September 27, 2002
Graphic Monthly announces Printer of the Year
MISSISSAUGA,Ont.—Dick Kouwenhoven, president of B.C.'s Hemlock Printers, is the first recipient of Graphic Monthly's new Printer of the Year Award. PrintCan's sister printed publication has introduced an annual editorial feature and award program to recognize printers who have made a significant impact on the printing industry and who have contributed to the betterment of the industry. "Dick was an obvious first choice to kick off our award program, " says publisher Sandy Donald. "He has raised the quality bar for the entire industry and he has been very generous with his support. We look forward to celebrating many individuals in the years to come and creating a printing hall of fame." Hemlock is a $40 million sheetfed operation which has developed a North American reputation for high-quality and high profile work. Look for a copy of the October issue, featuring the profile of Dick Kouwenhoven, to hit your desk next week.

C.J. Graphics has superb showing
TORONTO—C.J. Graphics walked away with the 2002 Best of Show award at Wednesday evening's Gallery of Superb Printing awards dinner hosted by the Toronto Club of Printing House Craftsmen. C.J. Graphics snagged the top honour for printing and binding Blue Earth, a book featuring Bryce Duffy's photos of New York City taken the week after 9/11. Proceeds from the book were donated to the Fire Department of New York City. Seventeen additional awards—including six gold—made their way home with C.J.'s owner, Jay Mandarino. It was also a good night for Aurora, Ont.'s, Avant Imaging & Information Management. The company took home 21 awards including two gold and six silver prizes.

September 24, 2002
Delgraphics assets go to auction
BRAMPTON, Ont.—Delgraphics is being closed and its assets will be auctioned off in the next 45 to 60 days, it was decided at a creditors' meeting late last week. The company, which owes about $3.5 million to more than 80 creditors, has about $480,000 in assets. Major creditors include Canada Customs and Revenue, which is owed $480,000 in secured debt and $2 million in an unsecured amount. About $1 million of that is penalties and interest charges. Ronald DeLuca, owner of Delgraphics, has a claim against the company of $385,000. Some of the equipment to be auctioned off includes a four-colour Heidelberg sheetfed press, a five-unit Solna coldset web press, a four-colour Didde mini web, a two-colour Miehle sheetfed press, a one-colour Multilith and a two-colour Multilith. Delgraphics had annual revenues of about $5 million.

Ryerson student stream drying up
TORONTO—The Graphic Communications Management program at Ryerson University is having trouble finding qualified candidates to fill its program, says chair Mary Black. "Students in high school don't know about the industry, that it's high-tech and that graduates get three to five job offers each," she says. This year, the school received about 600 applications but it was a challenge finding qualified candidates to fill 122 spots. About 300 did not have the academic qualifications, and many of the rest believed they were applying to a design program. "The industry has to get out there and let students know the industry exists," says Black. "If one person from each printing shop went out to a high school once a month, what a difference it would make." Black says students show amazing interest when they are told about the industry. One of the options under consideration is for the program to change its name to better reflect its printing orientation. Meanwhile, the school has moved into its new digs and it expects to have an open house soon.

September 20, 2002
Quebec AAGQ does not want out of CPIA
Montreal—CPIA jumped the gun a little bit in announcing that the AAGQ wants out, says AAGQ president Daniel Lafond. The Quebec provincial association contends it never told the CPIA it wants to sever ties with the national association but did ask to renegotiate the way membership dues are split between the two associations. Lafond says the AAGQ is facing tough financial times and asked to keep more of the money it collects so it stands a better chance of survival. "We want to stay part of CPIA, but at a reasonable cost," says Lafond. Quebec, he says, has a heavier service load than some other provinces, including translation services for example, but it must still pump back the same amount of money. Quebec is also the only association that owns a magazine. Mietre Imprimeur usually posts a surplus, which goes to cover AAGQ costs, but it has lost about half its advertising base over the past year, and is now in the red. Plus, Lafond says, the provincial executive cannot decide on its own to withdraw from CPIA membership, and a general members' meeting to discuss the question is scheduled for early October.

Transcontinetal revenue flat, shares spike
Montreal—Last week Transcontinental Group announced that revenue in the third quarter totalled $408.8 million, down slightly from $409.3 million in 2001. The revenue decline stemmed largely from the stalled printing operations in the U.S. and Mexico. Nevertheless, the news did not prevent Transcontinental from overtaking Quebecor World on the TSE. Since September 5, Transcontinental has outpaced Quebecor and its share price closed yesterday at $39.75 or $4.55 higher than Quebecor World. The share price of Quebecor has been falling all week and lost 5.2% in one day on the news that Mark Reisch, president and CEO of Quebecor North America, had left to pursue other interests. In other financial news, Moore announced earlier this week that it expects to release improved year-over-year results for the third quarter next month.

September 17, 2002
Quebec provincial association severs ties to CPIA
ST JOHN'S—The CPIA board of directors was told early last week that the Quebec provincial printing association, AAGQ, is withdrawing its membership from the national association as a result of a financial dispute over membership dues. The news was released at the CPIA's annual meeting, held last weekend, by president Pierre Boucher. Bob Kadis, chairman, said the AAGQ is not solvent and has not forwarded any 2002 membership dues to CPIA. The national association has offered to defer payment of the dues, but after due diligence it concluded that prospects for a turnaround at AAGQ were not good. The financial difficulties for the Quebec association are due in part to the dwindling fortune of an association magazine that has become a drain on resources. The CPIA has not decided on a course of action but is looking at all the options to resolve the dispute and keep AAGQ within the CPIA. The chairman of AAGQ, Daniel Lafond, was not available for immediate comment. Stay tuned for updates as they become available. At the same meeting, Boucher also announced that the Nova Scotia association is in danger of disappearing due to a shortage of funds, including a lack of a full-time staff person to help volunteers. One consideration under discussion, he said, is forming an Atlantic association. A meeting to review the options is scheduled for late September or early October.

Women's graphic organization launched
CHICAGO—A new national industry association, Women in Graphics Media and Technology, is being launched formally on September 24. Sponsored by Chicago-based Raine Consulting and IDEAlliance, WGMT will serve as a mentoring and networking association to exchange knowledge and help staff come up the ranks. The membership is open to both men and women on a worldwide basis and the organization is looking to senior people who want to share their knowledge. Charter memberships are US$125; total membership is expected to hit 60 in six months and 350 in 18 months. For more information go to www.wgmt.org

September 13, 2002
Delta Printing buys Tyrell's assets, sets up production facility
GLOUCESTER/OTTAWA, Ont.—Printcan has learned that creditors of 45-year-old Tyrell Press have accepted the conditions presented in a liquidity proposal which would see Ottawa's Delta Printing buy Tyrell's equipment and move into that company's facilities, setting up a second production site for Delta. Tyrell Press fell into financial difficulties in July and had secured and unsecured debts exceeding $3 million on assets worth about $1 million. Under the terms of the proposal, Delta will also be taking over a number of Tyrell's existing client accounts. Allen MacLeod, president of Tyrell trustee D&A MacLeod, says Tyrell chose to go with the liquidity proposal because it would recover the most money for creditors. He adds that if the deal goes through as anticipated, Tyrell's unsecured creditors stand to recoup 50 to 75 cents on every dollar owed. While Victor Choquette, president of Delta, would not disclose the sale's figures, he says Delta will be moving into the Tyrell shop early next week and that the transaction would be finalized by early October. "We felt there was enough business to justify going in. It will be profitable," says Choquette of Delta's decision. Delta is a 15-year-old company that had approximately $11 million in sales last year. Tyrell co-owner Patricia Tyrell refused comment on the situation.

Touchdown for TopLine
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.—In an effort to strengthen its recent rebranding strategy TopLine Printing & Graphics has entered into a sponsorship deal with the Toronto Argonauts, one of the CFL's oldest football teams. TopLine—which has production facilities in Mississauga and West Palm Beach, Fla. and annual revenues around $20 million—has been officially dubbed the Argos "printer of choice" and has been granted first right of refusal on all Argo print projects. "We think it's time printers start promoting themselves," says TopLine sales and marketing manager, Kevin McKay. "We know we're not going to be the next Kellogs," he says of the branding exercise, but says that the association with the Argos will give TopLine brand recognition with other Argo sponsors and, hopefully, better leverage when it comes to landing blue-chip printing accounts. McKay would not disclose the financial terms of the deal.

September 10, 2002
St. Joseph wins $20 million contract
TORONTO—After a year-long proposal process, St. Joseph Digital Solutions, a division of St. Joseph Corp., beat out 12 other print and outsource companies to win a three-year contract worth $20 million. St. Joseph will print client statements, tax receipts, and annual reports for Investors Group, Mackenzie Financial and MRS Inc. A broad range of product capabilities, a strong comfort level and a significant cost savings positioned the company to be awarded the contract, according to a prepared press release.

Tyrell Press closes its doors
GLOUCESTER, Ont.—Tyrell Press, a 45-year old family-run company, has gone out of business. The printer went into receivership in July and has since closed down its locations in Gloucester and Ottawa. Creditors have met and agreed on a proposal to wind up the business and according to an article in the Ottawa Citizen, there is a possibility that another company will take over some of Tyrell's equipment and reopen the business. The trustee, D&A MacLeod Co. Ltd., was not available for comment but the Citizen reported that Tyrell had debts of at least $1.9 million and assets worth about $1 million. The largest creditor is HSBC Bank of Canada, owed $710,000, and unsecured creditors include the landlord of the Gloucester location and Patricia Tyrell, co-owner of Tyrell Press. Stay tuned for more updates.

September 6, 2002
Quebecor MIL loses contract to the Web
DON MILLS, Ont.—Quebecor MIL is the latest printer to lose a contract to the Web. The Ivey Business Journal, a 70-year old publication from the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ont., has ceased printing and is relaunching with an online version. "We are trying to extend the reach of the publication and the school internationally," says Ed Pearce, director of marketing and communications at the school and publisher of the journal. "It's easier for us to do that electronically than it is with a printed version." For three years Quebecor MIL was printing 15,000 copies of the bi-monthly magazine. "It's just a sign of the times," says Peter Nitchos, vice president of sales at Quebecor MIL. "Each year publications, reports, brochures go online and each year sales growths of 5% to 10% are still being incurred by Quebecor. So of course we don't like it when it happens, but at the same time it always seems to be replaced with something else."

Transcontinental looking to grow
MONTREAL—Transcontinental has announced it is looking to hire 140 employees for its two plants in Boucherville, Que. Information sessions will be held on September 9 and 10 at its Interweb plant and at the Boucherville plant on the 16 and 17. In other news, the company's major newspaper client, The Globe and Mail, has been named to the International Newspaper Colour Quality Club (INCQC). This is the second time in a row that the publication has been recognized for its reproduction and print quality. In its bid to renew the contract with The Globe, Transcontinental made major investments two years ago in its plants in Halifax, Montreal and Mississauga, Ont., to increase colour, pagination and folding capacity.