Print+ vol 5 issue 26

WOMAN POWER Christy makes a big difference in PRINTcom

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iPF 671

iPF 786

iPF 831

PRINT+ EDITOR NOTE

WOMAN POWER Christy makes a big difference in PRINTcom

A time for us

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I

Publisher

KAY MATHY

kaymathy@hashplus.com.my Editor-in-Chief

ALUOSIES FRANCIS

aloy@hashplus.com.my Deputy Editor

RAJA NUR INTAN ZURINNA RAJA ADAM

zurinna@hashplus.com.my Journalist

AZLYRA KARMELIA

azlyra@hashplus.com.my Journalist

NUR HIDAYAH HUSLAN

yaya@hashplus.com.my Journalist

NORMAN HUSSAINI

norman@hashplus.com.my Creative Director

AHMAD ALIFF AZEEM

ahmad@hashplus.com.my Creative Designer

MUHAMMAD AFIQ NOR MUHAMMAD

August-September | 2015

afiqnor@hashplus.com.my

02

Chief Operating Officer

V.GUNASAGARAM

vgunasagaram@hashplus.com.my General Manager Marketing

HILARY LAZAROO

hilary@hashplus.com.my Admin Executive

NUR SYAIFIQA ROSLI

iqa@hashplus.com.my

Published by: Hash Plus Communication Sdn Bhd

Vol.5 | Issue 26

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Tel: +603-3363726/27/28

T has been an eventful month for the print industry in Asia, Malaysia specifically, as there were two major events being held, The 15th Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts (FAPGA) event and International Printing, Paper, Packaging, Machinery Exhibition (IPMEX) event.

The 15th Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts was a good platform to promote Malaysia’s digital industry especially print industry in Asia Pacific region. The Fapga 2015 would help to enhance capacity, capability and competency in Malaysia’s creative industry to produce world-class content and make the country a regional hub for digital content. Even though the manual printing is getting less prominence, the industry is still growing with the help of advanced technology. The Fapga event will help to boost the country’s economy growth. Fapga 2015 was an international event that was aimed at gathering all the stakeholders of Asia Pacific countries to discuss key issues pertaining to graphic arts and printing matters.

The forum was a gathering of print industries owners, leaders, foreign print and graphic arts industry experts from local and Asia Pacific countries who shared their recent findings in this ‘Print Ecology’ forum organised by Malaysian Printers Association.

IPMEX was held to create a platform for printing, paper, packaging, sign and LED.A technology that has such a breadth of applications needs a diverse audience. The events attracted visitors from a range of industries and from a wide variety of backgrounds, creating a unique platform to promote and develop an established business, or to launch a new one. The events were made to explore and learn about all of the latest development in this incredible industry.

IPMEX occupied an exhibition space at Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. We believe that these new and additional exhibitions will make the print industry became even more informative, interesting, diversified and rewarding.Thus, this will definitely attract more even more trade visitors of various industries to visit and invest.

PRINT+ EDITOR NOTE

print+ contents

NEWS 06-12

August-September | 2015

Asia helps KBA increase orders

Vol.5 | Issue 26

04

EMPOWERING WOMAN 14-19

Christy makes a big difference in PRINTcom

FOStERING NEtWORk 20-21

FAGPA enables business leaders to meet and network with members of the industry

A ShOWcASE OF cREAtIvE MINdS 22

Students give their final attempt before the curtains come down

A WINdOW tO thE INduStRy PlAyERS 24-25

This exhibition acted as a platform that offered the exhibiting companies the opportunity to present to an audience of experts

thE FIFth StAtION 26-27

Ricoh goes beyond CMYK with an additional colour

INkING dEAlS 28-29

Konica Minolta gives appreciation to their partners and investors of the bizhub PRESS C1100

FASt ANd FuRIOuS 30-31

IN thE RIGht zONE 38-39

Graphic Zone ready to cater to big market

INFORMAtION IS POWER 40-41

HP unveils fastest large-format colour and monochrome printer

Quote & Print’s Shanti talks about the importance of printing management solutions.

FROM cAMERAS tO PRINtING MAchINES 34-35

Premio Printdeport continues to dominate after 24 years in business

lIGhtING uP 36-37

Resilient Jeffrey takes Image Magic Digital Printing services to great heights

Canon showcases its new range of commercial printers at PPP Open House Elancom specializes in full range of lighting solutions

StANdING tAll 42-43

MAGIc MOvES 46-47

hEIdElbERG REbRANdING 48-49

MAKE IT RUN FOR YOU "Quite simply, Xeikon CX3 will enable us to cope with increased demand while continuing to deliver jobs quickly and accurately."

Simon Smith, CS Labels Managing Director

THE XEIKON CX3

packs speed and quality like no other Catch up with more testimonials www.xeikon.com/cx3 #XeikonCX3 direct. dedicated. digital

print+ contents

print+ news

33% more in order intake Asia helps KBA increase orders

August-September | 2015

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Future is bright: Claus BolzaSchünemann, president and CEO of KBA.

rinting press manufacturer KBA has increased its first half order intake by 33% although its revenue declined over that

time.

The company anticipates that it will regain the fallen revenue in the second half of the year.

Good news came from its Asia Pacific arm which increased its revenue by 20% for the first HY15, compared to the same period last year. The Asia Pacific region saw a 5% rise for the geographical breakdown of revenue for the company from 24.3% to 29.3%.

This is virtually the same as Europe excluding Germany, which contributes 29.7 per cent. Indicating that Germany is still Europe’s print powerhouse as it contributed 15.1% of global revenue, half as much as the rest of Europe combined.

The German manufacturer recorded a declining EBIT of minus $12.67m from last year’s $5.8m.

Claus Bolza-Schünemann, president and CEO of KBA, blamed Germany’s political and economic environment for the declining numbers. However he sees light at the end of the 2015 tunnel. He says, “As announced in the

“As announced in the last interim report, in 2015, more than 50% of revenue will be generated in the second half of the year, as has frequently occurred in the past...

last interim report, in 2015, more than 50% of revenue will be generated in the second half of the year, as has frequently occurred in the past. The KBA Group kicks off the next few months with considerably fuller books and capacities than in the past year. Completing the raft of existing orders on time and reducing the significantly longer delivery times in some areas will pose substantial challenge in the third and fourth quarters.”

Other segments in the globe that showed some positive signs include North America, which increased its geographical revenue breakdown from 10% to 16.6%. Africa and Latin America increased slightly from last year’s geographical breakdown of revenue from 8.7% to 9.3%.

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Multi-Color buys into Southeast Asia Global label company Multi-Color has dramatically expanded its Asia Pacific operations with the acquisition of Super Labels.

The Malaysian-based company has a turnover of US$36m and operates in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and China. Multi-Color has a presence in Australia, New Zealand and China, but not much beyond that in the region.

The takeover was first mooted in June when Multi-Color made a

reported US$42.15m offer. It is not known what the final figure ended up being.

Multi-Color chief executive Nigel Vinecombe says: “This acquisition gives MCC an established footprint in key Southeast Asian markets with strong organic growth potential with regional and global brand owners.”

Multi-Color says it will keep the 42-year-old business’ management team in place and continue its focus

on Super Label’s core markets of home and personal care, food and beverage and specialty consumer products.

It says Multi-Color has these core markets in common with Super Label’s, along with its print technologies and supply chain.

The deal comes as USA-based Multi-Color’s profit for the first quarter of 2015 dropped 0.3% to US$13 million, and net revenue rose 7% to US$217 million.

print+ news

Booklet maker aims for high volumes

In Japan now

Tokyo welcomes Xeikon tech centre

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igital specialist Xeikon has opened a technology centre in Tokyo - its second in the Asia Pacific region.

The company says the centre’s opening signifies continued growth and expansion for Xeikon in the region.

Wim Maes, chief executive of Xeikon, welcomed guests to the opening. He says, “We are seeing continued and unprecedented growth in the Asia Pacific region and we are especially pleased to be able to open this important technology centre in Japan. This state-of-the-art facility will play an important role in spurring growth for Xeikon in Japan, and in helping our

Japanese customers make the most of their investments in Xeikon.”

The opening included a Xeikon Café featuring a number of educational partner presentations. Atsushi Yamabe, Xeikon’s managing director for Japan conducted a demonstration of the Xeikon 3500 label and packaging solution and Bent Serritslev, managing director Xeikon Asia Pacific, shared information about the Xeikon portfolio.

Visitors learned about the new Xeikon CX3, which will launch at Labelexpo Europe, and the Xeikon 9800 for document printing solutions. Maes says, “The centre will focus on testing, benchmarking and product demonstrations that the Japanese printing

user to take printed SRA3 or B3 sheets directly from the press and finish the booklet in one operation.

The machine has more than 25 configurations that can combine suction, collators, sheet feeders and slit, cut, crease, squarefold and three-knife trimming operations. It can handle a minimum booklet size of 90x75mm up to a maximum of 350x254mm and stock weights of 50-300gsm.

and packaging community has been requesting and it will be an important venue for face-to-face meetings, which are so important in Japanese culture.

We are very proud of our Japanese team, who conducted such a successful grand opening event.”

The company adds the visitors and customers will have the chance to have hands-on interaction with Xeikon’s solution suites developed in collaboration with its global network of Aura partners, and the opportunity to test their own applications.

Bent Serritslev adds, “We are already seeing the benefits of the Tokyo centre with a very positive response from visitors, and we expect to see good coverage in the Japanese trade press as a result of the terrific journalist turn out. This centre is an important demonstration of Xeikon’s dedication to helping its customers stay ahead of developing trends with a broad portfolio of products and services in document and commercial printing as well as labels and packaging. The Tokyo technology centre will allow us to further improve our service to new and existing customers in Japan.”

HeRe We aRe: Xeikon staff posing in front of their office

August-September | 2015

which its predecessor the 500i could not do.

The new machine offers automated stitching, folding and trimming that uses ultra-sonic technology, combining the DSC-10/60i Collator Towers and the DBM-600 booklet maker and trimmer. It can reach speeds of up to 5200 booklets an hour or 9000 when used with the optional DKT-200 twoknife trimmer, which also allows the

07 Vol.5 | Issue 26

Japanese finishing manufacturer Duplo has released its 600i booklet making machine, capable of producing up to 9000 booklets an hour.

Suitable for high-volume offset operations or high end digital printers, it offers job changeover times of less than a minute and can handle a variety of jobs. Duplo says the 6001 can work with any sheet size up to SRA3, including landscape A4,

print+ news

The new Océ Arizona 6170 XTS printer.

Arizona hits 5000 for Océ

August-September | 2015

This makes Arizona world’s biggest selling flatbed printer

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anon subsidiary and UV flatbed manufacturer Océ will ship its 5000th Océ Arizona printer since it first launched the series

in 2007.

This makes the Arizona the world’s biggest selling flatbed printer.The company says this milestone achievement demonstrates the acceptance of these award-winning UV flatbed printers by printers around the globe.

The 5000th unit, Océ Arizona 6170 XTS printer, aims at the high volume market. The recent introduction of the Océ Arizona 6100 series marked Canon’s entrance into the high-volume flatbed market segment.

The company says the new machine features continuous printing speeds of up to 155sqm per hour, making it more than 10 times as productive as the first Océ Arizona printers.

Dale Mortimer, director international marketing and business development at Océ Display Graphics Systems, says since the first install in May 2007, the series has helped transform the sign and display printing industry.

He says, “The world of imaging is changing radically, we know, because

“The world of imaging is changing radically, we know, because we are helping to drive that change with products like the Océ Arizona series.”

we are helping to drive that change with products like the Océ Arizona series.

“As the first flatbed printer to use Océ VariaDot gray scale piezoelectric printing technology, the Océ Arizona 250 GT printer set new print quality standards, and significantly expanded the application set for flatbed printing.

“Today, eight years since the launch of the first product, Océ Arizona series printers have been integrated into the production workflows at thousands of customer sites in more than 60 countries.”

Océ develops the Arizona printers at its Display Graphics Systems site near Vancouver, Canada, and manufactures the printers there and at Océ facilities in Germany.

CelebRaTIon TIMe: The Océ team celebrate number 5000

print+ news

Getting started

this programme six key drupa 2016 themes: multichannel; print; functional printing; 3D printing; package production; and green printing.

Each presentation slot will combine various themes using best practice case studies, for example functional printing and packaging printing; 3D printing and sustainability; and multichannel including print. Organisers say this encourages thinking beyond supposedly fixed boundaries.

Through its range of themes and its interdisciplinary concept, drupa cube will address selected vertical markets including food, consumer goods, interior design, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, healthcare, financial, and public sectors. Geldermann says, “In this way, we aim to attract new visitor groups to drupa and inspire them with the possibilities of print.”

Purchasing day tickets for drupa will give visitors free entry to the cube programme. Once organisers have finalised details of the drupa cube events, drupa will publish a provisional programme.

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he drupa 2016 conference and event programme, drupa cube, will feature applications for printed products.

The world’s giant printing trade show takes place from May 31 -June 10 next year.

Sabine Geldermann, director of drupa, says, “New technologies like printed electronics and 3D printing, creative multichannel applications and the use of digital printing techniques in packaging and other sectors continue to illustrate the amazing potential of print.

“This potential is the focus of drupa cube, with its international conference and event programme.

Through an interdisciplinary approach, it is also designed to bridge the knowledge gap about the relevancy and functionality of print that often exists between printing professionals and their creative agency, marketing, and brand owner clients across a variety of vertical markets.”

Target groups organised the first two drupa cube conferences in 2008 and 2012 but organisers have based

GELDERMANN: Aims to attract new visitor groups and inspire them

an international survey has given giving print a big edge over digital, showing consumers have a greater likelihood of remembering messages in print and trusting them more.

The recent Two Sides survey asked 500 consumers in the UK, and 1000 in the US how much they enjoyed reading on different media.

The results indicate a massive 84% of UK respondents say they retain or use information better when reading printed words, as opposed to 55% on a computer screen, 41% on an e-reader or tablet and 31% on a mobile or smartphone.

The survey had more positive news for print. Respondents said print is also more “relaxing” with some 79% saying they felt calm when reading print, 44% on a computer screen, 33% on e-reader or tablet, and 23% on a phone. Some 78% say that, given a choice, they would prefer to read on paper, 30” on a computer screen, 24% on an e-reader or tablet, and 17% on a smartphone.

Of those who feel relaxed and receptive when they read printed news, 69% prefer print and 66% choose magazine content, while 25% opt for a screen and 18% for online magazines.

Those surveyed found paper less distracting, with just 21% saying they were easily distracted reading on paper – this jumped to 65% when reading on a smartphone.

Age does not factor as a barrier in the discourse. Some 84% of 18-24-year-olds saying they could understand and retain information better when reading on paper. 83% of 25-34-year olds feel the same; 78% of 35-44-year-olds; 86% of 45-64-year-olds; and 91% of those 64 and over.

August-September | 2015

Print beats digital in new survey

drupa cube to bridge gap

PRINT+ NEWS

Asian delight Asia goes well for EFI

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IGITAL print and software specialist EFI has grown second quarter revenue for its Asia Pacific arm to $21.4m from $17.4m compared to last year’s second quarter.

Guy Gecht, chief executive of EFI, says it was due to the strong team that the company is reaping such record breaking results.

Gecht says, “Solid executions by our team led to a record June quarter for EFI, driven by strength across all of our business segments.”

The overall results for the company’s

industrial inkjets saw a steady growth of just under 2% from $68.39m to $69.66m.

Production software for the entire company also gained some ground with $24.54m from last year’s $22.4m for the second quarter.

However, fiery digital front end platforms saw most gains compared to the similar period last year with $53.4m from $49.7m.

The overall revenue for EFI for the second quarter increased by more than $7m from last year’s $140.54m, to $147.65m.

The overall gross profit was also

positive for the global company, recording $78.95m from last year’s $75.58m.

Gecht says the results are comforting as EFI begins to integrate its latest acquisitions of the Israeli company Matan and Italian inkjet print manufacturer Reggiani to its operations.

“We couldn’t ask for a better setup as we begin integrating Reggiani and Matan, which we acquired early in the third quarter,” he says.

“These two acquisitions strengthen EFI’s product offerings and capabilities, and most importantly, strategically expand out TAM as we enter the vast digital textile market.”

August-September | 2015

EFI ramps up acquisitions

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DIGITAL specialist EFI has announced two major company pruchases: Italian textile printer specialist Reggiani Macchine and Matan, a super-wide format printer manufacturer.

The EFI move follows a Fespa Infotrends survey in which respondents selected UV inkjet printers as their top expected technology purchase, followed closely by textile printers.

From its Bergamo base, Reggiani produces a range of industrial inkjet printers for printing on fabric. Its machines will undergo a rebrand as EFI Reggiani. Guy Gecht, chief executive at EFI, says, “This acquisition gives EFI an immediate leadership position in one of the world’s largest industries undergoing the transformation from analogue printing to digital. The textile printing market is just beginning that transition, which will enable manufacturers to shift from long-run to on-demand manufacturing, responding to the increasing demands of short runs and customisations. The addition of Reggiani’s innovative team and its made in Italy textile printing technology, renowned worldwide, will drive continued growth in industrial textile, and

The Matan Baraq 8Q industrial wide format printer.

also enable EFI’s customers to expand into soft signage-based display graphics using Reggiani’s water-based industrial inkjet printers.”

Of the Matan buyout, Gecht says, “This acquisition gives EFI an even broader range of products to help our customers capture important opportunities in super-wide format display graphics printing. Matan’s strong

research and development capability will further accelerate EFI’s inkjet innovation, while filling a key spot in EFI’s portfolio for a lower-acquisition cost line of roll-to-roll production printers focused on signage, banners, billboards and fleet graphics.”

Based in Rosh Ha’Ayin, Israel, Matan has developed digital printers and presses for a range of industrial applications for more than a decade. Its work force of about 70 employees has joined EFI, giving EFI a significant presence in Israel. Hanan Yosefi, chief executive at Matan becomes an EFI vice president

PRINT+ NEWS

Looking to soar Heidelberg aims for growth

T

The operating result was much better than in the previous year. EBITDA were €46m compared to the previous year’s €6m and its EBIT rose well into the black at €28m from the previous year’s minus €11m. Income from the takeover of the PSG Group totalling about €19m has had a positive impact on both these figures.

Excluding the income from the PSG transaction, the operating EBITDA margin rose to around 5% from 1.4% the previous year. This income compensated for expenditure of around €15m resulting from partial retirement agreements concluded in the previous year, which had to be included under special items. EBIT including special items improved on balance from minus €11m to €13m.

Equity at the end of the quarter increased to approximately €330m, up from the end of financial year on March 31, 2015 at €183m. This corresponds to an equity ratio of around 15 per cent, almost double that at the end of the year. Dirk Kaliebe, chief financial officer at Heidelberg, says, “As we start the new financial year, Heidelberg is well on the way to achieving its targets for the year.”

Kaliebe has assumed the role of acting chief executive at Heidelberg in light of incumbent Dr Gerold Linzbach’s undisclosed illness,which has kept him away for his desk since the beginning of June. Heidelberg says Dr Linzbach will return to his duties when he is 100% recovered.

August-September | 2015

and general manager of EFI Inkjet Israel. He says, “Our technology and, most importantly, our customers have a great future ahead with EFI in terms of ongoing support and innovation. The Matan team and I are excited to continue growing and innovating as part of one of the world’s leading providers of industrial inkjet printing products.”

Similarly, former Reggiani shareholder Ambrogio Caccia Dominioni will become managing director of EFI Reggiani. He says, “Reggiani’s customers recognise that inkjet is the most important technology of the future for the textile industry but I wanted our company to be part of EFI not just because we will be joining a world-leading industrial inkjet technology company, but also because EFI is a leader in print industry workflow solutions and has a much larger sales and marketing platform around the world.

A 60 year history has seen Reggiani establish

HE world’s biggest press manufacturer has seen a successful start to the new financial year as its new strategic reorientation kicks in,with sales and orders both rising strongly.

Under its new strategy Heidelberg aims to have service and consumables make up more than 50% of its business, up from the current 40%. The company has said its three years of cost cutting have finished and it must now focus on growth as well as looking at markets outside traditional print, such as industrial decoration. It will also develop its partnerships further, including that with Fujifilm.

For the first quarter (April to June) the company has seen an improved order situation, while favourable exchange rate movements have also boosted the books. Incoming orders rose by a fifth to around €700m from €588m the previous year. Thanks to a healthy order backlog at the beginning of the quarter, higher service-related sales, and exchange rate movements, sales also increased, up by a quarter to some €560m compared to the previous year of €435m.

Its operating EBITDA margin has increased to around 5%, its EBIT is up to €13m; income from PSG takeover has compensated for special items, a higher pension discount rate increased its equity ratio to around 15 per cent.

The company says it is well on way to achieving targets for financial year.

11 Vol.5 | Issue 26

GUY GECHT: Chief Executive at EFI

HEIDELBERG: Strategic reorientation paying off

print+ news

To the bream

South China show almost fully booked

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August-September | 2015

rinting South China 2016, the 23rd South China International Exhibition on Printing Technology, will run from March 2-4 at the China Import and Export Fair Complex in Guangzhou.

Organisers say the exhibition will cover the latest trends and demands of China’s printing industry to help companies in the printing, packaging, and various end-user sectors. They see a geographical convenience in locating in the South China region, calling it one of the world’s top four printing industrial bases.

The last edition Printing South China show attracted 869 exhibitors from over 12 countries and regions, welcoming some 54,396 visitors from around the globe. They came from 130 countries and regions including the USA, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Switzerland, Canada, Korea, China, Russia, Taiwan,

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relationships with many of the leading textile manufacturing companies around the world. It serves customers in more than 120 countries with a distribution network and agents in over 40 countries.

Dominioni adds, “Together, EFI Reggiani can further extend its position as a global leader in digital inkjet textile printing technology with leading-edge products that accelerate the analog-to-digital transformation – all of which is vital to our customers’ future profitability. I am strongly committed to remain fully involved in the company to ensure a smooth integration, a successful implementation of the combined business plan, a growing centre of excellence in Italy for EFI’s textile inkjet business, and the growth of the EFI-Reggiani business to maintain a leading position in the printing market.”

To acquire all of Reggiani’s outstanding shares, EFI will repay Reggiani debt of about US$22.6M ($33.61m); pay the

CRoWDeD: Last year’s Printing South China exhibition attracted some 54,396 visitors

India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Brazil, Egypt, Iran, Mexico, Pakistan, Romania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Siri Lanka, Sudan, Turkey and Cambodia.

More than 89% of last year’s exhibitors have confirmed their participation at this year’s event.

At Printing South China 2015, over 100 buyer delegation groups attended including overseas representatives such as European America Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Malaysia,

Bangladesh, the Philippines, Myanmar, and Vietnam, also delegations from China’s different provincial industries associations, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Fujian, Shaoxing, Yuannan, Nanjing, Zhengzhou.

Printing South China 2016 will also offer a series of special pavilions and display zones on packaging printing, 3D printing, corrugated packaging and others.

The show will run concurrently with Sino-Label 2016, Sino-Pack 2016 and Packinno 2016.

Reggiani’s Renoir printer.

former Reggiani shareholders up to about US$30.8m cash; issue the former Reggiani shareholders up to about US$30.8m of EFI stock; will pay up to US$56.2m over as long as the next 30 months based on the achievement of revenue and profitability targets by the EFI Reggiani business.

EFI bought Matan with all-cash transaction in which EFI paid the shareholders of Matan approximately

US$29m ($43.12m) to acquire all of Matan’s outstanding shares. Under the purchase agreement, EFI also assumed approximately US$5m of Matan’s debt, and deposited US$14m into escrow to serve as security for EFI’s benefit for the indemnification obligations of the Matan shareholders.

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PRINT+ COVER STORY

Empowering

woman There is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of a woman

August-September | 2015

BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

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HRISTY Hing’s first love was in the glamorous advertising industry, but that faded away after Digital print she switched to the digital print industry in 2011. From then onward her company PRINTcom – a digital print provider – was moving well at a reasonable pace to meet the needs of customers.

August-September | 2015

PRINT+ COVER STORY

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Christy with her two successors, Andrew and Leon.

August-September | 2015

PRINT+ COVER STORY

The awards won by PrintCom over the years.

Vol.5 | Issue 26

16 PRINTcom is located at Wisma Central, the company also goes beyond their scope by providing solutions in designing and providing creative concepts and directions.

What makes Christy a different kind of player in the industry is that she comes from an advertising background.

This makes her team aggressive in work culture and engage on marketing campaigns that give PRINTcom an added advantage.

Christy had always loved the advertising industry and she had the flare for it. Her first job was with an advertising agency and within a year she managed to set up her own agency with most of her clients coming from the corporate sector.

But when asked why did she leave?

Christy replied that she was in it for a long time and thus, decided to venture

into something new. Age kept up with her and she wanted to venture into something that require less hectic and less time consuming. She said: “There are times when organizing an event could take up for days!”

However, being in the print industry does not mean that she has totally left her advertising backpack behind.

“It’s just that I have a more relaxing workflow than before and yet be able to apply advertising solutions for my

PRINT+ COVER STORY

August-September | 2015

Christy had always loved the advertising industry and had the flare for it. Her first job was with an advertising agency and within a year she managed to set up her own agency with most of her clients coming from the corporate sector.

customers,� Christy said.

PRINTcom has won several awards and recognition for high-end quality products such as The Malaysia Print Awards 2012 and 2014.They are also the first Konica Minolta user to have ever be the Double Awards Recipient for Asian Print Awards 2011 in Malaysia. For Christy she and her team would never stop coming up with ideas focussing on the quality of their produce – hence the awards and recognition.

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August-September | 2015

PRINT+ COVER STORY

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In an earlier edition of the Print +, Christy did mention that her goal was to move into online print solutions targeting a different demographics. Then in July Christy expanded her company.

This is how Digitprint was born. The purpose of this expansion was to cater to different segments of the business spread and to penetrate the online business.Their online services are very unique in the sense that they providing solutions for their customers.The website too is user friendly and idiot proof as even the features are very easy to use to create designs. It is also completed with A to Z solutions with online ordering and online designing tools.This is to cater to the mass market. Digitprint officially started the operation in July 2015, and although they are very new, Christy is very optimistic about the future of the company.

When asked about how long she had thought of this idea? She replied: “It had been long. Then I dropped the plan for two, three years.�

Being a solo operator, Christy has been caught tight in in her new move without manpower.This is where Leon Tee and Andrew Goh came in. Now she has two young partners who will be her successors. Though they have a shop one floor above their current location, they decided to relocate to Ampang Park to attract more customers.

DYNAMIC DUO: Andrew and Leon (next page), the men behind Digitprint which is a sister-company of PrintCom.

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Leon has worked in the advertising agency in the creative and servicing department for more than seven years.

He decided to join the production part of PRINTcom, he found out that printing is one of the most successful business industries and that caught his interest. And for the past 10 years, Andrew has been working in the sales department. “To be the best, one has to follow the best,” said Andrew with reference to Christy and PRINTcom.When he was invited to join by Leon, he saw this opportunity as a big challenge yet a good one to be the entrepreneur he had always dreamt of. He will be managing the marketing department of the Digitprint. Christy will oversee everything just to ensure everything is intact.

For the past few months, the men have experienced the day and night job life of being in the digital printing company since digital printing has a short turnaround time. Christy did and still does her best in teaching and imparting her knowledge on print industry business to Leon and Andrew.

Despite the fact that Wisma Central building has similar-like competitors, Christy does not see it as a problem. She would rather prefer to stay put because her place is already well-known in digital printing. PRINTcom already has its own existing customers.

Christy’s ideals are to create and capture new demands rather than exploiting the existing one.

She is the ultimate girl power and she leads the perfect example of one should always chase their dreams and never give up on them.

August-September | 2015

PRINT+ COVER STORY

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Fostering network

FAGPA enables business leaders to meet and network with members of the industry

BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

August-September | 2015

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HIS year’s theme for the Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic and Arts (FAPGA) was Print Ecology. Print Ecology is a management imperative to make print businesses more responsive, effective and sustainable and secure in a complex, network world. Organisations, both print and otherwise, in which all aspects of management, operations and process interact and interrelate, operate within a dynamic business ecosystem.

Print Ecology is an economic community supported by a foundation of interacting organisations and individuals of the business and printing industry. The economic community produces goods and services of value to customers, who are themselves members of the ecosystem. The member of the organisation also include suppliers, lead producers, competitors and other stakeholders. Over time, they co-evolve their capabilities and roles and tend to align themselves with the direct set by

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ONE FOR THE ALBUM: Asia pacific delegates

one or more central companies.

In a world where our-sourcing is fundamental to a company’s growth without having to physically scale up, the printing industry now finds itself a vital part of the business ecology to provide communication and branding.

Print Ecology is the key to industrial sustainability and FAPGA enables business leaders to meet and network with members of the industry in hope that new ties are fostered. FAPGA enables participants to move towards shared visions to align their investments, and to find mutually supportive roles in the print technology.

The Japan Association of Graphic Arts Technology (JAGAT) appealed to China, South Korea and Thailand for the Forum of Asian Pacific Graphic Arts Technology (FAGAT) establishment. In February 1996, the preparatory meeting was successfully held in Tokyo.

FAGAT general meetings were held 12 times in various member countries before it was renamed to the Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts (FAPGA) in 2013. All participants did benefit from the forum presentations which bring valuable information to the current global printing trends, consumer behaviours and market insights. This enabled the printing industry players

to quickly respond to volatile and unforgiving market change.

The FAPGA 2014 Print Ecology event was a gathering of Asia Pacific print industry owners and leaders in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The first day- Aug 7, 2015, many local and foreign print and graphic arts industry experts shared their recent findings in Print Ecology forum which was held at the grand ballroom of The Eastin Hotel. Participants enjoyed the modern presentation styles. Shortly after in the evening, the “Big Bang” networking workshop jump-started the learning experience and ignited the passion of making long lasting friendship and partnership. Participants have mastered the modern technique of mobile photography and videography that will help grow the print business.They engaged in preparing their own unique elevator speech video introduction and winners were given special prizes.

The next day started off with participants gathering at the lobby of the Eastin Hotel and thus, the memorable and joyful bus journey to the Penang began. Throughout the journey, participants enjoyed the beautiful scenic views from the bus. After having a

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21 HAPPY ANNIVERSARY: Lim Guan Eng (centre) with Koay (third from left) and Peter Lane (second from right) cutting cake for 22nd anniversary of MPA Penang branch

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scrumptious lunch, everybody was brought to the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site which attracted the participants and they enjoyed taking many memorable pictures. Later in the evening, a grand dinner was held at the Straits Quay Convention Centre where the spectacular marina view lays.Without doubt, the grand dinner was the highlight of the trip especially when it was graced by Penang chief minister, Lim Guan Eng. The flowing morning, the members went to the highly equipped and modern training facility at the Training Institute Arumugam Pillai in Nibong Tebal. Many members exchanged thoughts and opinions and discussed the issues of the industry. During the lunch provided by the institution, every member and participants of the forum were given a photobook by Pixajoy as a token of appreciation.The journey back home was memorable and everybody were exchanging their business cards to maintain the longevity of their newfound friendship. At their final stop at Eastin Hotel, it was time to say goodbye and part and that brought the curtains down to the 15th Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts.

August-September | 2015

BIG GROUP: Fapga members at the Nibong Tebal print institute

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SIGNATURE BOARD: Datuk Abd Jalil Ali signing on the visitors board

A showcase of creative minds August-September | 2015

Students give their final attempt before the curtains come down

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INAL Year Degree Show” for the 29th generation is the final coursework for “ students under PMA620 and PDT650. The project involves 52 students from the Department of Printing Technology, Faculty of Arts & Design, UITM Shah Alam for the March to July Session 2015. The objective of this project is to ensure that the students utilise and practice the knowledge which have been gained through their learning period.

Students need to engage in communication with the clients as preparatory steps before entering the working environment. Based on the concept of “Real Life Product”, students will undergo real printing processes to create products for the company that they have selected. Selection of products are such

WELL DONE: Kay Mathy (second from right) receiving goodies from UiTM staff

as services, food, beverages, accessories, hobbies and many more.Therefore, the printing process is divided into three stages which are pre-press, press, and post press.

The project supervisor, Mastura Omar, requires the students to produce a product by choosing a company or a brand name and producing end products based on the company. Research must be done by the students to assist them for working with the product.

After doing the research, presentations will be conducted in order to seek approval from the lecturers and clients for further printing process. The elements of creativity and innovation are applied to the students in the work of printing in order to market the products towards consumers with the cooperation from the company selected by them.

The showcase for this time came with the theme “PRISMA” which brings the definition of a geometry that can be used to separate light into spectrum of rainbow colours.The colour purple is chosen for the logo to bring the meaning of newly dynamic, creative energy and imagination that inspire students to succeed in their final project. Inadvertently, the chosen theme for the showcase construct a concept of new, creative and innovative packaging designs. PRISMA is the fraction of creative and innovative ideas to a variety of produced products. The event will showcases 52 ideas from the students involved. Packaging design will represent a brand and also acts as a medium that can be used as an incentive for upcoming marketing purposes which students are exposed to a broader perspective of it.Throughout the project, it involves a progression of work.The first process involves meeting clients and discussing the product specifications that will be produced. Pre-press is the term used in the printing and publishing industry for the stage of designing and drawing layouts. Students are required to design the product according to the specifications given by their lecturers and clients until it meets the standard.

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BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

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August-September | 2015

HE IPMEX Malaysia that was held recently in Kuala Lumpur is an international trade show for the printing, paper and packaging machines.This exhibition is both communication and information platform in the industry and offers the exhibiting companies the opportunity to present to an audience of experts here.

IPMEX Malaysia 2015 had never been more important for the entire printers and business owners to invest their time in to evaluate their business journey and look for new routes to grow.

IPMEX Malaysia 2015 was again set as a large scale exhibition event for the printing, publishing, paper, packaging and machinery industries, occupying an exhibition space close to 12,000 square metres using Hall 1 and 2 of Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia.

IPMEX Malaysia 2015, the only premier event in the field of Printing, Paper and Packaging Machinery industry in Malaysia. Highlights of the exhibition are an even more comprehensive gathering of the latest technologies for print applications.

Visitors were able to find in-depth comprehensive information about the latest print developments, trends, products and services in various fields.

IPMEX Malaysia 2015 had expanded and diversified by incorporating Asia Sign 2015, Malaysia LED & Lighting

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A window to the industry players

Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Lee Chee Leong giving a speech during the opening of IPMEX show

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is a biennial exhibition, the exhibition area of nearly 12,000 square metres, was expected to attract more than 20,000 people in the industry show. It was an international printing exhibition. Namely those who were present were the Printer Association of Malaysia president Guo Xianmao, Malaysia Malaysian Printing Association chairman Datuk Tiong, Yan Mei Lian Kaisen Expo Ltd. managing director, Federation of Malaysian advertising producers’ president.

There were exhibitors from around the world including China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Singapore. Exhibits covers the printing industry-related equipment and technologies; Joining the “Asian advertising and Equipment Exhibition”, “Digital Printing 2015”, “Packaging and Label 2015”, “Print Buyer2015” and “Malaysia LED Lighting Technology and Equipment Exhibition.” This trade fair is eligible for the Malaysian Ministry of the Interior Bureau of publishing and printing, and the Malaysian Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Convention Bureau (MyCEB) support, and access to the Malaysian External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) and printing associations recognized at home and abroad.

During the trade fair, exhibitors can not only grasp the latest developments in the printing market in Southeast Asia, but also help to reach potential customers, look for sales and technology partners to develop new business opportunities.

August-September | 2015

OFFICIAL: Lee cutting the ribbon during the opening at Ricoh booth

SEALED: Lee signing the quest book

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Show 2015, Packaging & Label 2015, Print Buyer 2015 and Digital Print 2015.

With these new and additional exhibitions, organisers believed that IPMEX Malaysia 2015 would be even more informative, interesting, diversified and rewarding.Thus, this will definitely attract more trade visitors of various industries to the biennial event.

Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Lee Chee Leong noted that although the United States is the global leader in the printing industry, it is predicted that within five years, China would be able to overtake and become the new leader. He believed that these projections reflect changing global market, but also

revealed the printing industry had huge opportunities.

“The key now is that the industry should continue to thrive and how they should be able to adapt to the ever changing market trends,” he said during his 2015 International Printing, Paper and Packaging Machinery Fair opening ceremony speech.

The market continues to expand in the region and this year, it will be at the top of the Asean Economic Community (AEC) establishment and they would like to see the significant milestone.

Lee Chee Leong, said the Asean Economic Community has about 620 million people, while the average will achieve economic growth rate of 5% per year. “The Asean countries are currently making an estimated GDP of US$2.5 trillion (about RM10 trillion) while it is being estimated that in 2020 to US$4.7 trillion (about RM19 trillion) will be made.”

Kaisen from Malaysia hosted Expo Ltd. “The 12th Malaysia International Printing, Paper and Packaging Machinery Exhibition (IPMEX Malaysia 2015)” from Aug 13-16 at the World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur (PWTC). This

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The fifth station August-September | 2015

Ricoh goes beyond CMYK with an additional colour

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By AZLyRA KARMELIA

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icoh (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd once again delivers the epitome of quality and innovation with the recent launch of its brand new production printer – the Ricoh Pro C7100x series, trailblazing the way for the future of printing services with the introduction of its fifth colour station.

According to the managing director of Ricoh (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Peter Wee, the Ricoh Pro C7100x sres is poised to transform the graphic arts market for both commercial printers and print rooms as the industry’s first production

three musketeers: Ricky Tan, Alice Lee and KL Loh standing proud and tall at their booth during IPMEX 2015

printer with an interchangeable fifth colour station: clear gloss or white toner - an ability that is unsurpassed at this price point, breaching the fundamental limitations of the four-colour spectrum – Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (CMYK).

The Ricoh Pro C7100x series is highly productive for its class, printing at speeds of up to 90 colour pages per minute (ppm) and achieving an optimal image quality of up to 1200 x 4800 dpi with Ricoh’s enhanced Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) technology. It delivers a premium finish, supports an extensive range of media such as synthetics, textures and more, as well as enables various applications.

The machine also empowers

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customers with the right tools to complete more jobs for less cost as it comes inbuilt with features to increase current digital printing capacity, designed to support print service providers seeking to differentiate themselves, enter new markets and explore new digital opportunities.

“By adding Ricoh Pro C7100x series digital presses to the business workflow, clients can boost their returns on investment, expand their digital print services and assure customers of exceptional image quality with fast turnaround times,” said Peter.

Simultaneously, Ricoh Malaysia introduced its new generation of durable high volume digital presses – the

Ricoh Pro C9100 and Ricoh Pro C9110.

With speeds up to 130ppm, a maximum monthly volume of up to one million A4 sheets and a duty cycle of 1.75 million A4 sheets, the RICO Pro C9100 series meets customers’ needs for excellent turnaround with high durability and uncompromised quality outputs, especially suited for larger commercial printers seeking to start-up or expand their hybrid digital and offset workflow, with easy integration into existing operations, enabling customers to address new market segments by lowering the barrier of entry to high quality and high speeds.

“With the rise in small to medium sized businesses, we are confident that

incorporating the Ricoh Pro C7100x digital press series and the Ricoh Pro C9100 series into the workflow will both delight and inspire, enhancing client value as it enables the expansion of our customers’ application portfolio, as well as delivering diverse and unique outputs to their end customers,” added Peter.

As the ideal IT and business solutions partner, with every evolution of Ricoh innovation, we strive to image to unfathomable heights of creativity and inventive spirit, aiming to inspire Ricoh’s customers in the workplace, and ultimately direct change to enhance the industry’s expectations of excellence, quality and advancement.

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“By adding Ricoh Pro C7100x series digital presses to the business workflow, clients can boost their returns on investment, expand their digital print services and assure customers of exceptional image quality with fast turnaround times.” – Peter

August-September | 2015

Ricoh PRO C900 machine was proudly pedestaled during the IPMEX show.

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THE CHAMPS: Winners for Konica Minolta Production Print Award 2014

August-September | 2015

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HE recent Printing, Paper, Packaging Machinery Exhibition (IPMEX) 2015 at PWTC had made almost all the printers go “mad” (in a good way though). Many incredible machines were showcased and launched at the event.

It was clear that the Konica Minolta booth was the center of attraction during IPMEX 2015. Its head of sales and marketing Konica Minolta Business Solution’s (M) Sdn Bhd, CK Lim, said this year, they showcased a range of products and solutions which may be an interest or idea to enhance business growth with its new offerings.

“With these products and solutions, we encourage our partners to explore in more detail how these products and solutions will be able to help, elevating

Inking deals

Konica Minolta gives appreciation to their partners and investors of the bizhub PRESS C1100 your print business to greater heights in the constant market change in print industry,” he said.

Lim said he was excited about what was showcased at the Konica Minolta booth. “We provided our customers and business partners an idea on how to set up end-to-end printing needs from Web2flows which is an application that allows to submit your print job online to reliable print platform with Konica Minolta bizhub PRESS series, from bizhub PRESS C1100 colour machine to bizhub PRESS 1250 monochrome

machine. On top of these, we have a comprehensive photobook solution for those who are interested to explore more in this business,” he said.

Lim added that Konica Minolta was also sharing for the first time in Malaysia a new digital spot UV machine.

“As part of the collaboration between Konica Minolta and MGi technology, a new system was born to deliver an outstanding digital spot UV finishing with a 3D effect directly on toner or laminated surface. We believe this is the only system that carries this feature now,” he said. Other than this, Lim said with various finishing options like multi-foil printing, die-cutting and folding we are able to produce different printing results.

Konica Minolta didn’t miss the chance on this event when they decided to do something great to appreciate their customers or to make it sound even better, their partners. A print award ceremony was held to acknowledge and welcome new customers from southern region, East Malaysia, and also central region.A total of five companies

ASK PLEASE: Q &A session at the Konica Minolta booth during the IPMEX 2015

ATTRACTION: The Konica Minolta booth at the IPMEX 2015

customers and keep existing ones in this highly competitive market.

SIMITRI HDE toner guarantees consistently high-quality image output and better environmental performance.

Advanced S.E.A.D IV image processing technology also improves image quality and reproducibility.The recently introduced combination of various features like paper alignment detection or auto adjustment has considerably improved paper alignment accuracy. Stabilised high-quality image output also guarantees accurate colour reproduction, and stability is enhanced by sampling the characteristics of the output paper and the colour feedback sensor.

The bizhub PRESS C1100 features a wide range of ultimate options such as booklet production, perfect binding, auto ring binding and of course, high stacking capabilities of up to 10,000 sheets with a vast range of ways to connect them simplifies one-step printing and finishing without manual involvement.

Hold on! There’s more! This incredible machine has also been awarded a 2015 BLI PRO award as Outstanding Colour Mid-Volume Production Device.

BLI is the world’s leading provider of

intelligence on the document imaging and solutions industry, has generated 10 million of impressions by putting devices from leading vendors to the test for more than 50 years.The PRO awards go to the best performers in BLI’s production field testing, which assesses wide range of the most important features and performance factors for buyers, including productivity, image quality, media handling, ease of use and job management.

The bizhub PRESS C1100 scored at least four and a half stars in all of the tested categories. It also performed perfectly in several areas and earned five stars rating for colour consistency, text and fine lines. It is perfect fit for those who demand supreme productivity.The award is a testament of Konica Minolta’s commitment to meet the demands of the light to mid-volume production environment. This model was further commended by BLI for their exceptional media handling capabilities, withstanding a media weight support of up to 350 gsm, which is higher than that of most rivals.

Moreover, bizhub PRESS C1100 is easy to use. Its controller of bizhub PRESS C1100 offers user-friendly job ticketing and extensive colour management, and enables operators to reorder and add or delete pages. BLI noted integration between the device media catalog and the controller.

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received the award and they have been chosen based on several criteria like growth and potential expansion of business, creativity in sales campaign and active participation in trade shows.

Each recipient of the award was also given two all-expense paid tradeshow trips as a reward for their incessant support and attainments that they have successfully earned.

The event did not stop there however. Konica Minolta had a series of signing ceremony for bizhub PRESS new owners. The proud new owners of bizhub PRESS C1100 were also presented recognition certificates.

Konica Minolta bizhub PRESS C1100 is seamless for graphic communication providers, central reprographic departments and anybody who needs large print volumes delivered at high speeds.

With attractive added value, first rate quality and outstanding performance, this digital colour production printer offers almost everything that the customer needs. bizhub PRESS C1100 meets it demands for completing a wider range of high-volume jobs more efficiently while meeting high-level specifications and enhancing output suitable with its motto, “Better performance while cutting time and costs”.

The bizhub PRESS C1100 is the fastest of Konica Minolta’s colour production printers with printing speeds of 100 ppm. Not only that, with its high-performance printing, same printing speed for paper weights ranging from 55 gsm to 350 gsm cardstock and automatic duplex printing all improve efficiency and prevent productivity loss. Numerous types of printing jobs with tight deadlines can be accomplished more competently and promptly while cutting operating costs and work time.

With or without scanner functions, stable paper feeding is guaranteed by various paper feed units. Up to three former paper feeding modules can also be connected to boost the printer’s performance to a maximum of nine trays and a capacity of 13,890 sheets.

The bizhub PRESS C1100 series upholds stable top grade to gratify customer demands and distinguish their businesses. It is vital to provide a wide range of products, supply consistently high quality and meet professional demands in order to attract new

August-September | 2015

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Fast and furious

HP unveils fastest large-format colour and monochrome printer

August-September | 2015

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P recently introduced the fastest technology in large-format production printing.

Called HP PageWide XL 8000, it offers the fastest large-format production printing available in colour and monochrome. HP also introduced new HP SmartStream software to optimise workflow and new largeformat supplies and printing materials, including HP PageWide Pigment Inks, HP Universal Bond Paper, and HP Production Matte, Gloss and Satin Poster Papers.

HP PageWide XL 8000 does the job of two printers in one single device, providing monochrome and colour prints at breakthrough speeds of up to 60% faster than the fastest monochrome light-emitting diode (LED) printer. Therefore, this latest technology is keeping pace to meeting demand peeks with the ultimate in high production speed in both sorts of printing – monochrome and colour and also to cushion the cost per print.

Commenting on this, Jimmy Saw, the SEA Business Development manager of HP Designjet Large Format Printer of HP Malaysia said, “Consolidating two devices in one, not only save space but it also lessen the cost you spend on printing production, services, maintenance, and many more.

This device can do all job done by different devices such as print, scan and copy.”

The new printer will enable highvolume reprographic houses and enterprise central reprographic departments to produce computeraided design (CAD) drawings and will open new business opportunities with geographic information system (GIS) maps, point-of-sale applications and posters.

LIKE THIS: Jimmy Saw, the SEA Business Development manager of HP Designjet Large Format Printer of HP Malaysia demonstrates the high quality colour printing.

HP PageWide Technology consists of more than 400,000 tiny nozzles on a stationary print bar and spans the width of the page, enabling breakthrough printing speeds. Extended time between service station cycles also enables outstanding sustained production capacity.

This latest technology enables the printer to deliver four colours of Original HP pigment ink onto a moving sheet of paper.

The HP PageWide printhead offers

uniform volume, speed and trajectory for precise printing. The technology also regulates the speed and penetration of ink on the print to accelerate drying and control dot size, feathering and colour-to-colour bleed for highquality prints.

The printer offers high-end production printing at revolutionary speeds up to 30 D/A1-size prints per minute as well as two 775 milliliter ink cartridges per colour with automatic switching and up to six rolls. Because the paper moves instead of the printhead, HP PageWide Technology delivers rapid print speeds.

HP PageWide XL Pigment Inks increase print quality with crisp lines, fine detail and smooth grayscales that are superior to LED prints.

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In fact, it could eliminate manual steps and simplify the workflow of the printing of both monochrome and colour printing. Commented on this was, Lee Kok Wai, country business manager HP Designjet Large Format Printer said that the large format printing customers are continually exploring ways to improve productivity, streamline workflow and reduce costs.

It is supported by Vincent of Vantage located in Setapak, one of the customers who recently invested in HP PageWide XL 8000 to help reduce time consumption as well as labour force of printing production task. He said, “The first thing I look upon is colour, which is in better quality. But what is vital is the speed. Last time, it took almost the whole day to print two thousand copies, but now it takes only a few hours to print.

The production printing market had traditionally been led by

HP Power People- Standing in line and ready to work it out!

monochrome-only LED printers, requiring customers to also operate large-format inkjet colour printers to address colour jobs. The new printer consolidate workflow to deliver mixed black-and-white and colour prints in half the time it would take to manually collate documents produced on multiple printers.

In addition, a full portfolio of scanning and finishing solutions, including the HP Designjet HD and SD Pro Scanners and new HP PageWide XL Printer accessories, such as the HP PageWide XL online folder, top stacker and highcapacity stacker, enable customers to build efficient end-to end workflows around HP PageWide XL Printers and free up the operator.

HP SmartStream software for HP PageWide XL Printers reduces time spent preparing and processing jobs by 50%. It also reduces reprints with native PDF management powered by Adobe PDF Print Engine 3 and offers a true colour print preview with interactive HP Crystal Preview technology to turn operator efficiency into operating profit.

The printer provides low operation

costs driven by life-long print heads, high ink efficiency and cloud-based support.

The XL 8000 is targeted to small and medium sized reprographic houses and enterprise CRDs robust mid to high volume production of technical documents, including translucent prints, black and white whiteprints and digital blueprints, at up to 800 and 320 A0 pages per hour respectively.

Jimmy said, “Any customers out there who involve in large scale print, especially that encompass both types of printing monochrome and colour printing. And another targeting market of customers who have two machines set up that function differently.”

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The printer provides low operation costs driven by life-long print heads, high ink efficiency and cloud-based support.

August-September | 2015

HP PageWide XL Pigment Inks also provide dark blacks, vivid colours, and moisture and fade resistance even on uncoated bond paper at high speeds.

Hence, new HP large-format printing materials up to 40 inches (1 metre) meet ISO/U.S. technical and offset standard page sizes and provide quickdry, smear resistant prints.

HP PageWide XL Printers are the first products introduced under the new HP PageWide sub-brand. Based on proven HP PageWide Technology, which currently powers HP Inkjet Web Presses, HP business printers and will be scaled for upcoming HP 3D Multi Jet FusionTM printers.

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Born to serve MACCMA improves communication between members and working towards solving each other’s problems

August-September | 2015

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he Corrugated Carton Industry in Malaysia was born with the country’s move towards industrialization the mid-1960’s to serve the country’s packaging needs.

Progress, as with all things,was painfully slow at the beginning. However, the vision and dynamic leadership from the Public Sector and the enthusiasm of the private sector, the momentum of growth picked up and by the late 1970s to early 1980s, more than a dozen box plants were in operation in Peninsular Malaysia.

At this time, the idea of forming an association took shape with the several initial objectives such as to open a formal channel of communication with the government and other relevant ministries for exchanges of information and feed-back. Striving and improving the technical capabilities of members in order to cater to the growing variety of product types demanded by the market is also part of the objectives. Last but definitely not the least, the objective to form an association is to improve communication between members and working towards solving each other’s problems.

On Aug 5, 1988, this loose assembly of enthusiastic factories were finally qualified to be registered and the Malaysian Corrugated Carton Manufacturers’ Association (MACCMA) was given its official birth certificate with 16 members spread over the many states of Peninsula Malaysia. And now, more than two decades later, the association has roughly around 80 members with 38 ordinary members who are box makers.

As of now, there are around 70 corrugating plants in Malaysia and the members represent 75% of the total consumption in terms of demands and such.

In recent years, MACCMA has held meetings and worked with various government departments like MIDA,

dawn of the new age: Michael (left) with Henry

Customs, MITI and DOE on behalf of its members on various issues affecting the corrugated industry. MACCMA has also held educational seminars, overseas study trips in Asian countries such as Taiwan, China, Indonesia and even sometimes South Korea, annual dinners and social gatherings for the benefit of their members. The revenue of the association comes from their annual function.

Michael Lim Kheng Eng, the new president of MACCMA, stresses on the weakening of the currency issue to their members and manufacturers so that they are able to understand the pressure the association is going through at the moment. This is important because almost all of their raw materials are imported goods from other countries and this sets a high cost since it has to be converted to the American dollar. Michael sets to solve the problem and issue they’re having for the greater good of their association.

However, there are now local mills that produce raw materials and thus,

this could ease up the cost immensely.

Thus, the association is trying to collaborate with them to go above these financial factors for the long term as Michael predicted that the American dollar would not be softening in the near future and proving this to be a greater challenge.

“However, this industry will not die as it is an essential subject especially in packaging,” said Henry Low Sheong Boon, the former president of MACCMA. To him, this issues are like a cycle,where things would go down with problems and go up when it’s better. But he emphasized that the future of the industry is there and will remain for a good long time as there is always the need for the carton usage by the people.

The biggest consumer of the carton materials and products are from the food and beverages industry.

Even now into the digital printing age, carton type materials are being used and Michael stated that eventually, this is the direction the industry is moving towards to. However, in the end, it all depends on what kind of market that is actually out there and how they, the association can cater to them. – Azlyra Karmelia

Best foot forward: Members of the Malaysia Corrugated Carton Manufacturers Association

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From cameras to printing machines

Canon showcases its new range of commercial printers at PPP Open House

BY NORMAN HUSSAINI

August-September | 2015

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HE Canon brand right now is more well-known worldwide for their cameras. However, they have never looked at it as a limitation, but more of an opportunity for expansion. Canon has been developing their range of commercial printers for years. Canon Marketing Malaysia showcased their range of commercial printers recently at their showroom in Peremba Square, Saujana Resort, Seksyen U2, Shah Alam, Selangor, during their PPP (Professional Printing Product) Open House on Aug 15, 2015.

The showroom is open five days a week and is open to anyone who wishes to know more about their commercial printer’s technology. They are able to provide demonstrations and practical knowledge to potential and current customers. The Sign & Advertising Association of Sarawak & Sabah was one of the first there to attend a presentation for one of their featured product.

The open house started with clients’

registration accompanied by delectable snacks of finger foods and tea or coffee.

After the registration, guests toured the showroom and experienced some hardware demonstrations by Canon employees. The machine that took centre stage during the open house was the OCÉ Arizona 4X0 GT Flatbed printer series. The particular one was the Arizona 480 GT, which is one of the latest printers they are currently offering.

With a rigid media size of 1.25 m x 2.50 and the media thickness of 50.8 mm, it is one of the most versatile printers in the market. The printer features an eight ink channels, which produce crystal clear images with high level of detail and fast printing time. It is also able to print on various surfaces which include the more common paper and cardboards to the more unique like metal sheets and glass. “The ability to print on various surfaces helps us to be one of the pioneers of unique commercial printing in Malaysia.” explained Holmes Ong, sales manager for the Professional Printing Products Division of Canon Marketing Malaysia.

Certain surfaces like glass and metal sheets may require a layer of undercoat paint or primer for the material to be printer-ready.The printer also works as a set with the OCÉ Procut Digital Cutter which is able to cut printed materials with immense precision. With print and cut solution, Canon Marketing Malaysia can provide potential customers with wide business opportunities.

The versatility of the printer coupled with interesting materials have even open up new possibilities for the printing industry, which is with the creation of printable furniture.As of now, Canon HOLMES: The ability to print on various surfaces helps us to be one og the pioneers of unique commercial printing in Malaysia

has been showcasing printable stools usually used in exhibitions.

Firstly, the material used to create printable furniture would usually be the D – Board. The D – Board is a kind of thick and sturdy corrugated cardboard that is widely used to build simple office or home furniture, popular with the environmental conscious world nowadays. After the image has been printed on the board, it will then be transferred to the cutting machine to cut and shape the outline of the furniture (i.e, stool).

The OCÉ Procut cutting machine has a wide range of cutters used to shape materials. It can perform cuts such as through cut, v – cut, and crease cut.

The material will then be in need of a simple assembly by hand to create the now ready printed stool.The printed stool proved to be a sturdy object and is a more practical approach to be used in exhibitions. “With the technology we have now, the ability to print furniture to be used for events has made it more practical to host exhibitions. It is a cost saving approach to use such furniture as it would cut the transportation costs greatly.” said Pang Yee Peng, senior manager for Professional Printing Products Division.

He said: “We have provided the means to create beautiful printed art, which is perfect for creative designers all over Malaysia. The potential of this precision printing is only limited to the creativity of the designer.”

However, the OCÉ Arizona flatbed printers were not the only product they have showcased during the open house.

The OCÉ VarioPrint 6200 Ultra Line is one of the fastest and most productive digital perfecting system with Gemini Instant Duplex technology. The VarioPrint 6000 Ultra Line series is one of Canon’s best sellers for black & white printing machines. It can support up to twelve drawers of varying sizes of paper, with the ability to find which paper is needed in which drawer. The printer can simultaneously print on both sides of the paper, powered by the unique Gemini engine on the main section of the printer.

The printer may also provide the ability to staple the papers together, provided by the optional set finisher.

“The printing power of the VarioPrint is perfectly suitable for book publishing

THUMBS UP: Staff posed with the Sign and Advertising Association

used to identify colour patches which will then be used for media/printing calibration and profiling. The device is equipped with a blower unit which speeds up the drying process. Being an additional component to the printer, the spectrophotometer provides the ability to use media of different thickness and supports third party media.

“The combination of these two devices can certainly push the boundaries of what the printer can do”, according to Holmes.

The push for hardware sales is of course, not the only focus for the commercial printer team at Canon, they provide software as well. A presentation on the Variable Data Printing (VDP) done at the open house was explaining how a seamless integration between hardware and software is very important to ensure better overall performance and provides a much larger opportunity to printing companies.VDP is a term used to describe a digital printing process which incorporates the use of variable data on a single printing session. As an example for the use of VDP, various letters which uses the same

template can be printed differently according to the individual information that is to be present in the letter, without having to interrupt the printing process.

One that was featured during the open house event was the Printshop Mail. Printshop Mail Suite is a software that houses a large amount of data for printing purposes. It is a form of data mining system where users can find designs they would want to us for print via cloud storage. It also lets users to upload their own designs to share with the public as part of the service.

The demonstration session concluded with the Printshop Mail presentation.

The open house wrapped up with a lucky draw contest, with lucky winners taking home goodie bags and Canon PIXMA Printers. Guests were then treated with lunch and refreshments and the event came to a close with a relaxed manner. When asked what is the Professional Printing Products Division of Canon Marketing Malaysia’s vision over the next five years?

Pang said: “We want Canon to be a leading name not just for our cameras, but for the professional printing industry as well. We want people to know that Canon is a world class company with world class products.”

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companies that need to print a lot of pages in a short amount of time.” said Soon Sze Keong, manager of Marketing Support & Planning Department. The machine can print 200 A4 papers and about 106 A3 papers per minute, as well as network connectivity to receive templates from cloud storage.The machine consumes about 45% less energy (on average) than a conventional dual-pass system and 35% less than the minimum EPA Energy Star requirements. The lower noise level produced by VarioPrint 6000 Ultra Line is also one of the reason it is a best seller.

The various ranges of commercial printers available in Canon’s showroom had also included their successful line of wide format printers. One in particular that had been highlighted that day was the imagePROGRAF iPF6410. It is one of the best offered by Canon with a 12 – colour ink system and optimised for graphics as it uses the FINE ink technology. It produces images with vivid colour and unmatched details. Practical features are also included as a neat feature of the printer, such as the subink tanks which allows ink tank change without affecting the on-going printing process. It supports both 130 ml and 300 ml ink tanks and are equipped with a 250GB hard drive, to accommodate high volume printing and streamlined workflow.

The imagePROGRAF iPF6410 also features additional accessories that would enhance the printing functionality.The optional SU – 21 Spectrophotometer can be fitted into the front of the printer easily, with no extra tool needed. The spectrophotometer is a scanning unit

August-September | 2015

PRINT+ FEATURE

PRINT+ FEATURE

Lighting up

Elancom specializes in full range of lighting solutions

BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

August-September | 2015

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ITH over 10 years of experience, Elancom (M) Sdn Bhd - stay at the forefront of their industry with the quality production, customer service and technical expertise.

Elancom is responding to those evolving demands and requirements.

They are specialized in customize lighting, design and supply of lighting components and products. Besides, they also provide full sets of lighting solution from design to installation and commissioning.

Elancom always ensure that their clients’ need are always met with high quality lighting products and services.

They are the leading supplier for lighting solutions and also specialized in LED components for automatic visual

inspection and installation.

Elancom has over 10 years of experience in the electronic components and specialize in industrial LED lighting technology. The company has served companies in Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and Singapore among others. Elancom has

been developing and providing services of LED lighting technology solutions to industrial and end user since year 2005.

Their future goal is to expand their market base through continuous dedication to technological expertise, customer relation and satisfaction.

Elancom focused in the provision of comprehensive solutions to the local and wide area on lighting solutions.

They are setting a new standard to make whole installations obsolete and proprietary solutions bar the way to open connectivity and producing quality product.

Leading technologies from their strategic partners come with proven reliability, cost effectiveness and totally dedicated to industry standards, thus preserving their customers’ investment and needs. Employing experienced personnel in key areas and investing in internal networks, which are geared towards providing efficient pre-sales support to achieve the specific needs of the customers.

Clients’ needs and requirements are carefully studied and understood and ways and means are excogitated to provide continuing solutions to meet such changes and advancements. Elancom is

PRINT+ FEATURE

August-September | 2015

Top Glove – LED lights seen in Top Glove Subang Jaya.

Soxworld – Elancom’s 7watt LED Light (White Coloured) compared to cheap LED Lights (Blue Coloured). They’re 12watt not as bright as Elancom’s

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able to do 3D simulation to ensure the optimal desired brightness.

Elancom is able to provide projects with turnkey solutions.They do provide the installation labour as well as coordinating the installation for the project.

In cases where the project would like to use another contractor, Elancom can provide installation supervision, coordination and guidance to ensure a properly working system.

What makes them different than others is that their LED chips provide few of the qualities not many others have such as sufficient lighting coverage High CRI colour quality effect, same frequency colour temperature effect and higher lumen output. Their Ultra Light Heatsink design adds a little more benefit for hassle-free maintenance in the future. Automated Lighting control

with programmable dimming, on-off control, monitoring of temperature to improve lighting, power consumption

control and others to transform a home – commercial or industrial – to a new living lifestyle.

PRINT+ FEATURE

In the right zone

Graphic Zone ready to cater to big market

BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

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XPLORING his options in the printing industry, Paul Lee started working in colour separation as early as 1989, back when things were still in the film format. He then tried production for three years before moving into the marketing aspect of the business. In 1995, a friend offered him to join his printing company.

Not wanting to limit himself however, he decided to become a print agent. This happened during the country’s economic crisis, where it was a very testing time for them as they had no direct answers to their business and neither had their suppliers. However, he managed to go through the rain and by 1999, he began sourcing for new ventures.

Graphic Zone Sdn Bhd was set up in 2001 with its core business in colour separation. Though, realising the market potential and wanting to invest in the future of printing, Paul and his two friends – business partners - decided that it was time to upgrade their machines to cater to current trends. After much deliberation, they grEaT LEaDEr: Paul Lee helms Graphic Zone

FoUrSoME: Paul Lee, Molly Yee and team Ricoh.

invested in their first digital production colour in 2006 and a year later, they bought a CTP machine in order to move ahead and stay ahead in the business game.

Fortunately, CTP brought many positive changes to the company and had also helped to reach another level of printing, catering to a higher level of

clientele as well as greater turnarounds.

Just as things were looking up for Paul and Graphic Zone, in 2009 the company went through another setback.

The company was operating on three different fronds led by three directors.

Initially, it worked out well however, as times and things progressed, Paul felt that it was time for them to be more focused on the things they do.Thus, the three musketeers went their separate ways in areas they were more familiar and specialised in, leaving Graphic Zone in Paul’s care.

Although at some point, Paul thought of quitting, but pushed that thought aside whenever his path to success was being blocked or challenged.

Instead, he used this opportunity to revamp the company and continued to strive forward. This is what inspired him to keep his perseverance.

He invested in a new entry level digital production colour to test the market and to his surprise, it was very responsive and day after day, he began rebuilding his company with the new investment.

Paul is no stranger to Ricoh, in 2012, he decided to give a Ricoh machine a try after having his company back on its feet again.After years of convincing,

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“The colour, speed and quality were high beyond my expectations and that raised the confidence in me to sell my products to my clients.”

– Paul “The colour, speed and quality were high beyond my expectations and that raised the confidence in me to sell my products to my clients,” beamed Paul happily.

As the on-demand colour printing market grows, so does the needs. With superior image quality and exceptional

functionality, the Ricoh machine offers the highest specifications and reliability of its class. From the start till the end, it raises the standard for productivity, efficiency, quality and profitability.

Loh Kean Leong, head of Production Printing Business Group (PPBG) of Ricoh, mentioned that Paul and Graphic Zone were one of the key partners who were using Ricoh.To him, Paul is a very professional and trustworthy man who has great understanding for the industry. For this, he sincerely wishes for their business to grow and expand successfully and that their partnership will last for a long fruitful time.

Paul is now a happy man and able to relax and spend his time golfing around. Why? Because he has a machine that can boost his business, a beautiful intelligent wife who stands by his side in Graphic Zone through thick and thin, a beautiful classy office centre in Perindustrian Serdang and a good partnership with Ricoh.That itself sounds like a good recipe for a successful and blossoming future.

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he decided to give Ricoh another look to what they had to offer. “With increasing jobs and higher demands, I felt that it was time for the company to source for a new machine that was designed to cope with the market demands. By then, I called Ricoh and asked them to provide a sample of what a Ricoh machine could offer to me,” said Paul.

“When my clients were impressed and happy with the results, I’m happy too. It was a decision which was made easy.”

Paul once mentioned a time where a client called him urgently on a Saturday morning asking for some products to be printed. Paul did not have second thoughts and spent his whole weekend with his staff finishing the work. His policy of his business and company is to always be able to satisfy his clients till the point where his clients are confident in Graphic Zone’s reliability.

With the market moving into the digital era, it was only right that Paul invested in a Ricoh machine which has been designed to cater for the evolving print industry.

August-September | 2015

Happy working: Paul lee supervising works carried out by his staff.

PRINT+ FEATURE

Information is power Quote & Print’s Shanti talks about the importance of printing management solutions.

BY NORMAN HUSSAINI

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HANTi Kumar, the managing director of Quote & Print from Sydney, Australia (pix), shared a strong vision of how a proper management information solution (MIS) is very important for anyone wanting to keep his or her printing business profitable in this tough economic climate. “With the switch from print to the internet, we can see now that the print industry is contracting.” In developing countries the shift from Print to Digital is about 18% per year.

He explained that even though the print industry is one of the oldest and is in the top 10 manufacturing industries in all countries, including Malaysia, it had seen its fair share of decline over the years because of the rise of the Digital age. He said that he had noticed that a lot of people in the printing businesses are good printers, but not necessarily good businessmen. “They don’t mind investing a million dollars in printing machines, yet they still use an excel spread sheet to manage their business,” Shanti said adding that this was why a proper MIS was very important to run a profitable business today. The Printing Industry Association of Australia believes that 70% of the printers who do not have a good MIS system do not know their true costs and if they are making a profit or loss.

In Australia for example, 30% of publishers are outsourcing their printing activities to companies in Asia. Shanti stated: “About 30% of the printing that is not time dependant in Australia is sent to Asia for printing. They would finish writing around the 15th of each month and the soft copy is sent to a printing service in Asia to be printed, and then

send back to them for distribution.” If you are wondering why the publishing company took the trouble to do all that instead of going to a local Australian printer, it is because they have good quality, lower costs and kept informed on the progress. This is the profit the publisher makes.

The printers in Australia face stiff competition. This is because of the over capacity of printing companies and competition from companies with good management systems. “So how can a printing company grow its business in an industry that is contracting?

The answer is to take business from your competition by providing better services, quality and costs than the competitors.” Shanti said. It is important to understand that it is 10 times cheaper to keep your existing customers than to find new ones. So by providing your existing customers better services and information,you can ensure that they will not go to your competitors.

The key to providing a good service to your customer is simply to make it easy for the customer to do business with you. Better communication with your customers means better performance for the company. Shanti continued, “Quote & Print have been doing business with all types of printers from over nine countries for over 34 years. I found that there are three types of (printing companies) in the industry today, one that is failing because they are the old and traditional printer that just waits for business to come to them.

Second, the ones who are barely surviving because they have no management systems and up to date information.

Finally, the printers who are very profitable because of good management systems.They are the ones that specialise in new businesses, train their staff, and implement new processes and upto-date systems. The management use the systems to the full.”

A good MIS system should give you the right information, in the right sequence, in the right order, at the right time, to make the right decision. Shanti stressed that “ there are two types of companies today, one that have access and others that have no access to Information. Information is power”.The MIS system offered by Quote & Print features different software for all types printing companies however small they may be.

Quote & Print is offered in different software packages but can also be bought in separate modules depending on the company’s needs and costs. The software modules covers all requirements of a current printer (Digital, Sheet Fed, Labels, Continuous, and Packaging) including integrated Accounts.

Newer features include the EPoD (Electronic Proof of Delivery) software solutions and the Web-2-Print.The Web2-Print software enables customers to order products to be printed directly from your website. It is Business2-Business or Business-2-Customer.

It simplifies the process of ordering by doing it online.

A quote from the newsletter stated that “Successful print service providers with a good online presence using a clientbranded storefront report increased sales and profitability as well as customer loyalty”, making it easier for your customer to do business with you means that you will keep your competitors away from your customers.

The Quote Print Solutions is a system developed by the Australian company with 34 years of experience in supplying solutions to printers around the world.

Q & P is the oldest and largest suppliers of solutions with roughly 600 clients worldwide. Q & P has many printers in Malaysia that currently use their software, sales, installation, training and support is managed by the Asian head office in Singapore.

The closing statement from Shanti perfectly encapsulates his vision for the printing companies in the industry. “Today, it is not enough to only be a good printer, but it is more important for the printer to be a good business person.

Otherwise you would not be around in the future.”

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Standing tall

Premio Printdeport continues to dominate after 24 years in business

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tarting as a stationery business, Premio Printdepot Sdn director Joey Wong has many things to say about the company.

With 24 years of experience in printing business, Joey said it was very challenging but it had never stopped him from doing what he wanted to do.

Being the eldest son, he said that he had not much choices but to inherit his family business that started in 1991.

When Joey was asked on how he got to this printing industry, he replied, “Actually my parents were involved in this business doing photostatting and printing since 2003. So the migration from stationery business to copying to printing and now more on personalizing digital print.” Adding on to that, Joey said, “We have inject machines, digital print and finishing services. We specialize on copy and print. Our customers usually print books and journals here. Other than that, we’re also planning on a joint venture with one of our partners so from a small volume, it is now a large volume.”

Premio Printdepot has worked in large volumes so it’s

Sealed: Joey Wong & KL Loh,

not impossible for them to work on it again. “The largest volume that we’ve made thus far is one million copies and it’s really a lot of work because it has 141 sides,” Joey said. “The pre-printing part is longer than the process of printing itself. It took us about two weeks to get all the documents done. But for the printing process, it only took us about three to four days. Of course, only the machine that does the work so we just have to go back and sleep,” he said in a jest.

Of course the machines play an important role in business. That’s what makes their business life easier and faster. Joey said that the machine works less than 10 hours a day. Their relationship with Ricoh started about two months ago when Premio Printdepot decided to change their machine to a new brand.

They used to be very familiar

and comfortable with their old machine which is Fuji Xerox and they have been using that brand since 20 years ago.

Joey decided to try a new brand since he’s now the one who’s handling the company. “We have been using Ricoh for two months. It’s very new to us and it’s quite challenging because we’re not really familiar with the machine,” Joey said. “Why we bought the Ricoh machine is because Ricoh was one of the upcoming machines that we think we should invest with. I think that we should explore other brands as well instead of using the same brand. Ricoh machine is very advance and so far we’re very happy with the machine right now. The cost efficiency and the print quality are all in one machine,” he added.

A Petaling Jaya boy who then went to the United States to continue his studies in Information Technology (IT) at California State University, Sacramento for four years and then worked as an IT professional for almost 10 years. Till this day Joey never regretted of what he is doing. Changing the actual lanes that he chose, from IT to printing, is a big difference for him but he’s doing it anyway for the sake of his parents and the family business that have already built since 1991. “I came from IT to

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“I came from IT to printing in 2012, it feels good to continue this business because if we don’t continue, then it will die and that’s what I don’t want to happen.”

– Joey That’s what I want to focus on. The reason why we are different is because we can advise our customers to fix their corporate image. We are different because we are able to consult people.”

Anyone that involves in a business

would always have their own target, mission and vision. Joey has that vision of what he would like to do and own in the future. “I’m trying to bring the professional printing to the corporate clients.The first thing that I need to do is to expand my business geographically,” Joey said. “So what I’m going to do is, we will expand a print centre in Klang Valley and closer to Petaling Jaya so that it’s easy for us to manage and try to make more publicity because when you do something great, people need to know about it!” he said with confidence.

For Ricoh, Loh said that they have their vision in this relationship between them and Premio too! “We foresee that the partnership between us and Premio is just the beginning and we foresee in the near future, I think from both sides,we could be able to support each other to grow the business. I’d call this a marriage between Ricoh and Premio,” he laughed.

Ending the interview, he said: “You must learn to love what you do! You might not like it or love it, but you must learn to accept it.”

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printing in 2012,” Joey said. “It feels good to continue this business because if we don’t continue, then it will die and that’s what I don’t want to happen.”

K.L Loh, head of Production Printing Business Group (PPBG) of Ricoh said, “We treat them (Premio Printdeport) not like a customer but like a partner.

They really helped us to give the best services to our corporate customers.”

Corporate customers play an important role to Ricoh because that is how their business system goes. “Ricoh system is basically like we will approach the corporate customers in whatever they need to print. We’d manage the print first and in return, the backup partners from us which we called Ricoh partners and of course Premio is one of Ricoh’s partners, they’ll help us to print and deliver to the end customer. So basically, it’s an ecology cycle which we each other as partners,” Loh stated.

Joey, when asked about what makes his company different from other competitors, he answered, “my presentation and printing has a very corporate look.

August-September | 2015

We are the people: Joey Wong with team Ricoh

PRINT+ EVENT

August-September | 2015

EXCELLENT PRINTINGS: The printer demonstrations produced high quality products with superior colour saturation.

Fuji Xerox showcases their latest wide format printers

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Think Wide, Print Wider

BY NORMAN HUSSAINI

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N Sept 9, 2015, Fuji Xerox invited potential customers to their Petaling Jaya Showroom in Jalan Bersatu 13/4. The event Think Wide, Print Wider was done to attract the SME market owners looking

into expanding their printing business.

The event was more of an “open house� concept conceived by Fuji Xerox as a way to address different market segments in a more personalized and interactive manner.

The product to take the spotlight that day was the new Acuity LED 1600 wide format printer. The machine was a collaborative product from Fujifilm and Fuji Xerox with superior Fujifilm proprietary technologies. The Acuity LED 1600 was produced as a way for them to tap into the market for graphic arts and commercial printing which is

considered a niche market.

The collaboration also addresses the size of print applications (>3 metre wide) applicable for indoor and outdoor banner as well as signboard printing which does not compromise productivity due to its high speed.

Many SME business owners attended the event in the hope of expanding their business in printing especially in the wide format department. The event started at 10am with an introduction to value proposition and special feature highlight. Then the attendees are treated with a few demonstrations showcasing the ability of the Acuity LED 1600 wide format printer.A very detailed explanation were conducted during the demonstration to help business owners understand better about the hardware.

The printing demonstration ended with a Q&A in which attendees could get a better understanding about the

POWERFUL PARTNERSHIP: KL Tan and Chew Mei Jen showcasing the powerful Acuity LED 1600 with support from Yoshitaka Nakamura.

Products of Fujifilm Malaysia had this to say during the event: “The (Acuity LED 1600) printer has the contingency to become the best wide format printers in the market because of its versatility.”

The Acuity LED 1600 is a high performance printer capable of output speeds of up to 20m2 per hour. It delivers roll or rigid media handling with a robust, industrial design. The four production modes available with the LED 1600 are the Production, Standard, Quality, and High Quality.The production mode has the ability to print image resolution at 600x500 at a max speed of 20m2 per hour with 10 number of passes. Standard mode handles 900x800 resolution

CROWDED SHOWROOM: The reception at Fuji Xerox’s showroom was a success as attendees got to see the printers at work.

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product being showcased that day. Fujifilm showed their support by having Yoshitaka Nakamura, general manager of Fujifilm Asia Pacific Region to grace the event. The event officially ended at 5pm.

The Acuity LED 1600 is a printer designed to produce high value, creative prints that sell for more in the market.

The machine ensures high speed printing with near photographic print quality because of its UV ink technology, which provides excellent coverage with strong,vibrant colours. It uses Fujifilm’s Versadrop™ imaging technology with multi-pulse jetting. The technology delivers droplets of different sizes and produce smooth changes in tone and solid spot colours.

As for the printhead, Fujifilm definitely didn’t pull their punches with the Dimatix Q-class industrial printhead being used for the Acuity LED 1600.The Dimatix Q-class has a very good track record of having a long life in high performance production printings. To top it all off, the machine is equipped with high performance LED UV lamps which is used instantly dry the printed image for instant use.The LED UV technology can ensure high definition and accurate printing with a wide range of finishes. It uses low temperature, low energy lamps that results in lower power consumption thus making it more environmental friendly. KL Tan, the general manager of Asia Pacific Region, Photo Imaging & Industrial

at a top speed of 13m2 per hour with 16 number of passes, Quality mode handles 1200x1200 resolution at a max speed of 8.3m2 per hour with 24 number of passes, and the High Quality mode handles the same resolution as the Quality but with a max speed of 4.2m2 per hour with 48 number of passes. It can print all colours and varnish together in one pass and can also handle three layer printing for window graphic.

The maximum print width for the Acuity LED 1600 is at 1610mm, with print tolerance for error of ± 0.3% of distance travelled or ± 0.3mm depending on whichever is greater. The ability of the Acuity LED 1600 to handle huge range of roll and rigid media texture and applications can be seen through the maximum media thickness. It comes at 13mm in thickness while the maximum media weight for rigid and roll printing is at 12 kg and 25 kg respectively. The Inks used for the machine are the Fujifilm Uvijet LL LED UV curable ink with eight colours including cyan, magenta, yellow, black, light cyan, light magenta, white and clear. The huge variable in colour gives the printer the ability to print vivid images with detailed colour schemes.

As promoted by Fujifilm, the Acuity LED 1600 fits into any environment because of its size and environmental friendly properties. It features compact footprint (size) and it creates no solvent fumes, no ozone, and no surplus heat (environment).The physical dimension of the machine is 3220 mm in width x 780 mm in depth x 1524 mm in height.

The size is considerably efficient when compared to the quality of images it can print. The machine also supports USB 2.0 for easy file transfer.

August-September | 2015

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PRINT+ FEATURE

Magic moves

Resilient Jeffrey takes Image Magic Digital Printing services to great heights

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August-September | 2015

BY AZLYRA KARMELIA

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MAGIC MAN: Jeffrey Chan Yang Tung

GE is just a number and never a barrier to start doing something. This could probably be a case with the young founder of the Image Magic Digital Printing Services, Jeffrey Chan Yang Tung. With a year of working experience in Singapore, he came back to Malaysia and started his first printing business in Wisma Cosway, Kuala Lumpur.

Being brought up in a family that was involved in photography and editing business back in Ipoh, he was exposed to a vast expansion of knowledge and skills which influenced him to be a part of the industry. However, he did not stay long in the family business and Jeffrey left home and decided to go Kuala Lumpur to try his luck. Fair enough, with all the hard work, dedication and blood, sweat and tears, it is a milestone to be where he is today.

The company started in 2003 with a low initial start-up and Jeffrey began his printing business by providing simple products such as business cards and catalogues which are common needs from customers. Over the years, the business showed rapid progress, from one shop to two and as of now, Image Magic has expanded to a seven shop lots in Wisma Cosway. And now Jeffrey is dreaming of having his own Wisma.

By planning and thinking ahead, he looks beyond what his company can provide currently and he began bringing in machinery of all sorts such as paper sticker label machine, folding machine and creasing line machine.

He makes sure that the printing and finishing process are taken care of from the beginning till the end under one roof. And everything is done and delivered in the shortest time.

The increasing amount of competitors in the printing field forces Jeffrey to keep on creating new products to fulfil different requests from customers, and thus, he began catering for traveling agencies by producing travel

Recently, with the launching of their new colour printer, the Colour 1000i Press from Fuji Xerox, Image Magic was proud to be the first printing company in Malaysia to use this latest digital printing machine. booklet that contains the itinerary of a specific journey along with luggage tags. His company has produced thousands of travel booklets and luggage tags for traveling agency companies.

In 2010, he began venturing into the online business for his customers as he understands the demand for things to be done at such a fast speed and

(Above left) Jeffrey and his partner work hard to provide only the best quality to their customers.

(Above) The Image Magic Digital Printing Services team alongside with the Fuji Xerox team.

printing company in Malaysia to use this latest digital printing machine.

One of the most highlighted function from this machine that stands out from other digital printers is that it has a feature that is able to print both metallic gold and silver toners. By using the Emulsion Aggregation (EA) technology, printing is made easy through single production press. This investment will help to boost production and at the same time, offer a more variety of colour choices for printing. It is far more cost-effective and achievable in print-on-demand from as low as one piece at a time.

The presence of technology is an overwhelming experience for almost everybody, being a part of an advanced generation, Jeffrey ensures that he takes advantage of the high-tech machinery and keeps on improving

himself and his company in order to keep up with the needs of the modern world. He has made great progress in digital printing where it provides a wide array of choices in different products. Image Magic functions under a clear mission of striving to be the best printing company in providing excellent service for their customers, offering great benefits for their staff, giving the highest respect and value to their suppliers.

As the owner and founder of Image Magic Printing Company, Jeffrey truly appreciates the help and support from the technical team in Fuji Xerox which has never failed to provide their company’s need. He feels blessed with the support and loyalty of his family members and staff and this keeps him going. Having a customer base is also one of the main reasons that keep Jefrrey’s passion burning – for success. To him, it is impossible for one to go far without the help and support and love from people around, because they are the ones who help him and the company to be better and building trust in the eyes of his customers through the services and products the company has to offer.

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without any hassle.Therefore his company’s website was created in order to garner more attention and to promote the company in a bigger scale so people from every corners of the country are able to learn about the existence and the usage of his services and products provided. Every customer can place their orders online without the need to go all the way to their office. “We make it a point that the level of service provided for all customers are the best,” said Jeffrey. Should any customer be worried about designing a layout for their company’s brochures or leaflets or logos, the company’s designers always ready to help. Thus customers do not need to go through all the hassle. The designers are all well trained in providing whatever the customers may desire with the use of the latest software.

Image Magic deals with many different suppliers and at the same time, keep a good business relationship with all of them. Among them is Fuji Xerox.

All these while, Image Magic has been an ardent printing company that uses their machines. Recently, with the launching of their new colour printer, the Colour 1000i Press from Fuji Xerox, Image Magic was proud to be the first

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Heidelberg rebranding

H

August-September | 2015

EIDELBERGER Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) is associated with the printing industry like no other company in the sector.

For generations, the company has shaped the industry to make a success of printed communication in all its different forms. Heidelberg portfolio covers the entire process and value-added chain in the field of printing and digital communication.

We caught up with the General Manager of Heidelberg Malaysia Singapore, Mr.Billy Yap in conjunction with their press release on the rebranding of Heidelberg recently to have a better understanding on the future direction of this giant brand.

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PP: Good morning Billy. What are the reasons for the rebranding of Heidelberg?

BY: Good morning to you. Thank you for spending some time to understand the new direction of Heidelberg.We are already 165 years old. Over the one and a half century,we have gone through continuous changes and adapting to the evolution of the world specifically in the printing segment. In fact, we have never stopped evolving to maintain our position as the leader and the most reliable partner in the printing industry.

Heidelberg has undergone extensive strategic development and systematically adapted our portfolio to today’s and tomorrow’s customer needs and requirements.The most obvious result of this reorientation exercise to the market is the launch of a new brand identity.

PP: How would this rebranding benefits the printer of the world?

BY: Yes, most definitely. This development will help our customers remain successful in a changing market environment. We need to ensure our customers to continue to be profitable.

Our customers need comprehensive and tailored package of services geared toward effective and reliable production processes. They need the right equipment to achieve the highest cost-effectiveness, not necessary the most economical solution. It is also crucial that they have exceptionally easy access to all the tried and tested consumables. All these parameters have to be achieved in order to benefit our customers, to enable them to reach for a higher platform of competitiveness, to be successful; lastly and most

importantly, to be profitable. Histories have told us, the lowest price, the cheapest solution and an archipelago of solution islands have a lot of hidden threats which will hinder an organisation to run faster and to achieve their goals smoothly. In many cases, a wrong investment became a heavy liability. Our customers need solutions that are integrated together with solid foundation, great supports and proven results. Heidelberg is right there with our customers.

Heidelberg is standing uniquely in the printing world for been the one and only company who offer our allinclusive portfolio of digital and offset printing from prepress up to postpress, consumables, services and the one detrimental factor which tie them together, our knowledge on workflows and processes in the print shop.

Heidelberg is heavy metal, robust, long lasting, top drawer printing presses is a foregone conclusion. Our focus moving forward is no longer simply on equipment. We shall be the company to integrate the overall process and all the requisite components for the printers to be successful in the new era of digitalization and mixmedia. Afterall, our customer success is our success.

PP: How about Industry 4.0? Everyone is talking about it and I read in Heidelberg new direction towards 4.0, can you explain to us what is it and where is Heidelberg into Industry 4.0?

BY: There are a lot into it. Many speak of Industry 4.0 as the 4th Industrial Revolution. It’s a vision and execution of a “Smart Factory” born about 5 years ago

by a workgroup consisted of industry leaders to connect all the intelligence and technologies of today by internet to create a living network of objects, machineries and people. At Heidelberg, we’re not just talking about it, we’re already doing it.

First of all,we have connected a large percentage of our customers worldwide and still continuing to expand

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our family members. In fact, we have exceeded 10,000 systems globally that are currently connected to our remote services. It is alive and kicking, not a concept as perceived by others in our industry. As a result, our customer knowledge and service know-how are increasing continuously.What is Industry 4.0 to Heidelberg currently? Our answer is simple. It is about developing

PP: There has been stories and hard facts that the printing world is changing not in the most positive direction.

How do you feel about these changes and how is it going to impact our local printing community?

BY: Unbelievable if I was informed just 5 years back on today scenario. In my humble opinion, there would not be an exception to our Malaysian printers. A wind of change is coming. For generations, printers depended on Heidelberg offset technologies, in good times and in challenging times. But time has change; the general market changes in a rapid pace in the last decade fueled by digitalization, internet and a phenomenal shift in buyers’ behavior hence, our customers’ needs changed with them.

Synonymous with the highest quality in sheetfed offset is no longer enough for Heidelberg. Globally, our customer base has shifted radically; from 200,000 generalists to about 15,000 specialists.

Imagine.

Needless to elaborate, we must continue to change. Although we’re so far ahead in integrated workflow solutions, we’re now tying the knots beyond the hardware. We must provide and equip our customers with capabilities to be more flexible and ability to achieve the highest productivity, all the time.

We shall stand firmly behind them to weather the coming storm.

PP: One last question, what do we look forward with Heidelberg?

BY:A lot! Heidelberg strongly believes in progression. We continue to invest heavily in R&D even during the tough period. In fact,we are the Top R&D company in the printing industry measured by the number of patterns submitted every year.We continue to acquire companies to increase our coverage and to get nearer to our customers as well as to expand new technologies into our portfolio. Please plan your trip to Drupa next year. By that time, the new branding will have been introduced and implemented worldwide. And I promised you, there will be innovative surprises too.

Coming back to the new brand identity, we are planning to officially launch our new direction within the next two months and shall elaborate our commitments to the printing community.

And as the leading magazine in the printing industry, Print+ will definitely be invited to this event.

In the meantime, we, at Heidelberg shall LISTEN, INSPIRE and DELIVER.

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service ideas that give our customers a concrete competitive advantage. With trust and co-operation, we have built a huge network with a great number of users and we’re into high gear now for industry 4.0.This idea only has a future if we make it happen every day. Because the future happens in real time. Think about it.

PP: We noticed the Heidelberg logo has become more colourful. What does that represent?

BY: Good observation. Heidelberg portfolio is based on three pillars namely, Equipment, Services and Consumables. Each of them is given its own colour identity.Yellow for services, blue for equipment and green for consumables. These colours are highlighted in the initial letter of our redesigned company logo.

The new colours maintain a connection with the traditional “Heidelberg Blue” which represent and symbolize our company competency, our unique global network and all our staff. From now onwards, the first letter of the new Heidelberg will be used as a brand icon alongside the new logo.

The new logo will represent the convergence of the three pillars to highlight our focus to bring benefits to our customers at the centre of letter “H”.At the end of the day, we need to make it simpler, quicker and less complicated solution for our customers to find what they need in ever complex scenarios of graphic arts industry.

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Heidelberg has undergone extensive strategic development and systematically adapted our portfolio to today’s and tomorrow’s customer needs and requirements. The most obvious result of this reorientation exercise to the market is the launch of a new brand identity.

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FAPGA 2015

The annual Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts 2015 has served as a platform to help spur the growth of the print industry in the region.

A gathering of business owners to see niche markets, generates ideas and inspiration, network and reinvest in their companies’ future.

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IPMEX Malaysia 2015

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Print with style

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The Professional Printing Products Division of Canon Malaysia opened their showroom to their business partners and potential customers. The event was a success, bringing various interested attendees closer to their state-ofthe-art printers.

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