New Zealand Printer September 2020

New Zealand Printer

September 2020

Print training on track

ADOPTS TWINS

Sales needs smarts How drupa will work PrintNZ survey results

1987-2020

with

WIDE FORMAT

years in print

+Plus

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September 2020 Cover Story Fuji Xerox p12-14

Customer demand has seen Caxton Design & Print Excellence become the country’s first print company to install a second Fuji Xerox Iridesse digital production press and it is already humming Features p16-49

16 Print Museum: Rescuing a Typograph from Melbourne has brought a printing treasure to New Zealand 20 Fellman: You can avoid known hazards but you need to heed the signs 32-35 Power 50: Time to nominate your choices for this year’s event 36 Currie Group: ABC Photosigns has reached the top with the technology and solutions supplied by Currie Group 38-40 Packaging: Tiziano Polito sees a digital packaging revolution coming 42-43 drupa: We look at the ways drupa organisers can make the giant trade show work well next year

CONTENTS Wide Format Plus p17-29

18 Aarque: Monster Print has a Summa F1612 cutting table and two HP Latex R Series printers, supplied through its long standing partnership with Aarque 22 Fujifilm: Framefox has not looked back since it installed an Epson SC P9560 printer, supplied through Fujifilm 25 NZSDA wrap/good sort: A wrap of NZSDA news and our first ‘good sort’ 26 NZSDA Horton Signs: A Rangiora signee focuses on growth and staff training 28 NZSDA President/Secretary: For the inside story, we go to Andy Lowe and Melissa Coutts 26 Total Supply: The team at Total Supply understands signage and has solutions from soft to hard technology, ready to go now 28 Hi-Tec Ink: Brother has released the GTX Pro direct to garment printer, available through Hi-Tec Ink, making it even easier to get into this market sector

Advertiser’s index

Aarque 7, 21 APM 7 Currie Group 7, 37 Cyber OBC Eamar Plastics 50 Emerging 20 32-35 Fuji Xerox OFC, IFC, 15 Fujifilm 23 Graphic Lamination & Coating 5 Graphic Machinery NZ Ltd 7 Hi-Tec Ink 31 NZSDA 27 Power 50 32-35 Pride In Print IBC PrintNZ 45 Total Supply 29 VPR 50 Wholesale Print 41

44 Heidelberg: The press giant has a strategy to take its customers into the future

p12

46-47 Real Media Collective: Kellie Northwood discusses TRMC initiatives helping the industry deal with Covid-19 48-49 VDMA: Cutting and winding technology has transformed through digitisation PrintNZ p8-11

8-9 Helping Hand: Iain MacIntyre talks to Jo Hyland at Proformance on how to achieve great training results 10-11 Comment: Ruth Cobb presents the PrintNZ Covid-19 survey results

NEW ZEALAND PRINTER PO Box 32-395, Devonport, Auckland 0744 EDITORIAL: 021 631 559 Bruce Craig, Editor: bruce@newzealandprinter.co.nz CONTRIBUTORS: Ruth Cobb, Melissa Coutts, Dave Fellman, Andy Lowe, Iain MacIntyre, Kellie Northwood, Tiziano Polito CIRCULATION: subscriptions@intermedia.com.au

Some of the management team at Caxton, from left: Chris Voice, sales manager; Janice Page, general manager; and Bridget Batchelor, managing director

ISSN 1171 7912

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September 2020

3

NEWS IN BRIEF GMG has a unveiled a browserbased user interface that enables users to manage and run proof jobs from almost any device. The GMG ColorProof Go uses a web browser to control and manage all connected proof systems. Operators can complete device recalibration remotely from any workstation or their smartphone. They can use every workstation, whether Mac or PC, to run and manage proof jobs. They can add new users to the GMG ColorProof Go network via email and can assign their roles individually.

GMG says this flexibility saves time and increases productivity.

AMCOR has reported a net profit of US$1bn ($1.47bn) for this year, which represents an 11 per cent increase on the previous year. Ron Delia, chief executive at Amcor says, “Profit and cash flow were significantly higher than last year and supported continued capital investment, an increase in our dividend and the repurchase of 3.5 per cent of shares outstanding. Despite managing through significant change and complexity, our business continued to demonstrate financial and operational resilience and the execution of our teams was outstanding.”

XPLOR International has announced that keynote speaker Antoine Dupont will kick off its first virtual conference event. His session, titled ‘The Huge Power of Small: How To Create An Amazing Customer Experience That Drives Results.’ Dupont’s area of expertise in digital marketing has seen him win awards and in demand as a speaker at national and international conferences. His experience includes 18 years in marketing and 15 years in the hospitality industry. The virtual conference takes place over four days, starting on September 29. It will feature a range of speakers and interactive programmes.

Monochrome joins Truepress line up Screen GP has introduced the Truepress Jet520HD mono, a specialised model for monochrome printing.

Peter Scott, managing director for Screen GP Australasia, says, “Monochrome digital output still accounts for a significant portion of printed output. Book printing, trade paperbacks, pharmaceutical multilingual pamphlets, lottery tickets and transactional print continue to be consistent.

“On demand production of required numbers has become standard in the industry. It has advanced rapidly, particularly for higher resolutions. with this resolution and ability to print digitally to coated and uncoated stocks driving demand.”

The 520HD mono joins the rest of the HD colour line up as the first specialised model for

Fast: the Screen GP Truepress Jet520HD mono monochrome printing. It offers resolution of 1200 x 1200dpi. Screen says its SC inks feature rapid drying technology and excellent substrate adherence. It can print at speeds of up to 150 linear metres per minute. Scott says, “Screen’s Truepress ink SC range, has already established an impressive track record with other Truepress Jet520HD colour models, yielding offset quality. These inks give the press the ability to print directly onto offset coated papers, without primers.”

He says the compact configuration of the Truepress Jet520HD mono provides greater flexibility when choosing the installation site. It is also designed for enhanced usability. Operators can easily manage output instructions, confirmations, and other processes from a tablet device.

Screen has designed the Truepress Jet520HD mono for adding to a production line as a dedicated monochrome press or used to replace toner-based production printers.

Virus claims packaging earnings Packaging giant Orora has attributed the Covid-19 pandemic for its drop in earnings for 2020.

The company reported an underlying net profit after tax of A$127.7m, ($140.3M) down 22.8 per cent from the previous corresponding period. Underlying earnings before interest and tax fell 4.3 per cent from last year. Around 90 per cent FY19 of its drop in earnings occurred in the US. Locally, Orora saw its earnings before interest

and tax fall 7.4 per cent on the previous corresponding period.

Brian Lowe, managing director and chief executive, says, “Orora maintained its strong focus on investment in the Australasian beverage business during the period. The business also introduced innovations relating to digital printing of cans and embossing of closures during the period.

“The trading conditions in North America were already tough. The

emergence of Covid-19 saw both Orora Packaging Solutions and Orora Visual results further adversely impacted. As a result, earnings were down on the prior year.”

Orora has completed the sale of its Australasian fibre business. It has also finalised the review of its strategy, reduced debt, and returned A$600m to shareholders. It expects the challenging and uncertain market conditions to persist for the foreseeable future.

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September 2020

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NEWS

Greenwash cancels catalogues The Real Media Collective has called out Australian Supermarket chain Coles for greenwash after it cancelled its catalogue distribution.

Coles put the decision down to an increase in online customer engagement due to increased online shopping due to Covid-19, but also said the decision to embrace an enhanced digital strategy would save up to 80,000 trees a year and would be a win for the environment.

Kellie Northwood, chief executive officer at the Real Media Collective, says, “The claim that Coles is stopping production of its supermarket catalogues due to environmental concerns is simply disingenuous.

“For every Coles customer spending 60 seconds browsing a digital catalogue they will emit 12g of CO2 compared to looking at a printed catalogue for a day and only emitting 0.5g of CO2. All of Coles catalogues are made from a

Kellie Northwood, chief executive of The Real Media Collective renewable resource, using bio-diverse and planted forestry principles, and the paper making process is powered by hydroelectricity; paper carries the highest environmental credentials over e-waste and CO2 powered digital streaming.”

Northwood points out that printed catalogues are one of the only media channels to have grown

in the past seven years.

She says, “In recent years, the media landscape has experienced digital disruption. All channels have their place in the marketing mix, however digital media often report on percentage increases, for example claiming a 50 per cent increase. But when that is equated to actual reading and engaging the real number is low.”

IN BRIEF KOMORI has announced its new Lithrone GX/G advance series presses. The company says the series features major improvements in the high-speed stability of the feeder and delivery; improved suitability for high speed, long-run printing; a dramatic reduction of touchpoints by use of a self-learning function; and a new control platform for linkage of high level printing systems. Komori also developed the KP-Connect solution cloud, which enables MIS, prepress and post press as a smart factory. It targets strengthened collaboration and optimisation between processes.

PACK EXPO, set to take place in Chicago in October, has joined the list of cancelled events for 2020. Organisers have opted instead for a web-based event, Pack Expo Connects 2020, which will run from November 9-13. The online experience will offer educational opportunities, including daily Jumpstart sessions on hot topics from industry thought leaders.

Organisers say the event will facilitate exhibitor and attendee interaction while continuing to provide the ability to see machinery in action through this new platform.

HP Indigo competition opens The HP Digital Print Excellence Awards have returned with a new name: HP Inkspiration Awards 2021.

The awards target HP Indigo users.

Currie Group, which supplies HP Indigo in New Zealand, encourages all its HP Indigo customers to enter the competition.

Now in its 14th year, the HP Graphics Solutions Business event puts the spotlight on outstanding digital print innovators. The entries cover Asia Pacific and Japan.

The judging panel includes representatives from global brands, graphic designers, packaging, and media experts. Criteria for judging includes overall aesthetics; marketing impact; shelf appeal; design suitability; innovation; and media and substrate use. The awards offer an opportunity for HP Indigo users to showcase their newzealandprinter.co.nz

capabilities to a wider audience.

The awards provide many entry possibilities. These cover events and campaigns; commercial printing; and label production. The entry categories range across all areas of production from photo books and commercial printing and labels, shrink sleeves and folded cartons.

HP says the HP Inkspiration Awards 2021 will recognise creative ways organisations have responded to what it calls ‘this unprecedented time’ through digital printing. It has introduced two new categories will be introduced. First, Collateral supporting this unprecedented time (Commercial segment).

Second, Specialty print supporting this unprecedented time (Labels segment).

Entries close March 15, 2021.

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September 2020

5

NEWS

Rob Mesaros joins Currie Group Currie Group has recently announced that Rob Mesaros has taken up the newly created position of strategic executive advisor.

Mesaros joins Currie Group after 15 years with HP, many of them spent abroad, in various senior executive roles.

He says, “Personally, the time has come for my family to return home. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at HP, from meeting many wonderful people to experiencing diverse cultures and business environments. I want to thank all of the HP teams I have been a part of, and the many HP channel partners, for providing me with a platform to learn and grow.”

Michael Boyle, managing director, HP Australia and New Zealand, says, “During his 15-year tenure, Rob made significant

Senior role: Rob Mesaros joins Currie Group in the newly created role of strategic executive advisor contributions to HP in a variety of roles across the region, including as managing director in Australia and New Zealand post HP separation in 2015 till May 2018. We thank Rob for his leadership over many years both here in Australia and abroad and we look

forward to working closely together at Currie Group.”

David Currie, executive chairman, says, “Currie Group is a long standing partner with HP and having Rob join the group in the capacity of strategic executive advisor makes sense on many levels. Rob’s

experience in running business operations in ANZ and across the region, as well as his deep technical knowledge of the print industry, is complementary to our business model and our future direction. We look forward to working with Rob and all our partners to chart the course for growth and future success.”

Mesaros adds, “I have always respected Currie Group’s vision, and most importantly its attention to driving the right customer centric transformation. I am excited to be joining Currie Group in a senior advisory role at such an important time. The digital transformation of industries is just heating up and I am confident that Currie Group, coupled with its vendors, will continue to play an important role in that.”

Paper-based liquor bottles uncorked Global alcohol beverage giant Diageo has created the world’s first 100 per cent plastic free paper-based spirits bottle.

Made entirely from sustainably sourced wood, it will debut with Johnnie Walker Scotch Whisky early next year.

Ewan Andrew, chief sustainability officer at Diageo, says, “We are proud to have created this world first 100 per cent plastic free paper-based spirits bottle.

We are constantly striving to push the boundaries within sustainable packaging and this bottle has the

potential to be truly groundbreaking. It feels fitting that we should launch it with Johnnie Walker, a brand that has often led the way in innovation throughout its 200 years existence.”

Previously, Diageo and venture management company Pilot Lite launched Pulpex a sustainable packaging technology company. Pulpex has established a partner consortium of global FMCG companies, all of whom expect to launch their own branded paper bottles, based on Pulpex’s design and technology.

Pulpex says the bottle, made from sustainably sourced pulp, will meet food-safe standards, and will meet recyclable standards. It believes technology will allow brands to rethink their packaging designs. They can move existing designs into paper.

The technology promises a variety of plastic-free, single mould bottles for use across a range of consumer goods. Designed to contain a variety of liquid products, it forms part of Diageo’s commitment to sustainability.

Richard Slater, chief research and development officer at Unilever, says, “We believe in tackling plastic waste through innovation and collaboration. We are going to halve our use of virgin plastic at Unilever. It will reduce our use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 tonnes in the next five years. Joining forces to develop and test paper bottles is an incredibly exciting step forward. So, we are delighted to work together to tackle one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time.”

NZME turns a corner into profit New Zealand Herald owner NZME has reported a $3m profit for the six months to June, compared with $900,000 in 2019.

In 2019, NZME made a full year loss of $165m, which included a write down of $175m in the value 6

September 2020

of the business. Michael Boggs, chief executive at NZME, says the company responded quickly to the Covid-19 pandemic. He says, “NZME’s ongoing focus on cost efficiencies prior to Covid-19 meant we were in a good position as the initial

impacts of Covid-19 became clear. We moved swiftly to ensure NZME did not just withstand the impacts but was best placed to quickly implement a number of additional initiatives that helped mitigate Covid-19 impacts on earnings. The

government wage subsidy also helped us retain roles that are now supporting our recovery.”

NZME plans to expand its resources in Wellington and Christchurch. It also expects a profit and possible dividend for 2021. newzealandprinter.co.nz

NEW ZEALAND PRINTER DIRECTORY

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Print Service & Supply Businesses - Stay in Front Stay in front of your prospects, New Zealand Printer readers, with an ad in the New Zealand Printer Directory. Pay just $150 ex gst a month over 11 issues and get noticed by the people who need your goods or services. The Directory is published monthly near the Print Calendar at the end of the NZP news section.

Contact Brian Moore on +61 410 578 876 or email brian@newzealandprinter.co.nz for details

PRINT CALENDAR All in Print China

Fespa Global Expo

Print4All

October 12-16, 2020 Shanghai New International Expo Centre, Shanghai As an exhibition covering the whole printing industry chain, All in Print China will display the latest products and technologies in every area of the industry and will focus on industry popular topics and provide customised solutions to printing enterprises.

March 9-12, 2021 Amsterdam, The Netherlands Organisers have moved the show again. They still have the backing of exhibitors wanting to provide an innovative wide format. It will run alongside the European Sign Expo and Sportswear Pro exhibitions.

May 3-6, 2021 Fiero Milano, Italy A new show that goes beyond the traditional segmentation of the commercial, editorial, and industrial printing market today to offer a broader showcase and a more vast and varied selection of solutions.

www.fespa.com

www.print4all.it

Labelexpo Americas

NZSDA Conference and Sign Expo

March 23-25, 2021 Rosemont, USA America’s largest label show includes multisubstrate presses, digital presses, laser die cutting, prepress and plate making, decoration systems, multi-process ink systems, high technology label materials, films, sleeves, and wraps.

July 8-10, 2021 Auckland The now postponed conference, awards, and Sign Expo will still feature everything that would have happened this year. The awards event acknowledges outstanding design and craftsmanship across a range of signmaking methods.

www.allinprint.com

ProPak Asia October 20-23, 2020 BITEC, Bangkok Originally slated for June, the biggest processing and packaging trade exhibition in Asia says it will feature 65,000 square metres in nine halls, with more than 2300 exhibiting companies from 50 countries, but watch this space for changes.

www.propakasia.com

Interpack

www.labelexpoamericas.com

drupa 2020

Feb 25 - Mar 3, 2021 Düsseldorf, Germany Considered the largest event in the packaging industry, Interpack specialises on the packaging process within the food, beverage, confectionery, bakery, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, non-food, and industrial goods sectors.

April 20-28, 2021 Düsseldorf, Germany The world’s leading trade fair for printing technologies has changed the expo landscape with its decision to move the show to 2021, meaning other shows such as the Melbourne’s PacPrint have also had to move. It has also shortened its run to nine days.

www.interpack.com

www.drupa.com

newzealandprinter.co.nz

www.nzsda.org.nz

PacPrint 2021 September 28 to October 1 Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre Since 1970, PacPrint has provided a platform for suppliers and visitors to get together and generate business opportunities through the latest technologies, solutions, and trends.

www.pacprint.com.au

September 2020

7

helping hand

Training sector primed fo

P

Jo Hyland, director at ProFormance

rint industry training programmes in New Zealand will continue delivering high quality graduates, ensuring trainees do not suffer adversely in the current Covid-19 environment.

Ruth Cobb, chief executive at PrintNZ, confirms her organisation has been working closely with industry training organisation Competenz to ensure the highest standards will prevail for the New Zealand print sector.

She says, “Given the terrible wave of infection sweeping across the world, the closure of New Zealand’s borders and potential for travel ‘bubbles’ evaporating with new outbreaks, we cannot expect to access skilled migrants in the short or even medium term.”

“Our industry has often sought to boost the labour pool by bringing in offshore expertise, but now it is vital that we can purely rely on locally trained staff, and staff trained in a wider range of areas than purely print trade skills.

“Sales and leadership play key roles in businesses and we are truly fortunate we can rely upon some high calibre course facilitators within our own shores. We have doubled down to ensure our collective training offering remains first class.”

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September 2020

Rachel O’Connor, account manager at Hally Labels

IAIN MACINTYRE

Industry trainers see no reason to dial back, despite Covid-19 pandemic effects on the business environment

Ashleigh Rushworth, customer service representative at Sato New Zealand

She cites as a prime example the next Certificate in Sales Level 3 facilitated by ProFormance director Joanne Hyland in partnership with PrintNZ and Competenz.

Cobb says, “We strongly encourage any print business which has interest in maximising the skills, knowledge and capability of their sales force to promptly look into this 12-month course, which is due to commence this October.”

Furthermore, Cobb says the government has made industry training more affordable than ever through such initiatives as the Apprenticeship Support Programme and Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (free trades training).

She says, “We are also fortunate to have the industry training fund Trust4Skills available to financially support training initiatives such as the Certificate in Sales that are not covered by the government’s funding.”

Addressing the shortfall Unveiled in 2017, the Certificate in Sales Level 3 addressed a notable previous training shortfall in the sector.

Jo Hyland, director at Performance and facilitator of the Certificate in Sales course, tailor-made the programme in partnership with PrintNZ

and Competenz. She says, “I had been working in training salespeople in the print industry for 20 years and was frustrated that there were printing apprenticeships, but no qualification for salespeople.

“I was able to write my material to fit the New Zealand Qualifications Authority framework and submit it for assessment. Competenz and PrintNZ have been great partners to work with in promoting and managing the programme, which is open to anyone in this or an associated industry.”

She adds that the programme addresses a notable shortcoming that sales will be an ‘easy’ evolution for those highly skilled and experienced in hands-on printing. She has found this particularly so in smaller businesses, where management and employees can be required to cover multiple roles.

She says, “There has been a reluctance to see the need to invest in training for the ‘soft skill’ of selling, instead relying on technical knowledge, relationships and conversations to do the trick. But selling is more than that.

“Understanding best practice can help someone plan their sales approach and their sales conversations far better, so that they make the most of every opportunity and maximise newzealandprinter.co.nz

helping hand

or Covid-19 after-effects their sales potential. Selling is a process that is trainable, and people can learn it.”

She adds that the programme’s tailor-made, interactive workshops, involving small groups of people from within the same industry, have proven a highly effective means of enabling print sales learning. She says, “I am able to listen to individual needs and provide personalised coaching. The workshops are spaced out two to three months, so people have time to try out their new skills before coming to the next workshop and debriefing what works, what they need help with and then moving onto new skills.

“There are also assessments that they complete between workshops based on the use and application of their new skills.

“Feedback from participants and managers has been extremely positive to every programme. Salespeople themselves contact me to tell me of sales wins they have had.

“It only takes one new sale or getting one new customer onboard to pay for the training investment. The programme is far more effective than a one-off workshop, where there is no follow up and people tend to gradually forget was what covered during the following days.”

Hyland believes another key benefit of the programme is the opportunity for personal growth provided through networking. She says, “Each

year, the group becomes a tight unit. They get to know each other well, support each other with their learning and keep in touch way beyond the confines of the classroom. There is a definite synergy to learning in this small-group approach.

“This programme is a costeffective means for businesses of any size to be able to afford to upskill their staff. They will definitely get a return on their investment, as their salespeople will leave performing at a much higher level than they were before completing our training.”

Graduates positive Feedback from graduates has been universally positive.

With her previous grounding in sales having predominantly revolved around in house training supplemented by external, one day workshops, Hally Labels account manager Rachel O’Connor says the programme imparted much needed self belief.

She says, “It gave me confidence in myself and taught me not to question my selling ability. I found along the way I still revert back to my notes and use the Negotiation Planning Sheet to work out a plan for prospective customers.”

She praises Hyland for, “very supportive and understanding” approach. O’Connor says she found it easy to learn and engage in the programme. She has some advice for people interested in this kind of training.

She says, “Go in with an open mind and really dedicate yourself. There is always something new we can take out of training.

“Also, I found it beneficial being with other colleagues from other forms of print. I learned how they deal with situations and new techniques for my own work. It is hands on in the days when you all get together. But you can also pull support from those people outside of those days as well.”

Sato New Zealand customer service representative Ashleigh Rushworth similarly relays that, prior to the course, she had not had any formal sales training and instead relied on adapting skills developed in previous retail roles.

She says, “The main learnings I took from the course were how to adapt to the subtle differences between customers and how to accurately measure my performance to ensure success and the career direction I want to achieve.

“The course has influenced the way I now communicate with customers and the confidence I have in doing so.

“I personally found the course extremely worthwhile and would recommend to anybody looking to further their sales knowledge they approach the course with an open mind.

“I am grateful for the opportunities that my employer has given me to date and look forward to furthering my sales skills through experience and guidance of my colleagues.”

Government subsidies boost training PrintNZ chief executive Ruth Cobb says there has never been a more affordable, nor important, time to invest in training.

As part of its Covid-19 relief response, the government has introduced the: • Apprenticeship Support Programme • Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (free trades training) Cobb says, “The Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund will provide free fees training for those undertaking qualifications in manufacturing, printing, and the Diploma newzealandprinter.co.nz

in Print Management. The Apprentice Boost Fund provides an additional support package towards wages for up to 20 months for new apprentices and those in their first 12 months of learning.

“Alongside that, the industry training fund Trust4Skills is providing funding to those attending non-trade courses such as the Certificate in Sales. Trust4Skills will provide a $250 subsidy towards every PrintNZ member that signs into the Certificate in Sales programme launching in October 2020.”

Jo Hyland warmly embraces such initiatives and emphasises the all-round benefits to be gained from training.

She says, “It is an investment that benefits the person themselves, but also the company they work for and ultimately New Zealand businesses and the economy, as it all helps lift the standard of performance and professionalism in the sales field and the print industry in this case. Subsidy aside, this programme is extremely cost effective when compared to other sales programmes.”

September 2020

9

Survey shines a light

Optimistic or pessimistic? Will the steady improvement continue until the end of the year?

PrintNZ tracks printing from Covid-19 Level Four to Level One

Sales

A 10

September 2020

RUTH COBB

Percentage of Respondents

t the end of July, PrintNZ undertook a follow up survey of those businesses that had responded to the initial survey conducted in the middle of May and the results show that the industry was tracking in the right direction.

While the recovery had slowed somewhat by the end of July, there was optimism that the steady climb would continue in the second half of the year.

The results are summarised in this article, but with the acknowledgement that they were collected two weeks before Covid-19 was once again identified in the Auckland community requiring a retightening of restrictions which will again impact the economy and our industry.

From a low of 28 per cent in April, while New Zealand was in Level Four lockdown, sales had returned to an average of 76 per cent by the end of July.

Spending levels were high post lockdown creating demand across a number of areas, and

this flowed across into print.

Exactly half of all respondents reported they had gained new work and customers since the Level Four lockdown.

Those businesses that remained open at Level Four supplying essential services, mostly in the food and beverage sectors, continued to produce

Percentage of Budgeted Turnover

Highs and lows: what will the new normal look like in print sales? newzealandprinter.co.nz

on Covid-19 effects good results in the following months, with a small number of businesses consistently reporting work levels over 100 per cent.

In addition, there were a group of businesses that had a spike in June, indicated by the number of businesses that did 101 per cent plus, as they caught up on work but that dipped back down again in July as work levels ‘normalised’.

Support Packages As expected, highest on the list of support packages was the wage subsidy. However, the number of businesses able to access the wage subsidy extension, and subsequently the resurgence wage subsidy, dropped as the eligibility criteria were tightened.

It was heartening to see that over 60 per cent of respondents had some form of relief from their landlords, and there was also some relief provided by industry suppliers.

Reshaping and resizing While the wage subsidies have allowed businesses to remain connected to their staff for a period of time, the drop in work levels has unfortunately meant that further steps have had to be taken to manage employment costs.

Businesses moved quickly to reduce the hours of work in the first instance, with 72 per cent taking this measure; most commonly moving to 32 hours/four days per week. This allowed them to retain skills while still reducing the wage bill.

By the end of July, 56 per cent of the companies that had reduced hours, had returned their staff to their original hours of work.

However, reducing hours alone would not realise the required savings in all cases and in the period to the end of July, 28 per cent of businesses made staff redundant, representing on average 17.6 per cent of their workforce. newzealandprinter.co.nz

On the flipside it was encouraging to see that 35 per cent would consider taking on an apprentice, utilising the incentives that have been put in place to encourage trade training.

Current immigration and border restrictions make it virtually impossible to source skills from overseas in the foreseeable future, so it will be important to the industry to grow our own talent.

Businesses need support and still do

Business Confidence Business confidence had improved since the first survey with more people expressing cautious optimism following activity levels at Level One. However, it must be noted again that this measure was taken prior to the revised alert levels in August which seem to have knocked that confidence back again.

Correspondingly, debtor collections had seemingly improved, but this is another area that may have taken a hit from the second lockdown.

Time will tell if confidence climbs again.

Confidence rose during Alert Level One

Broad range of concerns There were a broad range of concerns which are summarised below.

Coming in at fifth place was a second wave of Covid-19 hitting us, and unfortunately that was here sooner than anyone was prepared for.

These sum up the bulk of the comments that we are hearing in the marketplace, but there are also some positives with new work opportunities, a chance to reshape, and an overall enthusiasm to survive.

PrintNZ is right there alongside you, working collectively on behalf of the industry as well as assisting individual businesses to ensure our industry puts their best foot forward.

For more information, please contact us at PrintNZ on (09) 265 2090 or visit our website at https:// www.printnz.co.nz.

Debtor collections may deteriorate during Level Two

Plenty to worry about but reason for hope as well September 2020

11

COVER STORY

Caxton doubles up o

Some of the management team at Caxton, from left: Chris Voice, sales manager; Janice Page, general manager; and Bridget Batchelor, managing director

C

ustomer demand has seen Caxton become the country’s first business to install a second Fuji Xerox Iridesse digital production press.

Bridget Batchelor, managing director at Caxton, says, “We chose our second Iridesse because of the high quality print that we were achieving with the first, it also enables us to keep up with the high demand and fast turnaround.

Running two Iridesse presses works better than one.

She says, “Having two Iridesses saves time on changing the special colour toners having four colour slots rather than two. Colour matching between the two machines is more accurate and seamless.

“Having two Iridesses also enables us to meet those tight delivery requirements with ease that are an essential part of the trade.”

12

Mainland print company shows why two works better than one

Opening pathways April 2018 saw the first Fuji Xerox Iridesse arrive at Caxton.

The team at Caxton quickly got to grips with the Iridesse’s extraordinary capabilities and, later in the year, Caxton with the help of Fuji Xerox New Zealand hosted a successful open house at its Christchurch premises. She says, “At the open house, we took the opportunity to showcase all that Caxton could do, which included highlighting the Iridesse to clients, advertising agencies, corporate companies, and colleagues in the industry.

“We had over 300 people attend the open house and Fuji Xerox’s contribution went a long way to making it a huge success.”

At the open house, a mix of professionals across several sectors got to see up close what the Iridesse could do.

The Iridesse’s capabilities encourage designers and creatives to look for innovative

ways to help clients with printed material. She says, “The Iridesse has opened pathways for our design team to produce new and extraordinary results with the quality of the machine and the instant results we get from it.”

Caxton has produced award winning work with its first Iridesse. This includes five gold medals at the Pride in Print Awards, as well as the Fuji Xerox PIXI Special Exhibition first place award this year.

She adds, “We have creatively used the Iridesse to print a number of embellished pieces including invitations, small run packaging and personalised direct mail campaigns, just to name a few.”

Printing six colours at up to 120ppm, the Fuji Xerox Iridesse prints banner sheets of 729mm (two-sided) and 1200mm (one sided) and will handle paper weight from 52 to 400 gsm.

It handles a range of media from plain and coated paper to variations of specialty paper

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

COVER STORY

on Fuji Xerox Iridesse

What you can achieve with the Fuji Xerox Iridesse: from packaging, to labels, to booklet covers... (coloured paper, aluminised paper, films, envelopes, embossed paper, and so on).

At the front end, the 10-bit image processing of the new GX print server delivers improved image quality of 1200 x 1200dpi. Other features include the ability to automatically distinguish texts and images and manage them on an object basis; it will process images at high speed while maintaining image quality.

Finding the way ahead Everyone would like to find some certainty in the current business environment, but can

we protect ourselves totally?

Batchelor says, “We have learned that you can never 100 per cent future proof your business. There will always be something unexpected such as earthquakes and Covid-19.

“You always need to ensure you are in a position to gather information and act accordingly when required.

Having said that we are always looking for opportunities to diversify. For example, we are putting some focus on paperbased packaging and signage and the Iridesse forms part of that focus.

“Covid-19 is currently our biggest challenge due to the

uncertainty of the economy and the potential for resurgence.

Another issue is unrealistic low pricing which does not bear any relation to true costs and we need to deal with misinformation about the environmental impact of printing and paper.”

Caxton has strategies in place to overcome these challenges. She says, “We need to target different markets; business lost from travel and tourism needs to be replaced by other sectors that have either not been affected as heavily or have started to recover.”

Continued on page 14

Caxton partners for success in print for over 85 years in the industry Family-owned and operated Caxton has a well-earned reputation for high quality print, delivered at a competitive price, with an emphasis on great service. The company has operated in Canterbury for over 85 years.

Batchelor says, “We have been owned by the same Christchurch family for the last 42 years.

We currently have 28 staff members many of whom are long serving of 10 or more years.

“Caxton boasts an experienced, professional, and creative team, cutting-edge technology, sustainable printing practices and aims to uphold and advance the print solutions and quality services our clients are accustomed to.”

Specialising in offset, digital and wide format printing, Caxton uses the latest technology and its experienced team to produce everything from business cards to brochures, books to signage and packaging newzealandprinter.co.nz

Moved: Caxton moved into its purpose built Wigram premises in 2014 after its old building succumbed to earthquake damage to pens. She explains, “With a wide range of customers, we ensure that we cater for everyone and every want.

“Our goal is to work as a partner alongside our clients and to be part of their business

solutions, complementing them by offering practical advice that is tailored to their specific needs.

“One hundred per cent customer satisfaction is our end goal every time.”

September 2020

13

COVER STORY Continued from page 13

... What more you can achieve with the Fuji Xerox Iridesse: from books to calendars

Award winning: Caxton has won a slew of awards, creatively printing with the Fuji Xerox Iridesse

“Keeping our workflow as efficient as possible keeps costs down so that we can offer competitive and realistic prices in a competitive market. Our people and service are key in keeping our current clients loyal to us. Making their lives as easy as possible is important and helping our clients that are struggling during the recovery phase will pay off in the next few years.

“We are also being flexible, ensuring we have a good online presence and diversity. We believe in educating clients and promoting the sustainability of paper and print.”

Caxton understands its advantages. Batchelor says, “We offer a wide range of different marketing tools that are necessary for the changing climate. Trying all the time to think of ways to help our customers use these to their best advantages.

work together with a common goal, the more uptime of the presses, the more work we can get through being beneficial for us both.

“We received many resources, information sheets and samples from Fuji Xerox, helping with the best practices for the metallics and whites when they first came in. We are hoping to receive this same advice for the pink fluoro on the best ways to use the toner for us to pass on to our clients and designers.”

Companies like Caxton represent a bright future for printing in New Zealand.

Batchelor says, “Digital has proven, especially during uncertain times, to remain steady and be more affordable when there are budget cuts. We always look at ways to diversify and find that digital and wide format printing remains a huge growth area.”

We chose our second Iridesse because of the high quality print that we were achieving with the first.

Bridget Batchelor, managing director Caxton Design and Print Excellence

“The ever changing technology, as we have with the Iridesse, is also to our benefit.

“As well as the everyday digital work such as business cards, books and so on, the Iridesse gives us the ability to produce a much more comprehensive range of speciality work with the metallic, white and fluoro toners.

“We see digital advertising and social media saturating our inboxes. However, we believe a tangible, printed message holds more value in the current climate.”

Partners in print Caxton has worked with Fuji Xerox New Zealand for 27 years. She says, “We have good relationships with the whole team at Fuji Xerox and would like to take this opportunity to thank their technicians for the service they provide. We

Fuji Xerox Iridesse puts printers into the pink with specialty ink Fuji Xerox says its addition of pink specialty dry ink for the Iridesse digital production press strengthens the printer’s ability to handle printing needs in specialised colours.

Using its one-pass six-colour printing engine, the Iridesse digital production press loads two specialty dry inks in addition to the standard CMYK. Fuji Xerox says this enables rich colour expressions not previously achievable with digital printers. The new pink joins the line-up of other specialty dry inks for the Iridesse: gold, silver, white, clear, and custom red, achieved by mixing and optimising a new fluorescent-type colour into Fuji Xerox’s EA (Emulsion Aggregation) toner.

Incorporating bright and vibrant pink hues 14

into the design of printed materials helps broaden the scope of different styles of visual expressions. The company says the mixture of pink dry ink with CMYK colours will enable printing orange, red, violet, and other colours with a vibrancy that printers cannot achieve with CMYK colours alone. This creates a faithful reproduction of specialised hues such as corporate brand colours.

The use of pink dry ink delivers fluorescent pink prints and other colours that are commonly used for applications such as front cover of magazines and comic books.

Operators can also use the new pink dry ink in conjunction with existing specialty dry inks including gold and silver, expanding

the scope of expression for various on demand printing needs. Applications include marketing collateral such as point of purchase, advertising, leaflets and catalogues alongside folding cartons and packages.

The GX Print Server for the Iridesse provides an ICC profile conducting pink layer separation. You can download and use it to easily make use of colour expressions that take advantage of the pink dry ink during the design process in developing print materials.

The profile automatically separates RGB data and other data on specially designated colours into the optimal CMYK and pink output data, making it possible to create colour expressions that benefit from the pink dry ink.

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

Fuji Xerox Iridesse ad Wish you could print a stunning white ink underlay on occasion?

Explore the potential of new White Dry Ink made possible

by Fuji Xerox Iridesse™ – our new industry leading six station colour press.

Iridesse is unique in that it can print a vivid white underlay in a single pass. No more registration issues. Printing CMYK plus two specials inline (white, gold, silver and clear) allows you to expand into new higher value markets producing higher quality with greater flexibility and profitability.

To find out more visit www.fujixerox.co.nz/beyond-imagination

PRINTING MUSEUM

Bill Nairn, former Printing Museum president, with an 1852 Evening Post Albion

Saving the last Typograph

A

t the end of November, 2019, an auction took place in Melbourne, Australia to liquidate the largest collection of printing equipment in the Southern Hemisphere.

The auction marked a sad end to the private Melbourne Museum of Printing. The Printing Museum actively engaged with the auctioneers at an early stage to save as much as possible by assisting with the cataloguing, identifying parts, publicising the auction and attempting to find a local home for the Australian Monotype collection.

With no one putting their hands up, The Printing Museum acquired two containers of Monotype matrices and machines. Spare space was filled with extra machinery including a rare Typograph, thought to be the only one in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Typograph is harp-like sculptural work of art. It was invented by Illinois school teacher, John Rogers, whose 16

DAN TAIT-JAMIESON

Dan TaitJamieson and The Printing Museum take the chance to recover a Typograph

The Typograph – a precious piece of print history company was hoovered up by Linotype in 1895 due to patent issues. The Linotype Junior was a direct result but never as successful.

The machine was briefly manufactured in Canada and again in the US but it was in Germany that it really took off, with the help of Frank Hinman Pierpont who later achieved fame as the managing director of the Lanston Monotype Corporation in England.

The Typograph’s selling points were its simplicity, light

weight and cost, around half that of a Linotype.

The matrices are suspended on wires and when activated by the keyboard, slide down to the mould. With a line spaced and justified, the plunger in the pot forces metal into the mould after which a line is released, trimmed and deposited on the galley. The operator then pushes the hinged, arched frame away to slide the matrices back down the wires.

The Australian Typograph was formerly at the Sydney Morning Herald and is now with John Nicholson in Hamilton. John has kindly offered to restore it.

The Printing Museum is seeking funds to secure the Typograph and the Monotype collection and to avoid the fate of Melbourne Linotype and Ludlow collections; tens of tonnes of matrices and machines went to scrap.

Hopefully, it can join the other priceless machinery at The Printing Museum, such as the 1852 Harrild Albion press.

If you can help, please email us at info@theprintingmuseum. org.nz

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

WIDE FORMAT +Plus

Monster Print focuses on success with help from Aarque NZSDA tips and tricks l Wide Format Buyer’s Guide l Textiles on demand

WIDE FORMAT

Monster Print partners with

A

combination of HP and Summa technology, supplied through Aarque, has helped Monster Print stay at the forefront of wide format production.

The company has installed HP Latex R1000 and R2000 printers and a Summa F1612 cutting table at its Auckland site.

Christophe Kiou, managing director, at Monster Print, had a specific list of requirements when he went shopping for the wide format printers.

He says, “I wanted something that could give us more productivity but, at the same time, consistent quality and be environmentally friendly for my staff. Out of all the printers we looked at, the HP Latex R series ticked all the boxes. It was the obvious choice for us.

“I also looked at other UV Led and UVgel inks technology, but the HP R Series stood out for a number of reasons. These include: • It has two control screens • It does not smell, thanks to the UV ink • It can print white without flushing the ink • Printheads are now ‘consumables’ and can be replaced by the operator • It has edge holders for warp substrate and flexible material “Before we installed the HP Latex R Series printers, we could not print onto material such as Polyprop and Mirror. This would have been challenging, or near impossible, with a UV printer.

“We can now print nearly two times faster than our previous printer, which was UV, and at a higher quality.

‘These features help us focus more on sustainable eco-friendly printing. We have increased our productivity and taken on larger production work.

“One of the cool things we can do is to offer a 100 per cent eco-friendly printing direct to substrate solution that not many printers in the large format industry can do.”

18

Aarque helps Monster Print with the latest wide format solutions

Monster machines, from left: Carlos Madureira, prepress and design; Jack Danyali, production and operations; and Christophe Kiou, managing director, with the HP Latex R Series printers

Summa time

Partner of choice

Increasing automation also increases productivity.

Christophe says, “For us at Monster Print, automation is important. Part of our strength is to be able to automate any aspect of the production, or at least find ways to do so. The Summa cutter has helped us tremendously in that regard with the conveyor belt and the auto feed of printed rolls.

“We decided to invest in the Summa simply because we needed more capacity in the finishing department. Since the acquisition of the R1000 our printing speed and volume increased significantly, and the finishing department had become our bottleneck in our production line.

“The Summa overall is a well-rounded machine. It does everything we need it to do.

The tools and modules of the machine are robust, especially for what is considered as an entry level cutter.

“Basically, the Summa helps us gain production time. What used to take us a whole day to do will now take us half a day, not because it was faster, but simply because of the automation and the fact that we are able to dedicate the Summa to one project without any interruption.

“We have experience with cutting tables, so it was easy for the team to pick up and use the Summa. Overall, it is an easy machine to use. Training was easy and completed in one day.”

He has known the team at Aarque for around 15 years.

He says, “Some of those relationships go back to when I was in Tahiti. As its motto states: Aarque is a partner of choice. We have built a great relationship over the course of our 15 years together.

“Leo Bult has helped give realistic and practical business advice. He has ensured the equipment we purchase ‘makes sense’. We also receive great communication, especially from Vicky and Andrew at Aarque, regarding the latest products and innovations.”

Trade welcomed Increasingly, signage and print shops collaborate to produce a range of products and services.

He says, “Monster Print has a proud history of doing trade work since day one. Our acquisition of CCG was a result of an eight-year relationship of doing trade work that led into that deal happening.

“We know everyone has to make a margin, so we ensure that we produce work the most efficient way possible in order to keep prices competitive. We take customer confidentiality seriously. With our HP R1000, and the addition of the R2000, we feel confident that we have the capacity to do more trade work in a timely manner.

“Other printing, signage and packaging companies can see us as an extended ‘tool’ to their

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

WIDE FORMAT

th Aarque for wide format One of the cool things we can do is to offer a 100 per cent eco-friendly printing direct to substrate solution.

No more finishing bottlenecks: Chris Kiou, managing director at Monster Print, beside the Summa F1612 cutting table business using all of our in house equipment.”

He adds that Monster Print helps organisations of all sizes to develop distinctive and highly effective branding and campaigns.

He says, “From business cards to company-wide marketing collateral, from retail POS brand activation to billboard advertising, our work covers all areas of visual communications.

“At Monster Print, we share our passion for what we do.

It is great that we get to use the latest gear like the HP R Series printers and the Summa cutting table, knowing we have the latest state of art equipment in the industry. When our seriously talented team works together in collaborating with customers, we get to create new interesting, cool and sustainable products.

“We enjoy printing products that exceed our customers’ expectations and it is always

Chris Kiou, managing director at Monster Print

a joy to see some of our work all over New Zealand, in supermarkets, public venues, or simply on a building.”

Monster growth Despite its success, Monster Print faces any number of challenges in its drive to thrive.

Christophe says, “We know we have to work hard and we have to work smart. Looking around, we see the need to meet these challenges head on. They are: • Growing the business through, and after, the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Keeping up with social media trends as technology keeps changing.

• Staying up to date with industry trends and where the market is heading to.

• The shift from traditional signage to digital signage.

“We have several strategies that can help us and other businesses. For example, we

have increased our sales focus on businesses not affected by Covid. Mark Swinburne, who is ex-CCG, is now solely focused on business development.

“We also need to continue to invest in the newest technology when possible. However, our immediate target is to use social media to inform everyone about the great products that can be printed on our HP R Series printers (R1000 and R2000); to talk about the latest sustainable print options; and to ensure they know about the wide range of products we can produce, with an emphasis on small and medium run packaging.

“We also encourage our suppliers to continue to import more eco-friendly media. We want Monster Print to be the first to know about that and other sustainable solutions.

“Ensuring that we know what new products are in development helps us to plan a sales strategy for when those new products or systems eventually arrive in the New Zealand market.

“Ideally, we would have more time from customers to produce what they want, rather than hearing, ‘Need these printed asap’. In the industry, we need to educate the New Zealand market that you get what you pay for. There are print items that can be purchased cheap overseas but the New Zealand consumer is not aware that overseas quality is not great.

“By educating consumers about our quality of prints and the use of our materials that does not ‘cost the earth’, we hope to change their perception of wanting everything ‘cheap and fast’ in printing.”

A monster journey from Tahiti, via France, to New Zealand Born and raised in Tahiti, Christophe Kiou travelled to France to study in 2000.

He returned to Tahiti in 2004. Having completed his studies, he looked for a position as a webmaster. He says, “At that time, the internet was not what it is now. I ended up working for my uncle who runs the local bus company and needed someone to look after the bus advertising entity called Tahiti Digital Impression.” newzealandprinter.co.nz

Equipped with only a vinyl cutter and his skills in graphics design, Christophe decided to invest in a large format printer. He continues, “We flew to Auckland and met the folks at Aarque to purchase our first printer. That is when I started my training, at Aarque, and I was also introduced to the digital printing industry. A couple of years later, I had the opportunity to work for a New Zealand company, so I made my way back here.”

In 2009, Christophe started his own company, then called Vizualis Imaging. He says, “It was just a one-man band company with one flatbed printer. Four years later, I merged with another printer to create Monster Print. That partnership went on for a couple of years before we decided to part ways, I then took 100 per cent ownership of Monster Print in 2016. Fast forward to 2020, and we now make up a team of nine including me.”

September 2020

19

FELLMAN

Avoid known hazards Pay attention to the signs to avoid known hazards

T

he Peace Street Bridge ate another truck this morning.

This railroad bridge stands a little less than a mile from our townhouse in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. The bridge is a local legend, and even has its own Twitter feed: “I’m a bridge. Bane of existence to those who can’t read numbers. Undefeated.

Undeterred. 12 feet, 4 inches. Last meal, February 26, 2020.”

There are numerous signs as you approach the bridge, noting its 12 feet, four inches (3.8 metres) height.

Still, it has eaten five trucks since we moved here in 2017. To me, the Peace Street Bridge is the epitome of a known hazard; just like the ones so many printers and printing salespeople keep running into.

Price monsters I believe that only a small percentage of print buyers make their decisions on price alone.

Having said that, there are price buyers, I call them price monsters, out there. They tend to have purchasing titles rather than marketing titles. They also tend to be far away from the actual use of the printed materials. Print is just another thing they buy.

The classic hazard takes two forms with price monsters. On the front-end, too many salespeople spend too much time trying to turn price monsters into customers, when it is unlikely that they are ever going to get their prices low enough to make the sale. I am not just talking about the salesperson’s time, by the way, I am also talking about the estimator’s time. (Have you ever noticed that price monster estimates tend to be extra complicated?)

On the back-end is often an even worse result.

The salesperson keeps quoting lower and lower prices until they are low enough for the price monster, and then even more peoples’ time and energy are spent on a customer who is not contributing much profit.

Everything from sales time and customer service time to production capacity is committed, at a substandard return on investment. This is especially dangerous to a printing company that does not have a great handle on its real costs. The volume looks good, but at end of the month, the bank account does not.

It would be far better to disqualify a real price monster early in the process.

20

Some hazards are truly hidden, while others are unavoidable or known But salespeople tend to get tunnel vision, especially when a prospect has a lot of volume potential. This may be an area where management has to step in and say, “Hey, we do not want this business”. If you do not pay attention to the signs, you risk getting caught in the hazard.

Bad hires One of the reasons that so many salespeople get that tunnel vision is that they are not really very good salespeople.

In my coaching work, I am often asked to ‘fix’ people who never should have been hired in the first place. You have hopefully had better success at this, but I think it is fair to say that most printers are really bad at hiring salespeople.

Admittedly, it is not easy. In fact, the most dangerous person to you in the hiring process is the person who can talk the talk, but either cannot, or will not, walk the walk.

The world is full of salespeople who can sell themselves to a potential employer, but cannot or will not do much beyond that. That candidate for your sales position is another Known Hazard.

How do you avoid this one? With a much more careful and patient hiring process. If it takes less than two weeks from receiving a resume to offering a job, you are moving too fast.

Think in terms of two-plus interviews: at least two conversations between you and the candidate, plus interviews/conversations with key members of your current team.

Check references. Test for intelligence and the kind of personality traits that lend themselves to success in sales. In other words, make a careful buying decision.

Back to those interviews. Some years back, I wrote a column for an industry publication here in the United States, titled ‘21 Pretty Good Questions To Ask A Potential Salesperson’. If you are interested in reading it, you will find the column in the Article Archives at my website: www.davefellman.com.

Bottom line

When you can see a hazard, you can take precautions

The bottom line for today is pretty straightforward. Some hazards are truly hidden. Others are simply unavoidable. But some of them, like the Peace Street Bridge, are neither of those things, However, in order to avoid them, you must pay attention to the signs.

Dave Fellman is the president of David Fellman & Associates, Raleigh, NC, USA, a sales and marketing consulting firm serving numerous segments of the graphic arts industry. Contact Dave at dmf@davefellman.com. Visit his website at www.davefellman.com

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

Aarque ad

0508 22 88 73 | www.aarque.co.nz

WIDE FORMAT

Fujifilm puts Epson into Framefox

C

olour and print quality ranked high on the list for an Aucklandbased company when it came time to purchase a new wide format printer.

Framefox installed an Epson SureColor P9560 wide format printer earlier this year, supplied through Fujifilm. The solution has become an essential part of Framefox’s workflow. George Coltart, founder, and owner of Framefox, says, “I am a web design and developer and I need a printer that delivers accurate art reproduction.

“Fujifilm also supplied a Serendipity mega rip that has seriously improved our workflow.”

Framefox works in a niche print area, reproducing customers’ photography and placing it into high quality frames.

He says, “I started Framefox as a side project. I was in the UK at the time and I had that kind of ‘scratch my own itch’ moment where I needed a frame, but I never saw what I needed. I believed there was a lack in the market.

“While my original thought was for custom framing, I knew I would start to offer printing alongside the framing. We are largely a business to consumer company though we have some trade clients.

“The framing side of the business makes photography become home décor. People want the photograph to be in the right format to make their home look trendy or cool.

Because we print and frame our customers’ photography, every photograph they have on their phone is potential business for us. The resolution from smart phones has improved to the point where we can print up to A2 and bigger.

“So, we need a high quality printer. We work with professional photographers.

To keep them as customers, we have to service the high end of the market. Because our frames are of the highest quality, it makes sense to have high quality pictures.

22

Niche business pushes ahead with help from Fujifilm and Epson

George Coltart, owner and founder of Framefox, with the Epson SureColor P9560 wide format printer

On demand solution “I see Framefox as a solution to the industry challenge that everyone wants things personalised and they want them on demand. They want one copy. Mass production is not necessarily the future, especially for business to consumer.

“Before we installed the Epson SureColor P9560, we used a desktop A2 printer.

While I could run a good portion of the work through it, I still had to outsource work and it had no nesting or rip software. I had initially outsourced the printing because I was so busy, but I worked out that it made complete sense to bring that in house.

“Through our website, we can have an infinite array of sizes. The rip software does the nesting, so I do not have to worry about sizes. It saves all that time. The software tells me if anything is going wrong and I can complete the maintenance

Photographic quality: the Epson SureColor P9560 wide format printer

myself. It is intuitive so it tells if something is wrong; it tells me what needs replacing and it takes me through each step.

From a labour point of view, it saves time with numerous small jobs nested really quickly.

“Fujifilm also provides the support for the software. That is an important element for us.

Overall, Fujifilm has supported us well. I had two full days training in colour profiling and set up.

“The Epson SureColor P9560 gives us the combination of size, speed, and quality. We can produce much larger prints than before. It prints faster, even for small jobs or large jobs. The quality is superb, and it prints on a range of media.

Right now, we use media lustre photographic, cotton rag, some canvas, and matte photographic media.”

Framefox launched in Australia last year. Coltart says, “We are seeing exciting growth over there. They are using the Epson SureColor P9070.

Currently, we are growing as fast as we can, serving more of the photography market and professional trade work and the art and home décor markets.

“We want to be big in Australia and we hope to move into the UK, but we have plenty of development work to do before then.

“I love seeing what I am printing; it is usually a happy topic. I thoroughly enjoy tinkering with the workflow of getting jobs with from the website into the printer. I also enjoy building on this platform and making it incrementally more efficient.”

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

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wideformatprinters.co.nz * FUJIFILM Epson T-Shirt Offer runs from Friday 5th June to Wednesday 30 September 2020 (Promotional Period) or while stocks last. Promotion is open only to individuals over the age of 18 years and New Zealand registered companies. Promotion applies to the Epson SureColour F216 DTG (Eligible Printer) purchased from FUJIFILM NZ LIMITED (FUJIFILM NZ). Free T-shirts will be given as a credit for 500 Unisex Basic Tees from AS Colour. Eligible Printer must be paid for in full or through approved finance during the Promotional Period. Eligible Printer must be installed by FUJIFILM NZ during the Promotional Period, unless agreed otherwise with FUJIFILM NZ. Installation & training costs are additional to Eligible Printer cost. Excludes purchases through other Epson New Zealand dealers, an Epson website or second hand or refurbished printers. Offer not available with any other FUJIFILM NZ promotion.

WIDE FORMAT NEWS

O’Connor takes over from Cook at oOh!media Sales executive Cathy O’Connor will step into the role of chief executive at oOh!media early next year.

Brendon Cook, founder and current chief executive, will stand down after more than 30 years running the business. He will stay on as a consultant until at least the end of 2021.

O’Connor has 35 years’ experience in media organisations. She spent the last 12 years as chief executive of Nova Entertainment Group. Tony Faure, oOh!media board chairman, says, “The Board was pleased to be able to attract a high quality field of candidates. After significant consideration, we felt Cathy was the ideal person to lead oOh! in its next stage of growth.

“We would also like to place on record our thanks to Brendon for his

New chief executive Cathy O’Connor and founder Brendon Cook continued commitment and professionalism in navigating through the pandemic, and for agreeing to stay on until the end of this year.

“Cathy, who is highly regarded by the industry, brings extensive experience as a leader of successful media organisations. In her most recent role at Nova, she has created significant value.

“She brings a range of qualities which we felt were suited to taking the business through its next stage of growth. In particular, her proven success in steering a media sales organisation; leading the technology strategy; and driving organic growth initiatives, even in the most challenging of environments.

“Cathy has a balanced and engaging leadership

style and brings a number of other qualities that we felt were important for the business. She has a demonstrated ability to drive efficiencies, develop great teams, and build strong networks in both the corporate and agency environments.”

O’Connor looks forward to taking up the role. She says, “Despite the challenges of 2020, the Out of Home sector is an exciting place to be in. It offers strong prospects and increasing prominence in a digital future. oOh!media is a great business with an extensive national reach. It is backed by leading data smarts and a fantastic team of professionals that are the best in their field.

“I look forward to joining the team and building on oOh!’s success and guiding its next phase of growth.”

New Epson printer targets dye-sub for textiles Epson has announced its first 76-inch (194cm) large format printer.

The SureColor F10060 dye-sublimation machine for textile production, aims at high volume, fast turnaround, and cost effective production.

Applications include soft signage, fashion, sportswear, home furnishings and décor.

The new printer features four of Epson’s latest printheads that each incorporate four print elements, offering active nozzle status monitoring

Epson’s new dye sub star: The SureColor F10060 and advanced self-cleaning.

It can output prints at 255 square metres per hour.

Supporting media rolls up to 60kg, it also features an 80-litre bulk ink system; an extra large 155GB buffer memory; high speed

networking; on board step and repeat; precision feed management; and a compact double sided dryer.

Epson says it has designed the SC-F10060 for easy operation with a 23cm colour touch panel display

and a transparent platen window with integrated lighting. The company says that downloadable EMX profiles facilitate rapid set up with common media types. An integrated RGB camera helps easy profile adjustment and fast configuration with new medias.

A single operator can load the printer using an integrated media lifter and dual front and rear feed controls. It also features an industrial style signal lamp and an ink system with automatic hot swap.

Stark appointed Drytac distributior Drytac has named Stark Digital as distributor for Drytac self-adhesive range in New Zealand.

Based in Auckland, Stark Digital also has locations in Wellington and Christchurch. David Raos, director at Stark Digital, says, “Stark Digital evolved as a specialised business to the sign and digital market, 24

bringing new products and ideas to our clients based on our wealth of experience.

“The model is not to be the biggest, just the best at what it does, which is not to be everything to everyone but work with customers in a two way relationship.”

Drytac says Stark Digital’s philosophy echoes its own approach. Drytac’s

research and development team works closely in partnership with its clients to develop new adhesive products, both for general distribution and as bespoke materials.

Steve Broad, European and Asian sales director for Drytac, says, “We are delighted to welcome Stark Digital as our latest

dealer and to extend our network into New Zealand.

This family business has a wealth of experience and knowledge of signage and digital printing so is excellently placed to introduce Drytac’s exciting range of adhesive products such as SpotOn, ReTac and ViziPrint to the national market.”

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

NZSDA prepares for the future

A

s we all headed out of lockdown and began the upward journey of getting back to business and gearing up for the coming months, the association too, became optimistic and started to prepare for a clearly different future for our industry.

We have a new president, Andy Lowe and new members, Craig Barnes as an advisory and Dean Johnstone as our new vice president.

We say goodbye to a couple of extremely dedicated board members, Nick Baty and Bevan Weal. With a wealth of industry knowledge and solid business sense, Nick held the presidency role for more than seven years and stayed on the board a further four years or more as an advisory. Bevan’s roles covered advisory, vice president, president, and immediate past

Melissa Coutts wraps up the first three quarters of the year

president and he brought his passion to the board, with a keen eye to the future.

The board for 2020 comprises Andy Lowe, president; Dean Johnstone, vice president; Paul Walters, immediate past president; and Bruce Carvell, Warren Linn, and Craig Barnes, all advisory.

Voting takes place this month for our Logo Competition. We believe a logo is the face of any brand, and it is vital that its first impressions accurately communicated set the foundation for brand identity. We also know that logos cannot stay relevant forever as times change and brands evolve; what worked once begins to feel tired over time.

The NZSDA logo redesign will provide a refresh to bring our logo in line with current design sensibilities. It also offers a great opportunity for

NZSDA members to showcase their design skills. The public votes will be considered but the final decision lies with the board as the new logo must encapsulate the right story about who we are today and the future.

Over the past three months, we have promoted our “would have been Exhibitors” that booked spaces at our postponed 2020 Expo. Their new products and their special deals and offers for the industry have featured on our social media platforms, electronic mail, and our website. We have had quite a few good success stories from this exposure and is a new intiative we will be keeping moving forwarded into next year’s 2021 Expo in July.

Please remember to get your entries in for the NZSDA Awards and watch this space in the next issue of New Zealand Printer for our events for 2021.

Good sort: Logan Sutton

F

rom starting Future Grafix as a partnership with his uncle in 2002, Logan Sutton has grown the business steadily.

This year, Future Grafix initiated ‘shop local’ incentives to help other businesses adversely affected during Covid-19 lockdowns. He says, “I spent the last week of lockdown on the phone calling all of our regular customers, wanting to know how they were faring with their physical and mental health, and financially gauge their outlook on business over the next 30-60 days. I spent hours chatting to some great people, sharing ideas about how they could adapt and pivot their businesses to make the most out of the move to Level Three.

“The common theme was that everyone, me included, felt a sense of relief, but many were also feeling quite anxious, not really knowing how they were going to bounce back.

There was a lot of concern about how much longer they could go with reduced turnover before they were going to lay newzealandprinter.co.nz

Taranaki signee finds a way to help in a crisis

Logan Sutton, Future Grafix off staff or in some cases close their doors permanently. I offered encouragement and our services and time to anyone that needed it.

“My wife stumbled across a video on Facebook of someone putting a tab on at a local coffee shop to try and encourage people to go in and support the business. We both agreed that this was a fantastic idea and started the next day. So far, we have visited a number of our clients and set up tabs and promoted them through our social media channels. These initiatives include free coffee

with purchase at a café; $10 off your takeaways at an Indian restaurant; two free broccolis with purchase at a fruit and veg shop; a free cupcake with purchase at a local bakery and so on.

“We hoped we might help just one more business stay open or keep one more person employed because someone had made a decision to #shoplocal instead of buying from a chain store or online. We also wanted to see others #payitforward.”

The initiative has seen numerous businesses jump on board and one local councillor has pledged $10,000 of his council income to help local cafes and restaurants $200 per week, one business at a time.

His advice for those starting out in the industry? He says, “Don’t undersell yourself by trying to win every job on price.

Find a niche, something you are good at and that you love doing.

Focus your energy on growing that and concentrate on doing an amazing job. You will feel good about what you do. And you will look forward to going to work each day.”

September 2020

25

SIGNEE SPOTLIGHT

Horton Signs focuses on training Value seen in gaining industry qualifications

F

rom its Rangiora base, Horton Signs provides signage services nationwide and across the Tasman.

Mat Horton, part owner and director says the company boasts some impressive talent among the staff of 12 and he wants to see that talent recognised. He says, “We have several staff members who gave been in the industry for 15-16 years. They have all these skills, but we need that ability to be recognised. We want them trade qualified.

“We also have people wanting to do apprenticeships and we have a number of people we want to put through the Signee programme. Talking to NZSDA, we hope to increase the number of staff heading towards a trade certificate from two to five. These guys have been in the industry a long time. The trade qualification will recognise their skill set and give them some ‘feel good’ about their time in the industry.

“Training is so important and so are qualifications. They also contribute massively to a strong industry.”

Brothers in arms: Mat (l) and Nicholas Horton with an example of their work we are working to turn that around for them. That is one of the ways in which the industry has changed.”

“My father got out of the business in 2017 and my brother Nicholas and I took over the company. Nicholas is a qualified accountant, and we work well together.”

Born into the industry

Covid wobbles

Mat Horton started in 1993 as a signwriter, working at his father’s company. He says, “You could say I was born into the industry. My brother and I worked with our father when we were kids, seven and eight years old.”

He completed his apprenticeship when most of it was still done with a brush, but times have changed. He explains, “We don’t get too many jobs like that these days, but I do have a client who needs an honours board done and they want it painted it on rather than using vinyl letters. That might be a weekend job because it will take time.

“In 2020, customers want their jobs done straight away.

We need the capability to move quickly. Recently the owners of a new shop that will open soon contacted us. They had forgotten about their signage.

The shop opens in six days, so

Since taking over the business, Mat and Nicholas have worked hard with their team to expand the business, looking for new opportunities and staying agile.

He continues, “We are still growing the business and we were making some great progress, but Covid-19 has given the industry a bit of a wobble. Despite the pandemic, we have kept relatively busy, though we are working to reduced hours. We rotate the work and share; everyone shares the load.

“There is uncertainly out there, and we are finding ways to deal with that. Sometimes, we are flat out and other times it is quiet. Our staff has been great. The goal is to maintain everyone’s employment. To that end, we have to have flexibility otherwise we can’t survive.

“While the last growth phase has definitely finished, there are other opportunities

26

out there. We have used the time during lockdown to shore up our processes. And the training through NZSDA and Competenz is something that we see great potential for.

“We complete all our own in house applications and we build our own lightboxes and welding for frames. We will try anything and we build up our staff members’ skill sets through research and development “We are optimistic but also realistic about the challenges we face. For example, we need to maintain staff as a whole and not have staff members headhunted. This is challenging because we need a multi-skilled staff. They want to specialise, but they will have far more value if they have a variety of skillsets. For instance, if they travel away or move away, a broad skillset will make them more attractive to any prospective employer.

“Another huge challenge is the economy. We can’t predict how it will go but, whatever it does, we will keep looking for capabilities that we can add to our repertoire.

“We see opportunities for collaboration with other businesses, for example, print companies. We recognise that they have great skills and we want to work with them where we can.”

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

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Contact 0800 0800 52 or email secretary@nzsda.org.nz Visit the NZSDA website for further membership enquiry at www.nzsda.org.nz

Captain Fantastic — your employee?

O

ne of the most popular gripes about our industry that I hear is, “It is hard to get good staff and keep them”.

Yes, it most certainly is. But here is the thing: they probably already work for you. They just need the inspiration to excel and a reason to want to stay.

As we all know with the massive diversity of skills needed in today’s professional sign/design/print shop, having keen well trained staff is paramount to keeping your company competitive and moving forward. Training and keeping your staff ‘inspired’ has become one of the biggest battles a business can face.

We all agree finding skilled staff is hard but maybe we can look at ways to change the way we operate to assist with this.

Specialisation of our staff has become the norm in our industry since technology became so prevalent in our production systems. We tend to put Suzie in charge of printing; Jonny in charge of design; and poor old Freddie just sticks stuff on stuff all day, everyday.

While I know it is easier to manage and can make your business more money, as I have

ANDY LOWE, PRESIDENT NZSDA

President’s Corner

Caption done so in the past myself, but I do worry that we are watering down our industry skills in the process.

Let’s try training and diversifying our employees’ duties so they don’t get bored and leave our shops looking for more personal satisfaction.

Train your employees to handle and become competent in all aspects of design and production techniques. This will see them not only gain a new appreciation of their chosen vocation, but also allow them to develop passion for what they do.

We all know the value of an employee who enjoys what they do rather than do it because they have to. They will learn more and become more confident as their skills increase. As a side effect, they will become more productive

and create more value for our company. In my experience, being able to hand a job sheet to an employee and let them handle the whole job from design to install has made my life easier, and ultimately made my sign business more money.

Wow, I can hear the sighs of indignation and mumblings of, “that’s going to cost too much”. Yes, in the interim, costs and production will be affected in the short term, but imagine not having to worry if the printer operator is going to call in sick and hold up all the rest of the team and delay your workload. Imagine advertising for another team member and actually getting a few broadly experienced applicants to choose from who have learned all the skills needed to be a huge benefit to your business, are keen to stay, and will be excited about coming to work for the variety.

Becoming an NZSDA member puts you in touch with other sign businesses that are facing similar issues.

Networking with industry peers and competitors will become invaluable for your businesses future. Sharing training ideas and working together will create a better and stronger industry.

Visits kick off with Canterbury signees

T

he month of August proved to have its own challenges with the country moving back to Level Two and Auckland to Level Three bearing the brunt of the effects of business and school closures.

When setbacks keep us at a standstill, it makes it hard to look forward, to plan, and to execute goals set for the year. March 2020 was the month where I was to start a new part of my role, venturing out of my home office to visit our members throughout the country. However, we all know this never happened. So, when we came out of lockdown, I kicked my plan into action and set August as the month where 28

MELISSA COUTTS, SECRETARY NZSDA

Secretary’s Note

I was to start my visits in my own backyard: Christchurch and North Canterbury.

Although we were in Level Two, and the processes of visiting sign business got harder throughout the month, it was worth every effort.

It was fantastic to catch up with the familiar faces and meet new members along the way. The overall response from our local sign members so far was positive. All sign business were keeping busy in one way or another, either with large projects on the go; taking the opportunity to refurb their premises; or look into upskilling their staff or taking on apprentices, all good, positive stuff. I really appreciate those that meet

with me giving me constructive feedback, which I welcome. As the saying goes, “We can’t make it better if we don’t know what’s not working”.

So, only after one region, and one month of visits, there were a few common themes from feedback given, which we are currently working on implementing for the near future.

In September, the regional towns I will be visiting are Ashburton, Timaru and South Canterbury and I am very much looking forward to meeting some more members that I have spoken to over the phone and heard about that are doing great things in our communities and for the industry.

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

WIDE FORMAT

Signs point to Total Supply

T

he team at Total Supply understands the sign industry.

Since 1962, Total Supply has served the graphic art and sign industries under various entities such as Letraset New Zealand and Esselte New Zealand. In October 2014, Spicers New Zealand acquired Total Supply, enabling Total to make solid use of Spicers local infrastructure and additional products.

Cam Harris, general manager at Total Supply, says, “We have cemented our place in the New Zealand market, and we take great pride stocking a comprehensive range of solutions from the largest brands in the industry such as 3M, Avery Dennison, and Arlon. We complement these with our house brands Digitac, Cyclone, and Dtec.

“We also supply some of the top hardware brands. These

Wide format supplier delivers a wide range of solutions to the local market

include Mimaki, EFI, Elitron, Graphtec, Rolls Roller and more. No matter your needs, Total Supply can find the solution that most suits your business and your plans.”

Expanding the range In 2017, Total Supply extended its product portfolio, acquiring Sign Technologies, making Total Supply one of the country’s largest suppliers of LEDs and the only distributor of neon glass in New Zealand.

This product range continues to expand with market trends to include LCD and LED displays, Ad players and interactive displays. Harris says, “We have seen the market change over time and we have the agility to move with it.

“The most recent addition is our growing range of Cyclone sustainable products, an area that has seen a significant increase in demand from our end users.”

Total Supply has recently put together a Green Guide, showcasing its sustainable range. This guide outlines the full range of readily available products and is available now from your account manager.

Handling change Through the disruption the Covid-19 pandemic, the team at Total Supply has helped customers deal with a constantly changing business environment.

Harris adds, “It has been a disruptive year so far, to put it mildly. But our focus has been around developing new markets for our customers and, as New Zealand’s foremost sign industry supplier, we retain our commitment to deliver our range of quality cost-effective solutions. We have also worked in the background on some exciting projects that we believe will change the industry.

“Watch this space...”

The total package in signage supplies

Hardware

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ORDER NOW: 0800 800 668 totalsupply.co.nz newzealandprinter.co.nz

Green Guide

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September 2020

29

WIDE FORMAT

Brother GTX Pro prints garments on demand

B

rother has announced the arrival of its latest direct to garment printer, the Brother GTX Pro, supplied in New Zealand through Hi-Tec Ink. Les King, managing director at Hi-Tec Ink, says, “Brother direct to garment printers enable anyone to move easily into a new area of printing.

“Brother has loaded the new GTX Pro with a plethora of innovations to make direct to garment printing even easier.”

On demand printing

Garment printing on demand: The Brother GTX Pro

Unlike traditional labour intensive processes such as screen printing, direct to garment printing uses inkjet printing technology to send a full colour, detailed design directly from a computer to a digital printer with a garment loaded into it.

King explains, “Traditional garment printing has required the mass production of large quantities of a single design in order to gain entry into a single market or sales channel.

The Brother GTX Pro makes this concept redundant and you don’t have to compete on price. Garments decorated on the Brother GTX Pro carry a premium price.”

Ease of operation features highly with the new GTX Pro. He adds, “Brother direct to garment makes it simple to create high quality printed garments. Comprehensive, user-friendly training makes operating the Brother GTX Pro simple for any user.

“Direct to garment printing with the Brother GTX Pro gives you an on demand capability that enables you to react to trends and current events as they happen. You can be the first to market with commemorative shirts, hats, and hoodies.

“This machine can print over seams, zips, and pockets because its printheads don’t make contact with them.

“The Brother GTX Pro facilitates a high resolution, crisp graphic detail and full

Available now through Hi-Tec Ink, the Brother GTX Pro offers on demand garment printing

30

colour capability, opening up a whole new world for textile decoration.

“You and your customer can explore and expand your creativity with explosive graphics. You can include photography in the design; the sky is the limit.

“A wide range of optional platens delivers up to 4064cm x 53-54cm printing area and different platen types for different solutions. Ease of operation comes with the intuitive user interface with image preview.”

Innobella textile inks The Brother GTX Pro uses Innobella inks and provides an environmentally friendly ink supply and circulation system that offers several new features to reduce maintenance costs.

King says, “The Innobella inks offer exceptional washability. Garments printed with Innobella textile inks are designed to be worn, not worn out “These water-based inks are also kinder to the environment.

They have Eco Passport by OekoTex certification and are CPSIA compliant.

“Offering a wider colour gamut and brighter, more vibrant colours, Innobella inks are designed to adhere to fabric when heat cured. A special formulation combats the chemicals found in typical laundry detergent and withstands the rubbing and

scraping of zippers and buttons.

The result is a garment that looks brighter for longer.

“The Brother GTX Pro will improve your bottom line. The major features are: • Economy – The newly designed white print head with internal ink circulation reduces the amount of white ink needed for cleaning.

• High speed mode – The white print head also has more nozzles than its predecessors, allowing the GTX Pro to print 10 per cent faster.

• Lower maintenance – The Brother GTX Pro’s designers have reduced the time it takes to clean the machine with automatic cleaning processes that have helped to increase productivity.

• Environmentally friendly – The Innobella inks have the Eco OekoTex Passport and are CPSIA compliant.

• Height sensor – The new sensor technology controls the optimum height of the print platen in order to prevent ink mist.

• More uptime – The GTX Pro starts to print automatically without manual confirmation at the end of systemically relevant processes like print file loading or automatic cleaning.

• Flexibility – It provides easy printing on a variety of garments such as trousers, shoes, caps and more.

• Compact machine design.

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

Pro New Release Garment Digital Printer Since the launch of our latest direct-to-garment printer, there have been many inspiring stories of people who have carved their niche.

Each journey is unique, yet shares a common thread.

Why GTXpro?

- Direct to Garment inkjet technology with eco-friendly, water-based inks.

- Quick and simple to set up for efficient short runs and 'one-offs'.

- Improved print head technology for lower maintenance costs, less wastage, and reduced downtime.

+64

- New platen height sensor technology to save time and create optimal print output.

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BACK THIS NOVEMBER! Nominate NOW at power50.co.nz What is the Power 50?

This annual event recognises the leaders and innovators in New Zealand’s printing industry and associated sectors - the people who keep this industry moving strong with a clear vision into the future. It provides a wonderful opportunity for all 100 nominees to come together with families and associates to celebrate the highs and lows of the year. Peer nominations and industry powered voting means the Power 50 belongs to the people in the industry.

How can I get involved?

To become a valued sponsor of the Power 50 please contact Brian Moore on +61 410 578 876 or email brian@newzealandprinter.co.nz Editorial enquiries to Bruce Craig 021 631 559 or bruce@newzealandprinter.co.nz

We're all in this together

BACK THIS NOVEMBER! Nominate NOW at power50.co.nz What is the Emerging 20?

Last year, the Emerging 20 came from people in the industry who wanted to recognise the contributions of the rising stars of our industry. The Emerging 20 recipients come from all facets of the industry including production, sales, graphic design and administration and receive nominations due to their commitment in the workplace. If the 2019 Emerging 20 members are anything to go by, the future looks exciting for print.

How can I get involved?

If you would like to support this initiative, please contact Brian Moore on +61 410 578 876 or email brian@newzealandprinter.co.nz Editorial enquiries to Bruce Craig 021 631 559 or bruce@newzealandprinter.co.nz

We're all in this together

POWER 50 2020

The Glasshouse in Morningside, Auckland, was the venue for the Power 50 presentation event in November 2019. The Emerging 20 was added to the Power 50 for the first time last year

N

ow permanently established on the print calendar, the New Zealand Printer Power 50 awards returns for its fourth year in 2020 to celebrate individuals who’ve had a significant impact on their industry and their community.

Along with the Power 50 comes the Emerging 20 awards, which recognises the up-and-coming identities who are shaping tomorrow’s industry.

Both the Power 50 and the Emerging 20 are peer-nominated and peer-voted, with Print NZ CEO, Ruth Cobb acting as chairman of the judging panel. As in previous years, the judging process is externally audited for transparency.

Each successive year, the P50 and E20 formula is adjusted based on the previous year’s experience as well as the invaluable input of industry members, in order to deliver the best outcome in recognising Kiwi management and aspiring talent in print.

Suppliers Ricoh, Konica Minolta and Canon have been sponsors of previous awards and in the spirit of the 2020 awards programme and its call to action, “We’re all in this together”, sponsorship is open this year to a larger number of organisations for a more modest investment that reflects the goodwill 34

September 2020

industry participants share with one another in turbulent times.

New Zealand Printer editor, Bruce Craig, says, “Power 50 nominees drive New Zealand’s printing industry forward every day. I encourage all members of the printing industry to recognise, nominate and vote for their peers.”

Readers are reminded that they can nominate themselves for the Power 50 or

the Emerging 20. Those nominating will be asked to provide some information about their nominee(s) to assist in the voting process.

Nominations are now open at the dedicated Power 50 website, power50.co.nz where readers will also find details about the Gala Awards Night in Auckland this November, including the event venue and date.

Inaugural Power 50 awardees in 2017 (from left): Jonny Broderick, Broderick Printing & Design (4th); Matt Mills, Fuzed (2nd); Ruth Cobb, PrintNZ (5th); and Simon Ellis, PMP (1st). Not shown is Dave Atkins, Image Centre Group who placed 3rd newzealandprinter.co.nz

power50.co.nz We're all in this together

DIGITAL

ABC Photosigns stays on top with Currie Group Currie Group keeps busy Auckland print company ahead of the trends

O

ne of Auckland’s most successful print companies, ABC Photosigns, has a well earned reputation for producing quality print on demand.

The company has a plant chock full of solutions supplied through Currie Group.

Don Matheson, managing director at ABC Photosigns, says, “We have long standing relationships with many customers who rely on us to deliver high quality printed material on time. Currie Group understands our business and helps us achieve our goals.”

HP Indigo impresses He continues, “We decided some time ago to install HP Indigo Digital Presses. We regard HP Indigo as the gold standard for digital print production and we have known the team at Currie Group for around 10 years.

“We have upgraded our HP Indigo 7600 to the level of a 7800 and we installed the HP Indigo 7900 Digital Press a few years ago. We have two HP Indigo Digital Presses because we have a large amount of work to get through. These machines run reliably; we know we can rely on them to get the job done.

“An impressive feature of HP Indigo is the ElectroInk. The range of colour options it gives us includes spot colours, metallics, fluorescents, white, premium white, transparent, silver, you name it. Also, unlike toner, the ElectroInk is problem free when it comes to finishing.

It does not crack or blister.”

“The quality of HP Indigo is a major factor in our continuing success. It gives us that consistency of colour at any time of the day. We have the confidence what we print today will have the same colour that 36

Quality and speed: Rebecca Capper, production assistant at ABC Photosigns with the HP Indigo 7900 Digital Press we print two weeks later. There are so many things we don’t have to worry about with the HP Indigo Digital Presses.

“We have worked with other digital equipment and it does not match the HP Indigo. We can do what our clients ask us to do with confidence and that enables us to offer a marketing package to our clients. The customer does not care if your equipment is down, which is why the HP Indigo is so great: they just keep going. On the few occasions that we have an issue, Currie Group technical experts are only half an hour away or they can solve any problems remotely.

“One reason we have been able to build up and maintain good working relationships with our clients is because they know their colours and brands will be what they need.”

Currie Group has supplied a range of finishing solutions to ABC Photosigns. They include a Foliant laminator; a Horizon BQ-280PUR Perfect Binder; a Horizon RD-4055 rotary die cutter; a Horizon SPF-200L booklet maker, an HT-30 trimmer, and a Horizon guillotine. Matheson says, “The Horizon gear complements the HP Indigo so well. With these finishing solutions, we can do perfing, folding, cutting, bookletmaking, you name it.

The Horizon RD-4055 rotary

die cutter is a great machine.

We can produce anything from marketing brochures and booklets to packaging products.

“We jokingly call our print shop a Currie Group Showroom because we run so many of their machines, but these solutions help us to keep our processes in house. So, we keep control of the work. In the niche markets that we operate in, we often need ultra-fast turnarounds; we can’t afford to send the work somewhere else.”

Craig Paul, country manager Currie Group New Zealand, says, “Over the years Bill and Don have gone from being a very important customer to friends, whilst still remaining an important customer of Currie Group.”

ABC Photosigns also runs a Scodix S74 digital enhancement press, again supplied through Currie Group. He says, “The Scodix stands out from the competition. You can’t get the same tactile feel in other embellishments.”

Matheson uses the HP PrintOS App. He says, “It tells us how our machine is running in comparison with other HP machines around the world.

With PrintOS, we can print the same file anywhere in the world. It goes right across our HP machines. So, we can use the same file for these different machines, using PrintOS. The client can get 24/7 access to all their information.”

Phil Joss, service team leader Currie Group New Zealand, says, “The team and I have invested a lot of work and energy at ABC Photosigns.

Truly they are a joy to work with.”

Matheson adds, “We appreciate the way Currie Group supports us in our business. The team there preempt a lot of our decisions, keeping us informed of the latest developments and trends in the industry.

“At Currie Group, they have the finger on the pulse and we certainly look to them to help keep us heading in the right direction.”

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

INVEST IN PRE-OWNED & FACTORY REFURBISHED HP INDIGO

finishing solutions

LABELS & PACKAGING

Digitisation continues fo

As customer demand evolves, so too does the technology to match it

T

he evolution of customer demand as well as improvements in quality and speed are accelerating printing production for packaging.

The first entirely digital printing and converting lines for packaging production will be born in a few years.

Over the last 20 years, digital printing of labels has emerged and expanded. Today every second press is equipped with electrophotographic motors or inkjet heads. This isn’t surprising because the advantages of today’s digital technologies are strong, for example, printing short runs at a viable cost is now a reality, compared with traditional processes such as flexo or offset, a success-factor that fully matches and supports the trend for the shorter consumer product lifecycles.

Now really is the time for packaging to enter into the digital arena. Of course, the number of digital presses sold in this new segment is still much lower than the number of presses sold for labels production, but everything suggests that it is only a matter

38

TIZIANO POLITO

Digital printing goes from strength to strength in packaging and label production

of time. Growing customer demand is influencing companies and leading them towards differentiation, individualisation, and personalisation in their products. An example of this was seen early on by Coca-Cola, introducing Coke Light and Coke Zero.

Their lines have now expanded significantly and now Coca-Cola can be purchased as sugar-free, caffeine-free or flavoured with raspberry, vanilla, and sugar-free lemon.

All these products are then sub-set into dozens of sizes and formats, for example one litre, 1.5 litres, PET bottles, in glass and in cans.

The Coca-Cola example shows how a brand can use product proliferation to its advantage.

Individual consumers are becoming more particular.

They must be offered products that match their needs. ‘Share a Coke’ has demonstrated the success of customisation and mass versioning, after successfully tapping into the millennial mindset and reaching followers of the ‘me, myself and I’ movement. ‘Share a Coke’ undoubtedly ranks as

the most successful example.

However, it is not difficult to find a multitude of other brands already offering their products in a wide array of sub-articles sold in different countries in multiple formats or presentations.

Change ahead The packaging revolution has already begun and impacts large companies and smaller producers of products such as jams, energy drinks or skincare creams. Add to that the rise of e-commerce and with it the beginnings of production on demand.

Krones, one of the leading bottling companies, presented ‘Bottling on Demand’ at Drinktec in Munich in 2017, an on demand production and packaging concept, enabling each individual consumer to order a personalised, flavoured beverage. For instance, a consumer can order orange in a glass bottle format and the company then ships it in a package of one, four or six, according to the consumer’s wishes.

You can imagine yogurt companies offering consumer

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

LABELS & PACKAGING

r packaging and labels

The increase in digital print run sizes challenges traditional packaging and label production

led online ordering, allowing them to create their own multipack, featuring only the flavours they like. Thousands of other products could one day be produced and sold in this way too; a method already used frequently in the automotive industry to reduce inventory costs.

Thanks to digital packaging, products can be manufactured on demand. Taking advantage of digital methods, brands and their print suppliers will be able to test new products to the market, using flexible print runs to limit excessive risks and costs.

The need for speed The second reason to believe that digital printing will soon develop across packaging is down to the technology. Over the last decade, enormous improvements to print quality have been achieved. Whether in electrophotography or inkjet, the results in terms of resolution are impressive: increasing from 600 to 1200 dpi. This is such a good quality that only a keen eye can distinguish an offset rendering from a digital rendering. newzealandprinter.co.nz

Packaging and converting specialists will see new solutions at drupa

The coming digital packaging production revolution will require packaging converters to review their entire supplychain system.

Tiziano Polito, packaging commentator

Then there is the print speed that has also really gained pace.

HP Indigo paved the way in 2012 with digital presses such as the HP Indigo 20000 and 30000, respectively, dedicated to film and cardboard sheets.

They can reach speeds of 34mpm in four colours (up to 45mpm in three colours emulation mode) with the 20000 and 3450 sheets per hour in four colours mode (up to 4600 sheets per hour in emulation mode) with the 30000.

Lately, inkjet has reacted and caught up. Examples include the Fujifilm Jet Press 750S, launched in September 2018, capable of printing 3600 sheets per hour in four colours, claiming to be the fastest four-colour digital press on the market in B2 format.

In terms of coil printing, Kodak prides itself on being the only one to reach a speed of 300mpm, for a resolution of 600 dpi in wide, namely on 650mm coils using Stream technology that it is developing with integrators like Uteco. Kodak, claiming “very competitive” operational costs compared to electrophotography, has

announced for the next drupa a resolution of 1200 dpi with Ultrastream technology.

Thanks to its print speed, it can directly compete against traditional processes.

Dan Denofsky, director of OEM partnerships for the digital division at Kodak, says, “We have calculated that up to 20,000 square metres, it is more beneficial to use inkjet, until flexo becomes more profitable.”

To put this into context, until recently, the crossover for the digital conventional curves did not exceed 10,000 square metres. In sheet to sheet technologies, which many players place today at 5,000 sheets, it could rise up to 10,000 sheets.

The current industry equilibrium begins to be challenged as digital printing, for a long time confined to small print-runs, evolves towards longer runs and bigger print jobs.

This paradigm shift is also because the market is no longer the territory of specialists. The introduction to digital for big traditional printers such as Continued on page 40 September 2020

39

LABELS & PACKAGING Continued from page 39

Embellishment technology will improve label production Koenig & Bauer, Heidelberg or Bobst diversifies the print offering; increases competition; and lowers prices.

Above all, the arrival of these general manufacturers brings print know how and the necessary control over medium and longer runs. Printing itself is not everything. To go fast on a machine, you also must know how to hold and pull the sheet or the reel. The big press manufacturers also know just how that is done.

and brand experience, to make it more communicative than what is currently offered with QR codes.

It cannot be overlooked that packaging on offer today has already been enriched by a very interesting array of technologies from companies

Enhancing labels The third reason we believe that digital will continue to develop is the process of embellishment and converting.

When we talk about labels or packaging, the addition of gilding and embossing is often a customer requirement, an example of which would be the perfume and luxury goods market.

This can also be seen in the mass market as demonstrated by certain beer labels or in the packaging of high end confectionery products. Soon, holograms and invisible markings will be added as aesthetically as a means to fight against counterfeiting and to avoid parallel businesses.

Some markets like pharmacy and tobacco are very demanding in relation to this. It may soon be necessary to print RFID antennas with metallic inks to enhance the packaging 40

Analogue systems now combine successfully with digital technology for packaging

like Scodix and MGI, which are able to digitally enhance clients’ packaging with visual and tactile effects, through embossing, metallisation, and varnish, achieved with speeds from 4000 to 5000 sheets per hour. In cutting and creasing, Highcon does the same with a process that reaches 5000 sheets per hour.

Although this is not yet a reality, we can easily foresee in the short term the emergence of complete lines where the material, whether film, paper, complex or corrugated cardboard sheet or coil, is successively printed, embellished then cut. And all this is implemented in the context of a 100 per cent digital process. Crucially, this will be economically viable on runs of 20,000 square metres or 20.000 sheets. Beyond that volume, it will continue to be more viable using flexo or offset technologies.

This packaging production revolution, however, will require packaging converters to review their entire supply chain system. With print runs ever more diversifying, whether small, medium, or large, this will require the review of numerous flows, materials, consumables, and finished products that are completely different than the current ones.

Investments in IT and also in people with new skillsets will be required. This is change management from A to Z, from within both the converters and their clients.

In 2016, the drupa motto was ‘Touch the Future’. But next year, visitors should ‘Embrace the Future’. A visit to drupa will be more interesting than ever, as the industry transformation is, like many things, happening faster than expected.

The fair is giving impulses on how to successfully integrate important trends like digital management through keynotes, discussions, guided tours, or visionary exhibitions; important impulses that each and every company should sooner or later incorporate. The first 100 per cent completely digital printing and converting lines for packaging production will be born in a few years.

Tiziano Polito has decades of experience in labels and packaging and contributes articles to industry publications globally.

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

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DRUPA

Showing that drupa can host a The world’s giant trade show can help companies get back to business

S

ince February, the Covid-19 pandemic has paralysed large sections of public life and brought economies across the world to their knees. In this interview, Markus Heering, managing director of VDMA, the German Printing and Paper Technology Association, explains how drupa 2021 is planned under Covid-19 pandemic conditions, as well as what he expects of the world’s leading trade fair for print in April 2021.

Q: How is the crisis affecting suppliers of printing and paper technology?

Markus Heering: Suppliers of printing and paper technology are just as affected by the Covid-19 crisis as other areas of mechanical and plant engineering. Incoming orders and sales are suffering massively. However, the commercial print sector is hit harder than the packaging sector, whose products are considered to be system relevant in many regions due to the high hygiene requirements.

Overall, the consequences are noticeable: customers shy away from investments; machines can neither be delivered nor put into operation; and service visits to customers are not possible in many regions. In Europe we are observing an easing of the situation.

Markus Heering, managing director of VDMA Printing and Paper Technology Association organised by Messe Düsseldorf.

This is because, including set-up and dismantling, drupa is blocking the exhibition grounds for several weeks. The new date of April 20-28, 2021 is a compromise that we fully support. Of course, we hope that the pandemic is largely over by then, however, we must be realistic. Already today, fewer international visitors will participate than at drupa 2016, due to global travel restrictions.

Hence the shortened duration of nine days was a wish of our member companies.

The duration is long enough for running machines to be presented. At the same time, it is short enough to avoid lack time due to the reduced number of visitors.

Covid-19. Are the infection rates decreasing? Is a vaccine on the way? Because there is no answer to this question, we should start from the status quo in order to plan on a solid basis. This includes a hygiene concept that Messe Düsseldorf has developed with the responsible authorities.

The new ‘normality’ of our lives includes masks, distance, and hygiene rules, which will also be part of drupa. I think we would do well not to make any comparisons with earlier drupas and to acknowledge the new normality. Covid-19 will probably stay for quite some time and we have to find ways to get back to normal business, and for this we also need drupa 2021.

Q:

Q:

Q:

MH:

MH:

MH:

After the postponement, organisers shortened drupa to nine days. What is your trade association’s position on this decision?

There was no alternative to the postponement because in June an officially ordered ban on meetings and events came into force. The postponement had to take into account both the international trade fair calendar and other events 42

Do you expect a ‘normal’ trade fair, despite all the uncertainty regarding the risk of infection or travel restrictions? drupa has never been a normal trade fair. As the industry’s leading trade fair, with its event character, long duration, and rich supporting programme, it is a role model for trade fair organisers all over the world. What we can implement in April 2021 depends on

The consequences of the pandemic are reducing the resources of many companies. To what extent could this affect their trade fair activities?

First, some exhibitors have cancelled their participation. I understand that entrepreneurs shy away from investment and the risk of infection for their employees at this time.

In crises, it is important to maintain liquidity, but at the

September 2020 newzealandprinter.co.nz

DRUPA

a successful trade show in 2021

Smaller crowds? Markus Heering says fewer international visitors will participate in 2021, due to global travel restrictions same time it is important to return to normality and to send this clear message to customers: “We believe in business again and want to enter into dialogue with you”.

I hope that despite the crisis, as many companies as possible will decide to come to drupa and that all of us there will give the signal to start again.

Q:

Some exhibitors are experimenting with virtual events and live streams.

Can such formats replace a trade fair presence?

No, although the experience has been positive. The companies report that they reach different target groups with virtual events than at trade fairs.

The Life Streams bring the second, third and fourth levels of companies together with existing customers. In contrast, the first level meets at trade fairs. New customers or customers of other providers also take advantage of the opportunity to obtain nonbinding information. Virtual events are an additional, complementary channel that will find a firm place in marketing however it will not be able to replace the personal exchange and eye contact.

MH:

newzealandprinter.co.nz

Q: If we succeed in making our industry visible, perceptible, and tangible in all its diversity, then we can speak of a successful drupa 2021 Markus Heering, managing director of VDMA Printing and Paper Technology Association

For international visitors who will not be able to travel in April 2021, virtual formats provide an access option. Should the fair offer them?

It must and will do so. After all, it is important to bring visitors from key markets who are unable to travel to the event.

We need a digital drupa that suitably complements the real event with digital formats, with all the drawbacks that digital formats entail. We know from discussions with Messe Düsseldorf that it is intensively involved around this topic.

MH:

Q:

Platform Economy is one of the megatrends at drupa 2021, so should the trade fair position itself in terms of digital platforms?

Like machine manufacturers, service providers and users, it should address this trend and build a platform for virtual events. All trade fairs are working on such concepts, especially since their exhibitors are making this request.

However, when it comes to such requests, we should not forget that Covid-19 has also had a massive impact on the trade fair companies. They cannot

MH:

currently draw on the full potential of such investments.

Q:

Every four years, drupa takes a look at the future of our industry. Which topics and trends do you look forward to this time?

I am curious to see which solutions the exhibitors will present for the four megatrends of drupa 2021: Artificial Intelligence, Connected Customers, Platform Economy and Circular Economy. Digitisation leads to ever faster innovation cycles, and the Covid-19 pandemic acts as an additional catalyst. Some companies are pushing their research and development even more intensively than before.

I think that at drupa 2021, we will see new developments that in just a few years’ time will be an integral part of the printing industry’s process chains and business workflows. drupa is all about visions, ideas, and the future and under the impact of the Corona pandemic this is more important than ever. If we succeed in making our industry visible, perceptible, and tangible in all its diversity, then we can speak of a successful drupa 2021, regardless of the number of visitors or exhibitors.

MH:

September 2020

43

OFFSET

Heidelberg transforms its fortunes

G

erman press manufacturer Heidelberg launched its transformation programme in March, and it has already paid dividends as the company navigates its way through Covid-19.

Designed to boost profitability, enhance competitiveness, and secure the company’s future, the programme has helped the company to generate positive results.

After announcing its first quarter results, the company says it has successfully countered the “huge operational pressures brought by the Covid-19 pandemic”. Rainer Hundsdörfer, chief executive at Heidelberg, says, “As expected, and as across virtually all sectors and particularly the export-oriented mechanical engineering industry, the Covid-19 pandemic had a huge impact on the quarter. The consistent implementation of our transformation programme is helping us maintain a stable course through the crisis.

“From a financial perspective, we are on a solid footing, are continuing to streamline our portfolio, and are already seeing the first positive effects of our cost efficiency measures. At the same time, we are sensing a gradual recovery on the market and incoming orders are starting to increase again as a result. Our market initiatives are helping us consistently address our customers’ requirements in these challenging times. We are confident we will continue to perform well by having the right offerings and solutions.”

The anticipated consequences of the global economic crisis included a considerable impact on sales and incoming orders. Net sales during this period fell to around a third lower than in the same quarter of the previous year. Incoming orders in the first three months dropped by a total of 44 percent, with a clear improvement recorded in June compared to the previous two months of the quarter.

This upward trend continued through July.

The package of measures in the transformation programme 44

September 2020

Strategy pays off as Covid-19 brings crises to the world economies

Heidelberg has cause for cautious optimism in 2020 includes improvements to structures and organisation alongside the divestment of loss generating business activities and peripheral elements of the portfolio. Heidelberg sees itself on track to improve its profitability in the medium term.

The company anticipates further positive effects in the forthcoming quarters from its cost efficiency measures, along with additional earnings from its sale of the Gallus Group, which it will complete in the current calendar year.

Heidelberg also sold its Belgian subsidiary Cerm at the end of July as part of a management buyout. Cerm specialises in developing management information software for the narrow web label market, a sector that Heidelberg has pulled out of with the sale of Gallus.

This transaction is generating a gain on disposal of approximately €8m ($14m).

Both portfolio measures are helping Heidelberg carry forward its consistent alignment on its profitable core business in sheetfed printing. At the same time, this is further strengthening the company’s balance sheet and financial position, which is directly beneficial in the current market crisis.

Marcus A. Wassenberg, chief financial officer at Heidelberg, says, “We are successfully working our way step by step through our transformation programme. By focusing on our core business and our measures aimed at delivering added financial stability, we are laying foundations that will safeguard the future of Heidelberg.

“We have already considerably enhanced our financial stability and the

anticipated high revenues from the sale of the Gallus Group and Cerm will give us an additional boost. The early repayment of a high yield bond frees us up from high interest burdens on a sustainable basis, makes us more financially independent, and gives us additional room to move. This helps us in the current economic crisis and with the long term alignment of Heidelberg.”

In the medium to long term, Heidelberg believes that the comprehensive package of realignment measures will help achieve a sustainable improvement in both the company’s profitability moving forward and the financial resources for future growth.

The company says that precise forecasts of how the markets and the sector will develop are currently still difficult due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, it sees a number of positive trends emerging. The digital networking of its installed machinery gives Heidelberg an overview of capacity utilisation in print shops and an indication of the economic activity in a country. The data shows that business in China, the biggest single market for Heidelberg, has picked up speed, already surpassing last year’s level.

Other markets also show signs of recovery in terms of print volumes, cause for cautious optimism as regards the second half of the financial year.

The company believes the economic environment shows considerable uncertainty. As part of its transformation programme, Heidelberg says it has put in place targeted market initiatives so that it can quickly benefit with tailor made customer offerings when business picks up again. newzealandprinter.co.nz

REAL MEDIA COLLECTIVE

We are stronger together

W

hen Covid-19 hit earlier this year, the effects made it clear that the industry needed specialist advice and support across a range of issues, and quickly. The Real Media Collective has always delivered various resources for our members; however, our main focus over the past few years has been on working directly with our members.

The Covid-19 pandemic created a bigger need for not only our members, but the broader industry and we recognised with immediacy that print buying customers and government needed to understand the relevance and standards of our industry.

Customers wanted to use the opportunity to push online and government was not aware of our size, standards or essential nature. It was determined that a collective industry approach was more important now than at any other time.

We took the view to open our doors to the entire industry and deliver. I want to use this opportunity to thank the entire RMC team for the commitment they have delivered, and continue to deliver, to the industry. With doors wide open, we committed to building tools, fact sheets, education and knowledge in partnership with like-minded industry associations.

Product surface stability The very first piece we developed was the Product Surface Stability fact sheet. The Australasian Paper Industry Association and RMC worked collaboratively to review research and commentary with regard to the COVID-19 virus life-span on paper and other surfaces.

With Australasia leading the way, the RMC Surface Stability fact sheet has since been picked up by our global partners and our fact sheet content has been published globally. It was important to get the surface stability message out, and correct any erroneous views that reflected paper as a transmitter of Covid-19.

46

September 2020

Re-Build Together

KELLIE NORTHWOOD

Kellie Northwood explains some of the initiatives TRMC has worked on to help the Australian industry deak with the Covid-19 pandemic and how members are coping

The Re-Build Together webinar series brought the industry together and shared knowledge across the issues that were affecting all businesses during this pandemic. From May through to July, the industry was given weekly access to a host of experts covering critical issues such as workplace issues, mental wellness, finance, reinvention, and understanding what recovery and future success would look like. The interactive webinars evidenced the depth of skill in the industry and the supporters who helped make Re-Build Together such a success.

We received over 20,000 attendees, engagements, shares, downloads, likes and views across the eight-week series and have now launched our ReBuild Together class notes to all attendees. These are now being run through a partnership with Visual Connections’ Virtual Trade Show as well as on our website.

Workplace relations Workplace and industrial relations became an immediate need this year. The RMC had recognised, over the past 12 months, that knowledge of our industry with regards to specialised industrial relations expertise was desperately needed. The Covid outbreak amplified this more than ever.

As such, we moved swiftly and brought on board print industry IR specialist Charles Watson, who hit the ground sprinting in April this year, helping the industry understand and navigate the JobKeeper scheme and related amendments to the Fair Work Act. We also created a range of Covid-19 specific resources for the industry to implement in their workplaces to keep employees safe.

When it became obvious that the detrimental effects of Covid-19 would last longer, in Australia, we lobbied for the federal government to extend JobKeeper scheme for the industry. We were the only industry body to directly inform the Fair Work Commission and government

on their proposed amendments to the industry Awards, the Fair Work Act, and other issues.

Smaller businesses in the industry would be given some breathing space with minimum Award wage increases being held off until November this year, instead of July.

We had previously considered and invested in using other associations to lobby on our behalf; however, this year proved that we needed our industry expertise, not another hotline, and that our members needed our support.

A low risk industry From industry engagement, we developed the Printing and Distribution Protocols which all our members and those from several other industry bodies fully complied with. Visual Connections, Australasian Paper Industry Association, Fundraising Institute, Australia Post and the Distribution Standards Board supported them and remain signatories to these protocols – marking a great industry association coalition to achieve a united approach, which was applauded by government. The industry resource, aligned with government requirements, has been instrumental to ensure employees remain safe, and that we are not considered a high-risk industry. The recent Victorian lockdown issued updates to the Victorian restrictions, again, provided a baseline for members to align with.

Product Stewardship We have supported a much needed review and revision of product stewardship arrangements and waste management strategies for the benefit of industry and the community as a whole.

We have called upon government to ensure incoming product stewardship arrangements that will affect our industry, are managed by the industry and are now drafting the procurement protocols to ensure our government and related departments are buying from local printers instead of newzealandprinter.co.nz

REAL MEDIA COLLECTIVE opportunities to stabilise and if not, grow the mail sector for all. We think now is the time to look closer at future focused solutions to stabilise the postal service across the country and its related costs to our industry.

Women in Print

Covid-19 identified that a collective industry approach was more important now than ever sub-contracting procurement out that is then produced overseas. Historically, our industry has suffered from regulatory requirements and imposed covenants that were created with no participation or involvement sought from within our industry. It is the industry itself that is best placed to understand the complexities and create the best solutions.

Go local first Based on the findings of our June 2020 Industry Insights report, 74.55 per cent of respondent companies believe government spending should be prioritised as spending in our country. We have called upon the government to beneficially utilise the opportunities these product stewardship arrangements present to increase economic momentum by linking product stewardship and the governments ‘Go Local First’ funded campaign directly to government procurement policy.

We have called on government to also buy local at the ‘point of manufacture’, not merely through a local entity subcontracting procurement from unknown overseas origins.

Federal Government SME Loan Guarantee Scheme Again in Australia, the federal government’s SME Loan Guarantee Scheme was implemented as part of its economic stimulus response to the effects of Covid-19.

Those loans are assessed through a lender’s usual credit newzealandprinter.co.nz

assessment processes, backed by a 50 per cent government guarantee scheme, and the Reserve Bank of Australia has provided a line of funding to ADIs for such purposes via its Term Funding Facility at a rate of 0.25 per cent.

While providing another form of possible assistance, and aimed to assist SMEs, the scheme raised some concerns about the related lending conditions.

Some financial institutions were proposing to charge rates of 10 to 12 per cent, given the loan is unsecured.

Some were advertising rates of five to seven per cent, albeit those rates were listed as ‘base rates’ which lead to further ambiguity. We sought clarification from the Australian Banking Association on whether its members were actually aligned with the ‘spirit of the scheme’.

Post inquiry In Australia, Covid-19 resulted in the Australia Post parcel delivery numbers going up and mail levels going down. Additionally, with the grounding of most commercial passenger planes, usual delivery standards were going to be difficult to meet. The federal government implemented changes to affiliated regulated performance standards to assist Australia Post in overcoming those difficulties.

We encouraged the Senate Committee Inquiry to support the initiatives and in turn we committed, as an industry, to continue working with them with an open dialogue to address industry needs and

The refreshed and rebranded Women in Print has been an honour to partner with. There are many industry initiatives the RMC supports and we are proud to do this for the enrichment of our industry and provide resources and opportunity for many projects.

Outlier associations entering our industry should be held to account and our industry should demand investment in our industry programs and activities. We must seek more for every dollar we invest, and should there be associations gaining investment for specific services, they should offer our industry support in return.

Women in Print is a tremendous example of an important need for our industry and the RMC is proud to support it in the way we are. There are more of such initiatives and we need all the support possible to continue delivering them.

Weathering the storm In Australia, although the pandemic has been a national issue, the management of it has become a state by state by territory issue, with each having varied experiences.

It has been heartening to see some areas open up and saddening to see others move back to lockdown conditions.

The RMC has been able to inform the government at all levels on the essential nature of our industry, particularly given the critical products and services our industry provides to the community.

Kellie Northwood is the CEO of The Real Media Collective, an industry Association representing the paper, print, mail, publishing and distribution companies across Australia and New Zealand. Northwood also holds the executive director position for the Australasian Paper Industry Association (APIA). For more information contact: 03 9421 2296 or hello@thermc.com.au. www. therealmediacollective.com.au September 2020

47

CUTTING & WINDING

Cutting and winding techno Automation has moved to the next level for cutting and winding solutions

F

or 100 years, Kampf has specialised in cutting and winding technology.

In the early years, the Oberberg company supplied regional paper processors.

Today, its machines go to manufacturers of packaging, technical films, or lithiumion batteries all over the world. Lutz Busch, managing director of Kampf, with over 700 employees, has a strong commitment to digitalisation.

In this interview with VDMA, the German Printing and Paper technology Engineering Association, he talks about automation, 4.0 platforms, and sustainable packaging.

VDMA: To begin, a quick question on the Covid-19 pandemic. How has Kampf survived the crisis so far?

Lutz Busch: Amazingly well.

We took the right measures and fortunately we all stayed healthy. Incoming orders are also at the high level of the previous year. We did not have one cancellation. Our sales are only slightly below our expectations, even that is only due to project delays. However, it is a great pity that we cannot celebrate our 100th anniversary as planned. Our foundation in 1920, fell in the middle of the Spanish flu. Now the anniversary falls flat because of Corona. But of course, it is more important that we have mastered the crisis so far so well. It looks as if we will be able to almost maintain our sales level of €140m and invest four percent of that amount in our research and development as before.

VDMA:

How are the target markets for your cutting and winding technology developing?

Probably due to Covid-19, hygienic packaging is currently experiencing a special boom.

Things are also going very well in our flexible films

LB: 48

September 2020

Kampf aims to produce self-optimising machines, like this dual turret slitter division: raw films for technical applications and packaging.

Demand is growing rapidly, especially in Asia. The slitting and winding machines for packaging films are also on a growth course. Here we are experiencing strong impetus from the demand for sustainable packaging made of recycled or particularly recyclable materials. In some cases, plastic is also being replaced by paper, for example, in the case of straws. Another growth area is our battery business, where our subsidiary LSF offers winding and cutting technology for electrode and separator films. We built up know how early on, which is now in great demand in the establishment of industrial cell production in Europe. Demand is increasing both in the electromobility and stationary storage sectors.

VDMA: LB: drivers?

What are the growth

Our major customers in the packaging sector are pushing ahead with the automation and digital networking of their production at full speed. The supply of their machines with master rolls and their alignment, followed by the processing, including inner and outer labels, up to the removal of the finished rolls takes place in a fully automated process chain. Industry 4.0 is also no longer a vision but has found its way into our solutions and the processes of our customers.

This is where it pays off that we entered into the development of networking solutions early on and with great conviction.

We are working on this with partners. The driver in the growth market of packaging is the need for more sustainable recyclable solutions. Packaging guarantees that food and consumer goods reach the customer undamaged, instead of ending up on the rubbish tip. This contribution to environmental and resource protection is often neglected in public debates.

VDMA:

Kampf offers converting 4.0 solutions. What is behind them?

According to a customer survey, we will become fully involved in the development of networked solutions. From the very beginning, we acted holistically and focused on our customers’ entire production. The aim is to increase both productivity and flexibility through transparent, data-based processes. From our point of view, the selfoptimising machine is the end of the development process.

We have consistently followed this path. For this we have set up ‘the @vanced’ on our 4.0 platform.

LB:

VDMA: LB: about?

What is that all

We provide our customers with an integrative platform on which newzealandprinter.co.nz

CUTTING & WINDING

ology moves to digitisation all data from the production, processing and finishing of web materials converge. In other words, not only data from our machines, but data from all systems involved in the process chain: inspection data; data of the web edge control; coating systems; and much more. Because cutting and winding is at the end of a long chain, it made sense for us to set up such a platform. It collects data for smart services in the sense of higher process efficiency; machine availability; proactive maintenance; for the use of artificial intelligence; the connection to ERP or production planning systems; faster machine set up; and waste avoidance. In other words, it works toward more efficient and more flexible production. In addition, the modular, freely configurable platform guarantees full traceability. Manufacturers are provided with digital product life cycles from melted granulate to extrusion and refinement to cutting and winding. This is particularly important for high-quality technical films, pharmaceutical packaging, or battery electrodes.

VDMA: LB:

managed with automation. Ten years ago, we had to convince customers of this.

VDMA:

Globally, are you registering a growing awareness among your customers about sustainability?

Definitely. Many customers are taking the initiative. Global brand owners are formulating ambitious goals to avoid plastics and increase recycling rates. Nobody wants simple one-way solutions anymore.

What they want are all round engineered films with all kinds of coatings and perforations that can be easily recycled.

And technical films are also increasingly concerned with

LB:

recycling and minimised material losses in production.

VDMA:

What do you see when you imagine Kampf in the year 2030?

I see a global player that is fully integrated into the production of its customers with its largely digitalised and automated products and with its services.

We will remain a machine manufacturer, but we will develop into a solution provider that offers a complete package for the processing of high quality web materials, from fully networked processes to digital platforms. Our core competence remains cutting and winding technology.

LB:

What is the response to

your platform?

A strongly positive one. The number of installations is continuously increasing. We see a growing interest in open cooperation and active participation. No company can manage Industry 4.0 alone. In our Converting 4.0 partner network, which now comprises almost 80 companies, we therefore work together across companies to further develop the possibilities of digitisation along the value chain.

VDMA:

Do you still have to convince your customers of automation, or has it become a matter of course?

Today, they are investing at a level that I would not have imagined five years ago. Decreasing batch sizes and special campaigns with simultaneously increasing cost pressure can only be

LB:

newzealandprinter.co.nz

Committed to digitisation: Lutz Busch, managing director of Kampf September 2020

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