July 31, 2007
Domtar shutters Gatineau mill
MONTREAL—Domtar Corp. announced today the shuttering of its mill in Gatineau, Que., and a converting centre in Ottawa. The move should be completed by the end of October. A similar move in the U.S. will see two paper machines close in Maine and Wisconsin. The Gatineau mill is the old E. B. Eddy mill founded in 1851. A spokesperson for Domtar said the company is reviewing the position of all its paper-making machines, but that the declining demand for lightweight coated for magazines and uncoated freesheet, and the rise of the dollar were factors that contributed to this move. The company says demand for uncoated freesheet had dropped 5.5% in North America by mid-year. By year-end, the decline is expected to be around 3.5%. The numbers for coated paper are similar. In total the closures will eliminate about 284,000 tonnes of annual production capacity, but Domar still has capacity of just under 5 million tonnes annually from four sites in Canada and 11 in the U.S. About 250 employees will lose their jobs in Canada, and 180 in the U.S.
Transcontinental invests in book printing plant
MONTREAL—Transcontinental will invest $2 million in its Metrolitho printing plant, the company announced last week. The money will be used to expand the six-year old plant by more than 24,000 sq. ft., doubling its size. The expansion, which is expected to be completed by November, will dramatically increase Metrolitho’s production capacity. Located in Sherbrooke, Que., the plant currently has about 150 employees and specializes in book production, mostly short-to-medium runs. It also produces a selection of both soft and hardcover books, in colour or black and white.
July 26, 2007
ACC set to change hands
BALTIMORE, Md.—Ownership of American Color Canada in Stevensville, Ont., is about to change hands following the announcement last week that Vertis communications, a large U.S. provider of advertising products and services, had bought American Color Graphics of Brentwood, Tenn. ACG chief executive Steve Dyott is expected to remain to help with the transition and integration. There’s no word yet on what impact the move will have on the Stevensville operation, which generates about $47 million annually with 220 employees.
Put your picture on the cover of a magazine
TORONTO—Time Canada and Xerox this week announced a special promotion offering subscribers the opportunity to put their picture on the cover of the venerable weekly. The first 1,000 subscribers who upload their picture to a special website will receive a copy of Time with their mug on it in mid to late September. The covers will be printed by Xerox using XMPie variable data technology and an iGen3 110 press at NeXus, the customer training facility and showroom in the Xerox Research Centre of Canada in Mississauga. This is the first time, says Xerox, that a Canadian publication has done a promotion like this. To upload your photo go to www.canadaoffers.xerox.com/time
July 24, 2007
Print imports flatten in May
OTTAWA—The latest trade figures from Industry Canada show that in May imports of printed products flattened, but in year-over-year comparisons for the first five months, imports increased 18.6%. Exports continued their slide, coming in at -5.6% for May and -5.7% for the year-to-date period.
| EXPORTS | 2007 |
2006 |
Change |
May |
$117.5 million |
$124.6 million |
-5.6% |
Year to date |
$615.6 million |
$652.8 million |
- 5.7% |
Exports to the U.S. for the January-to-May period were $502.8 million, down 5% from the $529.0 million in the 2006 period. Meanwhile someone scored with a deal in Mexico. Exports to that country rose 487% to more than $16 million in May.
| IMPORTS | 2007 |
2006 |
Change |
May |
$101.2 million |
$100.3 million |
.89% |
Year to date |
$561.3 million |
$473.2 million |
18.6% |
On the import side, shipments from the U.S. were up 15.4% in 2007 to $411.8 million from $356.8 million in 2006 for the January-to-May period. Imports from China also clipped along for the period, posting a 24.1% increase to $78.3 million in 2007 from $63.1 million in 2006.
B.C. printers come up big as Canadian Benny winners
TORONTO—Two of the big Canadian winners at this year’s PIA Premier Print Awards (commonly known as the Benny’s) were British Columbia- based Hemlock Printers and Metropolitan Fine Printers, who have each clinched a pair of statuettes. Rhino Print Solutions and Pacific Bindery Services, both from Vancouver, also did well. The DATA Group was the only Ontario-based Benny winner, taking the prize in the business forms category. The winners, listed alphabetically by company are:
The DATA Group of Companies—business forms category
Friesens Corp.—yearbook category
Hemlock Printers Ltd.—magazine series category
Hemlock Printers Ltd.—business and annual reports category (4 or more colors throughout, printers with 101–250 employees)
Metropolitan Fine Printers—promotional campaigns category
Metropolitan Fine Printers—stochastic category
Pacific Bindery Services—drop designs category
Rhino Print Solutions—business and annual reports category (4 or more colors throughout, printers with 51–100 employees)
New digital equipment for small Quebec prepress shop
ST- LAURENT, Que.—Family owned prepress shop Hye-Grafix in Quebec has just installed an Acuity HD 2504 as well as a Xerox DocuColor 5000 from Fujifilm Canada. Located in St-Laurent, the shop has been supplying commercial printers with plate and film making services for over a decade. About 65% of Hye-Grafix’s business is film jobs, and it’s one of a very small number of prepress shops still outputting film in the Montreal area. Hye-Grafix has also just recently added digital and display graphic printing to its selection of services.
July 19, 2007
TPH owner in the running for prestigious business award
TORONTO—Earle O’Born, owner of The Printing House (TPH) is a finalist in the Ernst & Young annual Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for the Ontario region.
O’Born, who began his career as a typesetter, is nominated in the “business-to-business products and services” category, along with three others. He is one of 50 finalists from Ontario.With more than 70 locations across Canada, TPH, which specializes in fast, on-demand printing, is one of the biggest privately owned branch networks in the country. The Ernst & Young award honours individuals who have demonstrated enormous success in the areas of financial performance, risk-taking, company development and innovation. One winner in each business category will be announced at a gala celebration on October 18, with one category recipient going on to compete for Entrepreneur of the Year for Ontario.
InterTech award winners released
PENNSYLVANIA— The Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF) has announced the 11 winners of its annual InterTech Technology Awards. In all, 31 submissions were considered, most with the recurring theme of green printing. The winners, listed alphabetically by company are:
: Energy Elite Dual Layer “No Bake” Plate
AGFA Graphics
Kodak Traceless System
Eastman Kodak Company
EIS UV Printing Blanket Refurbishment
Enviro Image Solution
Esko DeskPack 3-dX
Esko
Fujifilm C-Fit Image Intelligence Software
FUJIFILM Graphic Systems
Font Emulation in the Harlequin RIP
Global Graphics Software
Heidelberg Anicolor Inking Unit
Heidelberg USA
Heidelberg Speedmaster XL 105
Heidelberg USA
KBA Sensoric Infeed System
KBA North America
ROLAND 700 DirectDrive
MAN Roland
Oce VarioPrint 6250 Digital Printer
Oce North America
July 17, 2007
Alcan to shed packaging division
MONTREAL—The packaging division of Alcan will be put up for sale so that new owner Rio Tinto Group can offset debt and concentrate on its core mining business. Alcan’s packaging division has facilities in 31 countries, employs more than 30,000, and recorded sales of about US$6 billion in 2006. Operations in Canada include three plants in Baie D’Urfe, Lachine and Saint-Cesaire in Quebec, and an office in Kirkland, which together employ about 500 people. The plants at Baie D’Urfe and Lachine both have printing operations. Alcan spokesperson Bryan Tucker told printCan that the company plans to sell the division as a group, although the formal sale process has not been launched, and no time limit has been announced for the sale. But he also added that Alcan has already “received indications of serious interest.”
CPIA calls for new award nominations
OTTAWA—The Canadian Printing Industries Association (CPIA) is calling for nominations for its first annual Young Printer Award, to be handed out later this year. Anyone in the graphic communications field is eligible, as long as they are under 35, own or work for a firm that prints on the premises, and show outstanding potential, dedication and exceptional job performance. The deadline for submissions is Sept. 15, and the winner will be announced at the closing gala of CIPA’s annual conference, Strategy 07, Expanding Print Opportunities on November 7 at the Bristol Place Hotel in Toronto.
Official nominations forms are available at www.strategy07.ca.
July 12, 2007
Canada Post changes prices and services
TORONTO-In early January Canada Post will implement new service and price changes for both its regulated and non-regulated transaction mail and direct marketing services. This will include both business reply mail (BRM) as well as publication, addressed and unaddressed ad mail. There will be no price increase for lettermail or for items weighing less than 30 grams for large -volume users. “Some of the initiatives are looking quite positive,” says Kathleen Rowe, president of the National Association of Mail Users (NAMMU), an organization representing the Canadian mailing industry. “It’s not just the prices but also the conditions surrounding how you can mail that are changing.”Beginning January 14, 2008, the prices of addressed ad mail 50 grams and under will increase to 35¢ from 34¢. A cost of 0.18¢ per gram will be added to mail weighing 50 grams or more, up from the previous 0.17¢.
Canada Post has also expanded the dimensions for unaddressed ad mail that letter carriers can deliver to 22.85 cm from 15.24 cm. The maximum weight allowed for containers such as bags or lettertainers, will be reduced to 22.7 kg from 25 kg in an attempt to cut back on processing and reduce possible safety hazards.
Canon taking orders for new imagePress C7000VP
MISSISSAUGA—Canon Canada is ready to take orders of its new, long-awaited, flagship model, the imagePress C7000VP, the company announced today. The device, expected on the market with a baseline price tag of $246,000, will begin shipping in late August. It prints at 1,200 x 1,200 dpi at 70 pages per minute on letter-size paper and handles sheets up to 13” x 19.2” and 110 lb. cover. Fully configured, the press measures about 8.5 m long with an input/output paper configuration of 10,000 sheets. Other key features include multifeed detection, real-time colour calibration, regulated print speed to print at rated speeds on all paper weights, on-the-fly paper and toner replacement, and suction feeding that picks up paper with air, not rollers.
July 10, 2007
New Scitex grand-format printer for Advanta
TORONTO—To gain a competitive advantage and expand the range of products it offers, Advanta Visual Media Inc. recently installed an HP Scitex XL1500 digital grand-format printer. Advanta caters largely to advertising agencies with complex requirements and high expectations. The HP Scitex, coupled with existing screen printing and other digital capabilities gives the company the flexibility to react to a range of customer requests.
Cutline The staff at Advanta, from left to right: Jason Chartier, production manager; Dan Deveau, partner; Reid Mason, partner; Dave Lawrence, partner; Bob Deveau, partner and Scott Cowman, president. 
RJ Multi Litho commissions new Komori LS840PC
RJ Multi Litho has just installed a new Komori LS840PC at its facility in Mississauga. The new press is equipped with Komori state-of-the-art automation features including AMR (Automatic Makeready), fully automatic plate changers, PDC-S print density control spectrophotometer, automatic press washers, fully automatic perfector, in-line coating tower and extended delivery. The LS840PC is the newest addition to RJ’s pressroom, which boasts three other Komori presses. RJ Multi Litho is a full service commercial printing operation with complete in-house services including design, prepress, print, bindery, finishing and fulfillment.
Cutline Rajee Muthuraman (left) and Frank Barbosa of RJ Multi Litho look at press proofs.July 5, 2007
Gowan Printing closes
Stayner, Ont.—Rick Gowan, owner of one-person shop Gowan Printing, has decided to fold shop and move to Calgary. The decision was based on his desire to re-locate, though Gowan says business was not as good as it could have been. He sold off most of his equipment and his selling his client list to The Print Shop in Collingwood, Ont. The deal should be finalized by the end of July.
Nisku opts for a Dart
Nisku Printers, award-winning sheet fed commercial printer based in Nisku, just South of Edmonton opted to a Fujifilm Dart 4300S when it was time to upgrade its platesetter. Nisku Printers was not only interested in the speed of the machine, but they were also interested in the possibility of taking the next step – going processless in the near future. Started as a small family owned printer in the late 70’s, Nisku Printers has grown into one of the largest printers in Northern Alberta with 55 employees.
Steve Berlinguette, account manager at Fujifilm Canada, and Peter Fargey, owner of Nisku PrintersJuly 4, 2007
Hostmann-Steinberg wins judgement in stolen-ink case
Toronto-Hostmann-Steinberg received a civil judgement about four weeks ago against Post-Podigy Finishing Inc. and Prodigy Graphics Group of Brampton, Ont., in relation to a truckload of ink that was stolen from the ink manufacturer more than 12 years ago. The judgement grants Hostmann-Steinberg $300,000 for the ink and $200,000 for its legal costs. The case goes back to 1994, when a truckload of ink was stone from a Hostmann-Steinberg plant and which the company alleges was illegally transferred to the Prodigy facilities. Prodigy was not criminally convicted for the action in subsequent legal proceedings, but Hostmann-Steinberg decided to pursue the case in civil courts. Andy Patel, owner of Prodigy Graphics, told PrintCAN that the companies named in the judgement have not been in operation since 2005. He also claims not to have been notified of the judgement yet. He was not present at the final hearing because he says he took his lawyer off the case about two years ago. He called the judgement a "default judgement" which Hostmann-Steinberg won simply because he was not present at the hearing. He says he has no plans at this time to pay any monies to the ink manufacturer. Winfried Gleue, president of Hostmann-Steinberg, told PrintCAN he persisted in the case for 12 years not so much for the money, but as a point of principle and is vindicated by the ruling. He said the judgement is final and his company will take further action if the money is not paid.
July 3, 2007
Alas no Moore
CHICAGO—In Canadian printing echelons the name Moore has hovered near the top since 1882—but no longer. American print giant R.R. Donnelley, which bought the latest Moore Business Forms incarnation Moore-Wallace and Moore Canada about two years ago, is retiring the Moore name. R.R. Donnelley is unifying its print and related services under one brand. Moore Wallace, Moore Canada, Moore Response Marketing, Moore (in Latin America), Office Tiger and the company’s network of North American commercial printing facilities have been re-branded as R.R. Donnelley. In another announcement Daniel L. Knotts has been named Group President of R.R. Donnelley, responsible for global sales and operations.
VistaPrint expands services into mailing and creative
HAMILTON, Bermuda—Web-to-print operation VistaPrint is now offering creative and mailing services to its small business customers. Using the Mailing Services, customers can design, print and mail 50 postcards via bulk mail for U.S.$74. Creative Services enables customers to hire VistaPrint to design and write personalized marketing materials via a VistaPrint Creative Services agent.
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