CWU ballots Parcelforce members
According to the union, 93% of members said they opposed Royal Mail privatisation, 95% supported the CWU’s rejection of Parcelforce’s pension proposal and 96% supported CWU’s pay claim. The ballot results were broadly in line with the results of the consultative ballot of Royal Mail workers held in June. More than 90% of Parcelforce’s staff are CWU members, and the ballot achieved a 72% turnout. Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, said: “Workers in Parcelforce have spoken loud and clear and added their voices to those of hundreds of thousands of others – they are against Royal Mail privatisation. “There is a consistent message from both the workforce and the public that privatisation is not needed, not supported and not popular. It’s time the government looked at alternatives to privatisation – something we can help them with.” June’s Royal Mail consultative ballot proved to be a pre-cursor to a full national strike ballot at the letters operation by the CWU, which is due to be held next month. However, Parcelforce is a separate company, although wholly owned by Royal Mail, and as such is subject to separate negotiations between the union and management. Open ended talks between the union and Parcelforce management are on going and a ballot on strike action can only be held if no agreement is reached on pay and conditions. It would be illegal for Parcelforce staff to strike purely in protest against privation of the Royal Mail. “Nothing’s been ruled out at the moment, but there are no imminent indications talks will fail, but we still have no pay deal in place for this year,” said a CWU spokeswoman....
read moreHands On Finishers racks up business with new Horizon
The binder, supplied by IFS, is supplied with a Meler adhesive pre-melt system and a PUR glue tank option. A Horizon HT-30 Robotic 3-edge trimmer completes the quick-response binding service at the Walton-on-Thames trade finisher. Managing director Adam Melvin said the kit cost £108,000 but would add around £180,000 of business to his circa-£1m turnover. He said the business was recieving a lot of enquiries for short run perfect bound books. “Everyone seems to want 100 to 150 copies up to a maximum of, maybe, 5,000 and we needed the most cost-effective way to do that,” said Melvin, who looked at a number of systems including used machines. “But we decided the BQ470 gave us everything we wanted. It’s fast to set up and easy to use. Also important to us was having the back-up and support of a good supplier, and we knew we would have that with IFS. “This was the first big investment we’ve made and we will see how it goes over the next four years. The market is not so vibrant but we think the kit will pay for itself. It’s a good all-round machine and is fast.” The 1,350bph Horizon machine joins a raft of other finishing equipment at the facility offering cutting, creasing and folding, saddlestitching, diecutting, wiro-binding and lamination. “We are now able to offer our current customers a wider range of services and, of course, we plan to use this new service to expand our customer base. We expect to achieve return on investment in under three years.”...
read moreNuts shuns modesty orders
Last week supermarket retailer Co-op announced that it would remove lads mags from its shelves in more than 4,000 outlets unless publishers took measures to cover them up with “modesty bags” by 9 September. Titles affected include Loaded, Front, Zoo and Nuts. The latter three are printed by Polestar. The move followed increasing pressure from lobbyists and consumers groups concerned about the exposure to children of sexually explicit material on supermarket shelves. Paul Williams, managing director of IPC Inspire, the division that publishes Nuts, said that Co-op’s knee-jerk attempt to restrict access to a product that consumers had enjoyed for nearly a decade was wrong. He added: “Nuts takes its obligation to craft products that are right for consumers and retailers alike very seriously, and for a number of weeks now we have had new covers in place, which have a more conservative tone.” Williams said readers had responded positively to its toned down covers, with last week’s issue being the biggest seller since February. “The objection that niche lobby groups have against certain sectors of the media should not mean that the right to purchase a perfectly legal product is be restricted for the over half a million Nuts readers,” he said. “As has been widely reported in the media in recent weeks, this is no longer a question of whether or not you like men’s magazines, it is a question of how far you can restrict the public’s ability to consume free and legal media before it becomes censorship.” Meanwhile Nuts editor Dominic Smith told BBC’s Newsbeat that if Co-op chose to remove the title from its shelves, shoppers would simply be encouraged to go elsewhere. “If we do sell a few less issues, then so be it,” he told the show. Co-op said its position had not changed and titles that were not covered by the September deadline would be removed. Following last week’s announcement, BPIF chief executive Kathy Woodward said the move should come as no surprise and that it was important for printers to maintain good relationships with their clients, so that solutions could be worked out that didn’t result in printers shouldering the cost of extra packaging....
read moreHands On Finishers racks up business with new Horizon
The binder, supplied by IFS, is supplied with a Meler adhesive pre-melt system and a PUR glue tank option. A Horizon HT-30 Robotic 3-edge trimmer completes the quick-response binding service at the Walton-on-Thames trade finisher. Managing director Adam Melvin said the kit cost £108,000 but would add around £180,000 of business to his circa-£1m turnover. He said the business was recieving a lot of enquiries for short run perfect bound books. “Everyone seems to want 100 to 150 copies up to a maximum of, maybe, 5,000 and we needed the most cost-effective way to do that,” said Melvin, who looked at a number of systems including used machines. “But we decided the BQ470 gave us everything we wanted. It’s fast to set up and easy to use. Also important to us was having the back-up and support of a good supplier, and we knew we would have that with IFS. “This was the first big investment we’ve made and we will see how it goes over the next four years. The market is not so vibrant but we think the kit will pay for itself. It’s a good all-round machine and is fast.” The 1,350bph Horizon machine joins a raft of other finishing equipment at the facility offering cutting, creasing and folding, saddlestitching, diecutting, wiro-binding and lamination. “We are now able to offer our current customers a wider range of services and, of course, we plan to use this new service to expand our customer base. We expect to achieve return on investment in under three years.”...
read moreA1 Trade Print scores top marks for health and safety
The £6m turnover Birmingham-based company specialises in trade-only security printing for UK and international clients, and employs 56 staff. It produces a wide range of security products, including parking permits, gift vouchers, cheques, and integrated forms. The audit involved a comprehensive range of health and safety-related assessments. Simon Lunken, head of health, safety and environment at the BPIF said the assessment was extremely challenging, and it was “exceptional” achievement to gain a 100% pass. “The BPIF H&S SOE is a precious achievement that demonstrates high level of H&S compliance in specific industry areas,” he said. “Only one other member has ever achieved 100% in their first audit.” A1 managing director Jim Richardson said he was extremely proud of his team’s achievement: “We strive for excellence across all aspects of the business. Looking after our workforce is one of our key measures and full credit should be given to our HR manager Dawn Garton and the rest of the management team for reaching such a high standard.” A1 Trade Print Services is owned by MCAARP Holdings, which also owns Integrity Print and Mooreforms. MCAARP acquired A1 at the end of 2011, and chief executive Mark Cornford said he was delighted at A1’s performance since: “It has proved to be a great acquisition for us. A1 is a fabulous business and I’m enormously proud of what they have achieved.”...
read moreA1 Trade Print scores top marks for health and safety
The £6m turnover Birmingham-based company specialises in trade-only security printing for UK and international clients, and employs 56 staff. It produces a wide range of security products, including parking permits, gift vouchers, cheques, and integrated forms. The audit involved a comprehensive range of health and safety-related assessments. Simon Lunken, head of health, safety and environment at the BPIF said the assessment was extremely challenging, and it was “exceptional” achievement to gain a 100% pass. “The BPIF H&S SOE is a precious achievement that demonstrates high level of H&S compliance in specific industry areas,” he said. “Only one other member has ever achieved 100% in their first audit.” A1 managing director Jim Richardson said he was extremely proud of his team’s achievement: “We strive for excellence across all aspects of the business. Looking after our workforce is one of our key measures and full credit should be given to our HR manager Dawn Garton and the rest of the management team for reaching such a high standard.” A1 Trade Print Services is owned by MCAARP Holdings, which also owns Integrity Print and Mooreforms. MCAARP acquired A1 at the end of 2011, and chief executive Mark Cornford said he was delighted at A1’s performance since: “It has proved to be a great acquisition for us. A1 is a fabulous business and I’m enormously proud of what they have achieved.”...
read moreOasis bumps up capacity with HP Z6200 aqueous printer.
The large-format aqueous ink printer has a “formidable pedigree” and boasted good colour accuracy over previous models and comparable printers, said the print firm in Cookham, Berkshire. The Z6200 will be used to print onto paper, canvas and backlit films using an eight-ink system designed to create uniform gloss and reduce the appearance of bronzing. Managing director Simon Osborne said the Z6200 was one of the fastest printers in its class and joined Oasis’ existing stable of two Canon aqueous ink printers to help the company increase capacity and speed. “Each new investment in printer technology moves our business forward in terms of speed, efficiency and capacity, but they must be underpinned by sound business reasoning,” he said. “One of our newest clients asked us if we could match the output from their previous large-format print supplier, which used a Z6200 for their work. This proved to be the perfect opportunity to respond to a customer need. Osborne’s 16-strong set up offers print and finishing, and digital kit includes an 3.2m-wide EFI Vutek GS3250 flatbed UV printer, two Mimaki JV33 roll-to-roll solvent printers, a 1.6m wide and two 1.5m-wide Canon IPF 9000 12-colour water-based inkjet devices....
read moreOasis bumps up capacity with HP Z6200 aqueous printer.
The large-format aqueous ink printer has a “formidable pedigree” and boasted good colour accuracy over previous models and comparable printers, said the print firm in Cookham, Berkshire. The Z6200 will be used to print onto paper, canvas and backlit films using an eight-ink system designed to create uniform gloss and reduce the appearance of bronzing. Managing director Simon Osborne said the Z6200 was one of the fastest printers in its class and joined Oasis’ existing stable of two Canon aqueous ink printers to help the company increase capacity and speed. “Each new investment in printer technology moves our business forward in terms of speed, efficiency and capacity, but they must be underpinned by sound business reasoning,” he said. “One of our newest clients asked us if we could match the output from their previous large-format print supplier, which used a Z6200 for their work. This proved to be the perfect opportunity to respond to a customer need. Osborne’s 16-strong set up offers print and finishing, and digital kit includes an 3.2m-wide EFI Vutek GS3250 flatbed UV printer, two Mimaki JV33 roll-to-roll solvent printers, a 1.6m wide and two 1.5m-wide Canon IPF 9000 12-colour water-based inkjet devices....
read moreNoise in print still hazardous, HSE finds
The papers are a culmination of studies that were carried out, in collaboration with the BPIF, across eight print sites between March 2010 and July 2011. The HSE previously carried out noise data studies in print between 1985 and 1994, to inform industry specific guidance on acceptable exposure levels, following the introduction of health and safety regulations in 1984. Then with the introduction of the Control of Noise at Work Regulations in 2005, the HSE began revising guidance across a range industries and developing industry specific microsites, on the HSE website, to inform those affected. During these latest studies the HSE found that although noise levels in print have decreased by six decibels (dB) since the 90s, average daily exposure is still above recommended levels. The ‘lower exposure action value’ should be 80dB according to the 2005 regulations, while the latest data shows that printers are being exposed to around 85dB. HSE inspector Alison Crank said: “Long term noise at these levels is hazardous and the regulations require programmes for noise control to be put in place.” The HSE data splits noise risk into three main areas of printing including reel hands, press workers and post-press activities. Crank said that although exposures varied for all three, most exceeded the lower exposure action values and many also exceeded the upper recommended values, which could result in long-term health issues. The findings will be uploaded onto the HSE website in the comings months, while print industry specific guidance is also in development....
read moreNoise in print still hazardous, HSE finds
The papers are a culmination of studies that were carried out, in collaboration with the BPIF, across eight print sites between March 2010 and July 2011. The HSE previously carried out noise data studies in print between 1985 and 1994, to inform industry specific guidance on acceptable exposure levels, following the introduction of health and safety regulations in 1984. Then with the introduction of the Control of Noise at Work Regulations in 2005, the HSE began revising guidance across a range industries and developing industry specific microsites, on the HSE website, to inform those affected. During these latest studies the HSE found that although noise levels in print have decreased by six decibels (dB) since the 90s, average daily exposure is still above recommended levels. The ‘lower exposure action value’ should be 80dB according to the 2005 regulations, while the latest data shows that printers are being exposed to around 85dB. HSE inspector Alison Crank said: “Long term noise at these levels is hazardous and the regulations require programmes for noise control to be put in place.” The HSE data splits noise risk into three main areas of printing including reel hands, press workers and post-press activities. Crank said that although exposures varied for all three, most exceeded the lower exposure action values and many also exceeded the upper recommended values, which could result in long-term health issues. The findings will be uploaded onto the HSE website in the comings months, while print industry specific guidance is also in development....
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