The Ardeco has a maximum print width of 3.2m and comes in a choice of either a 12 or 8 Ricoh Gen4 printhead configuration. The 4-colour, 7-picolitre printer has a top speed of 137 sqm per hour for a 12-head configuration in 2-pass mode, and 90-95 sqm per hour in 3-pass mode, and prints at 600 x 600 dpi in all print modes. With in-built calendaring, no additional fixation or finishing is required, and the printer comes with the option of inline cold-knife cutting. The printer is aimed at those producing backlit displays, flags and general displays on polyester-based fabrics. “The dye is fixed through contact with the heated drum. The heating of the drum is done through an infrared lamp so we manage an incredible consistency across the 3.2m,” said Tim Van Den Bossche, vice president, global marketing and strategy. He added: “It’s definitely a growing market, and it’s our ambition to become a key player here.” The Ardeco is available for shipping immediately and will be on show for the first time at the AGI Congress London in September. New launches form Agfa shown at Fespa last week included Anapurna M3200RTR 3.2m and Anapurna M2500 2.5m UV-curable printers, and the latest addition to the Jeti series, the Jeti Titan X UV printer. Also showcased were the new Asanti StoreFront and Asanti Production sign and display workflow packages....

The Ardeco has a maximum print width of 3.2m and comes in a choice of either a 12 or 8 Ricoh Gen4 printhead configuration. The 4-colour, 7-picolitre printer has a top speed of 137 sqm per hour for a 12-head configuration in 2-pass mode, and 90-95 sqm per hour in 3-pass mode, and prints at 600 x 600 dpi in all print modes. With in-built calendaring, no additional fixation or finishing is required, and the printer comes with the option of inline cold-knife cutting. The printer is aimed at those producing backlit displays, flags and general displays on polyester-based fabrics. “The dye is fixed through contact with the heated drum. The heating of the drum is done through an infrared lamp so we manage an incredible consistency across the 3.2m,” said Tim Van Den Bossche, vice president, global marketing and strategy. He added: “It’s definitely a growing market, and it’s our ambition to become a key player here.” The Ardeco is available for shipping immediately and will be on show for the first time at the AGI Congress London in September. New launches form Agfa shown at Fespa last week included Anapurna M3200RTR 3.2m and Anapurna M2500 2.5m UV-curable printers, and the latest addition to the Jeti series, the Jeti Titan X UV printer. Also showcased were the new Asanti StoreFront and Asanti Production sign and display workflow packages....

The union, which was due to meet Royal Mail today (28 June) in the High Court, said it had accepted its lawyers’ advice that it would be illegal to boycott access mail on the back of the consultative ballot alone. A legal agreement had been reached, however “the fight goes on”, the CWU said. The ballot of 112,000 union members last month was held over alleged unfair competition from the likes of TNT and working conditions. The vote, on a 74% turnout, resulted in a 92% “yes” vote to the question ‘do you support the boycott of competitors’ mail?’ A CWU spokeswoman said: “Royal Mail has suggested there will be never be action but that’s not our understanding of the wording of the legal agreement. We will not take action on the consultative ballot but will explore other options. We may go for an industrial action ballot.” She said the finer legal points on acting on a consultative ballot were highly complex, made more so by the unique nature of the dispute. “Boycotting third-party mail has not been done before, but if we do want to take that route we have a great deal of support – 92%. “At this stage we are not saying anything definite,” she added. “An industrial action ballot could be for a strike or action short of a strike – there is a particular legal process to go through. But this is much further down the line; we’re not ruling anything in or anything out.” CWU deputy general secretary Dave Ward said: “We have accepted the advice of lawyers that it would not be legal to take action on boycotting competitors’ mail on the basis of the consultative ballot result alone. We are now considering how this action could be taken. “In the meantime Royal Mail must explain to its workforce how they are going to protect revenue, jobs and terms and conditions when they have abjectly failed to tackle this issue. The government and regulator are sleepwalking into a disaster waiting to happen.” Royal Mail said it had received “legally binding undertakings” through the High Court from the union not to induce its members to refuse to handle access mail. Letters and parcels delivered under downstream access contracts accounted for around half of the daily post bag, it said. “CWU held a consultative ballot to seek its members’ view on a number of issues including a threatened boycott of access mail. Furthermore we believe any action against access mail delivery would be unlawful. “We are satisfied that Ofcom has put in place a framework sufficient to protect Royal Mail and the universal service from the impact of direct delivery competition.” Managing director for...

The union, which was due to meet Royal Mail today (28 June) in the High Court, said it had accepted its lawyers’ advice that it would be illegal to boycott access mail on the back of the consultative ballot alone. A legal agreement had been reached, however “the fight goes on”, the CWU said. The ballot of 112,000 union members last month was held over alleged unfair competition from the likes of TNT and working conditions. The vote, on a 74% turnout, resulted in a 92% “yes” vote to the question ‘do you support the boycott of competitors’ mail?’ A CWU spokeswoman said: “Royal Mail has suggested there will be never be action but that’s not our understanding of the wording of the legal agreement. We will not take action on the consultative ballot but will explore other options. We may go for an industrial action ballot.” She said the finer legal points on acting on a consultative ballot were highly complex, made more so by the unique nature of the dispute. “Boycotting third-party mail has not been done before, but if we do want to take that route we have a great deal of support – 92%. “At this stage we are not saying anything definite,” she added. “An industrial action ballot could be for a strike or action short of a strike – there is a particular legal process to go through. But this is much further down the line; we’re not ruling anything in or anything out.” CWU deputy general secretary Dave Ward said: “We have accepted the advice of lawyers that it would not be legal to take action on boycotting competitors’ mail on the basis of the consultative ballot result alone. We are now considering how this action could be taken. “In the meantime Royal Mail must explain to its workforce how they are going to protect revenue, jobs and terms and conditions when they have abjectly failed to tackle this issue. The government and regulator are sleepwalking into a disaster waiting to happen.” Royal Mail said it had received “legally binding undertakings” through the High Court from the union not to induce its members to refuse to handle access mail. Letters and parcels delivered under downstream access contracts accounted for around half of the daily post bag, it said. “CWU held a consultative ballot to seek its members’ view on a number of issues including a threatened boycott of access mail. Furthermore we believe any action against access mail delivery would be unlawful. “We are satisfied that Ofcom has put in place a framework sufficient to protect Royal Mail and the universal service from the impact of direct delivery competition.” Managing director for...

David Gilbert and Simon Girling from BDO were appointed as joint administrators yesterday (26 June). The 267-employee business had been in a state of limbo for more than a month. Attempts by its management to rescue the business via a CVA deal crumbled last week. The formal move into administration will at least mean that employees who were also left up in the air will now have the necessary legal formalities to claim redundancy and other payments from the state. BDO is now attempting to sell the company’s assets in situ, according to a statement from Girling, who said: “Regrettably, it has not been possible for MPG Printgroup to avoid administration, nor to preserve the business as a going concern. “Our objective as administrators will be to secure sales of its state of the art printing equipment, ideally in-situ, and to maximise recoveries for the Company’s creditors. Suppliers or customers with any queries should contact my team for further information.” Any hopes of resurrecting the business appear slight. Gerald White, managing director at book printer Berforts, described the five-week delay since the group effectively ceased trading as “the biggest cock-up since the Titanic went down”. “There are no customers, and no staff. I can’t see how there’s any business left. If they’d tried to sell it in the first week maybe there’d have been a chance, but there’s no chance now,” White said. PrintWeek understands there is interest in the King’s Lynn equipment, and that a deal could be done by the end of the week. CPI, St Ives and Berforts have been mooted as possible buyers for some of MPG’s kit. Most of the group’s newest equipment is owned by finance providers. MPG had sites in Bodmin, Cambridge and King’s Lynn. It appears that the group, which had turnover of circa £24m, over-extended after embarking on an ambitious expansion plan that included a major investment in digital production kit from HP, Kodak, Timsons and Kolbus at King’s Lynn and a new site in Cambridge set up on the back of a deal with Cambridge University Press....