The 50-staff company in Swindon, Wiltshire, uses the system for production, sales, delivery and shop-floor data collection, said managing director Iain Cox, who said the latest upgrade was a major release. “New developments include a new job tracking function ‘Milestones’ and an iPhone and iPad mobile CRM app. The system has more of a Windows feel and lets you know exactly how many jobs and estimates we’ve done in a day at a click rather than having to run of streams of reports,” said Cox. “The mobile CRM app is enabling me and the sales team to log into the Shuttleworth system to find out details about customers such as location maps and the events planed for them. It makes it a lot easier and cleaner.” The Milestones job tracking feature integrates and updates all job information making it quick and easy to view the status of any job as it progresses. Multisets can see real-time job information, giving them more control over work and production planning and improving communication, added Cox. The 50-staff company produces pads, DM for charities and integrated labels for dispatch in the online market. Kit includes an eight-colour Rotatek with UV drying, a four-colour Concept also with UV drying and two Tamarack finishing lines. The company is on track to make £4.8m turnover this year....

The 50-staff company in Swindon, Wiltshire, uses the system for production, sales, delivery and shop-floor data collection, said managing director Iain Cox, who said the latest upgrade was a major release. “New developments include a new job tracking function ‘Milestones’ and an iPhone and iPad mobile CRM app. The system has more of a Windows feel and lets you know exactly how many jobs and estimates we’ve done in a day at a click rather than having to run of streams of reports,” said Cox. “The mobile CRM app is enabling me and the sales team to log into the Shuttleworth system to find out details about customers such as location maps and the events planed for them. It makes it a lot easier and cleaner.” The Milestones job tracking feature integrates and updates all job information making it quick and easy to view the status of any job as it progresses. Multisets can see real-time job information, giving them more control over work and production planning and improving communication, added Cox. The 50-staff company produces pads, DM for charities and integrated labels for dispatch in the online market. Kit includes an eight-colour Rotatek with UV drying, a four-colour Concept also with UV drying and two Tamarack finishing lines. The company is on track to make £4.8m turnover this year....

John Ichikawa, who has been with the business in Maldon, Essex, for 12 years, was promoted to head of technical sales to work alongside managing director Alex White who will now focus more on international sales. Ichikawa is grounded in production, installation, technical support and servicing. He said: “We have enjoyed record sales in this downturn. In tough times people recognise more acutely that labour is their biggest expense. Automated machinery helps cut those costs and is good on quality control, as every product made is the exactly same, not always so with hand cutting. “We have also invested more in proactive marketing – press adverts, trade shows and updating the website. Whereas people used to say ‘Blackman and White who?’, we are now much better known thanks to marketing and tighter targeting of areas such as graphics and POS markets. “All our machines and accessories are made in the UK and tailored to meet each customer’s needs. We can also react rapidly so our customers are up and running with the minimum of delay.” Ichikawa has practical experience of automated blade and laser cutting of a wide range of materials from PVC and sailcloth to composites and other technical textiles, said the company, which has promoted Adrian Zurek installation and service manager. White said: “A dramatic increase in enquiries in the UK and overseas for automated cutters in the last year means we need additional experienced staff who understand the practical issues that customers face. John has a full understanding of our machines and their applications.”...

John Ichikawa, who has been with the business in Maldon, Essex, for 12 years, was promoted to head of technical sales to work alongside managing director Alex White who will now focus more on international sales. Ichikawa is grounded in production, installation, technical support and servicing. He said: “We have enjoyed record sales in this downturn. In tough times people recognise more acutely that labour is their biggest expense. Automated machinery helps cut those costs and is good on quality control, as every product made is the exactly same, not always so with hand cutting. “We have also invested more in proactive marketing – press adverts, trade shows and updating the website. Whereas people used to say ‘Blackman and White who?’, we are now much better known thanks to marketing and tighter targeting of areas such as graphics and POS markets. “All our machines and accessories are made in the UK and tailored to meet each customer’s needs. We can also react rapidly so our customers are up and running with the minimum of delay.” Ichikawa has practical experience of automated blade and laser cutting of a wide range of materials from PVC and sailcloth to composites and other technical textiles, said the company, which has promoted Adrian Zurek installation and service manager. White said: “A dramatic increase in enquiries in the UK and overseas for automated cutters in the last year means we need additional experienced staff who understand the practical issues that customers face. John has a full understanding of our machines and their applications.”...

The programme, organised by Print Future’s Neil Falconer, aims to help printers to “future-proof their business and to look at new and existing opportunities to make money”. Falconer told PrintWeek: “Printers need to adapt to survive – most SME printers are not going to survive on offset print or even on a mix of offset and digital; they still need to diversify and look at opportunities in cross-media, wide format and packaging. “The whole thing is really targeted at the SME print community and the essence of the Master Classes is based around better business and better margins.” The Master Classes will run daily across two theatres – each with a daily theme – and will include a mix of practical sessions and case studies. “We will have a series of short, sharp, very practical sessions with key takeaways around things like: planning for change; improving your marketing; identifying key customers in vertical markets and being more strategic about the customers you win,” said Falconer. The programme will include a blend of sales, production efficiency and technical development themes with a target of three key takeaways per session, which Falconer said would be a case of, “go away and do this and you’ll make more money in your business”. A daily “Ask the Expert” lunchtime panel debate will aim to help printers audit their current sales and marketing approach and identify additional digital and cross media service opportunities. Topics include: colour management; environment; business planning; workflow; web-to-print; selling print; market intelligence; marketing print; sales techniques; wide format; packaging; finance. “I think we as an industry have a tendency to get hung-up on print quality when no-one else is,” said Falconer. “Printers will ask: why are we going to put in a fully colour-managed workflow when our customers are happy with the quality as it is? “But putting in a colour-managed workflow isn’t just about colour and quality, it’s about being more productive, stopping tinkering for 5-10 minutes on every job and taking costs out of your bottom line.” He added: “There are a fantastic range of new print-related applications and market opportunities to take advantage of, but first and foremost you have to get the basics right. “In all the consultancy work that we do for SME printers, even the bigger, more digital and cross media savvy ones are often let down by a lack of planning, inefficient production and an ineffective sales process. “The Ipex Master Classes will help them improve in these areas.” Trevor Crawford, Ipex 2014 event director, said: “Ipex 2014 has been developed as a source of information and education for everyone in the print and communications industry, and the Master Classes are an important...