The new device, which was installed around five weeks ago, complements an existing Océ Arizona 350 GT at the company’s 930sqm facility in Ferndale, South Wales. “This was an absolutely natural step for us. We’ve been so impressed by the first investment and in particular Canon’s service offering,” said sales director Harry Palmer. “Good technical back-up and service are absolutely fundamental to a business and it’s enabled us to have the confidence to never say no to our customers.” Traditionally a trade screen printer, which produces a broad range of products, the 33-staff company expanded into wide-format digital printing around six years ago with a Roland roll-to-roll printer and Palmer said with growth of around 40% in the last year, the company will continue to build on this revenue stream. “Digital wide-format printing has galvanised our business, increasing the speed and range of applications we can offer to our customers,” he said. The Arizona 480 GT, which can print at speeds of up to 32.8sqm per hour, features eight independent ink channels including varnish, double opacity white and two additional cyan and magenta channels, and will enable the firm to produce a range of creative effects and to print on coloured and clear substrates. “This is going to help us meet a growing demand for shorter runs, with high-quality applications more cost-effectively – all delivered quickly thanks to the high throughput and batch-printing mode.” He added that the company hoped to boost its POS work and industrial print output while also being able to produce specialist applications, such as window graphics. “We expect growth to slow to a steady 15%-25% a year now, and I think we will consider another Océ Arizona 480 GT at some point down the line,” he said. Duncan Smith, wide-format printing group director for Canon UK, said: “We’re delighted that Screentec has decided to continue its journey with us. It is an example of a company that recognises both the vast potential of the wide-format market and how digital printing technology can drive success.”...

The 1.6m-wide JV33-160, which was supplied by inkjet specialist I-Sub Digital at the end of June, cost around £15,000 and replaced an older Mimaki machine, a JV3-160. According to Caravelle Creative managing director Ian Daniels, the company made the investment to improve productivity and quality. “We held on to our old equipment for longer than we ought to have done, and with the new machine, the difference is really noticeable,” he said. “Our output has gone up by about 300%.” Caravelle Creative, which employs around eight staff, is using the machine to produce exhibition graphics for both indoor and outdoor applications for clients across a broad range of sectors. “People often ask for those jobs to be done by the next day, and we can do that now,” said Daniels. “It’s the modern age. People expect things to be turned around that much quicker today.” He added that the new machine had enabled the company to take on more wide-format jobs: “Because we can trust it to run overnight we have been able to take on more of this sort of work.” The JV33-160 is being used with Mimaki’s SS21 solvent inks, which I-Sub said are a more environmentally friendly than those used in the JV3. They are suitable for a range of substrate types and are designed to be fast drying, high density and highly scratch resistant and to offer a wide colour gamut. I-Sub Digital director Andy Spreag added: “This is a great example of how investing in new, faster, better quality and environmentally friendlier technology can take a business forward and bring new work into a business that wasn’t possible with the old machine.”...

Herefordshire-based CSDM Fundraising (CSDMF), a charity direct marketing agency, emerged in June 2010 under the directorship of Chris Stoddard, on the same day his previous company CSDM collapsed owing £1.4m. It is the third company, associated to Stoddard, to collapse in as many years. According to the administrator’s report produced by MB Insolvency, CSDMF owed unsecured creditors £739,172, at the time of its collapse this summer, with the largest creditors being SPI Direct Entry* and Affinion International, which were owed £173,699 and £126,800 respectively. Other unsecured print and mailing operators included Apex Direct Mail, TFW Printers, The Envelope Works, The Colourhouse, Impact Mail and Print & Mail Solutions UK. It is not anticipated that there will be any available funds for unsecured creditors, the report states. According to the document, Stoddard claims his company was forced to enter administration because a subcontracted postal supplier failed to deliver its post, costing CSDMF around £300,000. In a statment Stoddard said despite the amount owed to unsecured creditors being documented by the administrator as £739,172, the amount that would ultimately be due to third parties would be “comparatively small”. He said: “[The figure] actually includes inter-company claims amounting to some £160,000 and £204,000 of creditor claims that are totally disputed but excludes the £600,000 of claims that CSDM Fundraising has against two creditors for breach of contract.” “Relatively few creditors remain on the CSDM Fundraising’s purchase ledger. “Our principal aim has been to ensure that clients of the firm, all small charities, do not suffer as a result of the company’s closure. “None of the company’s clients has suffered any financial loss as a result of the administration. “No members of staff have lost their jobs and we continue to have the support of our clients – who value our approach and the resources and expertise we bring. Neither have we – nor do we intend to – put other companies into administration.” Meanwhile another firm, CS Fundraising, also owned by Stoddard, has acquired the assets of CSDMF, including clients, contracts and obligations. However, according to the administrator’s report “there was uncertainty regarding the extent of assets included in the sale”, resulting in ongoing investigations by MB Insolvency. Stoddard confirmed that all staff had transferred to CS Fundraising. The business continues to operate from CSDMFs Ross-on-Wye base. *Edit note: the CSDMF creditors’ list filed by the administrator shows an amount of £173,699 owed to ‘Swiss Post’. Swiss Post International UK Ltd has asked us to clarify that this sum is actually owed to SPI Direct Entry Ltd based in Stockley Park, a separate company that has a strategic partnership with Swiss Post....

The 1.6m-wide JV33-160, which was supplied by inkjet specialist I-Sub Digital at the end of June, cost around £15,000 and replaced an older Mimaki machine, a JV3-160. According to Caravelle Creative managing director Ian Daniels, the company made the investment to improve productivity and quality. “We held on to our old equipment for longer than we ought to have done, and with the new machine, the difference is really noticeable,” he said. “Our output has gone up by about 300%.” Caravelle Creative, which employs around eight staff, is using the machine to produce exhibition graphics for both indoor and outdoor applications for clients across a broad range of sectors. “People often ask for those jobs to be done by the next day, and we can do that now,” said Daniels. “It’s the modern age. People expect things to be turned around that much quicker today.” He added that the new machine had enabled the company to take on more wide-format jobs: “Because we can trust it to run overnight we have been able to take on more of this sort of work.” The JV33-160 is being used with Mimaki’s SS21 solvent inks, which I-Sub said are a more environmentally friendly than those used in the JV3. They are suitable for a range of substrate types and are designed to be fast drying, high density and highly scratch resistant and to offer a wide colour gamut. I-Sub Digital director Andy Spreag added: “This is a great example of how investing in new, faster, better quality and environmentally friendlier technology can take a business forward and bring new work into a business that wasn’t possible with the old machine.”...

The 37-storey building at 20 Fenchurch Street, in the City of London, hit the headlines this week after it emerged that a car had been badly-damaged by the concentrated beam created as the sun reflects off its curved surface. Business owners in the area have also reported damage to their properties and even small fires. Developers Land Securities and Canary Wharf are proposing to erect a scaffolding screen at street level as a quick fix, however printing industry experts have suggested a print-based option would be the ideal long-term solution for the problem. Nick Kapp, business development manager at Reading-based large-format graphics specialist VGL said: “There’s quite an easy solution to this, put a giant graphic on it and change it regularly!” Kapp added that it would be possible to create a subtle effect: “By using a Contra Vision product people inside would still be able to see out. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be an advert, even if you just printed it grey it would work – it could be a printed colour or texture.” Adam Mcmonagle, technical operations and marketing specialist at Macro Art in St Neots suggested the application of a low-reflective vinyl film, or even a mesh. “They could use a mesh screen, perhaps a little bit offset from the building, at that particular point.” Roland Hill, managing director at specialist see-through graphics technology developer Contra Vision, which holds a number of patents for the technique, added: “This could have been avoided by using Contra Vision in the first place. Because Contra Vision is made with ink, the reflection is diffused – it’s multi-directional. “It’s going to depend on the specific nature of the problem, and will require careful appraisal of the angles involved to find the right long-term solution,” Hill said. The skyscraper had been nicknamed the ‘Walkie-Talkie’ because of its shape, and has now been dubbed the ‘Walkie-Scorchie’ instead....