfolio of technology for the print finishing and bookbinding industry manufactured by companies from both East and West Germany. GHE was successfully represented in Ireland for many years by Dublin firm Stewart & Currie. He left GHE in the 1990’s to form GK Machines and represent the sales and service interests of Billhöfer in the UK. A lifelong steam train enthusiast and model maker, his collection of trains, planes and buses ran into the hundreds and all were highly accurate in detail. He was a long-serving Parish Councillor at his home village in Kent where he was instrumental in having a sports field and children’s playground created. His support for a new primary school was in the process of being realised at the time of his death.

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SMURFIT KAPPA

TARGETS AT LEAST ‘NET ZERO’ EMISSIONS BY 2050

Smurfit Kappa has announced new targets to further reduce its fossil CO2 emissions, including its ambition to reach at least net zero emissions by 2050. It has also increased its existing intermediate 2030 CO2 reduction target by 15 percentage points to 55%, in comparison to the 2005 baseline. Before this announcement, the company had already achieved a reduction in CO2 emission intensity of 32.9% on its 2030 target of a 40% reduction, thanks to the implementation of several key projects.

One such project was the installation of a recovery boiler at the company’s Nettingsdorf Paper Mill in Austria which began operating in June of this year. The new boiler is set to cut CO2 emissions by an additional 40,000 tonnes, which translates into an additional 1.5% reduction in CO2 emissions across the business.

Speaking on behalf of Smurfit Kappa, Tony Smurfit, Group CEO said: “Sustainability has been at the core of our business for decades. We want to lead from the front and raise the bar for the paper and packaging industry by setting such ambitious targets. This is a source of pride for all our customers and employees.”

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NEWS

Creating emotion in a data-driven world Canon hosted its first virtual Future Promotion Forum in October, welcoming close to 600 brand and marketing professionals, creative and media agencies, print service providers and corporate print departments from across Europe. The main message at the event was clear – customer experience is the most important differentiator in marketing.

By blending technology, behavioural science and data, brands now have the power to hyper-individualise their omnichannel marketing campaigns and in doing so, marketers can make an emotional connection with their target customers. This is good news for print, dubbed one of the only marketing tools that has been proven to provoke an emotional customer response and have lasting impact.

Speakers at the event included Dutch author and EMEA Marketing Director at Smartly.io, Mark de Bruijn, who highlighted the importance of delivering exceptional customer experience by keeping the balance between technology and people. Angela Medlar, Vice President of Operations and Product Technology at Enthusem, spoke

about how brands can easily integrate personalised print into a customer journey, interlinking the online and offline worlds by seamlessly connecting marketing automation tools with print production. Entrepreneur Richard Askam wrapped up the event by stating that there’s never been a more important time to create an emotional connection with your target audience. “Hyper-personalisation is the key to influencing behavioural change in our data-driven world.

Let’s elevate the status of print in the marketing mix and omni-channel campaigns using programmatic print technology. It’s now up to the print industry to work more effectively with brand marketers to play on print’s many qualities and its ability to build an emotional connection with the customer.”

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NEWS INTERIOJET WATER-BASED INKJET PRINTING SYSTEM FROM AGFA Agfa has just launched the InterioJet 3300, a multi-pass, water-based inkjet system for printing on decor paper used for interior decoration, such as laminate floors and furniture. Agfa says it boasts brilliant and consistent print quality and enables the creation of customised interior decorations, including brand logos, pictures or seasonal themes.

The InterioJet is built on the same inkjet printing platform as Agfa’s heavy-duty Jeti Tauro LED UV printing press for sign & display printing applications. It delivers the same printing reliability and can print on two rolls at a time – each with a width of up to 155cm and a weight of up to 600kg – at a speed of up to 340 m² per hour.

“The InterioJet 3300 will accelerate the transformation from analog (gravure) to digital printing in the laminated surface market,” said Tom Cloots, Director Industrial Inkjet for Agfa.

“It is the ideal cost-efficient solution for medium and short production runs. Its limited start-up time and high flexibility will enable suppliers of laminated surfaces to gain new business by responding to evolving market demands, including printing on demand and just-in-time delivery. The system allows interior decoration designers to let their creativity run free and create customised designs for every order.”

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TWO SIDES POWER OF PRINT SEMINAR GOES VIRTUAL The tenth Two Sides Power of Print Seminar went online this year but lost none of its insight and direction for the hundreds of delegates from around the world. The spectre of Covid-19 was a recurring theme and Charles Jarrold, CEO of BPIF, began the day with an assessment of its impact on all corners of the print industry. With less optimism and a 17% drop in turnover since March, there’s little doubt the print industry has been severely affected by the pandemic. But while Covid-19 takes top spot in business worries, the looming Brexit transition period deadline isn’t far behind, with concerns including supply chain security and non-tariff barriers. However, despite BPIF members expecting a negative business effect from a no-trade deal, government support and offshoring are among the positive aspects.

2020 has also been a year that’s forced many companies to accelerate their digital plans, whether it’s improving ecommerce and fulfilment systems, moving staff online or using more digital marketing.

But as Mark Davies, the Managing Director of Whistl cautioned, the size and number of threats to digital marketing means that door drop and mail are becoming increasingly effective, something retail brands are keenly aware of. “Overall trust in advertising is at an all-time low,” he said. “Since the Cambridge Analytica scandal, there’s been a 66% drop in trust in Facebook and now 40% of people don’t trust Facebook with their personal information.” What this means is that brands such as Land’s End, Deliveroo, AO, Harry’s, Uber Eats and Waitrose are seeing impressive returns on investment in door drop and mail. In a partially addressed mail (PAM) study, Waitrose generated 1,140 new customers directly from the campaign.

Bringing the day to an end, Jonathan Tame, the Managing Director of Two Sides, provided an overview of the organisation’s work that includes tackling the increasing problem of greenwashing, commissioning global research studies on consumer perceptions of print and packaging and launching press and online campaigns that remind the marketing and publishing industries, plus millions of consumers, of the sustainability and effectiveness of paper.

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NEWS Adapt to the Virtual World to Stay Connected in Business Colin Easton from HP talks about the importance of staying connected virtually to ensure we’re stronger going forward It’s hard to say when normal business will resume in our industry, if indeed, it ever will. However, businesses have adapted since Covid-19 hit early this year and there are many more ways to stay connected, ensuring businesses are stronger going forward.

While face-to-face meetings and events are on hold, information and communication have gone online. Training sessions, presentations, demonstrations, roundtable discussions, summits – there’s a busy calendar of industry collaboration happening remotely. We have opened the digital doors of the HP Virtual Booth, an online representation of a trade show stand that visitors can look around in a similar way to on a show floor. The Virtual Booth is divided into key markets – Signage & Display, Professional Photo & Art and Sportswear & Fashion, along with a showcase of HP large format printers. This application-focused virtual space allows graphics businesses to explore the exciting opportunities open to them, safely.

Just like at a physical trade show, the HP Virtual Booth offers visitors information to pick up and digest later.

There are guides to download, including how-to guides on producing essential items like personalised reusable face masks and webinars on a range of subjects. Visitors can attend these sessions in real time or watch them later, a flexible benefit of remote events. You can request demonstrations, samples and support from an HP expert on your preferred application.

The HP team is also presenting demonstrations of our key large-format printer solutions. Again, this is an advantage of connecting virtually. Our technical consultants are based at the HP Graphics Experience

Centre in Barcelona but can deliver live demonstrations tailored for every customer, wherever they are, via a video call. Rather than a one-sided presentation, these virtual demos are truly interactive, customer-led, real-time dialogues that enable decision-makers to discuss subjects relevant to their specific businesses with experts. The demonstrations are recorded to re-watch later too and there’s no distracting noise from a busyshow floor.

Print service providers and graphic display companies are also utilising remote working practices and technology to stay connected to their print rooms.

Print production operating systems, accessible via an app or website, allow managers to see exactly what’s going on and even operate their print solutions remotely. HP PrintOS, for example, allows users to add new jobs to the print queue, check job completion, monitor media and ink usage and perform many more actions from any location. This cloud-based platform is currently used by over 26,000 print professionals around the world.

Whether temporary or permanent, it’s essential for businesses to adapt. Explore alternative ways of working, engage with people remotely and discover the opportunities presented by going virtual.

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Are words worth more in silver?

Go beyond colour. Bring print to life with glittering golds, stunning silvers, vibrant fluorescents and versatile layers of white and clear. xerox.ie/beyondcmyk Š2019-2020 Xerox Corporation. All rights reserved. XeroxŽ is a trademark of Xerox Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

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NEWS Futureproofing at MSO Belfast-based MSO Cleland drives forward sustainable packaging operation with Heidelberg Press Investment

Packaging specialist MSO Cleland has made a substantial investment of £5.5 million to take its business into the future.

The first part of this investment has been the purchase and installation of a Heidelberg Speedmaster XL106-6+LYYL, a six-colour press with double coater. The press was delivered and commissioned successfully during the coronavirus lockdown and joins the company’s existing two sheetfed presses.

According to MSO, the new press will bring about a significant increase in productivity, along with greater in-line colour management and a heightened scope for creative finishes.

MSO says the timing of this investment indicates the progress and growth achieved by the company, despite the challenging landscape. With additional production capacity, the company is able to foreshorten delivery time and respond to the tight timelines requested by customers. It also allows the company to grow its business in keeping with the rising demands in the industry.

Commenting on the investment, MSO Managing Director Joanna Calixto, said: “The press investment allows us to bring the newest capabilities to our customers so that their products

can stand out in a world that is sometimes overwhelming in the choices available. Being additional equipment, it also gives us the ability to react quickly when our customers need something in a hurry – this flexibility is a crucial part of our business model.”

The company is also preparing for a future that includes the revised trading conditions that will apply after Brexit is completed. “There are a large number of European carton companies that enjoy a significant volume of business in the UK and could benefit from having a production capability there. Our discussions have so far shown significant traction for future business and we believe the production capability of our new printing and converting technology puts us in a very good position,” said Ralph Chalmers, Chairman of MSO. The new Speedmaster XL 106 6+LYYL is, says Heidelberg, the most automated and intelligent Speedmaster yet. “This investment confirms the trust in our brand and in the marketleading Heidelberg support team, which provides the highest level of service in the UK and Ireland. We are certain that MSO will benefit from minimising the process-dependent time losses and will significantly increase effectiveness, all the way up to autonomous printing,” said Ryan Miles, Managing Director at Heidelberg UK. MSO specialises in end-to-end packaging solutions, from design to delivery of carton board packaging and labels, for the food, beverages and pharmaceutical sectors. The company is also planning on creating 35 new jobs and has set up an apprenticeship scheme to ensure staff have the right skills set going forward.

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After clocking up 50 years as a leader in the print sector, what’s next for P+D? Managing Director Ronan Conway outlines the company’s ambitions and talks about how a traditional industry like printing can pivot for the challenges of the next decade

or any company, reaching a 50th birthday is a cause for real celebration. But when that feat is achieved in the Irish printing industry, with such a high level of attrition over the years, the achievement is even more noteworthy. In the final week of November, P+D will clock up its fiftieth year in business and to mark the occasion, I’ve set out my thoughts on how the traditional print industry is pivoting to support a client base that’s more demanding and more diverse than ever.

One of the big plus points of hitting the half century is that, as a company, we have witnessed an unbelievable amount of change in a relatively short period of time, so we believe that we’re very much accustomed to moving the dial when the need arises.

It’s only 10 to 15 years ago that our industry was primarily analogue and best suited to churning out large volumes of the same thing. The move to digital was an expensive one and involved a level of confidence in your own ability to survive that put a number of well-known print companies out of business. Quite simply, they couldn’t make the numbers add up.

But for those of us who’ve made a full transition to digital, the payback has been exceptional. If I had to encapsulate

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that payback on a single thought, it’s that we have become partners to our customers rather than mere suppliers. Thirty years ago, we put ink onto substrates – now we collaborate in the planning, design, printing and execution elements with our clients.

Both as an individual company and as part of the broader print sector, we now have an infinite level of flexibility when it comes to producing written or visual communications.

We can produce anything from a single sheet to thousands of copies and in a range of formats and finishes that we could only have dreamt of 10 years ago. This level of flexibility means, among other things, that marketing companies across a wide range of industries can trial different offers or different campaign ideas at will, without making a major investment in print or production.

But on top of that, our newfound status as partners and collaborators means that we can be part of the solution from the very first moments that a client has an idea or a campaign to brief. Apart from having a full creative service of our own to bring to the party, we can also advise our clients away from solutions that may sound great on paper, but simply won’t work in the real world.

Our value to our clients is no longer as a company that simply puts ink on paper; that’s very much a given. Where we feel we differentiate ourselves is the intangibles we bring to a project. When I first entered the industry over 20 years ago, we generally joined the marketing process further down

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News

the line, simply to produce the material. We are now seen as a much bigger part of the marketing discipline and enter much earlier in the process, providing design services and advice on how to maximise the implementation. We partner with our clients through design, production and implementation. A highly respected Irish client we work with, Green Isle Foods, is a great example of our new way of working with our clients. For Green Isle, we provide everything from design service for press and online to basic traditional print, right through to the show-stopping store takeovers we love working on. A significant amount of our design work, for example, is for digital platforms that never go near a printing press.

Certain products within the print world have become commoditised but the model that we have adopted at P+D is one that’s drawn completely from the service sector. We have one job and one job only – making our clients look good. We do this not just with traditional or next generation printing, but with a whole host of ancillary services that range from a seriously talented creative team to an account management set-up that puts the client right at the heart of everything we do.

On the design front, we don’t just provide a traditional graphic design service but also specialise in 3D structural design, which can really make our clients’ products and services pop super-loudly. This point is particularly important when working for clients in the FMCG and pharmaceutical

sectors where standout is essential in a crowded marketplace.

We conceive and produce comms material that spans their entire customer journey. Our success in the prestigious POPAI UK and Ireland awards shows our strengths when it comes to competing against companies many times our size from the UK. We also deliver our design services into media where there will be no print output, such as online advertising or digital displays.

At the end of the day, it’s about the message and not the medium. For many of our clients, we estimate that we can replace three or four of their traditional suppliers across design, consultancy, manufacturing, delivery and implementation. We believe that we can support them through production excellence, real-world creative expertise and exceptional service support. The bottom line is that we can become part of the glue that helps them stay sticky with their clients.

We’re rightly proud of having got to celebrate our fiftieth birthday but quite honestly, it’s the coming years that excite us most. The capacity to deliver really groundbreaking work has never been greater and we’re really looking forward to imagining and producing the unimaginable for design and marketing agencies!

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Irish Print Awards Plus Print, Irish Print Awards 2019, held in The Crowne Plaza Hotel, Santry

Print Run Ltd, Irish Print Awards 2013

The Delta Group, Irish Print Awards 2017

WE’LL MEET AGAIN The Irish Print Awards are one of the most important events in the print industry calendar.

With Covid-19 preventing us from holding the awards this year, here’s a reminder of the firms that triumphed over the years and a look back at the moments that stood out

Irish Print Awards 2013

Think Design, Irish Print Awards 2017

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Lifetime Achievement - Dr Lorcan Ó hÓbain, Irish Printer Awards 2018.

Award presented to Lorcan's family

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Irish Print Awards

Steve Turner, Gerry Moore, Paddy Gallagher from Print Media Services, Irish Print Awards 2016

Impress Printing Works Ltd, Irish Print Awards 2018

Gillian Ward and Dave Brennan from Neopost, Irish Print Awards 2015

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Lifetime Achievement - Adrian Madden, Gareth Parkinson, Robert Parkinson, Laura Parkinson, Lindsay Templeton, Freddie Snowe, Irish Print Awards 2016

Esmark Finch, Irish Print Awards 2017

he Irish Print Awards have been running for 42 years and if the event had been held this year, it would have been 43. That’s 42 years of rewarding excellence, celebrating the best in the business and honouring those that have left an indelible impression on the industry. The jury’s task of whittling down entries to just one winner across each category seems to get harder each year, such is the quality of entries from print firms who are meeting the challenge of not just adapting to an ever-evolving industry, but flourishing in it. Categories have changed over the years to accommodate an industry in flux while new ones have been added. The 2018 awards saw two new packaging print categories added to the list – Flexographic Packaging Printer and Litho Packaging Printer of the Year – while regional categories were added a few years ago to ensure no area of the country was neglected.

Over the years, the awards have provided print firms with an opportunity to network and connect with their peers.

They’re also a great place for old friends to meet up. “What I love about the awards is getting to meet all the people I’ve known for years. Each year, I look forward to catching up with friends and I know a lot of people feel the same way.

Even though we were competing against each other on a day to day basis, we were all very sociable with each other at the awards. It’s a great event for bringing people together,” said awards judge Freddie Snowe.

Having been involved in the awards for so many years, Freddie has lots of memories from the event but one sticks out in particular. “This was back when the ceremony was in the old Berkeley Court Hotel. We had entered the ‘Best Print Newspaper’ category but the award went to Teddy Crosbie in the Cork Examiner. The next morning at work,

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Irish Print Awards

Irish Printer Awards 2018

David Curtis, Irish Print Awards 2018

Derek Bell, Norman McNellis, Emmanuel Duffy and Alan Dawson, IBS Xerox at the 38th Annual Irish Print Awards

I saw a large photo of the Cork contingent at the awards in the paper. So I got half a dozen and cut the photo out of each individual copy. When I finished work I went back to the Berkeley Court as I knew Ted was staying there. I dropped the porter a few bob, asked him if he knew which rooms the Cork Examiner people were in and asked him to put one of the papers under each door. With Ted’s paper I included a note saying, ‘Just because you came to Dublin and robbed our award doesn’t mean I have to publicise it. I’m fecked if I’m putting your picture in our paper!’ A few days later I got the most wonderful letter from him. I had a great relationship with Teddy going back years so knew he could take a joke.”

We look forward to welcoming you all to the 2021 Irish Print Awards and we’ll be updating our readers on a date for the event in the New Year.

Realt Paper, Irish Print Awards 2019

Barry Lyons and Freddie Snowe presenting the award for Irish Printer and National Print Museum Lifetime Achievement Award to Terry Cross from Delta Print, Irish Print Awards 2013 Irish Printer Awards 2018

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Subsidised training for the Design, Print and Packaging industry.

Keep your Skills Up to Date If you have a training need, be it large or small, technical, operational or management we want to speak to you.

Contact Brian on 087 292 8900 to talk about any training you want us to run and subsidise or check out our website – www.dppskillnet.ie for a list of programmes available.

Our 2021 Schedule will be online from January and is updated weekly.

Promoting organisation of the Design Print & Packaging Skillnet

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Expertise in.

Quality out.

With the right input, you can produce a result that’s so precise it’s almost lifelike. That’s why Epson’s extensive experience goes into every detail of the SC-S large format printer series. We develop and manufacture each component, so you can always rely on an accurate, high quality result.

Precision, quality and productivity with every print.

To find out more visit www.epson.ie/signbyepson

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Cover Story

Quadient

GRAPHICS, at your SERVICE The right equipment from the right supplier has made work a cinch at Service Graphics’ new Dublin office

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ervice Graphics, part of the Paragon Group, expanded its operations from the UK to Dublin earlier this year, moving into a 100,000 sq ft dedicated factory in Citywest. A print & design and display solutions provider, Service Graphics is split into two divisions – Service Graphics Display which specialises in the production of large format display graphics, signage, exhibition and events and Service Graphics Print and Design which focuses on small format print like leaflets, brochures, folders, stationery and graphic design. The company also specialises in high-tech solutions including 3D printing and virtual reality.

When it came to kitting out the print room, the company needed to work with a trusted supplier and be assured of acquiring top class equipment that suited its diverse requirements. Quadient Graphics is one of Ireland’s leading print and finishing equipment suppliers, providing top of the range equipment and supplies to printers throughout Ireland. Based in Dublin, the company has a nationwide team of passionate and knowledgeable account managers and product engineers who look to add real value to printers large and small throughout the country.

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Cover Story

Neil Frazer is Ireland Business Manager for Service Graphics and brings 40 years of print industry experience with him. Commenting on the company, he said: “Service Graphics combines the most knowledgeable team, with the most modern of technology. This has made us one of biggest names in digital print. Chances are that our experience can make our customers’ experience a better one. From small format personalisation to large format wow factor and direct to substrate – we do it all and if you need it designed, we can do that too.

“So to the new equipment we needed – a guillotine, folder creaser, laminator and booklet maker to cope with our requirements, specifically for the quality needed and efficiencies for the type of work we’d be undertaking.”

Service Graphics decided on a Komfi Amiga 36 Laminator, Duplo DBM-150 Booklet maker and DSF-2200 Sheet feeder, Multigraf 375 Folder Creaser and a Mohr Guillotine provided by Quadient Graphics, who through account manager Rob Nagle, helped to kit out a finishing suite that suited its specific requirements. Neil had dealt with Quadient Graphics (Previously Neopost Graphics) in a former role and knew Rob. He said: “I contacted Rob initially and that’s where it started to go right… I met with Rob in Dublin and we first talked about what we needed. What do you want to produce? What’s your volumes? We went through the core of what we do before we ever spoke about equipment, so Rob had a good understanding of what we needed.”

The whole process was, says Neil, very straightforward.

“We met up again and viewed proposals for machines and options. Rob knows the industry and having previously operated all these machines, he knew what he was talking about. I was extremely comfortable within the process and that made the decision very straightforward.” Service Graphics has since been using the new Quadient equipment on a daily basis. “We didn’t purchase anything we didn’t

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need and we were only remarking recently how much we have used every single item of our digital finishing equipment,” said Neil. “In the past, people might have bought machinery and found it collecting dust after a few months, but because of the pre-work and investigation by Quadient Graphics into the type of work we were going to do, every single machine has been used quite a lot. We have gone through materials and supplies of the booklet maker quicker than we expected. We thought at one stage there was a problem with the booklet maker but we had simply ran out of staples because we’d been using it so much. We have certainly utilised the equipment in every aspect which has been great.”

Commenting on the equipment’s performance, Neil said: “We have creased and folded tens of thousands of sheets, we have laminated thousands of sheets and we have produced tens of thousands of booklets. Furthermore, they’ve all been produced efficiently. For the type of work we do, we’ve bought the right kit and the end result is just perfect.” Each piece of kit purchased was based on efficiencies. All the machinery can be set up and left to run allowing the operator to take care of other tasks, with the exception of the Mohr Guillotine which needs to be operated.

Neil describes working with Rob and Quadient Graphics as “effortless.” He said: “It’s been a real pleasure. The relationship has been effective and the pre-discussion was maybe only 10% of the time, but it made 100% of the deal seamless. The ordering processes and delivery were also looked after by Quadient Graphics.” Everything was delivered on the same day, allowing for an even smoother process. “Quadient Graphics kept the machines as they arrived from the different suppliers, so installation was simplified. Installation again was all organised to be completed in the shortest possible time; the Quadient engineers came in and Rob did an overview before the

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Cover Story

engineers installed the machines. They demonstrated them to us and showed us a lot of stuff as they went, so even during the installation period we were learning. In fact it was pretty seamless.” Quadient Graphics further trained the operators on the machines after installation and are available on the phone if required. “The support and backup has been first class from day one.” Regarding supplies, Neil says they have been “easy to source and we receive orders the next day.”

The Service Graphics site is a brand new set-up in Dublin Citywest. Neil says the equipment supplied by Quadient Graphics is in a different league and as a result, he is also planning a total refresh of equipment in the Belfast branch through Quadient Graphics.

Quadient Graphics is based in Unit 16, Fonthill Retail Park, Fonthill Road, Dublin 22 and can be contacted on info.ie@quadient.com or 01 625 0900 Service Graphics is based at 4060 Kingswood Road, Citywest Business Campus, Saggart, Dublin 24 and can be contacted on dublin@servicegraphics.ie or 01 4105894

EQUIPMENT DETAILS Duplo DBM 150 and DSF 2200 – A fully automated machine with an inbuilt foredge trimmer operated from a mounted PC, ideal for digital and litho work. It can run up to 2400 A5 books an hour and is both user friendly and easy to set up.

Mohr Guillotine – Simple to use and comes from the Polar family. Can store up to 190 programmes and has a cut and record function. The smallest cut without the false plate is 15mm.

Multigraf 375 creaser folder – Touchscreen operated. Features 10 built in folding/creasing options and can crease up to 6000 A5 sheets in an hour and up to 6pp A4 brochures. Fully automated with a feeding tray that can take 100mm in stock.

Komfi Amiga – A fully automatic laminator that can laminate up to B3 paper size. Ideal for digital and litho work. Designed for unattended operation, the laminator has a built-in help and self-diagnostics setting.

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EXPERIENCE PROVEN TECHNOLOGY

iQuariusiX Quality control

Nozzle activity control

Automatically detects and corrects nozzle failure or misfiring in near real-time

With the varioPRINT iX-series, Canon launches iQuariusiX, the next generation of this proven technology. iQuariusiX innovations and related technologies make it possible to handle a wide range of media and to print at incredibly high speeds while retaining razor-sharp details, outstanding colour and a perfectly flat finish.

iQuariusiX is based on 4 technology innovations: iQuariusiX Quality control For consistent quality on all applications

iQuariusiX Ink innovation For superior quality on a wide range of media

Stack and finish Straight stack delivery ready for processing. Online connection to finishers for endto-end automated workflows iQuariusiX Drying technology For a robust end result, ready for post-processing

iQuariusiX Drying technology

Drying system drum First drying step. Hot air impingement evaporates water from the ink on the print

iQuariusiX Media transport For reliable and accurate, non-stop operations and handling of all media

See the bigger picture

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iQuariusiX Quality control

iQuariusiX Quality control

Controls individual nozzles to ensure consistently high, smooth print quality

Co-developed 1200 dpi printheads optimised for use in iX-series and true 1200 dpi image processing

Nozzle uniformity control

True 1200 dpi print process

iQuariusiX Ink innovation

iX performance ink Water-based inks with a proprietary formulation for excellent image quality and robustness on many different media types iQuariusiX Ink innovation

Next generation ColorGrip

Special formulation for great adhesion and performance of the water-based iX inks on a wide media range

Paper input modules Climate-controlled and vacuum-fed paper input modules supporting all media from all trays

iQuariusiX Drying technology

Post-fixation unit with InkFusion technology Second drying step. Heat with humidification for robust ink layer so prints can be cut, stitched, perforated and folded without issue

iQuariusiX Media transport

Precision sheet control Seamless stainless steel belt with small perforated holes and air suction accurately positions and transports sheets at high speed.

Enables combination of papers and outstanding registration

iQuariusiX Media transport

Sheet entry control Sheets with deformations automatically detected and discarded before entering the print process

To find out more, get in touch 086 8172495 donnan.cullen@canon.ie

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Software

AccurioPro Flux

PREPRESS. AUTOMATION. WEB‑TO‑PRINT. Streamline your complete print process with AccurioPro Flux, the flexible solution for all your print

Konica Minolta has introduced important new upgrades for its AccurioPro Flux software as part of its ‘Rethink Workflow’ campaign, designed to help customers grow their businesses profitably, further underlining its commitment to customers with important enhancements to its pre-press and print automation software.

“AccurioPro Flux is Konica Minolta’s software solution for powerful make-ready, professional print workflow automation, convenient collaboration and effective output management. Its three modules – Essential, Premium and Ultimate – provide a central point of control, workflow automation and web-to-print. Offering essential functionality to minimise costs and maximise return on investment, AccurioPro Flux can be of interest to you as a print service provider, manager of a CRD or in-house print shop of a public organisation, university or corporation,” said Phil Schueler, Production Print Manager with MJ Flood.

The AccurioPro Flux Premium and AccurioPro Flux options provide further enhancements to its pre-press and print automation software within its Accurio professional printing portfolio of digital software solutions for professional printing. In addition to the attractive make-ready and output management functionalities of AccurioPro Flux Essential, both new upgrades give customers the opportunity to further maximise both the flexibility in their prepress workflows and the versatility of print offerings. The advanced functionality includes collaboration possibilities, enhanced automation and more user convenience.

AccurioPro Flux modules can be purchased as such or upgraded as needed with growing requirements:

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Productivity with templates & advanced makeready – AccurioPro Flux Essential

The basic AccurioPro Flux Essential software tool targets the prepress situation where you are bound to appreciate its timesaving properties if you grapple with ever-shorter deadlines and increasing cost pressure. With Essential, don’t concern yourself with in-depth operator training, as the software is easy to use and has a minimal learning curve.

Misprints are avoided and costs reduced thanks to the easy checking of job files for their printability. AccurioPro Flux Essential provides the one, central point of control even for a fleet of output devices, ensuring optimal job distribution as well as fastest order completion.

Offering essential functionality to minimise costs and maximise ROI, AccurioPro Flux software is targeted at a wide range of customers including print service providers, central reprographic departments, in-house print shops, local councils, universities and corporations.

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Software Sophisticated web-to-print application – AccurioPro Flux Ultimate

AccurioPro Flux Premium

Professional print workflow automation – AccurioPro Flux Premium

This is the answer for printing companies requiring automation and the flexible collaboration of more than one operator. If you head a print environment where several operators process a high number of short- and longer-run print jobs and possibly have to work on the same job list, where job processing requires frequent manual intervention and customers keep enquiring about the status of their print order, Premium offers you numerous advantages for the above issues and can help you streamline your overall print production. In short, this module controls and automates many processes in the print room; it handles communication with customers and facilitates coordination of the workload in the print room. Avoiding errors and providing print-ready files, it eases the transfer of jobs to print. It also enables the integration with other applications, e.g. MIS, accounting solutions and provides convenient flexible access, letting operators work from anywhere.

AccurioPro Flux Premium’s strong focus is on collaboration, enabling multi-seat capabilities where a team of operators can share and organise their workload while keeping each other up to date. In addition, the jobticket based print workflow provides a tool to offer easy and convenient ordering of print products via a company or organisation’s intranet. Users can send their print jobs directly from the source application to the print room, while the operator can rely on intelligent print functions to handle incoming jobs.

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The most extensive product module is AccurioPro Flux Ultimate. Are you planning to set up the job-ticket based online submission of print jobs around the clock? This sophisticated web-to-print application helps print service providers, in-house print shops, public authorities and the educational sector to do just that. Among others, the module provides approval workflows for print jobs that apply efficient control mechanisms before sending files to print, automatically converts files to a print-ready format and even includes the possibility to also offer non-print items from stock to customers – an attractive opportunity to generate an additional income.

Personalised printing is also possible, covering the likes of business cards, individually addressed flyers and such. And you can even customise online print shops for specific user groups, offering different customers their “own” individual web-to-print shop. It also provides extensive pricing flexibility and easy IT integration capabilities.

The latest software upgrade will bring important new benefits to end users. They include seamless integration, a quicker and cheaper connection than an external application as well as reduced maintenance as it eliminates the need to buy and maintain a second application.

For more information, contact Phil on 086 171 4421 or email pschueler@mjflood.ie

ADVANTAGES AT A GLANCE • Powerful make-ready functionality and professional output management combined • Three modules targeting different printing environments with flexible upgrading possibility • High ease of use and low learning curve • Single, central point of control for workflow automation and workload analysis • Comprehensive 24/7 web-to-print service • Extensive time savings from high degree of automation • Efficient workload coordination and optimised job distribution across the entire print room • Time-saving automatic email updates to customers on their print job status • Transparent overview thanks to reliable monitoring of all activities in the print room • Easy collaboration of multiple operators throughout the print room and even on the same job

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Innovation

XEROX – making every day better Xerox has added nine new products and features to its range to boost productivity and profit for print providers

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erox recently announced a suite of production print innovations including new presses, technology enhancements for existing printers as well as artificial intelligence and automation features that aid speed and productivity. At a virtual event attended by partners and clients around the world, Xerox unveiled the following innovations: • A Color Accelerator module for Baltoro, expanding inkjet applications and adding ink-saving automation • Addition of fluorescent pink to the Iridesse Production Press, enhancing its metallics, white and clear colour palette • Three new printers capable of higher volumes, more media and extended colour options in the VersaLink and Versant family • Two Xerox Nuvera print speed upgrades that best competition • AI-enabled media manager software that enables highquality images with minimal set-up and staff time • Automated workflow updates to seamlessly print embellishments with FreeFlow Core 6.0 As the leader in the production colour market, Xerox says it is committed to helping customers expand their business, enhance productivity with new technology and protect their existing investments with new tools and features.

“Print enhancement is the fastest growing segment in print and Xerox offers the broadest set of solutions to help clients expand their business here,” said Tracey Koziol, senior vice president of Global Offerings, Xerox. “The new technology and features we are launching expand the capabilities and profit potential of existing devices, while introducing new presses that respond to demand for higher volume and extended media and colour palettes. There’s a reason Xerox remains top in the production print market.”

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XEROX COLOR ACCELERATOR FOR BALTORO

The Xerox Baltoro High Fusion Inkjet Press platform, number one in the B3 cut-sheet inkjet market, now has a field-upgradable module that expands its range. The Xerox Colour Accelerator for Xerox Baltoro HF Inkjet Press enables increased print quality, expanded media options and automation to make inkjet printing viable for lucrative applications such as direct mail, postcards and catalogs.

With intelligent automation, Baltoro uses 50% less ink than competitor presses to purge inkjet heads, increasing uptime and productivity while delivering consistent, reliable quality.

Introduced last year, Baltoro is redefining the inkjet market. At a fraction of the size, weight and power consumption of competitor presses, Baltoro offers a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) while being the only scalable, customizable platform in its class.

FLUORESCENT PINK FOR IRIDESSE

Xerox has the broadest colour capability and Beyond CMYK offerings across any portfolio. No-one offers the range of colours, embellishments, mixed metallics, extended gamut, media options and single-pass digital enhancement technology as Xerox.

The Xerox Iridesse Production Press is adding fluorescent pink specialty dry ink option to its existing Beyond CMYK palette of gold, silver, white and clear. These embellishments allow print providers to differentiate and offer their clients eye-popping designs and enhancements.

NEW VERSALINK GRAPHIC ARTS PRINTER

The newest addition to the VersaLink family is the Xerox VersaLink C8000W, the most affordable entry point into the embellishment market. Using white toner as a base on dark and coloured stocks, its cyan, magenta and yellow toners make images pop for applications such as menus, envelopes, window clings, decals and labels. A small footprint device, the C8000W offers clarity and quality that stands out over the typical four-color print.

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Innovation

Xerox Iridesse Production Press with fluorescent pink specialty dry ink

TWO NEW VERSANTS

Xerox is expanding its Versant family of presses with two new machines that support wider media options and add automation features that reduce staffing needs and set-up time.

The Xerox Versant 280 Press, a mid-production press, provides added value with thicker stock media options (400 GSM) for applications such as business cards. With the All Stocks at Rated Speed (ASRS) option, the Versant 280 is faster than any competitor in printing heavy stocks. Customers can print a million specialty colours using an Adaptive CMYK+ kit that leverages white, gold, silver, clear and fluorescents, unique to Xerox in this class of products.

The Xerox Versant 4100 Press handles higher volumes and heavier production loads than the Versant 280, bringing more jobs in-house by reducing set-up time and printing on more media types than any competitor press. The 4100 also handles thicker paper stocks, up to 400 GSM. Automated stock management saves time and reduces human error.

FASTER XEROX NUVERAS

The Xerox Nuvera family is built for high production environments with Xerox customers making more than 35 billion prints last year. The Xerox Nuvera 157 MX Production System and Xerox Nuvera MX Perfecting Production System monochrome production presses have upgraded the magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) print speeds to exceed any competitive press. MICR, the line of numbers that allows certain computers to read and process information, is key for processing bank, payroll and government checks with tested and trusted Xerox Nuvera security.

Technology-Driven Efficiencies

AI-enabled media manager software, PredictPrint Media Manager Software is included with the new Versant 4100 and can be added to Iridesse. By using artificial intelligence, the software automatically identifies the media being used and provides the correct press settings. Users simply scan a barcode, place the paper in a tray and use the set-up wizard to walk through optimising the system for that application.

FreeFlow Core 6.0 automates the process of preparing a file to print and now includes the application of Beyond CMYK enhancements. FreeFlow Core uses pre-built workflows to seamlessly apply embellishments such as gold, silver, white, clear and fluorescents without changing the source file.

“These new products and features represent the sweet spot of technology, where end-to-end solutions support our customers’ need to differentiate and expand their businesses in any economic environment,” said Marybeth Gilbert, vice president and general manager, Production Business, Xerox.

“Our customers know they can count on Xerox innovation in response to their business needs.”

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Interview

BEST FOOT

FORWARD Irish Printing Federation President Diarmuid Dawson talks to Denise Maguire about the ongoing issues affecting the print industry and the new challenges brought about

by Covid-19

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t the start of 2020, I had a chat with Diarmuid Dawson, Irish Printing Federation (IPF) President and MD at Innovative Print Solutions Ltd and Dermot Downer, Vice President of the IPF and MD at Westside Press Ltd. At the time, we had all heard about Covid-19 and its devastating consequences but it was something that affected other countries and hadn’t yet reached our shores (or so we believed). During our chat, Diarmuid and Dermot talked about some of the challenges facing the sector; the importance of effectively communicating prints’ green credentials, the ongoing apprenticeship issue and the fact that jobs were still leaving the State to be printed elsewhere. As the year comes to a close, I once again caught up with Diarmuid and while all of those issues are still impacting the sector, Covid has taken top spot as the single biggest challenge facing print firms going into 2021.

The cancellation of weddings, corporate events, sports and music festivals have had a huge impact on the print industry. Commercial print has, says Diarmuid, been hit the hardest. Some smaller firms may not be in a position to open their doors again. “Right now, we don’t know what the situation is as people are availing of the financial supports that are out there. Until people are back to work properly, we won’t know but we are aware that quite a few companies are really feeling the pinch. It’s just not possible to operate on 50% of your business and that’s the situation for a significant number of firms at the moment,” said Diarmuid.

Firms producing material for the pharmaceutical, packaging

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FOR 2021 and labels sector are better placed to weather the current economic uncertainty. “That was a trend we noticed at the Irish Print Awards last year, when several label firms won awards. There are still plenty of companies producing Covid-related material; it’s great to some positivity coming out of what has been a bad year.” The pandemic has fuelled some print firms’ creativity over recent months; Trimfold launched the Sanilope, a new sanitised cutlery envelope designed to keep cutlery safe and hygienic in all hospitality and catering settings, while Print Media Services came up with VisorLite, a disposable cardboard face shield that’s currently being used by staff in the Little Museum of Dublin.

“A little bit of ingenuity in these uncertain times is very encouraging. We’ve seen some very clever products over the past while and I hope it continues.”

When I spoke to Dermot and Diarmuid earlier this year, there was a very real sense of disappointment over the stalled apprenticeship scheme and the lack of engagement from Solas. “Nothing has changed. We have about 45 apprentices on the books who are ready to take up a printing apprenticeship but we have nowhere to send them. We feel we’ve been very let down by Solas and there’s very little point in talking to them anymore. At the end of the day it falls at their door. Our next step may have to be reaching out to Minister Harris as we have reached a dead end.”

Diarmuid is highly critical of the “misguided marketing messages” that say printing less is good for the environment.

“It’s something we regularly come across and it’s just not true. More than 90% of print materials are recyclable.

Sustainable forests are increasingly supplying the materials to print and even the chemicals and inks that are currently being used are eco-friendly. What these people are failing to see are the backup infrastructure and storage facilities required for online that require three or four times as much energy.

Just because you don’t see it doesn’t make it eco-friendly.”

“Uncertainty” has been the buzzword of 2020 but it perfectly describes the environment caused not just by Covid, but also by Brexit. “Obviously Covid muddied the

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Interview

Diarmuid Dawson

water there for a long time but Brexit is back on the agenda now. We don’t know what the outcome will be but there is a possibility that it will put a stop to work going up the North. We know for a fact that work is getting produced in the UK and further afield in Europe. With border controls going in, will less print be produced in the UK and Northern Ireland? I hope so but at this stage, we don’t know.” Print subsidies going into Northern Ireland from the UK have made it much cheaper for firms in the south to export their work up north. It’s an ongoing, frustrating issue and one that Diarmuid hopes will change in 2020. “I am finding that not for profits, charities and pretty much any organisation that cannot reclaim VAT uses the north and UK to avoid the VAT charged here. People think this is a border/import VAT exemption but it’s more to do with the fact that the UK doesn’t charge VAT on print. Also, if a charity purchases print for fundraising purposes, let’s say it’s a collection box, any items that are part of that campaign are VAT exempt.

For example, if you get a pen or daffodil or a badge, they too are purchased VAT free. We have a real problem when Irish firms aren’t supporting the local print industry.”

The fact that the UK is leaving Europe won’t make a difference to the amount of Irish print being produced over there, says Diarmuid. “It may initially be more cumbersome but I think we should be highlighting the GDPR implications to clients, particularly if data merging is taking place in the north and the UK. That’s a big no-no going forward.”

Once the UK decided to leave the EU, Innovative Print Solutions lost a large chunk of its business. “Traditionally, we would do a lot of corporate finance and shareholder print work, business that would have come as a result of companies taking over other companies. For more than two years now,

that side of our business has been adversely affected. In many respects though, we’re lucky. We’re an essential supplier thanks to the security work we do with the HSE so I’m very appreciative of that.”

There have been some bright spots in the print sector over the past few months. With so many members of the print industry on furlough, the Design, Print & Packaging Skillnet stepped up by providing a host of online courses, the majority of which were free of charge. “Brian Colleran and his team did tremendous work this year. Training and upskilling your workers to allow your company to adapt and evolve with a rapidly changing industry has never been more important.” Despite the year we’ve all had, Diarmuid is quietly optimistic about the future. “As an industry we need to put our best foot forward. We need to be as competitive as we can and hopefully, we can get back to some kind of normality early next year. We’ve got a lot of work to do but the print industry is well up to the challenge.”

Information from UK revenue website Printing, postage, publications - book, magazines and newspapers Printing Goods or services

VAT rate

More information

Brochures

0%

VAT Notice

Leaflets

0%

VAT Notice

Pamphlets

0%

VAT Notice

Goods or services

VAT rate

More information

Book

0%

VAT Notice

Children’s painting and picture books

0%

VAT Notice

Maps and charts

0%

VAT Notice

Magazines

0%

VAT Notice

Newspapers

0%

VAT Notice

Printed or copied music

0%

VAT Notice

Publications

0%

VAT Notice*

Publications

*Some items are standard-rated such as exercise books, letterheads, posters

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Training

TRAINING DAYS Brian Colleran at DPP Skillnet chats to Irish Printer about moving its courses online and why reskilling is more important than ever

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ver the course of 2020 the Design, Print & Packaging Skillnet greatly increased the number of courses it normally runs in a year. For employees of print firms on furlough, it gave them an opportunity to upskill while they waited for the print industry to kick off again. “What came out of the year was the importance of training and keeping your skills current. The courses we run are dictated from conversations we have with print firms so they’re directly tailored to the industry. We feel that if a print firm is not availing of our services, they’re missing out on an important element that helps keep their

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company fresh and relevant in an ever-changing marketplace,” said Brian Colleran, Network Manager at DPP Skillnet.

This year was all about reaching as many people as possible within the various industry sectors and getting them involved in the training initiatives on offer, says Brian. Courses included sessions on colour, a Diploma in packaging technology, e-commerce and digital skills.

As well as showing strong interest in technical courses, print companies also engaged in management training and development. In response to Covid-19, DPP Skillnet launched a heavily funded programme titled ‘Competitive Advantage for SMEs’ which provided a print business with a consultant to review and develop their business model, strategy and operational plans.

In addition to long-standing programmes like its Masters in Professional Practice, this new course provided owners and management with the opportunities to develop their capabilities to drive their businesses forward. These programmes will, says Brian, continue in 2021.

Courses were, of course, held virtually this year.

“There were challenges associated with that; we had to acquire a new platform to allow us to host online training and we also had to work with our training providers to help them transform their courses from being in-person delivered in a classroom to in-person delivered across the web. Judging by the interest from print firms though, the additional work was worth it.”

Most Irish print firms are SME’s, says Brian. “Small businesses need people who are multi-talented and multi-skilled and who have the ability to turn their hand to virtually anything. Encouraging staff to attain additional skills is good for everyone.”

For information on courses run by DPP Skillnet, go to www.dppskillnet.ie

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