September 28, 2001
Shop still open after raid for Sept. 11 evidence
TORONTO— Despite having its computers seized by Toronto Police and RCMP officers, business at Toronto-based Best Copy Printing hasn't missed a beat. The shop made arrangements to get back-up computers that enabled it to stay open after police seized paper, chemicals and plastic laminates, according to a company spokesman. The shop was raided on Wednesday night. Police suspect it may have been used to manufacture fake IDs for suspected terrorists wanted in the Sept. 11 attack on New York and Washington. Best Copy owner Ahmad Shehab's Toronto apartment was searched by police, but he is not facing any charges. Shehab is the uncle of Nabil Al-Marabh, who was arrested in Chicago after skipping court to faces charges of allegedly possessing a fake passport.

Quebecor World signs deal, buys assets
MONTREAL— Quebecor World announced yesterday it has signed a ten-year, US$400 million printing contract with French publisher Hachette Filipacchi Medias and has bought Hachette's printing and bindery plants in France and Belgium. The plants house long-run gravure presses that print magazines, catalogues and retail inserts. Figures for the purchase of the plants were not disclosed. Hachette is one of the world's largest publishers with a stable of 210 magazine titles in 34 countries. Among these titles are Elle Canada and Elle Quebec, which are jointly owned with Transcontinental Media.

September 25, 2001
Arthurs-Jones auction in the works
MISSISSAUGA, ONT.- Assets that belonged to Arthurs-Jones Clarke Lithographing Inc., will be likely be sold at a public auction within the next month, PrintCan has learned. Liquidator Century Services Inc. says the auction will probably be held in mid-October, but had not set a specific date and location. One of the most well-known printers in greater Toronto, Arthurs-Jones went into receivership in July after being in business for 95 years. Watch for further updates regarding the auction on PrintCan.

Quebecor fills its trophy case
MONTREAL - Quebecor World might need to clear out a few rooms at its head office to house the awards it won at Print '01 in Chicago. The world's largest commercial printer received 78 awards at The Gold Ink Awards and Hall of Fame Banquet ceremony, held during Print. Included in Quebecor's total were six gold, five silver, three bronze and 64 pewter awards. Evaluated by leading publishing, production and manufacturing people, the awards are handed out on the basis of quality and technical difficulty in printing and production.

September 21, 2001
Event cancellations
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.— In the wake of the tragic events of Sept. 11, industry events have been postponed and rescheduled. The OAQP-sponsored seminar on direct mail will be held on Oct.17. For event details contact oaqp@econoprint.net. The Heidelberg Users Inforum, originally scheduled for Sept.22 has been postponed until further notice. For more information, contact Val Billon at (905) 362-4486.

Quebecor helps out Maclean's
AURORA, Ont.— When Maclean's was putting together its Sept.24 issue concerning the tragedies in the U.S., it made a unique request to its printer, Quebecor World. "Maclean's called us and asked if we could help them out, because they wanted to do a little more with the cover. We said we'd be happy to, so we ran a larger cover on a higher quality stock," says Chris Rudge, executive vice-president, marketing communications and international development, Quebecor World. The issue featured a six-page gatefold cover, and contained no advertising. Rudge says Quebecor has accomodated other publication clients in the past when they wanted to devote an issue to a special project.

September 18, 2001
SGIA 2001 cancelled
FAIRFAX, VA. — Due to concerns over available air travel following last Tuesday's tragic events in the U.S., the Screenprinters and Graphic Imaging Association has decided to cancel its upcoming convention in Anaheim, Calif. The decision was reached after the SGIA's 22-member board of directors voted unanimously to cancel the event late last week. The SGIA will be notifying all registered participants with refund information in the coming weeks. Registered exhibitors and attendees can also opt to put their refund towards next year's convention in St.Louis, or donate it to the SGIA. For more information, contact the SGIA toll free at 1-888-385-3588.

Heidelberg hits the road
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — With U.S. air travel grounded for several days last week Heidelberg Canada decided to leave Print '01 on the ground. A 46-seat charter bus from Toronto arrived in Chicago last Thursday morning to take Heidelberg employees and some of its customers home, at the company's expense. Two seats on the bus were filled with staffers from PrintCAN's sister title Graphic Monthly. The company says it just made sense to choose a different method of travel. "One thing was just being unsure when the U.S was going to allow anybody to fly at all. And there was also the danger, however rightly or wrongly perceived, that anything could happen around that time," says Ernie Bardocz, national manager of marketing and sales, Heidelberg Canada.

September 14, 2001
Web Offset shopping for publisher?
PICKERING, Ont— Industry rumblings have it that Web Offset Publications Ltd. is considering the potential acquisition of a publisher. It currently prints Books in Canada, a literary review title,based in Toronto. To date, PrintCAN has been unable to contact Web Offset for comment. Look for updates on this story next week.

Business as usual at Easy Print
BELLEVILLE, Ont.— Three months after an accident that caused $15,000 damage to its shop, Easy Print recently put the final touches on repairs that began in late June. "We just got carpet in and everything is pretty much back to normal," says owner Dave Visser. Easy Print's accounting office was damaged after a car driven by an elderly man drove through a shop window, narrowly missing an employee. The man accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brake. The shop's presses were not damaged and production schedules were not interrupted, contrary to another report.

September 12, 2001
Print '01 remains open
CHICAGO— A spokesperson from the Graphic Arts Show Company (GASC) told PrintCAN this morning that Print '01 will be operating on its original schedule for the duration of the event which concludes tomorrow. Print organizer GASC, also said the show was not interrupted by Tuesday's events in New York and Washington. For more information on Print, contact the GASC at (703) 264-7200 or www.gasc.org.

September 11, 2001
Hewlett-Packard acquires Indigo
CHICAGO— Hewlett-Packard Co. has entered into an agreement to acquire the remaining shares of press manufacturer Indigo N.V. for US$629 million in HP stock and cash. Hewlett-Packard previously owned 13.4% of Indigo's shares. With the acquisition of Indigo Hewlett-Packard aims to enter the US$400 billion commercial printing market with an offering of digital presses and services. Indigo is one of the world's largest manufacturers of digital presses and related consumables. It had revenues of US$164.8 million in 2000.

PIA releases compensation study
Alexandria, VA.— Graphic arts firms seeking information on how to pay their sales staffs for new jobs and repeat work, and how to keep business flowing into their can refer to the PIA's Sales Compensation and Incentive Plans Samples from the Industry. The new report is being released at Print '01 in Chicago, and covers compensation and incentive plans for companies of all sizes from those with fewer than 50 employees to firms with more than 250 staff. For more infomation about the study or to obtain a copy, visit www.gain.net.

September 07, 2001
Reliable Bookbinders U.S. plant closes
TORONTO— Reliable Bookbinders Ltd.'s Rochester, N.Y. plant has closed, PrintCAN has learned. Apex Graphic Finishing was opened last September as part of Reliable's U.S. expansion, along with a sister plant in Jackson, Mich. Apex had a staff of about 20, and specialized in mechanical binding. The facility operated independently under the umbrella of Toronto-based The Reliable Group. Reliable president and owner, R. David Johnson was unavailable for comment.

Print Finishers merges with Atlantic Packaging
MARKHAM, Ont.— Atlantic Packaging has bought specialty display house Print Finishers. Over the last two years Print Finishers has been approached by several would-be suitors, says president Gord Urquhart. The decision to merge with the packaging giant was not based solely on financial considerations, however. "It was the guarantee that the company would continue on and the employees would retain their jobs [that helped clinch the deal]," Urquhart says. The new company, Atlantic Decorated & Display Inc., will offer the same mounting and die-cutting services offerred previously, and will operate as a division of Atlantic Packaging. All employees will be retained and Urquhart will remain as president, he says.

September 05, 2001
Protech Offset owner killed in accident
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.— Family and friends gathered to celebrate the life of Dave LoPatriello on Monday night, following his death in a motorcycle accident last Thursday morning. The 53 year-old was travelling on Highway 89, near Alliston, Ont. when his motorcycle slammed into a truck attempting a u-turn from the shoulder of the road. He was heading back to work at his company Protech Offset Services, a dealer that sells and services Ryobi and Toko presses, when he was killed. Plans for the company's future and its remaining three employees will be discussed in meetings with its lawyers this week, according to LoPatriello's daughter Krista.

St. Joseph to expand in Ottawa
CONCORD, Ont.— A new 175,000 sq. ft. facility currently under construction will bring all of St. Joseph's Ottawa-Hull operations under one roof. "We're taking all the operations from our Ottawa-Hull facility, Graphic Display Canada and M.O.M. Printing and merging them into one facility along with ePrint it," says John Gagliano president of St. Joseph Print Group. The plant, tentatively slated to open in spring 2002 in the east-Ottawa suburb of Gloucester, will receive some new equipment and upgrades, he says. According to Gagliano some jobs may be lost among employees unwilling to relocate or commute. "We're hoping to have the majority move with us," he says.