November 28, 2000
Leading Graphics signs contract with White Rose
TORONTO — Leading Graphics Inc. signed a two-year contract with White Rose Home & Garden Centres in mid-November. The deal was announced yesterday and is worth an estimated $1 million. John Negru, director convergent solutions at Leading Graphics, said they had been doing prepress and Web site work for the company for about a year and were in discussions recently about expanding services and “rolling it up into one package.” Some of the services include digital printing, digital photography, and hosting White Rose’s Web site. Leading Graphics was acquired by Cenosis Inc. in early November.

Ryerson honours its own
TORONTO — Ryerson Polytechnic University, the OPIA (Ontario Printing and Imaging Association) and members of the industry came out to honour students of the School of Graphic Communications Management last Thursday night. This was the 14th annual awards presentation. The head table included Tracey Preston, executive director of the OPIA; Chris Rudge, president Quebecor World Canada; Michael Makin, president of the CPIA; Don Gain, chairman of the CPIA; Dr. Errol Aspervig, vice president academic; and Mary Black, chair of the program. Among the award recipients were Andrew McCracken, David Herder, Stephanie Reid, Sundeep Phagura, Kathy Hudson, Ann Grant, Andrea Gray, Aimee Brown, Ryan Lapidus, Clyde Brown, Mina Hodder, Nick Parras, Ann Grant, Neville Cooper, Mike MacKinnon, Angie Oppedisano, Eric Chan, Michael Yee, Aiko Miyazawa, Jennette Proctor and Marisa D’Arpino.

SGIA honours members
NEW ORLEANS — At the SGIA’s (Screenprinting and Graphic Imaging Association International) 52nd annual convention a Business Management Award went to Monogram Decal & Specialties Ltd. of Mississauga. Graphic Ad Ltd. of Humboldt, Sask. received the Safety Award and SIAS [Canada] Ltd. received the Honourary Golden Image Award and a Certificate of Appreciation.

November 24, 2000
Environmental network for Canada
TORONTO — Several companies have come together to form Target Zero Canada, a group devoted to eliminating waste and the idea of waste management and rethinking how companies use resources. Members include Transcontinental Printing Inc., Xerox Corporation and Domtar Papers. The network was established Nov. 21 the same day the group held its first meeting. Its Web site is: www.targetzerocanada.org.

Alliance Forest Products starts sup new paper machine
DONNACONA, Que. — Alliance Forest Products Inc. shut down two paper making machines last week and officially launched the start up of machine number four. Gérard Renaud, vice president operations, said the new machine will produce 152,000 metric tonnes of supercalendered A-type paper by early 2001.

Crain-Drummond's new identity
BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Crain-Drummond Inc. will be known as Relizon Canada Inc. to reflect its new U.S. ownership. Relizon Canada is a subsidiary of The Relizon Company of Dayton, Ohio.

November 17, 2000
Imaginex buys Roboshop
MISSISSAUGA — Imaginex Inc. has made an offer to acquire prepress house and digital printer Roboshop Design Ltd. The deal is to be finalized next month. Group president at Imaginex, Serge Trajkovich, said they approached the 12-year-old company early this summer because of its location in downtown Toronto and its DI press capabilities. Imaginex is also a prepress house with a division for commercial work and one for packaging. The company is also a print broker, but with the acquisition can now offer its own printing services. Imaginex was established in 1972 and has 103 employees, which will increase to approximately 130 with the acquisition. Trajkovich said that by year’s end sales for the combined companies will be $24 million. Also of note, Imaginex acquired two other prepress houses: Vision Color Inc. of Winnipeg in May and Compart Ltd. of Etobicoke, Ont. (this operation was subsequently merged into Imaginex’s facility) in late October.

Hollinger sells three printers
QUEBEC CITY — When Gesca Ltd.—a subsidiary of Power Corp.—acquired Hollinger Inc.’s UniMedia division last week, it also acquired three printing plants in Quebec. Imprimerie Le Progrés du Saguenay in Chicoutimi, Imprimerie Canada in Quebec City and Qualimax in Hull all print French-language flyers, and daily, weekly or monthly newspapers. Imprimerie Le Progrés is almost 120 years old and employs close to 200. Imprimerie Canada is about 52 years old and employs 200 in two divisions. One prints newspapers, and the other is a five-colour sheetfed and half-web press operation. Qualimax is a 21-year-old facility with 45 employees. Qualimax’s production manager Daniel Beaulne says staff are excited about the transaction. “We’re looking forward to a bright future—not that it was going bad with UniMedia, it was going fine, but Power Corp. is more active in the market.”

Quebecor World signs another contract in Brazil
MONTREAL — Quebecor World Inc. has signed a contract with Brazilian-based telephone directories publisher Listel Listas Telefonicas S.A. Spokesperson for Quebecor, Tony Ross, said the contract was signed in October and is worth about US$140 million. The 10-year agreement will see Quebecor print up to 11.8 billion directory pages at a new facility in Recife. That 172,160 sq.-ft. facility is also where Quebecor will be printing magazines for Editora Abril S.A.—a contract announced in early September. Quebecor will hire 100 staff in addition to the 200 for the Editora Abril contract. Ross expects printing to begin in April.

La Providence’s equipment is auctioned off
ST. HYACINTH, Que. — Imprimerie La Providence had its equipment auctioned off on Wednesday. According to a source the printer employed about 80 and closed its doors in late summer. Items for sale included office equipment, vacuum systems, light tables, Komori Lithrone five colour and four colour presses, a Wohlenberg paper cutter, and an Omegabinder saddlestitcher.

November 14, 2000
Canadian Bank Note moves its lottery printing division
OTTAWA — Canadian Bank Note Company Limited is moving its Lottery Group from Rhode Island to Florida. Charles Lavoie, senior vice president and CFO, said the move brings the division closer to its “installed base." (CBN has lottery systems installed in up to 10 Caribbean countries.) The move also gives CBN access to skilled labour, said Lavoie. The division and some of the employees will be moving from a 35,000 sq.-ft. site to a 50,000 sq.-ft. facility April 1. The Lottery Group will continue to produce scratch off tickets for North America and the Caribbean, and the site will house departments in commercial art and graphic design, computer programming and database management.

The London Freep gets a new press
LONDON, Ont. — The London Free Press is spending $9 million to replace some of the last letterpresses to be used on a major Canadian daily. Beginning in January, the existing two six letterpress units will be dismantled to make way for a three-year-old Goss Headliner offset press. The double-round, double-wide 16-up offset features six-colour decks and will be capable of 50,000 imprints per hour. A new plate processor and bender will be part of the improvements, as well as a new line of inserting equipment. The project is expected to be complete by next October at a total cost of $14 million. The newspaper also announced earlier this month that it will begin printing the weekly London Pennysaver in February.

November 10, 2000
Cenosis takes another Lead
MONTREAL — Cenosis Inc., of Montreal, signed an agreement to acquire a 55% ownership of Leading Graphics Inc. in early November. John Negru, director for convergent solutions at Leading Graphics, said Cenosis approached the 30-year-old prepress and digital imaging specialist in late September. “The way the market is going,” says Negru, “it’s very difficult—and it’s not just in our business, it’s in lots of businesses—it’s very difficult for medium size companies to compete effectively in today’s economy if you’re very small and you have a very specific niche.” That niche includes electronic file transfer, which, says Negru, “is on the verge of exploding and becoming the de facto standard in the new all-digital workflow.” Leading Graphics has 70 employees in four divisions. Revenues for fiscal year 2000 were $9 million. Cenosis, which recently acquired the prepress house StanMont Inc. in late August, is a high-technology company involved in creating workflow software. The transaction is valued at $2.5 million ($2 million in cash and 120,000 Cenosis common shares priced at $4.50 per share).

Norske Skog wants to sell its Mackenzie Pulp mill
VANCOUVER — Norske Skog Canada announced that it’s “actively looking” to sell its Mackenzie Pulp mill. Stuart Clugston, vice president of corporate affairs, said “it really doesn’t fit with the strategic direction of the company, which is really around publication papers. Our parent company Norske Skog has sold its pulp divisions in Europe and Scandinavia and for the same reasons.” Clugston added the company is “talking with some parties” and hopes to sell the mill by the end of the year. The mill employs 239 and produces 230,000 tonnes per year.

November 7, 2000
Transcontinental merges two plants
MONTREAL — Transcontinental Group Ltd. announced that it is closing its Drummondville plant early next year and moving the operation into its Boucherville plant. Both plants—along with Imprimerie Interweb also in Boucherville—produce magazines and other commercial work. Pierre St. Laurent, senior vice president of the Catalogue, Magazine and Directory Group, said yesterday that “we already have two facilities in the same surroundings [Boucherville] that produce this kind of material...it’s important for us that we keep on building the critical mass in these two different markets and we’re basically concentrating our activities and concentrating our investments.” The Drummondville plant, which was established in the early 60s, has about 135 employees and the Boucherville plant, which was established in the late 70s, about 125. Up to 70 employees and all of the Drummondville equipment will move into the Boucherville plant.

Viskase Canada’s plant is up for sale
LINDSAY, Ont. — Shrink bag printer, Viskase Canada Inc., closed in September and its plant is now up for sale. The 75-year-old company had 50 employees. An employee, who did not wish to be identified, said the Chicago-based parent company had decided to sell off its shrink bag division and this was the only plant in Canada.

November 3. 2000
Leech Printing gets certified
BRANDON, Man. — There was much celebrating at Leech Printing Ltd. on Wednesday night. The 73-year-old printing firm held the official celebration since receiving ISO certification in early October. General manager, Michael Leech, says they wanted the certification because of the “changes in the industry...and because we’re expanding and we’re promoting people to different positions we wanted to have documentation in place for continuity reasons, that new people could come in and follow standards.” It was also about creating quality control throughout the company’s 20,000 sq.-ft. main plant, and off-site at its quick print division, Leech Quik Print, and design firm, Innovative Media Group. The company, which was established by Leech’s grandfather, is still family-owned and employs 50. Leech says they just purchased a MAN Roland 204 series, 4-colour press and hired two employees.

Pira International’s forecast
SURREY, UK — According to a press release issued by Pira International, a research and consultancy firm for the packaging, paper, printing and publishing industries, the effects of digital technology on the printing industry will emerge in the coming decade. Some of the changes predicted include: printers offering publishers 24/7 support services (producing books on demand from orders placed over the Internet); digital printing is to capture a 20% share of the world’s print market; customized books and magazines will be delivered next day to buyers worldwide; print run lengths will be markedly reduced; and prepress service providers will become one-stop printers.