Wide-format Blogs

With little over a fortnight to go before Drupa I’m wondering whether the spurt of investment we’ve seen in finishing equipment for the wide-format arena in the last couple of years has slowed with a bigger injection of cash now stimulating high levels of pre-press/design product take-up? Let me know your thoughts.

Are we about to see a price war? Noting Graphtec GB’s move to cut the costs of its FC8000 and CE5000 plotter/cutters by up to 30% one wonders if it’s a sign of things to come among other manufacturers and suppliers - or just a lucky break for those that want one of the Graphtec machines!

Textile is still way down the list of capabilities offered by UK wide-format print companies according to data collected in the new Widthwise 2012 poll. And textile printers are way down the new kit wish list of the sector too – so what’s holding us back? You can read the full report when it’s published just in time for Drupa on 3 May. A downloadable PDF will be available at: http://www.imagereportsmag.co.uk/widthwise2012

It’s always great to see companies awarded for outstanding work, so well done to those who clinched a Sign and Digital UK Award last week. Please remember that we run a gallery of unusual and thought provoking wide-format print in Image Reports each month. If you have recent jobs that you are particularly proud of, please send me a 300dpi JPG of the print ‘in-situ’ and a few lines explaining what was so unusual about it and the chances are it will make it into the gallery.

What do you think to this anti-bacterial printing service being introduced by Quantum-UV Technologies then? The general consensus seems to be that we’ve just seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what is possible with inkjet technologies - with huge potential beyond print. It’s great to see that here’s a really unusual inkjet development that is print based.

Will you be taking your in-house designers with you to Sign and Digital UK? It may be worth it because increasingly it’s their creative juices and technical capabilities that can make the difference between your company becoming a front runner or remaining an also ran. If you don’t have the time to make such arrangements now for Sign and Digital, perhaps think about Drupa.

Are the Budget announcements likely to help or hinder your business do you think? Both the Forum of Private Business and BPIF have mixed feelings on the issue, which I guess will be pretty representative of those running the businesses they champion. But perhaps you have a different view. If so let me hear it.

Have you turned your hand to textile printing yet? I’m trying to get a measure of how far this option has permeated the wide-format digital inkjet print sector’s consciousness given the length of time it’s been mooted as the great next thing. All the signs are good (no pun intended!), but there still seems to be a reticence when it comes to really embracing the idea. Let me know your thoughts.

The Drupa effect is now kicking in with exhibitors beginning to make their pre-show announcements on the new products and services launching at the show in May. Obviously we’ll bring you the news as we get it, but it’s also worth keeping an eye on our brand new website where the Drupa Preview will be available to view from the beginning of April. And let us know what you think of the changes we’ve made to the website, which is now easier to navigate and provides various new features such as Talking Point video interviews.

Management guru Tom Peters is kind enough to offer a load of free stuff for download on www.tompeters.com. Ignore his Twitterbook, which is hard work, but do check out his inspirational presentation to America’s independent retailers which begins with this quote from George Whalin, author of Retail Superstars: “Be the best, it’s the only market that’s not crowded”.

US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was right when he suggested that government decision-making could be afflicted by what he called “unknown unknowns”. This is, it now appears, a challenge every manager would be stupid to ignore.

What shade of green is your business? A new report from EcoPrint called ‘The Business Of Sustainability’ suggests that you cannot be complacent, no matter how well you think you’re doing. As the authors say: “High profile consumer brands are still attuned to the sentiment of society. Customers always have a choice of supplier. In difficult times, it is crucial not to give any reason at all for someone not to trade with you. Even if you are down the supply chain and do not deal directly with consumers, you may find your customer’s customer’s CSR policy impacts you, in particular whether your customer will continue to trade with you if another supplier has a more proactive policy.”

You have been warned.