Over the last few decades, our industry has changed dramatically. We’ve come a long way from the wood block and movable type printing techniques of the past. Now, we have the ability to print digitally, print 50 ft. signs, and even print in 3D. Who do we have to thank for these new technologies? Innovators and their technology. If not for the great print innovations, we would still be spending hours replicating one file or pulling out our hair trying to keep consistent color across prints. That’s why Printing Industries of America honors the innovative technology that moves our industry forward. With the InterTech Technology Awards, PIA invites all of the movers and shakers of print technology to submit their greatest inventions to be judged by a panel of distinguished decision makers in the industry. Just about any technology in the industry is eligible for an award including design and production software, paper and other substrates, press accessories, and more. As long as the technology is commercially available in the marketplace, proven in industrial/commercial applications, and expected to have a significant impact in graphic communications, it could be recognized with this distinguished honor. By receiving an InterTech Technology Award, your technology has been judged as being truly innovative and likely to have a significant impact on the industry. Because of that, Printing Industries of America goes through great lengths in helping you promote your innovation by providing recipient companies with… Your technology showcased in the InterTech™ publication sent to thousands of printers and graphic communications professionals Inclusion of your technology in Printing Industries of America’s e-newsletter—sent to thousands of graphic communications companies around the world International press releases announcing your technology as an award recipient Being honored in front of hundreds of printing executives at the annual Premier Print Awards and InterTech™ Technology Awards Gala Use of the award logo and trademarks in your product marketing The coveted InterTech™ Lucite™ star which can be displayed at industry events around the world Since 1978, these awards have honored the most deserving technologies and helped our industry move forward. If you have an innovation you think is deserving of the InterTech honor, check out the 2016 brochure and contact intertech@printing.org. For more information, visit www.printing.org/intertech. The deadline for entering is on June 1, so enter...

Over the last few decades, our industry has changed dramatically. We’ve come a long way from the wood block and movable type printing techniques of the past. Now, we have the ability to print digitally, print 50 ft. signs, and even print in 3D. Who do we have to thank for these new technologies? Innovators and their technology. If not for the great print innovations, we would still be spending hours replicating one file or pulling out our hair trying to keep consistent color across prints. That’s why Printing Industries of America honors the innovative technology that moves our industry forward. With the InterTech Technology Awards, PIA invites all of the movers and shakers of print technology to submit their greatest inventions to be judged by a panel of distinguished decision makers in the industry. Just about any technology in the industry is eligible for an award including design and production software, paper and other substrates, press accessories, and more. As long as the technology is commercially available in the marketplace, proven in industrial/commercial applications, and expected to have a significant impact in graphic communications, it could be recognized with this distinguished honor. By receiving an InterTech Technology Award, your technology has been judged as being truly innovative and likely to have a significant impact on the industry. Because of that, Printing Industries of America goes through great lengths in helping you promote your innovation by providing recipient companies with… Your technology showcased in the InterTech™ publication sent to thousands of printers and graphic communications professionals Inclusion of your technology in Printing Industries of America’s e-newsletter—sent to thousands of graphic communications companies around the world International press releases announcing your technology as an award recipient Being honored in front of hundreds of printing executives at the annual Premier Print Awards and InterTech™ Technology Awards Gala Use of the award logo and trademarks in your product marketing The coveted InterTech™ Lucite™ star which can be displayed at industry events around the world Since 1978, these awards have honored the most deserving technologies and helped our industry move forward. If you have an innovation you think is deserving of the InterTech honor, check out the 2016 brochure and contact intertech@printing.org. For more information, visit www.printing.org/intertech. The deadline for entering is on June 1, so enter...

The entry period for the PIA InterTech Technology Awards is currently underway. Graphic communication suppliers and vendors from all over the world are fighting for their chance to have their innovation named as one of the top technologies to impact our industry. With all the tough competition out there, we thought it would be helpful for you to get some advice from someone who knows what it really takes to wow the judges—one of the InterTech Technology Award judges themselves. Check out the conversation below and get the inside scoop on what the judges are really looking for in an InterTech Technology Award recipient.   PIA: Why did you agree to take part in the PIA InterTech Technology Award judging process? InterTech Judge: Firstly because I was asked, but after having judged it for a few years now, it is a great way of seeing all the latest technology and how they apply to the market. The judging panel is made up from the great and the good of the industry and it is a great opportunity to share opinions and thoughts on the relevance of an entry and how we feel it will impact on our industry in coming years. Our industry has been hugely innovative and it is great that there is an award that highlights the best of the best. PIA: What is the judging process like for you? InterTech Judge: It is extremely pressured – we have a lot of entries to go through and sometimes there is much heated debate. The chair is always very organized and the process is pretty efficient. On several occasions I have been persuaded by other judges to change my opinion on a technology entry. PIA: What kind of technologies are you expecting for this year’s round of entries? InterTech Judge: I am sure inkjet will find its way into the entries. But the great thing with InterTech is that there are always wild card entries that come from nowhere. Software is becoming a much bigger aspect to the judging and I expect that this year will be no different. PIA: What kinds of things should an entry include in order to stand out among the rest? InterTech Judge: As judges, we are very experienced individuals from the industry and so the last thing we want to see is “cut and paste” from the marketing literature. This tells us nothing. We want to know the following: Why you entered this into the InterTech awards and what specifically about the entry is unique, special, or different. We don’t want every other aspect of the product or 400 words on the history of the company. Keep it short – remember as judges...

The entry period for the PIA InterTech Technology Awards is currently underway. Graphic communication suppliers and vendors from all over the world are fighting for their chance to have their innovation named as one of the top technologies to impact our industry. With all the tough competition out there, we thought it would be helpful for you to get some advice from someone who knows what it really takes to wow the judges—one of the InterTech Technology Award judges themselves. Check out the conversation below and get the inside scoop on what the judges are really looking for in an InterTech Technology Award recipient.   PIA: Why did you agree to take part in the PIA InterTech Technology Award judging process? InterTech Judge: Firstly because I was asked, but after having judged it for a few years now, it is a great way of seeing all the latest technology and how they apply to the market. The judging panel is made up from the great and the good of the industry and it is a great opportunity to share opinions and thoughts on the relevance of an entry and how we feel it will impact on our industry in coming years. Our industry has been hugely innovative and it is great that there is an award that highlights the best of the best. PIA: What is the judging process like for you? InterTech Judge: It is extremely pressured – we have a lot of entries to go through and sometimes there is much heated debate. The chair is always very organized and the process is pretty efficient. On several occasions I have been persuaded by other judges to change my opinion on a technology entry. PIA: What kind of technologies are you expecting for this year’s round of entries? InterTech Judge: I am sure inkjet will find its way into the entries. But the great thing with InterTech is that there are always wild card entries that come from nowhere. Software is becoming a much bigger aspect to the judging and I expect that this year will be no different. PIA: What kinds of things should an entry include in order to stand out among the rest? InterTech Judge: As judges, we are very experienced individuals from the industry and so the last thing we want to see is “cut and paste” from the marketing literature. This tells us nothing. We want to know the following: Why you entered this into the InterTech awards and what specifically about the entry is unique, special, or different. We don’t want every other aspect of the product or 400 words on the history of the company. Keep it short – remember as judges...

The following post was submitted by 2016 Continuous Improvment Conference sponsor, Heidelberg.   Striving for the most efficient workflow to drive productivity and profitability is one of the underlying goals of many of today’s printing companies. Often, the focus is on being more productive with less by increasing production speeds and reducing makereadies while also reducing touch points throughout the workflow. There are many tools and techniques that can be used to drive these goals, from procedural/operational changes to new equipment/software acquisitions. The decision on what works best will depend on each individual production facility, the customer base, the verticals addressed and the business philosophy of the company. However, common principles can be applied to every company and optimized to the facility. Business growth can be equally as important as equipment optimization, depending on the particular company. Too many times the focus is on efficiency in the press room, while neglecting to increase sales, concentrate on the product mix, and optimize business practices prior to production. Focusing only on equipment will certainly improve efficiency, but without a corresponding change in business practices, full benefits will not be achieved. Prior to any optimization process it is essential to understand your current state, as this provides the benchmark for any improvements that are gained. It is also important to prioritize the areas of focus. Ask yourself the following question: “Can you analyze your current performance?” In many cases, there is no hard data to back up opinions of how your current equipment is performing and where the opportunities exist to gain additional time. There is often the option to evaluate the equipment itself through existing management systems or third-party data-collection solutions. There are four main areas that should be considered when optimizing equipment. Neglecting any of them can have a significant effect on the achievable impact:  1.     Materials and information arriving at the equipment: Often ignored, this needs to be both accurate and timely; problems in either case will lead to lost production and reduced efficiency. To ensure maximum efficiency, significant time savings and a reduction in errors, jobs entered into a management information system (MIS), need to be passed, along with the prepress data, through to the press. Delivery and scheduling press materials is another area to optimize, so operators are not waiting or transporting materials when they should be carrying out the makeready. In one facility, a reduction from 40 minutes to 10 minutes was achieved on a wide-format printer by primarily considering transportation issues.  2.     Equipment set-up and makeready: This applies to all manufacturing processes including offset, digital, and flexographic printing, as well as postpress activities. First, you need to understand your starting point through benchmarking....