Supposedly, the economy is in a recovery mode. If that’s so, then what’s up with this?

Several of the large players in the printing and graphics industry have recently reported a decline in sales, Q1 2011 vs. Q1 2012, among them:

 - Cenveo

 - Quad Graphics

 - Pitney Bowes (they are not just in the “mailing” equipment business)

 - Consolidated Graphics

 - RR Donnelly

In spite of that, new equipment continues to flood the printing and graphics marketplace.  And, I do mean “flood”.  It’s almost impossible to keep up with all of the new gear companies are introducing.  You have to ask yourself, if printers are experiencing declining, rather than growing, sales, and, if “print-on-paper” is expected to continue to be in a declining mode in the years to come, then how will printing equipment manufacturers continue to be able to justify significant R&D investments in new printing equipment and technology?

One friend put it like this.  “Right now – and continuing over the next few years – we are seeing, and going to see, an explosion in digital printing equipment and technology as digital printing equipment manufacturers (and inventors who license their imaging technologies) push to replace traditional (i.e., offset) printing equipment.”

I “guess” that means that, over the next several years, we’ll be hearing that all of the large offset printing companies will be acquiring new digital printing equipment to replace their analog printing presses.  That’s already happening.  But, that “changeover” from analog to digital is going to be very expensive, and where are the capex funds going to come from if sales continue in a declining mode?

As a “reprographer” by background, I do remember when, beginning around 1995, high-volume-capable, very fast, wide-format, b/w, multifunction, digital scanner / copier / printer / plotters (e.g. OCE 9800) began to make inroads in the reprographics industry - began to replace analog diazo printers, and that process seriously ramped up over the next several years.  But, while reprographers were making the decision to acquire this expensive new stuff to replace their old stuff, sales were booming (because the A/E/C Industry and the real estate development industry were booming!)  It’s certainly much easier to justify significant new capex when sales are booming (and expected to increase from there!)  It’s an altogether different animal when you have to make significant new investments in new printing equipment, when sales are dragging and expected to further decline!  I do think this is going to force further consolidation in the printing industry market.  Darwinian!

Landa S10 - Hit of the (drupa) Show (nanographic printing technology)

Friday, May 11, 2012

Press release from the issuing company

Landa Corporation today announced it was receiving unprecedented levels of interest and orders (Letters of Intent with deposit) for its B1 format commercial digital press, the Landa S10 Nanographic Printing Press, with crowds flocking to see it on the Landa stand in Hall 9. It is the only B1 size digital press on the market and has the specifications to penetrate mainstream commercial print markets, printing at offset speeds and qualities without requiring plate changes or lengthy set-up times. 

By fitting seamlessly into existing workflows and finishing environments, the Landa S10 has the capacity to add highly productive output, printing single-side or double-side at up to 13,000 SPH on any off-the-shelf stock (60-400 gsm). The B1 format makes the Landa S10 ideal for a range of general commercial applications such as brochures, booklets, greetings cards, catalogs and many, many others. The packaging version prints folding cartons up to 1mm thickness.



The 'Right Fit' for Print Businesses


Landa Founder, Chairman and CEO Benny Landa says, "We are delighted by the interest we are receiving for all our products launched at drupa this year. We brought a broad family of printing presses to market which are receiving huge levels of interest. Above all, our Landa S10 Nanographic Printing Press with its B1 format is the winner.

"It has the unique ability to print at high speeds with high levels of productivity and integrate seamlessly into existing print environments. As the only B1 production level digital printing press on the market, the Landa S10 is receiving enormous attention and orders. This confirms to us that it is the 'right fit' for businesses large and small who want to increase their profitability on mainstream print jobs for short and medium-run lengths."

Link to complete Press Release …..

http://whattheythink.com/news/57969-landa-s10-hit-show/

Top 10 Ideas for Improving Sales Performance

From http://www.saleseffectiveness.com/

1.            Selection - Recruiting and selecting the right talent needed for each sales position is the single most important skill of sales management.

2.            Raising the Bar- Sales and service improvement is an outcome of deliberate, planned actions over time, at all levels. "Raising the bar" must be the primary objective of sales and service leadership.

3.            Sales Process - Documenting your sales methodology and Best Practices both for salespeople and sales managers provides a “Framework of Excellence” for improving your selling system. Once documented, the sales process drives hiring, coaching, training, and marketing support efforts.

4.            Change - People change behaviors because they want to, because the value of change is compelling, and because it benefits them significantly as individuals. If you want to change selling behaviors, actively engage your people in the solution. It is their ownership that ensures long-lasting change.

5.            Measurement is the essential ingredient of process improvement. Without clear expectations for activity and performance, sales improvement efforts seldom hit the mark.

6.            Support Systems including activity scorecards, technology, pipeline forecasting, territory plans, lead generation and strategy worksheets provide the tools to implement change. Tool development is not a one-time effort, but a continuous process of enhancing the tools, modifying them, and applying them to the business.

7.            Focus Coaching sustains excellence and builds employee loyalty. Coaches are the catalysts of team and individual effectiveness. Their ability to tap and stretch the capacity of each individual generates power and momentum. 

8.            Training is the #1 intervention to communicate expectations, to stimulate growth, to lift individual performance. It must be a core practice, consistently applied and customized to fit your organization.

9.            Compensation and recognition practices must be aligned to strategy.  Alignment creates leverage and increases the potential to maximize revenues.

10.        Customer Retention is the ultimate barometer of success. Its focus is indispensable, and everyone in the organization must take ownership for their role in adding value and enhancing the customer experience.

Visit the PDF Library to download this and other professionally formatted sales training articles and resources.

KIP C7800 PRODUCTION SYSTEM – COLOR AND BLACK & WHITE

I’ve placed in my GoogleDocs library a file I received from KIP that shows the Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price for this system as well as “cost per sq ft” numbers for b/w CAD prints, color CAD prints and color POSTER prints.

I’d like to thank KIP for providing this information to Reprographics 101.

Here’s a link to that file:

http://tinyurl.com/6m3n2a4

Drupa 2012, the Inkjet Drupa...again? My exit interview

This is David Swang's "wrap-up" of his visit to drupa in Germany -  

Here’s the beginning of his article:

Commentary & Analysis

Drupa 2012, the Inkjet Drupa…again? My exit interview

By David Zwang
Published: May 9, 2012

Ok, before I start to get panic emails… no I have not been sacked, have no plans to retire (unlike Andy Tribute), and I will continue to write much more detail on the current and future state of production inkjet (and liquid toner), so stay tuned. However, after 8 long days of pounding the messe pavement, seeing lots of products and solutions and lots of friends, it is time to leave drupa. So I wanted to share some observations.

First of all, there is a healthy level of excitement here that the industry is recovering from its deep funk, both economically and spiritually. And while I have spent most of my time looking at production inkjet and other digital print technologies, surprisingly, some of the more packed booths were the offset press manufacturers. Walking, or more like trying to walk through Heidelberg, manroland, Komori, KBA, etc., was a challenge. I don’t know if people were buying, but they sure were packed in. And unlike Xerox, they didn’t have a fabulous Cirque do Soleil show going on, so it had to be for the equipment shown.

One of the more interesting things surrounding this drupa is that the ‘digital factory’, or the extension of digital print from creation and order initiation through finishing is really starting to take shape.

Here’s a link to the complete article:

http://whattheythink.com/articles/57871-drupa-2012-inkjet-drupaagain-my-exit-interview