Image Reports April / May 2022

Actively investigating and supporting the wide-format print sector

ISSUE 2 • VOLUME 30 • APRIL / MAY 2022

‘THINK PRINT, THINK INK, THINK AGFA Agfa presents its latest innovations in inkjet printing at FESPA

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Editorial

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From Top: Lesley Simpson Alex Gold Wayne Darroch Carl Archer

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Editor LESLEY SIMPSON LESLEY.SIMPSON@IMAGEREPORTSMAG.CO.UK TEL: 01932 707173

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Contents

CONTENTS APRIL / MAY 2022

REGULARS: p6 News Keeping you abreast of all the latest news in relation to digital wide-format print.

p10 Cover Story Advertorial Think inkjet, think Agfa - and the Avinci CX3200

p25 Think Bigger Gallery showing off the creativity and complexity of large-format inkjet print. Plus, a look at the CMYUK CIRL project’s aims and outcomes.

Digging below the surface with Industry Mole; Out and About events diary; Legal Eagle advice; Over to You for a PSP’s perspective.

16

p30 Zeitgeist

SECTIONS:

p28 Forum

What is the metaverse, and will it ever have anything to do with you?

Special p9 Fespa Global 2022 What to expect if you’re heading to Berlin for this year’s show.

Business p13 Going Up Costs are on the rise, so is your pricing?

p14 Talking Point POPAI UK chair Martin Kingdon discusses the greeningup of retail POP and how PSPs fit into the mix.

Environment

09

p16 Getting creative with cardboard Should you be looking at eco-friendly 3D cardboard engineered print applications?

p19 Carbon calculation made easy NEWS AND VIEWS ONLINE

Go to www.imagereportsmag.co.uk for all the wideformat sector’s industry news, updated regularly

How to get instant carbon footprints on every quote and invoice, automatically.

Technical

online. Image Reports can also send a twice weekly

p21 What to Watch: Talking technical

enews bulletin straight to your inbox – register at:

PSPs outline what technical developments are still sought by the wide-format print sector.

www.imagereportsmag.co.uk/ newsletter

p22 What to Watch: Too high a price to pay Why the reclassification of certain chemicals used in ink production could cost you dear.

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News

GO TO WWW.IMAGEREPORTSMAG.CO.UK FOR THE FULL STORY…

Industry network to deliver support to Ukraine

] Rising Star Awards open for entry

A website has been created - printforukraine.co.uk where you can find printers, signmakers and industry suppliers that have volunteered to receive/collect donations to support the people of Ukraine.

A list of required items and of donation points is provided on the site.

A Go Fund Me page has also been created - and is being managed by Fespa UK - so the organisers can buy additional items and include this in their shipments.

The companies involved will shift donations to a depot in Gravesend, Kent, where Outdoor Logistics

] InkTec introduces new direct-to-film ink ] Xaar releases Sure Flow ultrasonic self-cleaning printhead ] BPIF offers Plastic Packaging Tax support ] Staff exodus warning as poll flags up hybrid working demands ] Adapt to supply Epson SureColor printers in the UK ] SOS to supply GMG Color products in the UK ] Nutec Digital Ink extends its Diamond eco-solvent range ] Spectrum Digital Services appointed Mimaki reseller ] Josero extends its software offering and finishing support

UK is providing a hub and onward transport to Poland. The transport effort is also being supported by global logistics provider DSV. Once in Poland, contacts at volunteer organisations in Lviv, Ukraine, will distribute supplies to those in need.

Vism founder Dan Tyler, who has been instrumental in establishing the network, said: “We helped a couple of people in the Netherlands and France get some items they’d collected over to Ukraine, and now we’ve ended up working as a team of volunteers in the UK and Europe to shift as much essential stuff over there as possible.”

] Canon introduces new web version of PosterArtist ] Paul Fitch replaces Bobby Grauf at Agfa ] SAi brings out FlexiDesign for Mac

Navigator applies energy surcharge

] Solent endorses Innotech’s Envirotech range for weldability ] Taya creates new directorship as part of Kavalan roadmap ] Baldwin shows new XP Quatro Series LED-UV curing module ] Flint hikes prices ] Data Image invests in vertical storage system to cut waste ] Epson SC-V7000 gets first UK public showing at SDUK 2022 ] CMYUK makes an EFI first ] Ricoh signs up to ‘Opening Doors’ initiative ] WOO Global Congress to run in May ] CorelDraw Graphics Suite updated ] MacroArt champions women in signs and graphics initiative ] Global Graphics’ PrintFlat technology granted patent ] Drupa seeks industry input ] Fuji signs up French distributor ] OneVision improves its automation solutions ] Specialist packaging recruitment firm sets up shop ] Xaar finalises Megnajet acquisition ] Enfocus BoardingPass updated ] The road to Net Zero - a country divided? ] Integrated Technology sets up US arm ] Prima to run as a hybrid event ] Enfocus looks beyond graphic arts market

An energy surcharge of 105 Euro per tonne is being applied to all of Navigator’s uncoated woodfree and packaging products in Europe, Middle East and Africa as of 1 April. Prices in the US are also rising.

The hike is on top of European increases of 8-15% for its UWF paper that came into effect on 1 March 2022, and of price increases of 6- 9% in the US during January and early February, and of 7- 10% in the Middle East, North Africa and Latin America.

The company said that since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which has severely aggravated already unstable and unpredictable macroeconomic dynamics, it has experienced a steeper increase in energy related costs and that this exceptional measure is imperative to support its business model’s long-term sustainability and the overall supply chain. Navigator will monitor the evolution of energy prices, adjusting the surcharge when the situation changes.

SDEA member survey shows a resilient market The latest survey by the Shop and Display Equipment Association (SDEA) reveals two-thirds (66%) of its members saw an increase in sales for the final six months of 2021 compared with the same period of 2020 - the average increase in sales being an encouraging 29%. Half the membership said they expected their sales to rise by an average of 17% over the first half of 2022.

In light of this sales increase a substantial section of the respondents had also increased their staff levels - 33% reported increasing their staff levels during

the previous six months and 50% expect to employ extra staff in the coming six months. This positive outlook has been despite price increases - 91% of members experienced increased supplier prices over the past six months with a 19% average rise. A further 73% expected supplier prices to rise over the next six months by a projected 11% average.

SDEA director, Antony Behiels said: “It is encouraging to see SDEA members’ sales continue to rise. From our survey the industry remains buoyant despite the volatile worldwide economy.”

Major investment at Octink to support Paragon Group growth plans Paragon Group company Octink - part of the Service Graphics Display division - has had a £50,000 refurb to support growth plans in the London area. The Brentford site’s buildings have been upgraded, new kit has been purchased and staffing is being increased over the short-term to boost operational capacity.

The moves are key to acquisitive Paragon’s aims to build its Service Graphics Display division into the UK’s dominant force. The division is said to be on target to exceed its FY21-22 turnover targets as business levels return to pre-pandemic levels.

Octink founder Will Tyler said: “The investment and resulting moves are both strategic and necessary. Our Taunton site was heavily linked to our contract with Debenhams, whose high street closure, coupled with the trading impact of Covid, has

6 | April / May 2022

necessitated a rethink around our operation there.

“It is on this basis, with acquisitions in the pipeline, that the production site at Taunton was closed transferring its print production to our other sites at Chippenham, Brentford, Skelmersdale and Glasgow.

“At Brentford, we have upgraded to a Durst 250 PS, with a second machine likely in the next months. The Burkle liquid laminator has also been added to our main production line, and a second Kongsberg cutting table will further bolster our finishing process.

“Strategically, the move supports the growth of all the main drivers of the company’s growth in the London area. The property and construction sector for Octink has always been the priority and expertise. This will now be bolstered on a local

level with the creative and experiential expertise of our Human Built events business alongside the core retail delivery for Service Graphics.

“The levels of work through the business are already growing and with the recent appointment of Ian Bancroft as group operations director, the strategic plan is under constant review.”

Service Graphics Display MD, Martin Hutchings, added: “The Brentford site is strategically important for our division, serving both Octink’s historic property and construction portfolio of clients alongside the recovering retail and exhibition sectors that our wider group operates in.

This re-investment is a major statement and gives Octink the largest large-format production capacity in London combined with our nationwide capability across our other sites.”

News

Ricoh introduces plant-based ink Ricoh has developed a plant-based ink that it claims is greener and cheaper to use than alternatives. The ink is a derivative of the oil-based ink created for the décor printing sector as part of Ricoh’s collaboration with German equipment manufacturer Olbrich. It has been developed to deliver excellent rub resistance and set-off performance for corrugated brown and white boards, as well as carton board.

Ricoh said the plant oil component creates an ink that is quick drying. The oil penetrates porous substrates leaving the pigment near the surface, reducing energy consumption and eliminating the need for a drying system. It is odour-free, biodegradable, supports deinking and is said to provide the same optical density using 50% less ink. Plus, printheads using this new ink are said to be easier to clean and less likely to clog.

UK PSPs take Europe’s first Roland VG3 machines Works of Hart and Funky Labels have ordered Europe’s first units of the new Roland DG TrueVis print-and-cut series, with a VG3-640 and VG3-540 respectively. The machines have been ordered though Hampshire based Roland DG reseller printMax. The VG3 series of eco-solvent inkjet printer/ cutters comprises the 8-colour VG3-640 (64in) and VG3-540 (54in), and the 4-colour SG3540 (54in) and SG3-300 (30in). Roland DG showcased the range at SDUK 2022, with the first due for delivery from May. New features include a 7in LCD touch panel, automated media feed and gap adjustment, and easier media set-up via one-touch media holders. The Media Take-Up system is now included with all TrueVis 3 devices with an automated set-up function.

Efficiency is enhanced by the proactive maintenance and device information provided by Roland DG Connect. A colour-coded dashboard gives an instant view of overall statistics.

The machines also have colour matching and variation job function, supported by the latest version of VersaWorks, which enables users to select print quality, colour correction settings, and combine output samples with different output settings to determine the final combination of settings.

Works of Hart director Steve Hart placed an order for the VG3-640 within half an hour of its launch and without seeing it first-hand due to his trust in the relationship with printMax. Funky Labels director Caroline Gascoyne had already placed an order for the VG2 but upgraded to the VG3-540 on hearing of the new release.

Canon opens new ink manufacturing factory Canon has opened a new production facility for water-based, polymer inks at its site in Venlo, The Netherlands. The 1500m2 factory has been created from the shell of an existing building and has high levels of automation to optimise production and minimise waste. The move has created a number of new jobs, with its 30 employees being a mix of redeployed staff and new hires.

Rob Puts, vice president manufacturing and logistics at Canon Production Printing, said: “Our water-based, polymer inks were fully developed

in-house and, as with all our in-house developed technologies, we piloted them here within our R&D facility. Once the inks had proved themselves in the market, as they clearly have, we invested in this new facility to meet the growing demand from existing customers as well as expected strong future demands. Dedicated to the production of water-based, polymer inks that can be used across our multiple inkjet production engines, the new, highly automated plant has been built to satisfy whatever level of growth our customers achieve.”

Sappi expands production capacities Sappi is expanding European production of its Fusion Topliner white virgin fibre liner for highend corrugated packaging and POS displays to guarantee a sustainable and short supply chain.

The company is adding the grade to its flagship mill in Gratkorn, Austria as well as continuing its manufacture at the Ehingen mill in Germany. Sappi said volumes will be enlarged over the next three months to ensure reliable customer supply.

Sappi is also investing a sum “in the low doubledigit millions” over the next two years to expand its ‘centre of excellence’ for speciality papers at its mill in Carmignano, Italy. With this investment, it plans

to increase production capacity to support further growth in the dye-sublimation business.

In 2018, Sappi recognised the importance of sublimation paper for digital transfer printing and took over the speciality paper business of Cham Paper Group, a Swiss group with mills in Carmignano and Condino (Italy). The opening of the Digital Solutions Centre in Carmignano a year later supported the launch of more products in the field of sublimation printing. Now Sappi is committing further to the site near Venice. Construction will begin in the middle of this year. The conversion is scheduled for completion by the end of 2023.

New printers and cutters from Mimaki Mimaki has launched the 330 Series of eco-solvent printers, the TS330-1600 sublimation transfer inkjet printer, and a CG-AR entry-level range of cutting plotters. UK and Ireland distributor, Hybrid Services presented models from the ranges at SDUK 2022.

The eco-solvent JV330-160 is a print only machine while the CJV330-160 is an integrated printer/ cutter. They feature a newly designed unwinding system that allows three rolls of media to be loaded simultaneously, and an XY slitter to eliminate unwinding and manual cutting from the workflow.

The TS330-1600 is a 4-colour dye-sub machine with a speed of 69m2/hr in draft mode and up to 135m2/hr in its fastest mode.

Mimaki’s TxLink4 Rip software is included and all products in the series are fitted with ‘Mimaki Weaving Dot Technology’ (MWDT) that changes the order of ink droplet placement depending on the printing conditions.

Optional add-ons include a 10kg ink tank supply unit and a mini jumbo roll unit. ‘Mimaki Remote Access’ (MRA) is also available across the series.

The new cutting plotters - the CG-60AR, CG-100AR and CG-130AR - are equipped with Mimaki Remote Access, and feature Mimaki’s ID Cut function, which allows integrated print-and-cut operations when used in combination with a Mimaki printer, by automatically retrieving cutting data via a barcode.

EFI introduces Fiery Prep-it EFI has introduced Fiery Prep-it, a true-shape nesting and cut-preparation software for PSPs using wide- and superwide-format inkjet printers. It connects to any digital front end (DFE), including the EFI Firey proServer and Fiery XF. According to EFI, the new tool can reduce the time needed to manually nest jobs by up to 90%, and by more than 10% compared with other trueshape nesting offerings. The company reckons it also saves users more than 10% in media usage compared with similar products thanks to its

nesting algorithms, and that on media savings alone, the software can pay for itself in as little as two months.

Fiery Prep-it software can take jobs from different sources and prepare them for print-then-cut production.

This can be done manually or semiautomatically with the use of pre-sets and hot folders. Jobs that arrive to production from prepress workflow, web-to-print, or MIS solutions can take advantage of the capability to apply every available Prep-it cut setting in a full hands-off job production mode.

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Special - Fespa Preview

FAST FOREWORD TO FESPA GLOBAL THIS YEAR’S SHOW WILL OCCUPY EIGHT HALLS OF MESSE BERLIN. WILL YOU BE ONE OF THOSE WALKING THEM?

The slogan for Fespa Global 2022 is ‘Experience Print in Motion’, and it’ll be interesting to see how apt that turns out to be in terms motivating the international print community to travel to the show in Berlin.

The last Fespa Global print expo was held just last October at the RAI Exhibition Centre in Amsterdam.

That was expected to be a rather quiet affair given all that was going on, and it lived up to that expectation.

Fespa is being somewhat wary of claiming too much for the upcoming 2022 event too, saying that given the dynamic situation, it’s not making any predictions around visitor numbers but that it hopes to attract a strong audience of senior decision-makers who have a direct role to play in investment decisions. Will you be one of them?

At the time of going to press, 280 exhibitors had confirmed their presence at this year’s show, with many of the big names making the most of the chance to get in front of a live crowd again. The full exhibitor list can be found on the show website and includes large-format inkjet printer biggies like Agfa, Canon, Durst, EFI, Epson, Fujifilm, HP, Mimaki, Mutoh, Roland DG and swissQprint, plus a significant showing of other related hardware, software and consumables players supplying the sector.

How many brand new developments they will have to show off is questionable. This far out from a major trade show there’s usually more noise, if not detail, as to anticipated launches etc. No doubt there will be some of those, but on the whole visitors can rather expect this Fespa Global to be more a platform for exhibitors to physically demonstrate and highlight what they’ve already introduced into the market, but perhaps in a more muted way than they would have liked in ‘normal’ times. The Image Reports website, enewsletters and social media

AT A GLANCE

Fespa Global 2022 Where: Messe Berlin, Germany When: 31 May – 3 June, 2022 Times: 10am – 6pm, Tuesday – Thursday, 10am – 3pm, Friday Cost: 80 Euro for non-Fespa members or 50 Euro for those who preregister using a promotional code. Entry is free for members of Fespa UK or Fespa Direct.

channels will keep you abreast of anything groundbreaking as we near and go through the show.

So what else can you expect of Fespa Global 2022?

Well, you can forget settling down in the Trends Theatre, a staple of recent years. That seminar programme is effectively being subsumed into a new Sustainability Spotlight feature this time around, aiming to provide actionable guidance on making print businesses and processes more environmentally friendly. There will be conference sessions, details of which were still being finalised at the time of writing but including: sustainable materials for graphic and textile applications; energy reduction, addressing the opportunities to reduce consumption through renewables, energy efficiency strategies and management; carbon footprint facilities and benchmarking; supply chain transparency; certification schemes, both self-certification and externally validated systems; and brands’ expectations and the benefit of reducing scope 3 GHG emissions. There will also be an application gallery designed to inspire visitors on sustainable best-practice.

A more familiar ‘inspirational’ feature you can again expect to see is Printeriors. Now in its sixth year, it will showcase interior décor applications inspired by flora and nature (designed by Jasper Goodall) and produced in conjunction with a number of print industry partners. It will be located in the south entrance of Messe Berlin, and encompass textiles, wallcoverings, furnishings, flooring, fine art, lighting and accessories.

Also in the south entrance will be a new Fespa Associations Pavilion, with the 37 national associations providing a showcase of real work produced by members as a sort of melting pot of inspirational print.

If wrapping is what does it for you, then you’ll be rapt with the free training workshops and demonstrations on offer, not to mention the live-action World Wrap Masters wrapping competition itself. On days one and two, 36 European wrappers will be judged on a series of timed wrapping tasks. And on days three and four, regional competition finalists from around the world will join the winners of the European heat to battle it out for the title of ‘World Wrap Master 2022’.

Michael Ryan, head of Fespa Global Print Expo, says: “Preparations for the 2022 show are in full swing and our aspirations for the event are clear in our campaign motto - we want the speciality print community to ‘Experience Print in Motion’.

“To date, there are over 280 confirmed exhibitors set to showcase the latest developments in technologies, media and consumables, and highlight exciting growth markets and application opportunities. Our exciting features line-up underlines the constant forward momentum in print, emphasising key trends and giving visitors insight, facts and inspiration to help them consider the potential significance of these in their own businesses.

“As travel restrictions and Covid regulations ease, the Fespa events in Berlin will be an important landmark for our industry, providing a vital hub where exhibitors and visitors can connect face-to-face again, see hundreds of products in one place, explore the new opportunities that can support and accelerate their recovery, and gather ideas and knowledge that will drive their business forward.”

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Cover Story

AGFA AT FESPA 2022: THINK INKJET. THINK AGFA.

THE AVINCI IS VERSATILE, PRODUCTIVE, AND IT LIMITS THE MEDIA WASTE THAT IS INHERENTLY LINKED TO THE CHANGING OF ROLLS

Under the heading ‘Think Inkjet. Think Agfa’, Agfa will present its latest innovations in inkjet printing at FESPA in Berlin (31 May to 03 June 2022). Visit us in Hall 3.2 booth C20 and get inspired. In total, three wide-format printers will run on our booth. In addition, you can also experience our software workflow solution Asanti. Scan the qr-code to discover our dedicated Fespa event page and register already today for a free ticket.

Discover more:

says Managing Director Sylviane Ravet, L’agence de Fab, France

DIRECT & TRANSFER PRINTING WITH AGFA’S AVINCI CX3200 For many years, Agfa is known as a solution provider – combining all offerings: software, press and ink. With their research and development teams and together with their customers, Agfa always aims to adapt their

10 | April / May 2022

products to the needs of the markets. Mainly focussing on printers that use UV LED curing, Agfa introduced the Avinci CX3200, a dye sublimation roll-to-roll printer of 3.2m width, in June 2021 to cover the needs of polyester-based media. The Avinci prints on a wide variety of polyester-based soft signage applications such as backlit point-of-sales displays, indoor wall graphics, outdoor advertising, block-outs, backdrops, flags, or retail store décor elements. In addition, it can also be used to print polyester-based sportswear or fashion garments. Being able to print directly to fabric is easy and ideal for fast handling and for special applications such as flags, where print-though is needed. Transfer paper allows for super sharp prints, eliminates any setoff, and limits media waste to a minimum. In addition, it extends the application scope to sportswear and fashion garments, as well as home décor prints on noncoated polyester fabrics.

The Avinci CX3200 boasts a rich color gamut and delivers deep black, perfect solids, accurate spot color mapping and smooth tonal rendering that is particularly noticeable in skin tones. Through the process of dye sublimation, your soft signage prints will look simply amazing.

The Avinci inks are characterized by their flexibility, image longevity and outdoor resistance. They offer stable jetting performance with a minimum of jetted ink. This low ink consumption is based on Agfa’s Thin Ink Layer technology, a smart combination of particular ink characteristics and our Asanti workflow software

Cover Story

Applications algorithms that tune the ink quantities perfectly to the required image quality mode.

An off-line calender unit fixes the color deeply into the structure of the polyester-based fabrics while evaporating the carrier fluid.

Check out the experiences of our French customer, L’Agence de Fab:

OPTIMISING THE FLOW Printing begins with fast, error-free delivery of print files to the pressroom. The ability to process jobs through a dedicated workflow saves time and money and ensures that every machine is fed with the right data at the right time. This is where Agfa’s award-winning Asanti workflow comes into play. Asanti automates everyday tasks without restricting the operator. On the contrary, Asanti guarantees that what is sent to press is complete and ready to print. Thanks to the seamless integration any last-minute changes on press are fed back to the Asanti server avoiding conflicting versions being used accidentally. By removing the need to jump from one platform to another Agfa systems significantly reduce

press make-ready times giving you greater productivity day in, day out.

AGFA-MADE INKS Specially formulated to print on rigid and flexible roll media, Agfa’s award-winning inks broaden the scope of possible applications. Whatever the substrate or intended use – general applications, indoor or outdoor – accuracy and excellent adhesion are a given. Agfa-made inks boast a wide colour gamut and high colour vibrancy, resulting in lively yet natural prints. Agfa inks deliver consistent high-quality results, batch after batch. What’s more, this vividness is created to last, even when subjected to adverse outdoor weather conditions.

Thanks to Agfa’s patented ‘Thin Ink Layer’ technology, which involves the optimal dispersion and high pigment load of Agfa-made inks combined with Asanti’s CMS algorithms, ink consumption per square metre is the lowest on the market. This does not mean that we compromise on quality or performance in any way. Quite the opposite is true – Agfa’s low ink consumption results in eye-catching prints while preventing clogging, offering stable jetting performance, and helping you save time and money.

Furthermore, Agfa’s UV LED inks obtained multiple certifications – including GREENGUARD Gold – and comply with a wide range of industry norms that pertain to the restricted use of chemicals listed by the UK and the EU, to chemical emissions and air quality in indoor applications, to safety for toys regarding heavy metals migration and to the restriction of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.

I DECIDED TO GO FOR AGFA AGAIN BECAUSE WE WERE LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT BALANCE BETWEEN GREAT MACHINES AND AFTERSALES SERVICE, AND AGFA HAVE REALLY DELIVERED FOR US ON THAT. WE HAVE A REAL PARTNERSHIP. WHENEVER WE’VE WANTED TO DEVELOP THINGS, AGFA HAVE ALWAYS LISTENED AND BEEN REALLY RESPONSIVE

Iain Clasper-Cotte, UK Managing Director Northern Flags

Agfa UK’s Inkjet Experience Centre in Rugby, Warwickshire is fully open. To book your demo visit www.agfa.co.uk/inkjet, email icc.gb@agfa.com or call 020 8231 4027.

Agfa UK’s Inkjet Experience Center

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Business | First person

GOING UP OBVIOUS COSTS, HIDDEN COSTS AND THE NEED TO RAISE YOUR OWN PRICES - MATIC MEDIA MD AND PRINT SCOTLAND VICE PRESIDENT RICHARD MCCOMBE CONSIDERS THE IMPLICATIONS OF ALL THESE FOR PRINT BUSINESSES.

Everything is going up in price. Should our print? Here at Matic Media [based on the outskirts of Glasgow] we are considering what effect rising costs, and raising our own prices, will have on our business.

This started back last year when we purchased, what we thought would be a year’s worth of key media stock (ACM, PVC, banner, vinyl). This was largely to allow us to avoid any temporary price hikes and shortages. This decision was based on factors like the Suez Canal blockage, delays from China, container shortages, depleted European stocks, Covid-19, and my wife saying that she had a conversation in the supermarket with an employee who could see prices spiraling.

Nine months down the road and the situation is not improving, although the circumstances and problems are somewhat changed. At the start of 2022 we received our energy renewal notification - and the variable rate of electricity was 60p per KWH whereas our previous contracted rate was 13.7p per KWH. We eventually through gritted teeth - entered a contract for two years on 27p. No doubt you, like me, can see where this is heading, and it’s not a trouble-free road.

HIDDEN COSTS ARE GOING UP TOO AND ARE LIKELY NOT ACCOUNTED FOR WHEN WORKING OUT OUR PRICES

I’m the vice president for Print Scotland and this gives me a great insight into our neighbouring industries, and how their problems are becoming ours too. Paper has seen a 50% increase in the last year for instance.

This is particularly worrying as many print businesses will struggle to gain repeat orders of things like annual reports and further education prospectuses as the paper price hikes are bound to accelerate the switch to digital.

Then there are the bigger things going on as I write this. We have a world in turmoil as the Ukraine is invaded

by Russia and political leaders turn their eyes on trade and economic embargoes with Russia. Is this affecting our businesses?

There is no doubt it is and will. There’s bound to be further price disruption to our business supplies, the obvious ones being material and energy driven by oil, gas and wheat. Plus, we can see other overheads rising, and with inflation at its highest rate in many years, what impact will this have on employee pay expectations?

We will also see on our customers invoices surcharges on fuel, but not just in relation to couriers. Last week we purchased glass and it had an energy surcharge, which I’ve not noticed in the past. So something else to build in.

We run management reports that are published on the 10th of each month, and it is becoming more important now to watch how ‘hidden’ areas of our business are seeing a creep in costs. For example, we probably all use nitril gloves, blades, packaging and many other things that are not entered into our quoting system to cover such consumables. All of these hidden costs are going up too and are likely not accounted for when working out our prices.

For those of us that have/use installation crews, we also need to keep a close eye on the costs of running vehicles - our annual fuel bill is eyewatering and that cost is increasing daily.

So, in response to all the above, what do we do to remain a sustainable business? The obvious answer is to increase prices. This is always a daunting consideration, let alone activity, but the long and short of it is that if we do not increase prices then our own net profit will decrease. Our business overheads are going to increase.

My point is, many of us need to rethink our pricing structure. It’s no good just looking at the materials costs when working out pricing - it’s everything, from office stationery, diesel in your van, inflation that will raise questions about pay increases and the many other things I have not noticed yet.

However, there may be a non-confrontational bright side to this. Those of us who have a business model based on ‘many transactions for many customers’ may realise that the jobs are not repeats - each client places a different order each time, of a different product and this a different price. Therefore, these customers may not identify price increases, other than commoditised products, like banner and roll-up banner stands (although you will notice that the £21 roll-up banner appears to have disappeared!).

These customers will simply accept the price offered, especially if there is a positive relationship there.

And that leads me to my conclusion - prices must increase to sustain our businesses and now, more than ever, relationships must be rock-solid to discourage our customers from shopping around.

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Business | Talking Point

talks to...

Martin Kingdon, This summer, on 15 June, POPAI UK/Ireland will run its biggest ever sustainability summit - ‘Impact22’.

Topics on the agenda include the greening-up of retail POP and sustainable materials.

I talked to chair and sustainability director, Martin Kingdon, to find out where the organisation thinks large-format PSPs fit into the scheme of things.

POPAI stands for Point-Of-Purchase Advertising International and I understand that your key aim is to promote the importance of that medium to your members. Given so many of my readers are involved in producing POP/POS and other print for retail outlets, can you give me an overview on where that print community is on your radar?

We have a wide range of members with strong representation from both the client and supply side as well as temporary and permanent display, agencies, materials suppliers and printers. We have 175 members currently of which 105 are on the supply side. Our print members tend to be the larger companies in the industry who have been making strides over the years in both maintaining a technological edge and enhancing their relationships with brands and retailers where possible, as well as the procurement houses.

Our focus for many years has been the application of technologies and resulting displays into retail and the impact that this has on the shopper. This has meant that we have looked to work with print companies to ensure that they are aware of the latest in client thinking across a range of areas, including sustainability.

As far as our overall level of knowledge and contact with the sector is concerned we have recognised that there is more that we can do and as a result have started working closely with the BPIF to facilitate mutual knowledge sharing focused initially on sustainability, as well as co-operating on specific initiatives and shared future events.

Whilst this relationship is in its early stages the signs are extremely positive. This can only serve to help both sets of members better navigate the complexities of the commercial world.

Additionally, regarding sustainability, POPAI set up the sustainability council comprising representation from ten companies across the industry, including that of print.

Historically, there’s been something of a disconnect between printers and the ‘creatives’ specifying print for the retail space. That, together with the lure of all things digital, means print has perhaps not been used to it fullest potential. We keep hearing that a move towards relationship working is changing that. What are your thoughts?

We have been hearing about the death of print, in relation to the growth in all things digital since the year 2000. It hasn’t happened yet.

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Questions are now being asked about the environmental footprint of digital, i.e. internet, and a recent study states that 4% of greenhouse emissions emanate from this. As far as digital screens in-store are concerned, these were supposed to replace posters many years ago due to their flexibility of messaging and increased visibility. Whilst this is true, many clients didn’t understand the cost of maintenance of the screens, the cost of content, what their role was etc. They can be the correct solution in many cases, but it comes at a price.

Regarding the relationship with creatives, I am not sure that much has changed in recent years, aside from some print companies setting up their own creative or agency offer. As with most display of whatever kind, in general it is only a part of an overall campaign - the issue for years has been to get the in-store/print element fully represented within the campaign delivery thus securing the appropriate budget. Studies show this has been achieved to a degree, but the creatives have the key role to play to ensure that what they design is relevant, legible, impactful, practical and cost effective.

‘Greening-up’ POP/POS is of course an increasingly important issue - hence your Impact22 summit - but who’s pushing the envelope as far as POPAI can tell?

We are all aware of the global concerns regarding the environment. Matters specific to the world of retail, display and print have not moved at the same pace though. We have seen, historically, that retail and all that goes along with it, is often looked at last and has to work proportionately harder than other media areas with more stringent demands being placed on it.

Regarding sustainability specifically, there is a lot of pressure coming from within brands and retailers for an improved delivery of sustainable products. One of the key issues around this is the wide-spread confusion over what actions should be taken, what is genuinely better for the environment, and the establishment of facts within the context that an individual client is working in.

We have seen greatly varying levels of knowledge within clients, and the responsibility for dealing with this does not rest within consistent areas. We have found it challenging to identify those roles or individuals on the client side who have both responsibility for it and the power to effect change.

One area of definite change is the dramatic increase in sustainability content in tenders and RFP’s

Business | Talking Point

chair and sustainability director, POPAI UK/Ireland etc. Procurement is the main point of sustainability engagement in many cases although they may not have prime responsibility for it.

The print community has a significant role to play not just in regards to substrates used, but in the inks, adhesives etc that are used. The levels of understanding of these and where they are placed in the sustainability hierarchy seems to be patchy at best.

POP/POS print providers are increasingly in a position to offer more eco-friendly retail solutions. Do you think those specifying such products are managing to stay abreast of developments?

In a recent sustainability survey conducted by POPAI, retailers, brand owners, POP manufacturers, designers, and agencies were all asked how they kept up to date and were made aware of developments in sustainable materials and processes. Material suppliers and wholesalers were reported as being the most common source of this type of information, either as a result of enquiries made by POP manufactures or designers, or by the suppliers themselves pro-actively making their customers aware of new products and production methods. 86% of respondents said that they received updates from their material supplier. They in turn are reliant on materials wholesalers. As a result there is the opportunity for information to be filtered or not put forward if not relevant to that specific business relationship.

In addition to material suppliers communicating directly with end customers, 75% of POPAI’s respondents also said that they also learn of materials developments through the trade press, with a further 56% saying that social media and POPAI are also sources of information about new environmentally friendly materials. Blogs are also useful, with 31% of companies saying that they are kept up to date through this medium.

In general though I would say that specifiers do not have the overall expertise to know exactly what will make a substantial difference in environmental terms, particularly given the blizzard of ‘eco’ products coming on the market.

It is also difficult to be definitive about specific environmental benefits as in many cases the context of how they are used is critical to the result. As an example, referring to client side feedback when ecoinks are spoken about, it seems that there is no clear understanding of what the benefits are exactly, how

they impact on the recycling process, what the cost comparisons are etc.

Finally, there is still a definite perception on the client side that ‘eco’ equals ‘expensive’ and a reluctance to change. This is historically correct as products have not been mainstream and therefore the volumes are not there to bring prices down to those of comparable non-eco products. This is starting to change but it will still be some time before there is parity. The key question here though is “what price the planet?”

Do you have any printers speaking at the Impact22 summit?

Impact22 has been set up mainly to hear from the client side on how they are addressing the challenges of operating in a more sustainable way. This is essential knowledge for the rest of the industry and getting companies like those speaking to share their thoughts and give detail on their sustainability journey is a rare event.

My expectation is that through these presentations those attending will start to see where the opportunities are for them, both through sustainable practices and more broadly into how sustainability, quality design, technical delivery and cost have to work together to define the retail environments of the future.

Within I22 there is also the opportunity for ten companies to showcase their offers specific to sustainability. These slots have all been sold and there is representation from the world of print.

POPAI has a long history of running events where the supply side of the industry has the opportunity to present the latest developments and this will continue later in the year.

THE CRITICAL ISSUE IS TO DELIVER A MESSAGE WITH CLARITY AND SIMPLICITY THAT MAY BE UNDERSTOOD BY A NON-TECHNICAL AUDIENCE

What scope is there for digital print providers to play a more involved role in the development of a more sustainable retail market?

There is great scope for digital print providers to play a greater role in communicating the benefits that they may provide to deliver a more sustainable retail market.

As with other elements in retail delivery the critical issue is to deliver a message with clarity and simplicity that may be understood by a non-technical audience.

There is now a willingness for most clients to engage in the sustainability agenda. However the key attributes of a material and the main benefits provided may not be easy to understand.

Given the plethora of claims being made now, addressing this issue will be a substantial step forward.

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Environment

GETTING CREATIVE WITH CARDBOARD IF IT’S GOOD ENOUGH FOR THE TV AND FILM INDUSTRY, IT’S GOOD ENOUGH FOR MANY OTHER SECTORS, SO SHOULD YOU BE LOOKING A BIT MORE SERIOUSLY AT 3D, CARDBOARD ENGINEERED PRINT APPLICATIONS?

This sector has had the capability to produce fabulous printed 3D work for years, but it’s gone largely unnoticed beyond retail and exhibition displays.

Shame, there’s oodles of potential. Now that’s getting recognised in the wider design community, its eco credentials being a key driver. The well-publicised and much applauded carboard TV/film sets created earlier this year for the Vectar Project - which is challenging the TV/film industry to become more environmentally conscientious by switching to more sustainable cardboard sets - will help spread the word. What’s being espoused as good for the planet, could also be good for you, so does it make sense for you to get more involved?

Sustainable printing exponent Imageco has. You may have seen some of its nifty work for the Antalis stand at this year’s Surface Design Show, and it’s working with the media supplier again for the VM and Display Show - all in an attempt to raise the eco-friendly profile of 3D cardboard structures and grow demand for what could be a highly lucrative as well as worthy development.

Imageco, which has been producing cardboard engineered applications for some time, has recently seen a huge jump in such work, and believes it will become a linchpin in terms of the company’s own sustainability.

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Imageco works with Antalis to show-off Xanita board 3D possibilities

“It is now a massive part of our business and forms part

A BIG PART OF OUR 2021 R&D TAX CLAIM WAS BASED ON THE TRIALS OF CARDBOARD ENGINEERING

of our plans for the future,” says co-owner and MD Nathan Swinson-Bullough. He points out why: “December 2021 and Feb 2022 saw cardboard related POS account for almost 50% of our turnover. We expect, overall, that in 2022 it will account for 40% of our work in all sectors. If we look back to 2018 / 2019 when things were normal it was less than 10%, so a significant shift has happened.

“We are actively working on designs from card and Xanita that can be applied to areas of retail, events, exhibitions, and others. Our cardboard engineer is flat out day in, day out, on various designs. In fact, a big part of our 2021 R&D tax claim was based on the trials of cardboard engineering.”

Swinson-Bullough explains the turnabout that he’s witnessed, saying: “We have been printing on to card for as long as I remember, but for basic stuff - simple displays and POS with generic downloaded cutters. For many years we just created things off the top of our head and fumbled our way through making things.

“But three or four years ago the guys at Antalis introduced us to Xanita board, which opened-up new possibilities. We soon put the material to use, replacing rigid foam PVC with its introduction. The team at Xanita had its own design team and offered us support on 3D design

Environment

which was great. The uptake on the material was so good that we were made gold partners for Xanita.”

He continues: “Cardboard engineering really excited me and for some time was on my radar in terms of something I’d like to develop, but as with anything, you need the right people to make things happen. In late 2021 a fortuitous thing happened - an introduction to Tim Houghton and Dean Sharpe. Tim was a seasoned account handler of all things POS and dealt with large volume rollouts and Dean was an incredible design engineer. We offered them both a role at Imageco and since then the work has escalated and we are producing high volume POS runs for retail and pushing the exhibition route with Xanita.

“Following the success of Antalis’s stand at the recent Surface design show in London we are seeing a surge in enquiries for carboard-based solutions and are currently working on several events and roll-outs.”

The ‘eco sustainability’ factor is proving key to this surge in demand. “There are so many benefits to working with paper-based products, and we can now engineer products that are durable and 100% cardbased,” says Swinson-Bullough.

“Xanita for example is 100% recycled fibre board that is also 100% recycled, it has 70% the strength of MDF yet is a fraction of the weight. It ticks environmental boxes in terms of recyclability to CO2 emissions to transportation etc. Not only can we engineer 3D applications in a way that doesn’t need adhesives or tape, the manufacturing time and processes are also reduced using cardboard engineering. From our perspective, our Zund is equipped with multi tooling, so the construction of the products is simple yet very robust.”

Imageco has recognised that it needs take on an educator role to get clients - and potential ones - to understand these ‘green’ benefits.

“Our clients are becoming more sustainable and as a critical part of the supply chain the more sustainable applications we can offer be the better this reflects on their own sustainability values.

“By actually showing our clients the possibilities of cardboard-based 3D projects it opens their mind to what can be achieved. I must admit, until Dean began work with us I didn’t realise just how far we could push the limits. What he produces is incredible. We joke that his brain sees the world in cardboard.

“Education about products is something we have always pushed with our clients. We can see the possibilities and have created a lovely showroom of products and past work. It’s good to get our clients in so that they can see the benefits themselves.

“We also have a very active marketing team. If I plant a seed they grow it and make sure our audience is aware of what we are doing. We work with creative agencies so by demonstrating new and innovative processes it gets their brain ticking,” says Swinson-

Bullough, adding: “It is easy being a visual company to get the message across. Working in the sectors we work in makes it an easier sell.”

Imageco is now working on 3D projects from short-run bespoke packaging to events and national POS rollouts. And of course it is helping spread the word by partnering with Antalis at various events where the creative industries meet.

“We are lucky that we pretty much have the all the kit we need at our disposal now. The print capabilities and cutting potential have always been there. W have invested in some new tools for our Zund to speed up processes and have upgraded the software but nothing major has changed in targeting this 3D carboard engineered print offering. The two big investments were in the recruiting of industry experts in Tim and Dean - their combined knowledge has been a game changer for us.

“The print landscape changed during Covid and some of our work never returned so I am happy with the decisions we have made about focussing on what is a sustainable print offering. We are already seeing a decent ROI. Long may it continue.”

A WANDER DOWN SUSTAINABILITY STREET Antalis is showing-off its range of eco-friendly visual communications substrates in a ‘Sustainable Street’ setting at the VM and Display Show at London’s Business Design Centre (5-6 April). Every element of the Antalis stand - from the structural to the decorative - will be made using substrates for use in retail store design, instore displays and POS. “We are positive that the Antalis stand will both inspire and excite visitors to the possibilities of a more sustainable future for visual merchandising and display,” says Claire White, specification consultant at Antalis.

The company has been rapidly growing its range of printable display substrates that form part of its Green Star System, a framework that considers how each material is produced and how easily it can be recycled at end of life to meet the growing demand from the retail sector and other industries.

Its ‘Sustainable Street’ is being entirely constructed using Xanita board, an engineered closed cell fibreboard manufactured from material recovered from recycled, used cardboard boxes. It is an environmentally friendly alternative to MDF and other non-sustainable materials and is suitable for a wide range of applications, including POS, 2D and 3D displays, and internal furniture.

Antalis demo product

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Environment

CARBON CALCULATION MADE EASY CARBONQUOTA AND THARSTERN HAVE COLLABORATED TO CREATE A TOOL THAT ALLOWS YOU TO PROVIDE INSTANT CARBON FOOTPRINTS ON EVERY QUOTE AND INVOICE - AUTOMATICALLY - USING YOUR OWN IN-HOUSE DATA. IT’S A MILESTONE DEVELOPMENT. HERE’S WHY. “Carbon accounting is becoming as mainstream as cost accounting, and we’re now entering an era when it’s as normal to ask about the environmental footprint of goods or services as it is price.” So says Dominic Harris, cofounder of CarbonQuota, which has teamed up with MIS provider Tharstern to introduce a tool that delivers instant carbon footprints on every quote and invoice (produced by the Tharstern MIS) as well as carbon offsetting costs or Carbon Neutral certification that the end client can choose to add to their order.

“With many of the world’s organisations making pledges to be Net Zero, the need for scientific measurement and detailed reporting of packaging and print is often a prerequisite for doing business with these organisations. So, print service providers that want to be included in these supply chains will have to be able to provide details of their own carbon footprint,” stresses Harris.

“Historically, print businesses often only looked at the carbon footprint of paper/media, which accounted for about half of the total carbon footprint of the job, so we were determined that our calculations not only measured that but also included other consumables, production, transport, postage, outwork, fulfilment and end-of-life, as that truly reflects the total lifecycle environmental impact of a job.”

The very first user of this new integration is Gecko, a direct marketing agency based in Leeds. The company has already achieved ISO accreditation ISO14001, ISO9001 and ISO27001, as well as being FSC certified, but it was keen to take its eco responsibilities and reporting capabilities a step further.

“We’re hearing more and more about the importance of reducing our carbon impact, and at Gecko we wanted to do the right thing and be part of the solution,” says Chris Bottomley, managing director at Gecko. “So we decided to offer our clients the opportunity to not only calculate the carbon footprint of their jobs, but give them the chance to offset it too.”

The partnership started last year, when Bottomley was chatting to a fellow business owner about their upcoming call with CarbonQuota. “I decided to join the call and listen to what it was all about and I was intrigued by what they were saying,” he outlines. “So I asked CarbonQuota to

THE PRINT INDUSTRY HAS A RARE OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE LEADERSHIP IN SUSTAINABILITY

calculate the footprint of two jobs we had just produced for a key client in the insurance sector. The results of that were a real eyeopener and led to the idea off adding the carbon footprint calculation to our quote letters, along with optional costs for offsetting it.”

After speaking to CarbonQuota and Tharstern about his idea, the two companies bought into Bottomley’s vision, and started work on the integration.

The first step in the project was for CarbonQuota to carry out a carbon footprint assessment of Gecko’s operation, which took a few weeks. The data from this study was included in CarbonQuota’s database and algorithms so they were able to work out the carbon footprint of every single process within Gecko’s operation, which in turn were loaded into Gecko’s Tharstern system.

This enables CarbonQuota to calculate and apply unique ‘carbon emissions factors’ to every single substrate, consumable, production process and distribution stage, as well as an assessment of the carbon impact at the end-of-life of each job.

Gecko can now use its MIS to show clients the carbon footprint of each job, offer lower carbon alternatives, and give them the chance to offset the carbon impact of that job.

In fact, the offsetting can be done to the PAS2060 Carbon Neutral standard, which is governed in line with the latest Net Zero protocols.

“The project at Gecko shows that carbon footprinting for the packaging and print sector can be automated and science based,” says Lee Ward, CRO at Tharstern. “Once the assessment has been carried out by CarbonQuota and the carbon tool in Tharstern is configured, our users just continue to use Tharstern in the same way - nothing changes other than the new addition to each quote and the ability to report on the company’s carbon footprint as a whole. It saves a huge amount of time and opens up superior levels of carbon measurement for our customers.”

Ward emphasises that “the carbon impact of the manufacturing sector is under enormous scrutiny right now and the print industry has a rare opportunity to demonstrate leadership in sustainability and shows the wider sector how it should be done. This solution ticks all the boxes of even the toughest customers!”.

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Technology | What to Watch

TALKING TECHNICAL WHAT DO PSPS STILL WANT IN TERMS OF TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE WIDE-FORMAT PRINT SECTOR? HERE’S THE GRASSROOTS RESPONSE TO THE QUESTION. Remember the song lyric ‘Ev’rythin’s up to date in Kansas City. They’ve gone about as far as they can go!’ from the musical Oklahoma? Maybe not, but it came to mind while talking to print chiefs for this article and posing the question ‘What technical developments do you want to see?’ ahead of the major 2022 trade shows. Now I’m not saying there aren’t still issues to be overcome, as you’ll read from the responses below, but the overarching message was that the now well established large-format sector is pretty happy with what it’s got, and from here on in it’s just about tweaking this and that. Agree?

Many of those PSPs contacted for this article were stumped to highlight specific ‘wants’. Andy Wilson, MD at PressOn, admitted that the “the only thing I can think of is some sort of inline coating for materials, or at least a more convenient way of lamination be it film or liquid.”

Of those with more on their wishlist, Macroart MD Michael Green flags up “further developments in water-based inks in the roll-to-roll sector, and more sustainable self-adhesive vinyl products.”

Another technical development he would like to see albeit one not specific to this sector - is “a better range on electric vans and trucks as the current best is 70 miles,” And, continuing the ‘green’ theme, he points out that “a big expansion is needed in the UK re cycling infrastructure - so much still goes waste to energy due to lack of capacity.”

KGK Genix director Graham Pitts is also eager to see an improvement in recyclability. “This industry is inherently throw away, so it’s great that manufacturers are releasing more and more recyclable and/or sustainable materials for us to print on. However, there are very few - if any - UK recycling sites that can take the materials once they have been used. I’d love to see a massive development into the whole recyclable chain so that we can offer a full closed loop for every graphic produced.”

Workflow solutions also require development according to Pitts. “I’d like to see a meaningful workflow system that fully integrates production scheduling and that gets updated live as and when jobs are booked in and completed. There are systems out there but none of them that I have seen do a very good job,” he says.

“To be a bit more specific, we currently we use Optimus for our MIS information. This does a great job in handling our quoting system, job sheets, stock and purchasing, invoicing and financial management information. However, we use a separate software for our CRM information, which logs calls, call back requests, meetings and new opportunities. There is a fair amount of duplication in entering in the customer information/enquiry into both the CRM and our MIS system.

If the CRM and MIS programmers could talk to each other that would be very worthwhile as duplication wastes time and is a barrier to staff entering the information.

“In addition, we manually track our jobs through production via interactive online spreadsheets and then our

Graham Pitts, KGK Genix, has workflow developments in his sights.

Ray Linford, RMC, wants to see various software developments.

production managers manually schedule and allocate time for each and every job. This is a long process, and one that changes minute by minute. I’ve seen scheduling tools in the past but none have been close to fulfilling the task in a quick and easy way.

“Given that nearly everyone in production is only a few metres away from a computer it would be fantastic to be able to log in and out of a job and have a live track and trace job flow. The amount of paperwork produced in order to complete a job could also be eliminated if everything were to be interactive and online.

“Ultimately, being more streamlined from a workflow integration point of view would save time, money, potential reduce waste and eliminate the paper printouts required in order to produce a job.”

Software development is a focus for RMC’s Ray Linford too. He has a number of issues he’d like to see resolved.

Firstly, he says “constant revisions of printer software to bug fix sometimes causes more issues than it resolves in relation to lost prints or printer malfunction. The revisions need to be tested extensively at factory applications before being shipped to customer for upgrading.”

Linford would also like to see more printer self-monitoring, “with error reporting back to technical support for faster onsite fixing if software-based, or parts ordering for an engineer visit - especially where semi-skilled operators are working a 24/7 shift system.”

His other asks include “better printhead monitoring, with alerts to show the printhead is starting to show signs of failure while under stress. This is applicable to multilayer printing, when only a section of the printhead is being used, compared to single strike printing when it is evenly stressed.”

It’ll be interesting to see where research and development takes us - and whether the wares shown at this year’s trade fairs fulfil the sector’s requests.

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Technology | What to Watch

TOO HIGH A PRICE TO PAY THE RECLASSIFICATION OF CERTAIN CHEMICALS USED IN INK PRODUCTION, AND IMPENDING LEGAL CHANGES ON ITS USE, COULD COST YOU DEAR. HERE’S WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.

The 15 June is a breath away, meaning time is of the essence when it comes to finding what BPIF CEO Charles Jarrold hopes will be “a suitable resolution” to what could be a very damaging ban that comes into force that day.

The federation, along with other Graphic, Paper and Media Association (GPMA) member associations - including the IPIA, Picon, and British Coatings Federation (BCF) - have, since the start of this year, been in talks with Government to mitigate what could be disastrous impacts on the print community of new rules relating to gamma butyrolactone (GBL) and 1,4-butanediol (BDO), chemicals found in some inks, including solvent-based inkjet formulations.

At the time of going to press, Jarrold - who is also chair of the GPMA - said he was hopeful of a resolution following a meeting with the Home Office and BEIS on 10 March. This in turn followed a GMPA letter to Government officials (see panel) laying out the industry’s concerns and suggesting a way forward. Failure to effect change to current plans could see PSPs having to pay a high price for using certain inks come the summer, and the cost is not just monetary.

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HOPEFULLY, COMMON SENSE WILL PREVAIL AND A SUITABLE RESOLUTION WILL BE FOUND Charles Jarrold, chief executive of the BPIF and chair of the GPMA

Technology | What to Watch

LETTER TO GOVERNMENT The following is the content of the letter sent by the GPMA earlier this year and addressed to Kit Malthouse MP, Minister of State, and to Lee Rowley MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary, BEIS (and cc’d to Paul Nichol at the Home Office).

The Graphics and Print Media Alliance (GPMA) consists of trade associations representing companies operating in the graphics and print media industry supply chain. Between us, we represent an industry of over 7,400 companies, the majority of which are SMEs with an annual turnover of £11.6 billion which employs approximately 105,000 people. The objective of the GPMA is to represent the interests of companies operating in the printing industry supply chain.

We are writing to you following contact from across our memberships with concerns regarding the change of status for the above materials that are used as industrial chemicals and are present in a number of printing ink formulations. While we are very supportive of the legislation’s intention, we need to highlight the disproportionate impact it will have on our industries.

This would be caused primarily as more than 4,000 businesses use these affected inks to produce their day to day living directly through print production. The value of this specific type of print production annually is estimated at £1bn.

There is also a much wider usage of this ink in printing equipment present at schools, colleges, universities, local councils, construction site offices, fashion houses and Government offices.

Following the recommendations of the UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, tighter controls are being placed on GBL and 1,4-BD, which are due to come into effect on 15 June 2022. This includes the removal of an exemption previously granted under the Misuse of Drugs Act, which means that industrial users will require a controlled drugs licence.

The GPMA understands that licences will be required for import, export, production, supply, possession and disposal of GBL and 1,4-BD. Secure storage will be required and furthermore, in order to obtain a licence, DBS checks will be required for members of staff with access to ink.

As many of the affected businesses are SMEs that are currently in a stage of fragile recovery following the major financial impact of Covid-19 - they are not in a position to be able to invest in alternative printing equipment that does not use GBL affected ink. They are also ill-equipped to afford (or logistically cater for) the current licencing requirements.

Whilst the GPMA firmly supports the overall intention to control the availability of these substances to prevent misuse, we have concerns about the scope of the proposal, further postBrexit disadvantage for UK companies, technical difficulties, the timing of the changes and the lack of consultation with stakeholders, which are outlined below:

- We believe that the industry use of GBL and 1,4-BD has been grossly underestimated. The number of users and significance to Industry should have been properly ascertained through public consultation with stakeholders; - The affected ink does not pose a viable conduit for drug manufacture - as it would be uneconomic and impractical for it to be distilled for illicit use. For example; the average cost of 50l of cleaning fluid that contains GBL - and is a primary source material for drugs manufacture - costs around £250 - £500 on average. For the same quantity of affected ink, it would cost £5,000 to purchase it on average.

- An exemption from the licensing requirements for users of complex mixtures, such as printing inks, has not been put in place. We believe that it is difficult to extract GBL from the affected ink based on feedback from across our ink manufacturing sector. This is because the commonly used distillation extraction process contains substances close to the boiling point of GBL, and these substances are extracted together with GBL. It is understood that there is an exemption in place in the United States for chemical mixtures containing less than 70 per cent GBL by weight or volume from regulatory requirements under the Controlled Substances Act. The imposition of a licensing requirement on users of mixtures is thus disproportionate to the risk posed.

- UK companies producing industrial mixtures will be disadvantaged compared with their EU counterparts. The volume and extent of use of GBL in product formulations is clear from reference to the Substance Infocard on the European Chemicals Agency database: Substance Information - ECHA (europa.eu). The regulatory controls that are being put in place in the UK will bring further postBrexit disadvantage to UK companies and further divergence from Europe; - The affected ink formulations are designed to work with specific equipment and have undergone years of product trials, validation and regulatory compliance. It does not appear to be understood that substances cannot just be substituted one for the other, due to performance requirements and extensive technical validation processes that are required. As such, the machinery would need complete replacement by an end-user, which is not financially viable as outlined previously. It would take an estimated two years minimum for the reformulation and regulatory approval required to provide an alternative GBL-free ink for use in this equipment.

- The decision on GBL and 1,4-BD was laid before Parliament mid-December 2021 and is due to enter into force on 15 June this year. There has been little communication on this and many of our members have only now become aware of the licensing requirement. The Gov.UK website states that it can take up to 16 weeks to process a drug licence and a valid DBS check must have been completed before submitting the application.

This means that our members do not have sufficient time to apply for a licence. Stocks of

the substances will be on site, along with product mixtures containing them at member company premises and in the supply chain. Companies will be in breach of the regulation unless they arrange for these stocks to be destroyed - and in a very significant number of cases this will lead to the company being forced to close from the financial burden caused and the inability to produce their products and services.

The issues raised above are of critical concern to our members and their customers. We urge Government to review the timelines and open dialogue with Industry and other stakeholders. The GPMA is ready to assist in a review process. In the meantime, we suggest the following options for consideration: - The applicability of the legislation is delayed allowing for a full and thorough consultation with industry; - A technical evaluation of the abilities of illicit users to extract useable substance from product mixtures is commissioned by Government with contribution from industry; - Transitional arrangements are put in place to allow sufficient time for the manufacturers and suppliers of the affected ink to comply with the licensing requirements (six months suggested); - End-users to be fully exempted and covered by the suggested registration scheme below so they can be monitored, and their usage recorded; - A consultation takes place with ink manufacturers on the realistic time scale required to reformulate the inks to remove GBL - so they can continue to be used in the current machinery install base without causing financial hardship to endusers, and also thus remove the need long-term for licensing all together.

- A threshold exemption is put in place for GBL and 1,4-BD in product formulations, below which a licence is not required; - To address illicit use, a registration scheme is put in place to which companies using the pure substances must submit information e.g. on volumes and other defined parameters. These companies could also be required to validate customer use and undertake appropriate record keeping.

In conclusion, we understand the decision to legislate against harm from the availability of these substances and their misuse. However, the impact to business is far greater than was anticipated. Product mixtures have been dragged into the requirements without due consideration of the risks posed, and there has been a gross underestimate of the time required to obtain a licence, to reformulate products. or to exhaust company stocks.

We urge you to reconsider the timelines and open dialogue with Industry and other stakeholders. The issues raised above are of critical concern to our members and their customers. The GPMA would be grateful if you would review the position as a matter of urgency and is ready to assist in a review process.

www.imagereportsmag.co.uk | 23

Think Bigger | Gallery

a. 2Q ÀUH Since 1998 the fire protection wall between stage and auditorium at the Vienna State Opera has been annually turned into a temporary museum space. Until the end of June visitors can see this 176m2 artwork by Latin American artist Beatriz Milhazes, printed on PVC nets by Austrian PSP Trevision. Magnets have been used to install it directly on the firewall, which is protected as a historic monument.

a.

b. Skating on thin ice Red Falcon Ink, in North Carolina, US, have worked hard to develop a technique that allows it to produce under ice graphics. The company also produced the venue’s concourse wall mural as well as printed hoardings and backlit signage.

b.

c. Beam me up Ireland-based Spectrum Signs, Athlone, produced this quirky lift/wall graphic for the Rezz Hotel, which has recently landed on the Cork hotel scene. d. Making it count When Rhian Bulmer at Tendable approached Imageco for a quick turnaround, transportable and sustainable stand that could be reused and redeveloped for bigger events in the future this is what she got - a cardboardbased graphics that come with its own carry case.

e. A funny sight There may be nothing special about the printing of this poster, but we all need a little light relief, and this is not only funny but a great creative use of a billboard!

c. d.

e. www.imagereportsmag.co.uk | 25

Advertorial

THE UNMISSABLE REUNION!

Sunday, Sund Su nday ay,, 24th 24th April Tuesda Tuesday, Tues day, y, 26th 26t 2 6th h April, Apri Ap rill 2022 Hall 12, NEC, Birmingham www.printwearandpromotionlive.co.uk

With less than a month to go until Printwear & Promotion LIVE! 2022 opens its doors on Sunday, April 24, the garment decoration industry is readying itself for the unmissable reunion.

After a hiatus in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the exhibition returns in full force to Hall 12. As the industry’s annual meeting place and launch pad for new equipment, accessories and clothing lines, the show will provide an excellent opportunity for sign makers and print service providers to discover how garment decoration and personalisation could be a beneficial and profitable addition to their business.

Event director, Tony Gardner, says: “Once again the show will feature equipment launches in abundance, new clothing lines, and plenty of other products and services to be explored!

The usual vibrant and interactive environment that Printwear & Promotion LIVE! provides will be enhanced this year by around 20 new exhibitors joining us for the first time!

“As well as the opportunity to meet all of the major suppliers and if you’re relatively new to garment decoration to learn from the host of industry experts present.”

Many PSPs have already made the move into this exciting market and reaped the rewards. Come along to the show to find out just how quick, easy and cost-effective it can be for your business to get your add-on up and running.

This year’s talking point is sure to be the introduction of direct to film printing systems. A process that uses a specific kind of water-based ink to print a film transfer, which is then transferred directly onto garments and other substrates. The process is seen as an alternative to direct to garment printing, which first entered the scene 15 years ago. Discover options perfect for those already immersed in garment decoration and beginners alike, including: • The R-Jet PRO DTF – a standalone wide format printer.

The transfers produce vibrant images with no requirement for pre-treatment. The printer is a joint venture between

26 | April / May 2022

TheMagicTouch and Resolute DTG, with both stocking and supplying the associated films and inks required.

• The new Mutoh/STS VJ-628D printer. The 630mm wide compact desktop printer, manufactured by Mutoh in Japan, is based on Mutoh’s proven Valuejet 628 8-channel printer chassis and Epson industrial print head. This is also being demoed on TheMagicTouch’s stand.

• Dye Sublimation Supplies will be unveiling its exciting range of direct to film printers and consumables. Three models will be on stand; a large format 60cm system, a mid-range 30cm version and a desktop A3 set-up.

• Another stand to visit to see DTF printing in action is R A Smart. The machinery supplier will be showcasing a full DTF solution on stand. R A Smart has partnered with a pioneering producer of the entire DTF package, with patented ink and application technology developed over the past four years.

• New exhibitor Indie Ink will be launching its showstopping IndieJet Pro DTF printer at an unbeatable price. This printer is the perfect entry level printer to get you started on your DTF journey.

DTF printing is also made possible through the adaptation of direct to garment printers. Current users of the Epson SureColor SC-F2100 and SureColor SC-F2000, the Polyprint Texjet or Brother GTX direct to garment printers should visit J&B Sewing Machine Co, Amaya Sales UK and MHM Direct GB’s stands respectively to find out how to adapt these printers for DTF printing.

Besides all of this, visitors to the exhibition later in the month will also be able to see demonstrated live the latest in direct to garment print technology and embroidery machines perfect for those new to garment decoration. Our exhibitors will also be on hand to provide any advice or guidance that may be required to help you to get started in this lucrative industry.

Essential knowledge and advice to make your new garment decoration add-on a success will also be available in our two Seminar Suites. The Decoration Advice Suite will host professionals providing tips and advice on every type of decoration technique, from transfer printing to digital printing.

Sessions will be hosted by representatives from companies including Kornit Digital, PenCarrie and Dye Sublimation Supplies, whose session in particular is suited for beginners and those looking to find out more about direct to film printing. While, in The Knowledge Centre speakers will share their knowledge, with advice specific to the printwear sector. Instagram expert Estelle Keeber will share the secrets to success on this social media platform, with Alex Liggett of The Vinyl Guys telling his story of how he started his printing business, providing perfect advice for business start-ups.

With so much to see and discover, a visit to Printwear & Promotion LIVE! 2022 is a must. So, mark the date in your diary and join the industry at the unmissable reunion of the year!

REGISTER NOW FOR THE UNMISSABLE REUNION! Registering in advance is the only way to ensure that visitors can get straight into the action on the day of their visit – and it couldn’t be easier!

Simply head to www.printwearandpromotionlive.co.uk and fill in a quick registration form to receive a unique visitor barcode, which will grant visitors their free fast-track entry badge upon arrival at the NEC in February.

For more information on the show’s exhibitors and feature areas, visit www.printwearandpromotionlive.co.uk.

Business | Think Bigger

: ON A LEARNING CURVE Like all industries that are undergoing digitisation, printing has propelled itself way beyond its original application. Developments in hardware technologies, improvements in inks, the proliferation of new substrates and materials, advances in telecommunications that have in turn disrupted traditional business models, all point to one thing - when you’re talking of printing you’re talking about so much more than the laying down of ink on paper, banner and board.

So, how do you go about spreading a new narrative about print possibility and and innovation when the old narrative still, largely, reigns supreme amongst those not involved in the industry? What educational strategies can you employ to support existing clients to expand and diversify their offerings? Where do you start when you want to lure new customers from non-traditional sectors? What’s the best way of catching the attention of new talent into an industry that has traditionally had trouble attracting the young?

Initiatives such as Creatives in Residence Live (CIRL) ticks all the above boxes. Devised by CMYUK, this is six-month programme that began in September last year.

It gave three surface designers and one videographer (all graduates registered on the Government’s Kickstart scheme) a residency at CMYUK’s demonstration and training facility in Shrewsbury. An exclusive curriculum consisting of monthly modules was written by industry expert, multi-disciplined practitioner, and award-winning textile designer Debbie McKeegan - the founder of TexIntel, the independent online resource for the digital textile community, and Fespa textile ambassador.

“CMYUK seized the opportunity to establish a disciplined and comprehensive internship programme that provided a valuable transition from an educational setting into commercial world practices,” explained Robin East, group commercial director, CMYUK. “The textile industry is currently undergoing radical transformation - disrupted by digital printing capabilities and e-commerce business models. These lend themselves to on-demand personalisation for short-runs or one-off production, and just-in-time processes that dispense with the need for expensive storage or the creation of surplus items that don’t sell.

“CIRL allowed young creatives to fully absorb these trends and technologies, by providing them with insight, experience and practical knowledge that is highly advantageous for their early career development.”

What has been exceptional about this project is the calibre of industry support it has garnered. Headline sponsors included EFI, Epson, Canon, Mimaki, Kongsberg, Klieverik and AE Sewing Machines, who sent technical experts to train the graduates on their equipment.

In addition, a number of the most successful practitioners currently working in digital textiles, décor and fashion signed up as mentors to the programme. These included Graham and Brown, Standfast and Barracks, Brennan and Burch, Divine Savages, Mary Jones Design, Avalana Design, Pattern Curator, Freya Richmond, and Erica Horn.

WITH EDUCATING THE WIDER MARKET ABOUT PRINT POSSIBILITIES AN ONGOING MISSION, ARE THERE LESSONS WE CAN LEARN FROM CMYUK’S CREATIVES IN RESIDENCE LIVE INITIATIVE?

CIRL ALLOWED YOUNG CREATIVES TO FULLY ABSORB NEW TRENDS AND TECHNOLOGIES

The actions and experiences of the surface designers were chronicled regularly throughout and shared on social media platforms, encouraging not only interaction from the international surface design student body but also providing a universal showcase of the best that digital print now has to offer.

The initiative also spotlighted emerging trends and new business models from commercial wallpaper companies producing digital textile-based wallcoverings, the solo creative producer printing and hand making products to sell on Etsy et al, and the fashion companies printing direct to garments, printing just-in-time and fulfilling local orders.

Taking CIRL in its entirety, this initiative offered existing and new digital printing business, whatever their size and client reach, a number of possible commercial blueprints to either support, extend, expand and collaborate.

Over the last two years, digital printing has shown itself to be resilient. Adopting digital automated processes and looking beyond traditional markets has further encouraged this. But as CMYUK’s CIRL project has so ably demonstrated, creatively harnessing the technology is what brings about future growth and success.

www.imagereportsmag.co.uk | 27

Forum

DIGGING BELOW THE SURFACE WITH INDUSTRY MOLE Comments please to industrymole@imagereportsmag.co.uk

pandemic. This time around, the crisis is even worse because we all feel so powerless. The fact that one of the more vocal muppets at my local boozer proclaimed that someone ought to finish Putin off doesn’t really help either.

Fortunately, most of our customers are proceeding roughly as normal. That might change if the crisis escalates - and our postpandemic economic recovery stalls - but, for now, it seems like business as usual, which is simultaneously reassuring and troubling.

The good news - and believe it or not there is some - is that Mole Junior has got a job. I don’t fully understand what his new employer actually does. Apparently, it’s something to do with gaming. That said, he is thoroughly enjoying this new challenge, which is great but also makes me wonder what will become of Mole Graphics when I finally retire at the age of 65, 70 or 75 (depending to the whims of Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak). I was tempted to ask the bank for their finite wisdom but what would be the point?

PRINTWEAR AND PROMOTION LIVE!

FESPA GLOBAL 2022

THE PRINT SHOW

DRUPA

When?

24 - 26 April, 2022

When?

31 May - 3 June, 2022

When?

20 - 22 September, 2022

When?

28 May - 7June, 2024

Where?

NEC, Birmingham

Where?

Messe Berlin, Germany

Where?

NEC, Birmingham

Where?

Messe Dusseldorf, Germany

Cost?

Free

Cost?

80 Euro for non-Fespa members, 50 Euro pre-registered with a promotional code.

Entry is free for members of Fespa UK or Fespa Direct.

Cost?

TBD

Cost?

TBD

Who will be there?

This is the UK garment decoration industry’s key event so those relevant to the sector will be there.

Who will be there?

Given that the 2021 was somewhat curtailed for, obvious reasons, this event should see the great and good gather to show off their wares.

Who will be there?

This is a ‘general’ print exhibition so you’ll find a smattering of exhibitors from across the whole spectrum.

Who will be there?

It’s so far ahead of the event that it’s pointless looking at the exhibitor list yet but, suffice to say, you can expect most of the major players to get involved.

Should you go?

If you’re thinking of getting into this type of print I guess!

Should you go?

Covid situation permitting, I’d put this on my travel list, though I’m expecting few real technological breakthroughs.

Should you go?

If you want a UK-based overview of what’s out there.

Should you go?

Decide closer to the time, but it’s worth noting the dates.

EVENTS 28 | April / May 2022

I rang my bank the other day about a loan.

To be clear, Mole Graphics is not struggling, I actually wanted to borrow to invest in the business. Anyway, after a prolonged conversation in which they defined exactly how many hoops I would have to go through to be lent a relatively modest amount of money, they asked: “Is there anything else that I can help you with?” As they had not helped me with anything at all, I had to bite my tongue and, politely, put the phone down.

The whole conversation reminded me of Mark Twain’s definition of a banker, as someone who lends you an umbrella when it is sunny and wants it back as soon as it starts raining. I can understand why some of my competitors have turned to specialist private equity companies.

I’m not sure I want to do that yet, so I may just keep my powder dry until next year. Luckily, I’d already made that decision before Vladimir Putin lost the plot, invaded Ukraine and made the world - including my staff and clients - probably even more anxious than we were during the

Rating

5/10

Rating

9/10

Rating

5/10

Rating

8/10

Forum

OVER TO YOU...

GARETH CRAYTHORNE, MD, MANOR SIGNS WWW.MANORSIGNS.CO.UK Manor Signs in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, has run a variety of wide-format printers in its time, with latex machines its current focus. The company recently replaced a HP Scitex FB500 with a HP Latex R1000 Plus, which it runs alongside a Latex 330. I talked with MD Gareth Craythorne about the latest investment and his reasons for making it.

So firstly Gareth, when did you actually make the switch from the HP Scitex FB500 to the R1000 Plus, and why?

The R1000 Plus was delivered in December last year. We were really due an upgrade as the Scitex machine had done its mileage and we were looking for an alternative machine to progress what we could do production-wise. I started to look more closely at the latex as I knew the technology had developed somewhat and I went to see the printer at one of my suppliers’ customers and thought how great it was.

It printed perfectly. It was a no-brainer really.

At one time you had three or four solvent and UV printers, and now you have just two latex machines - the HP R1000 Plus and an older HP Latex 330. How have you managed the changeover in technologies, internally and with your customers?

To be honest it was pretty seamless. I know they are different technologies in terms of the ink, but it was really just about adjusting the curing times. With the R1000 the quality of the print is quite a bit better than it was with the UV so it was win-win.

How important are the eco credentials of the latex machines to your customer base?

I wouldn’t say it’s a big deal for them at the moment, but it’s something we are investigating.

People are obviously becoming more aware of the environment and of what they’re producing and how it’s produced. Print and signage is quite a wasteful industry and we do use materials that use fossil fuels to produce etc., so anything that we can do to improve things in the longer term the better. We’re really just starting to touch on that with our clients and the feedback has been really good. It’s not been something we’ve focused on as a priority but we are starting to see the knock-on effect of just starting to let people know about the greener credentials of latex, and we’re looking at greener materials to complement that production.

LEGAL EAGLE LEGAL EAGLE

HIDDEN DISABILITIES – PITFALLS FOR EMPLOYERS FROM LUKE MEZXIES, MENZIES LAW

Hidden disabilities are becoming an increasing risk for employers. Recently, Menzies Law has seen an increase in employers defending disability discrimination claims in the Employment Tribunals from employees who did not disclose that they had any disability at the time of the events they are complaining of. In some cases, they had not even been diagnosed at the time with the condition that they later use for their disability claim. We refer to such cases as ‘hidden disability’ claims because of the fact that the (alleged) disability was not disclosed to the employer at the time.

Under the Equality Act 2010, a person is classed as ‘disabled’ if they have a physical or mental impairment which has a “substantial, long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out daily activities”.

Most mild and/or short-term medical conditions will therefore not count as a disability (e.g. the flu, a broken leg, short-term anxiety, recovering from an operation). But any condition that does impact on basic day-to-day activities and lasts 12 months (or is likely to do so) will come within the disability definition - and sometimes this can surprise an employer.

THE PROBLEM FOR EMPLOYERS The difficulty, and growing legal risk, for employers is where they have not been told of the condition. Either they’ve not been told about it at all or not been informed of its severity, extent and/or long-term nature.

Sometimes an employee will claim that in fact their employer did know of their condition but failed to appreciate it was a disability.

Sometimes they will claim that their employer did not know many details of their illness but knew enough to have put the business under a duty to investigate further (e.g. ask for a medical report).

Increasingly, common ‘hidden’ disabilities are mental health issues (e.g. anxiety and depression) or psychological problems, such as Asperger’s, autism, dyslexia and ADHD (often collectively called ‘neurodiversity’).

DEEMED TO KNOW An employer can be liable for disability discrimination if it either knew of the disability or did not directly know but ‘could reasonably have been expected to know’ from the warning signs it was aware of. We call this having ‘constructive knowledge’ of a disability. Either knowledge or

How significant is it that the HP Latex R1000 Plus offers nine colours, including white?

Initially it wasn’t an important consideration. It was only when we started looking at the machine a bit more in depth that I realised how well it prints. The white is so strong and offers so many possibilities - you can undercoat, overcoat, put it between layers. The options are great, and though we’re not really pushing that yet we will start to focus on it.

You mentioned to me that it was very important to you that new machine fit into your existing workflow. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Essentially, although it has a completely different inkset to the Scitex, the new machine really fit in quite easily. We’ve had to adjust some of the materials we print onto to ones that are more latex-friendly, but apart from that it really was just a shoe-in.

So where are you now on the Latex learning curve, and what lessons have you learned so far?

We’ve certainly learned a lot already. We’re still finding our feet and we’ve sort of thrown ourselves in at the deep end a little bit but we’re getting there. It tends to be a bit of a grey area when it comes to curing times but we’re working that out.

So did you make the right investment, at the right time?

I probably should have made it a year earlier! The speed and quality are just fabulous.

constructive knowledge then creates the risk of a potential disability discrimination claim. Genuine and complete lack of knowledge is usually a complete defence to such a claim.

It’s worth remembering that this extends to job applicants, apprentices and contract/agency workers, as well as current employees.

TIPS FOR EMPLOYERS Employers are expected to take reasonable steps to find out if a worker has a disability, if they can see some warning signs. Here are some tips that could help: - With every disciplinary, poor performance meeting or dismissal, ask yourself “could there be any mental health or neurodiversity issue here?”

- With potential sickness warnings or dismissals, have you investigated the condition sufficiently?

- Early intervention is a distinct advantage.

The earlier you spot a disability the better the outcomes for all - Familiarise yourself with the signs of neurodiversity. The CIPD website has a very helpful paper called ‘Neurodiversity at Work’.

- Consider taking occupational health advice (this can be confidential advice to you only if preferred).

- Have good policies and practices in place, especially an up to date (and internally publicised) equality policy. Equality training is also a wise investment.

- Consider investing in mental health first aid and basic neurodiversity awareness training for all managers.

www.imagereportsmag.co.uk | 29

Zeitgeist

Mulling over the metaverse WHAT IS THE METAVERSE, AND WILL IT EVER HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOU? WALTER HALE FUTURE-GAZES TO TRY AND FIND SOME ANSWERS.

Do not be misled by the definite article. The metaverse does not exist in the way the internet does - and quite possibly never will. The invocation of the phrase ‘The Metaverse’ merely reflects the belief of Mark Zuckerberg, founder of the brand formerly known as Facebook, that some day this realm - defined by investor Matthew Ball as “an expansive network of persistent, real-time rendered 3D worlds and simulations that… can be experienced synchronously by an effectively unlimited number of users, each with an individual sense of presence” - will belong to him.

The term was actually coined back in 1998 by Neal Stephenson in his dystopian, futuristic novel ‘Snow Crash’. Although he insisted that he was “making shit up”, the idea of virtual and augmented realities quickly resonated in Silicon Valley and the term has become ubiquitous since Facebook rebranded itself as Meta in October 2021. What does this all mean? And what, above all, does it have to do with wide-format printing?

Let’s start with definitions. There is no single metaverse. There are competing metaverses in the same way as there are rival game consoles and, going back a bit, were opposing video formats VHS and Betamax.

It remains to be seen whether we will be able to move freely between the metaverses being developed by Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Niantic and Valve or have to make a choice and stick with it, in the way that gamers opt for PlayStation. Nintendo or the Xbox.

Not only are there different metaverses, there are different levels of metaverse. At the simplest, most basic

30 | April / May 2022

TAKING A VERY PAROCHIAL VIEW, THIS COUNTRY’S DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE CAN BARELY SUPPORT EXISTING DATA TRAFFIC

level, you might don an augmented reality (AR) headset or, more likely, a pair of glasses which will transform your experience of the place you are in. This is the metaverse Apple is focusing on. The next step up, envisaged by Zuckerberg, is to wear a virtual reality (VR) headset which transports you to a completely made-up place. You will be immersed in this fictional universe and experience it as if it is real.

Some tech titans (notably Elon Musk) have a much more ambitious vision of the metaverse. In his view, the metaverse will culminate in a ‘final platform’ in which implants or electrodes in our brains interface directly with computers. This is where the metaverse ends up feeling like an extension of ‘The Matrix ‘movie franchise.

Ultimately, it’s a question of how much metaverse we will want. Will we be content just to have an enriched gaming experience with a pair of VR glasses? Or will we feel that the only way to get the full benefit of the metaverse is to let a surgeon tinker with our brains?

For corporate applications, a middle way might appear. The gamut of possibilities varies from more sophisticated, more engaging virtual meeting to virtual recreations of the print job clients are ordering and, alas, a virtual twin of a retail outlet complete with virtual - rather than printed - signage.

Of course, there are obstacles ahead. For a start, taking a very parochial view, this country’s digital infrastructure can barely support existing data traffic (it almost hit the buffers last December when Amazon Prime streamed six Premier League games simultaneously).

It is unclear who will build and pay for the infrastructure to deliver the metaverse and, given that even a modest version attached to a games console could add £150 a month to our electricity bills, cost is an obvious barrier, certainly compared to the internet and social media which, as consumers, we tend to regard as free. There is also the contentious issue of personal privacy, on which Facebook/Meta has a particularly dismal record.

The other fear is that the metaverse will worsen climate change. Training one AI model to interact in the universe, it has been estimated, will produce five times as many carbon dioxide emissions as a car emits during its lifetime (and that includes those produced by manufacturing the vehicle). Data servers already account for the same volume of greenhouse gas emissions as the aviation sector. If the metaverse requires, as Intel estimates, 1,000 times as much computing power as we have today, the environmental damage could be severe.

There is one large caveat about the metaverse. As the Australian academic Nick Kelly puts it: “What compelling human need does the metaverse fulfil?” In his view, most ordinary citizens have more prosaic concerns - like making ends meet - than wanting a spatial presence in this new realm. It is, as he points out, absolutely clear why the tech sector is so intrigued by the metaverse: “The calculus is simple: the more of your experiences that happen within their platform, the more money they make.

That is what driving their investment.”

Weblook | Inks / Hardware

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Enhance, Protect and extend the life of inkjet Prints with Landor Liquid Lamination Easy to apply by handroller, brush or spray, Landor coatings ensure the longevity and durability of prints. $QWL *UDIÀWL ² 9HKLFOHV ² :DOOFRYHULQJV ² 7UXFN sides – Anti-Microbial 01252 624411 - info@landorUK.com

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Airplac® foam board is made in the UK. The lightweight panels come in all formats up to 3050x1524mm. The polystyrene foamboards are rigid, white and extra light. A new 100% recyclable XPS panel Airplac®PRINTFOAM is perfect for environmentally responsible campaigns.

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Drytac has been a leading international manufacturer of adhesive-coated products, digital SULQW PHGLD DQG SURWHFWLRQ ÀOPV IRU WKH JUDSKLFV and industrial markets for over 40 years.

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