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Sharjah Publishing City Offers Ingram’s Lightning Source Print-On-Demand Service

Signaling a landmark achievement for the UAE publishing sector, the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) and Ingram’s Lightning Source have signed an agreement to bring the world’s best print-on-demand (POD) service to Sharjah Publishing City Free Zone (SPCFZ). The agreement was signed by HE Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chairman of SBA, and Shawn Morin, President, and CEO of Ingram Content Group, in the presence of John Ingram, Chair-

man of Ingram Industries, at the Book Expo America 2019. HE Ahmed bin Rakkad Al Ameri, Chairman of SBA, pointed out that the key objective of this agreement and partnership is for Sharjah to provide inclusive publishing services to the market in the UAE and region, in addition to providing tools and solutions that would enable publishers to start their businesses in Sharjah and expand internationally. “Attracting this leading company from the USA to establish its business in Sharjah is the first step towards many agreements that will help in building a professional system of services in the publishing industry. This system will play a pivotal role in elevating the publishing industry which is witnessing rapid development in Sharjah and the UAE. It will stimulate finding solutions to reduce the cost of storing, distribution, marketing and other challenges that face publishers,” he added.

Shawn Morin, President & CEO of Ingram Content Group, said, “We are pleased to have reached a terms agreement with the Sharjah Book Authority to open a print on demand facility in Sharjah. The addition of a Lighting Source location in Sharjah expands our global network of print on demand plants and will help publishers from all over the world reach their readers more quickly and efficiently in this important, and growing, market.” Print-on-demand services have been a game changer for the publishing business, worldwide. Traditional printing methods had publishers print large quantities of titles pre-empting sales demand, which often incurred huge shipping and storage costs. The printon-demand service eliminates these costs by offering publishers published materials in as less as 24 hours, which offers them the advantage of deciding print runs according to sales demand.

ME‌Printer July - August 2019

Epson Supports EEG’s Annual Awards

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As part of Epson’s commitment to encouraging recycling practices, the technology leader recently sponsored the Emirates Environmental Group’s (EEG) annual event to award individuals/families, corporates and academic institutions that took part in various eco-friendly recycling campaigns throughout the year in the UAE and that produced remarkable results. Together these individuals and organisations recycled items such as paper, plastic, cans, mobiles, glass and toners. As well as being the Silver sponsor of the event, Epson also gifted projectors to two schools that were recognised for their recycling efforts. The winners of the Epson EB-765wi projectors were the American School of Dubai for excellence in paper recycling and Our Own High School for the environmentally friendly practice of recycling plastics. Jeroen Van Beem, Director of Sales, Epson Europe B.V, says, “To

conserve valuable environmental resources and reduce waste, Epson has always supported recycling programmes. We appreciate EEG’s initiatives to create more awareness about the environmental impact of waste and this is in line with our own efforts to encourage customers to recycle Epson products. The responsible and effective processing of our products after they have ended their service is important to us. In the UAE, we have partnered with waste management organisations to provide our customers a safe and secure solution to dispose of their electronic items.” He added, “Just like recycling, the education sector is also important to us, so we were delighted to be the award sponsor for EEG’s academic institutions category. We awarded the institutes with our education projectors that are intended to create a culture of collaboration between students

and teachers for a better teaching and learning experience. They are also environment friendly, use less energy and are affordable for academic institutions.” Epson’s EB-765wi projectors, awarded to the schools, are HD ready interactive projectors with a brightness level of 3,200 lumens and allow users to project large images from very short distances. They also enable teachers and students to share content simultaneously.Habiba Al Mar’ashi, Chairperson, Emirates Environmental Group, said: “Epson’s commitment to the environment reflects our initiatives to create a more environmentally aware society. Their sponsorship helped us to host a successful Annual Awards ceremony in commemoration of the World Environment Day 2019.” The event that took place in support of the World Environment Day 2019 was held at Dubai Knowledge Park.