In an announcement today the government said that an initial public offering (IPO) on Royal Mail was “expected in the coming weeks.” CWU general secretary Billy Hayes, said: “This isn’t about what’s best for the Royal Mail, it’s about vested interests of government ministers’ mates in the City. Privatisation is the worst way to access to capital as it’s more expensive than borrowing under public ownership. “We remain convinced that privatisation is the wrong decision for Royal Mail. It would be bad for customers, bad for staff and bad for the industry.” Hayes said that the union would ask for a commitment from the labour party that a Labour government would renationalise the postal service, if elected. “Privatisation is an old-fashioned idea and a breach of the public’s trust. It would destroy a centuries-old public service,” he added. On 2 September the CWU announced that it would ballot for a national postal strike of Royal Mail workers on 20th of this month, marking the first national strike ballot since 2009. The ballot excludes Post Office workers. It followed a consultative ballot in June in which 96% of respondents opposed the privatisation of Royal Mail, 92% were in favour of a boycott of DSA providers’ mail. Other issues in dispute include a 2013 pay claim and changes to pension terms. This month’s ballot will go out to 125,000 Royal Mail workers and if a yes vote is reached the first strikes could take place from 10 October. The results of the ballot will be announced on 3 October. Negotiations between the two organisations have been ongoing for months now and while the CWU agreed not to encourage its members to boycott DSA mail, after the Royal Mail sought legal backing, the union told PrintWeek it was consulting lawyers about how a DSA boycott could be included “as part of implementing industrial action”. Dave Broadway, managing director of DSA provider CFH Total Document Mailing, which works closely with Royal Mail, said a strike would impact heavily on its customers. “We will try to offset that impact as much as possible, and of course, deliveries in Bristol, Bath and Coventry, where we use our own delivery service, will be unaffected,” he added. Broadway said he had little sympathy for the CWU. “They realise that a move into a competitive market means that it will be harder for them to demand salaries, pensions and terms that are far better than any in the private sector, and that date back to the union heydays of the 60’s and 70’s. However, if the union wants their members to have jobs for the longer term, then this is a move that Royal Mail needs to make....

UK & Ireland business manager for Esko Graphics, Paul Bates, said the company was targeting GPT’s established customer base of Mimaki and Agfa users, who could benefit from its products. He added: “We have identified the potential of the sign-making and wide-format print production industries for our products and believe that GPT has a portfolio of printing and finishing products that complement our own systems and strategies perfectly.” GPT is due to install a Kongsberg cutting table in its showroom and will invite customers for demonstrations. Newly appointed general manager of GPT Shaun Thompson said: “Cutting systems are an essential component of the modern wide-format printing solution. “By adding Esko Kongsberg cutters and software to our portfolio we are enabling our customers to increase their range of applications and services to their clients and therefore increase revenue and profits.” Meanwhile, on his appointment as general manager, which he has stepped up to from the role of sales director, Thompson said he was looking forward to helping the business progress and meet its objectives. “We will be looking to grow the business in terms of key personnel that will help us increase sales and maintain our reputation for high class service and support,” he added....

UK & Ireland business manager for Esko Graphics, Paul Bates, said the company was targeting GPT’s established customer base of Mimaki and Agfa users, who could benefit from its products. He added: “We have identified the potential of the sign-making and wide-format print production industries for our products and believe that GPT has a portfolio of printing and finishing products that complement our own systems and strategies perfectly.” GPT is due to install a Kongsberg cutting table in its showroom and will invite customers for demonstrations. Newly appointed general manager of GPT Shaun Thompson said: “Cutting systems are an essential component of the modern wide-format printing solution. “By adding Esko Kongsberg cutters and software to our portfolio we are enabling our customers to increase their range of applications and services to their clients and therefore increase revenue and profits.” Meanwhile, on his appointment as general manager, which he has stepped up to from the role of sales director, Thompson said he was looking forward to helping the business progress and meet its objectives. “We will be looking to grow the business in terms of key personnel that will help us increase sales and maintain our reputation for high class service and support,” he added....

“The idea is that the event is iconic, in terms of its location and in terms of what we will be showing – inspirational, innovative, intelligent and integrated solutions,” said Duplo UK marketing manager Sarah Crumpler. London Calling 5i (LC5i) will take place on 26-27 November in Somerset House, with views across the famous ice rink and Christmas Arcade. In line with previous incarnations, the event will highlight the entire digital workflow. While Duplo said that the identities of the partners for this year’s event would be announced in the coming weeks, the company confirmed that suppliers from every facet of the production process would be involved, including a digital press vendor and “a few surprises”. “We will be showing different applications and different ways of applying new ideas. What we want to do is create a forum to share and discuss what can be achieved and how it can be applied to create new revenue streams for our customers,” said Crumpler. Duplo UK managing director Peter Jolly added: “The idea is that visitors will be inspired by what they see. We think of customers in terms of relationships that last five, ten, fifteen years… so while we will be showing technology that’s relevant today, we also want to highlight things that will be mind-blowing moving forward.” Duplo invited 12 customers to brainstorm ideas for the fifth London Calling forum, where the company asked what customers wanted from the event. “What kept coming up again and again was that our customers want to be inspired; inspired by the venue, inspired by what was on show, inspired by our partners – basically they wanted to see something different,” said Jolly. According to Jolly the LC5i forum attendees also indicated that they want to see more of a focus on the company’s service and support at the event. “We’ve got the biggest finishing service team in the UK, and the customers said they wanted to see more of them there,” said Jolly. Speaking at the unveiling of the London Calling 5i last night, Jolly also revealed that one of the new strategic focuses for Duplo would be targeting the top-30 UK print groups, although he stressed that the company had no intention of doing this to the detriment of its commercial print and inplant heartlands. “With runs becoming shorter, we’re increasingly finding that our products are becoming relevant to companies like St Ives and Williams Lea, especially now that we’re so heavily into medium- to high-end finishing,” said Jolly....

“The idea is that the event is iconic, in terms of its location and in terms of what we will be showing – inspirational, innovative, intelligent and integrated solutions,” said Duplo UK marketing manager Sarah Crumpler. London Calling 5i (LC5i) will take place on 26-27 November in Somerset House, with views across the famous ice rink and Christmas Arcade. In line with previous incarnations, the event will highlight the entire digital workflow. While Duplo said that the identities of the partners for this year’s event would be announced in the coming weeks, the company confirmed that suppliers from every facet of the production process would be involved, including a digital press vendor and “a few surprises”. “We will be showing different applications and different ways of applying new ideas. What we want to do is create a forum to share and discuss what can be achieved and how it can be applied to create new revenue streams for our customers,” said Crumpler. Duplo UK managing director Peter Jolly added: “The idea is that visitors will be inspired by what they see. We think of customers in terms of relationships that last five, ten, fifteen years… so while we will be showing technology that’s relevant today, we also want to highlight things that will be mind-blowing moving forward.” Duplo invited 12 customers to brainstorm ideas for the fifth London Calling forum, where the company asked what customers wanted from the event. “What kept coming up again and again was that our customers want to be inspired; inspired by the venue, inspired by what was on show, inspired by our partners – basically they wanted to see something different,” said Jolly. According to Jolly the LC5i forum attendees also indicated that they want to see more of a focus on the company’s service and support at the event. “We’ve got the biggest finishing service team in the UK, and the customers said they wanted to see more of them there,” said Jolly. Speaking at the unveiling of the London Calling 5i last night, Jolly also revealed that one of the new strategic focuses for Duplo would be targeting the top-30 UK print groups, although he stressed that the company had no intention of doing this to the detriment of its commercial print and inplant heartlands. “With runs becoming shorter, we’re increasingly finding that our products are becoming relevant to companies like St Ives and Williams Lea, especially now that we’re so heavily into medium- to high-end finishing,” said Jolly....