Sunday, June 3, 2012

Ordinary and Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders of Service Point Solutions, SA


(Translated from Spanish to English using Google Translate; if you are fluent in Spanish and want to read the Spanish language version of this press release, visit ServicePointSolutions.net)

Hey, Barcelona Spain is an amazing city; beautiful weather, fun beaches, awesome architecture and incredibly interesting food. 

May 25, 2012. - The Board of Directors of Service Point Solutions SA (SPS) in accordance with legal and statutory regulations in force, has agreed to convene and Extraordinary General Meeting of shareholders to be held in Barcelona, the Princesa Sofia Hotel, Plaza Pio XII, 4, the 27th of June 2012 at 10:30 am on first call and on June 28, 2012, in the same place and time, on second call.
Agenda

1. Review and where appropriate, approval of the Annual Accounts (Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Statement of Changes in Equity, Cash Flow Statement and Notes) individual SERVICE POINT SOLUTIONS, SA and the consolidated group, the corresponding management reports, application of results and management of the Board of Directors, all for the year ended December 31, 2011.

2. Appointment or reappointment as auditors of individual accounts and the consolidated group.

3. Resignation, appointment, reappointment and / or ratification of directors, after fixing their number within the statutorily provided minimum and maximum

4. Delegation to the Board of Directors, to be able to issue convertible bonds, with attribution of the power to exclude the preferential subscription rights and the power to ensure, where appropriate, conducted emissions, increase in capital amount necessary to cover the conversion.

5. Authorize the Board of Directors to acquire own shares directly or through subsidiaries.

6. Delegation to the Board of Directors, under Article 297.1.b) of the Companies Act Capital, the power to approve a capital increase in one or more times within a maximum period of 5 years and even as maximum amount equivalent to half the capital of the company at the time of authorization, to the extent that it may decide, with a forecast of incomplete subscription, delegating also, in accordance with the provisions of Article 506 of the Companies Act capital, the power to exclude the preferential subscription rights in respect of such share issues and the power to amend Article 5 of the Bylaws.

7. Amendment of Articles 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, 22, 22-B and 27 of the Bylaws to adapt to the Companies Act Capital.

8. Amendment of the preamble and Articles 5, 7, 8, 9 and the 13th of the Rules of the General Meeting of Shareholders, and introduction of a new article, all for their adaptation to the Companies Act Capital.

9. Approval, in an advisory capacity to the report on the remuneration of the Directors of Service Point Solutions, SA the current year (2012) prepared by the Board of Directors

10. RevisióndelaremuneracióndelosmiembrosdelConsejodeAdministración. 11. Delegation of powers.

12. Any other business.

13. Reading and where appropriate, approve the minutes of the Board.

Supplement to the notice and submit proposals in accordance
Shareholders representing at least 5% of the share capital may request a supplement to the notice of General Meeting including one or more points on its agenda, provided that the new item is accompanied by a justification or, where appropriate, a settlement proposal justified and substantiated proposals agree on matters included or to be included in the agenda of the call. The exercise of these rights shall be made by notification which must be received at the registered office within five days of publication of this announcement, stating the names of shareholders who exercise the right to add and / or right proposals agreed, and the number of shares they hold, and the points to include in the agenda and / or proposed agreement, accompanied, if necessary, any documentation necessary or appropriate .

Information

Pursuant to the provisions of the Companies Act Capital, Mr. shareholders may examine at the registered office and request free delivery by mail of the following documentation:

• Full text of the annual accounts, management report and the report of the Auditors for the year 2011 and the Consolidated Accounts and the Auditors' report for that financial year.

• Full text of the Directors' Report on items 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 on the agenda.

• Full text of the Report on the remuneration of the Directors of Service Point Solutions, Inc. the current year (2012).

Also available for inspection and obtained information regarding the General Meeting of Shareholders in the Company website (www.servicepoint.net).

Until the seventh day prior to the scheduled conclusion of the General Meeting, the Shareholders may ask any questions or requests for information or clarification regarding the items on the agenda or publicly available information that has been provided by the Company to the National Stock Exchange since the date of conclusion of the last General Meeting. During the celebration of the General Meeting, shareholders may verbally request the information or explanations they consider appropriate on the items on the agenda.
And also to comply with Article 539 of the Companies Act Capital, after the publication of this notice is provided an electronic forum on the website Shareholders of the Company. The operating rules of the Forum and the form must be completed to participate in it, are available on the website of the Company.

It has enabled the phone number 902 999 203 and email juntasps@servicepoint.net, in order to obtain or clarify any information related to this board.

Right to assistance and representation

Have the right to attend all Board Shareholders with at least five (5) days prior to that for the holding thereof, which are recorded in the registers of some of the Iberclear and are in possession of the attendance card to that effect shall be issued by the entity in which they have deposited their shares.
   
The Shareholders entitled to attend, be represented on the Board by another person, to be removed, either in the card issued by the depositaries of their shares or in another document specifically for this Board. A proxy may also be conferred by means of distance communication, fulfilling the requirements for exercising the right to vote at a distance as follows.

Remote Voting

The right to vote on proposals regarding items on the agenda may be made by the shareholder entitled to attend by mail, in which case the shareholder communication should have been notified to the Company between the date of notice General Meeting and no later than twenty-four hours a day immediately preceding the holding of the Board. To be valid, must fulfill the following requirements:

a) the manifestation of the manner of voting shall be given by introducing into the envelope, and sent to the Company, voting card stating clearly the identity of the shareholder, the number of shares that he holds the meaning of their vote in each of the items on the agenda, as well as his autograph.

b) If the shareholder had delegated their votes and postal utilizase representative for broadcast, the forecasts referred to in paragraph a) above must be met both in terms of the declaration of the shareholder and the statement of the representative.

* To avoid inconvenience to the Shareholders, it is noted the high likelihood that the Meeting is held on second call, on June 28, 2012 at 10:30 pm.

Service Point signs contracts in the US, Germany and Turkey



Barcelona, May 31, 2012.– Service Point, through its German division Koebcke Photo Services, announces the agreement reached with the Palo Alto based North-American software developer Digilabs Inc., to widen its range of digital imaging services worldwide.
The company has also signed another two contracts with Fotomoz.com and Bilder-Experten to produce, frame and deliver multi-format printed images and photo albums to professional and semi professional markets.
The American company DigiLabs (www.digilabstech.com) owns one of the leading photo-processing software solutions for postcards, calendars and photo albums. Its software is used by thousands of printing and photography businesses and laboratories. Its partners include HP, Xerox, Kodak, Fujifilm and Canon.
Bilder-Experten (www.bilder-experten.de) is one of the most dynamic German companies in the production of photobooks, as well as providing framing services for images printed on a variety of materials. This year it achieved the HP Dreamcolor Beste Qualitat award for its high quality services.
The contract with the Turkish-based company Fotomoz (www.fotomoz.com) will allow Service Point to enter the Turkish market. Fotomoz maintains close ties with companies such as CNN Türk, NTV, Sabah and Aksam.

Friday, June 1, 2012

SOCIAL MEDIA MEETS DARWINISM


 LINK:


Construction Spending In U.S. Rose In April For A Second Month


 By Shobhana Chandra - Jun 1, 2012 10:00 AM ET (from Bloomberg)

Construction spending in the U.S. rose in April for a second month, helped by a surge in housing.

The 0.3 percent gain followed a matching increase in March that was revised higher than previously estimated, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a 0.4 percent rise.

Cheaper properties and low borrowing costs are lifting orders at homebuilders like Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL), a sign the industry that helped trigger the recession is improving. At the same time, foreclosures remain a restraint on housing, and commercial construction is unlikely to pick up until growth accelerates.

“There’s a modest uptick in demand” for homes, Michael Gapen, a senior U.S. economist at Barclays Plc in New York, said before the report. “The housing recovery should broaden out this year. We’re coming off the bottom.”

Estimates from 49 economists in the Bloomberg survey ranged from a drop of 0.3 percent to a gain of 1.5 percent, following an initially reported 0.1 percent increase for March.

Construction spending increased 6.3 percent in the 12 months ended in April, before adjusting for seasonal variations.

Private construction spending rose 1.2 percent in April from the prior month.

Homebuilding Outlays
Homebuilding outlays jumped 2.8 percent, the highest since October, including a 3.7 percent increase in home improvement.

Private non-residential projects spending declined by 0.2 percent.

Spending on public construction fell 1.4 percent in April from the prior month. Federal construction spending dropped 5 percent while state and local fell 1 percent.

Housing demand is improving. Purchases of new houses climbed 3.3 percent in April, while those of existing homes rose 3.4 percent, figures showed last month.

Construction is getting a lift from higher sales. Housing starts rose 2.6 percent to a 717,000 annual rate in April, according to Commerce Department figures released on May 16.

Toll Brothers is among the builders reporting growth in orders. Second-quarter profit at the Horsham, Pennsylvania-based company exceeded analysts’ estimates as orders surged 47 percent from a year earlier.

“We are feeling better than we have at any time in the past five years,” Chairman Robert Toll said on a May 23 earnings call. “We would like to say we’re back, but we need a little more confirmation. Nonetheless, it sure feels good compared to the desert we’ve just crossed.”

Borrowing Costs
Borrowing costs remain attractive. The average rate on a 30- year fixed mortgage fell to an all-time low of 3.75 percent in the week ended May 31, according to Freddie Mac data going back to 1971.

Construction funded by government agencies is likely to stay under pressure. Communities and states across the nation face soaring costs for pensions and retiree health benefits as sales and property-tax revenue have fallen from the longest recession since the 1930s.

To contact the reporter on this story: Shobhana Chandra in Washington at schandra1@bloomberg.net

Oce Highlights Five Additional Considerations When Selecting a Large Format Printer


Friday, June 01, 2012

Press release from the issuing company

You’ve made the decision to purchase a large format printer, taking into account the top four considerations discussed in Part 1 (www.oceusa.com/NB1) of this news brief series. Now it is time to go one level deeper to help ensure you have selected the best quality large format printer that your work deserves.

Océ, a Canon Group company and an international leader in digital document management, highlights below the final five considerations for making a truly informed purchasing decision.

Ease of Use
There is more to ease of use than the user interface of a large format printer – screens, previews and wizards do not tell the full story. Instead, base your investigation on how you need the printer to work for you, taking into consideration:
  • Type of Print Jobs: If the bulk of your print jobs are standardized, look for automation possibilities using templates. If your print jobs are specialized, look for possibilities to maintain full control and adjust or set parameters.
  • Number of Users: For multiple users, templates and a self-explanatory user interface is critical. Specialized users that are used to a high degree of automation need full control to run complex jobs.
  • Consumables Loading: Look for capabilities to exchange ink cartridges or refill toner during large runs, as well as the number of media rolls in the printer and if they can be exchanged on the fly. 
  • Ergonomics: Check to ensure printer design eases the burden of replacing empty paper rolls, makes it easy to access prints and that the operator panel is at an appropriate angle.
Infrastructure Security
Large format printers, especially those with a USB port, are an integral part of your IT infrastructure. More than just virus protection, infrastructure security includes protecting your company’s intellectual property. Therefore, when selecting a large format printer, security issues should be taken into account:
  • Service Packs: Look for a system that is compatible, for example, with Microsoft Service Packs. This offers updates for system reliability, program compatibility, virus protection and more.
  • Unauthorized Use: Ensure that unauthorized users can be locked out of the system. Usage logging can make it possible to track and trace misuse.
  • Overwrite Options:  Often companies will want to be able to overwrite digital data from the hard disk using e-shredding or even remove the hard disk when needed.
  • Safety applications: Network providers can assist with a variety of safety applications and features, such as integrity, authentication, and certification processes.
Product Options
A large format printer is a long-term commitment, which is why it is critical to select a machine that can be easily adapted to a business’ changing needs when they occur. Field upgradability and financing of field upgradability are two things to consider when looking at product options. For example, can hardware (e.g. scanner, folder or additional paper rolls) be added in the future; does the manufacturer offer firmware updates; is it possible to change your service contract if a shorter response time is needed.

Floor Space
When evaluating your floor space needs, the physical dimensions of the large format printer is just the first step. The operational floor space of the equipment is just as important as is balancing the cost of floor space versus efficiency cost. There are significant consequences to not having enough space, such as: damaged prints and originals and the cost of incomplete sets.
Keep in mind that even if the printer is touted as a single footprint multifunctional solution, you must take into consideration the additional floor space needed to fully operate the system. To make the best use of your space, evaluate the benefits of a single footprint solution versus a dual footprint solution.

Environmental Impact
The large format printer you select can have a direct impact on your company’s sustainability performance, potentially leading to unnecessary waste and high energy consumption. When shopping for a large format printer, consider the following:
  • Waste: Disposal of ink cartridges and residual toner is important, but do not forget the waste that is generated by poor quality prints that cannot be used or trimming scraps when the wrong media is selected.
  • Recyclability: Remember, just as ink cartridges and residual toner, the printers themselves can be recycled. Consider if the printer manufacturer has a remanufacturing program in place, so that old printers can be refurbished, reused or remanufactured.
  • Energy Consumption: To get a complete picture of the amount of energy that a printer consumes, consider how the machine is used on a typical day. Estimate how long the printer will likely be in sleep mode, how often will it be used per day and what type of printing it is doing.  Also, evaluate if the room in which the printer is placed will need to be cooled – the energy needed for air conditioning can increase your energy costs.
In combination with the four considerations presented in Part 1 of this series, you now have a more complete overview of the nine most important things to evaluate when shopping for a large format printer. For a more in-depth guide to purchasing the large format printer that is best for your needs, download the whitepaper Nine Considerations When Buying a Large Format Printer atwww.oceusa.com/9ConsiderationsNB2. 

NAPL Expands Its Small Printer Services


Friday, June 01, 2012

Press release from the issuing company

The industry’s quick and small commercial printers include “some of the industry’s most innovative and fast-growing companies,” says Andrew Paparozzi, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at The National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL). Now NAPL is expanding its services for this key industry segment with two new newsletters and a conference created exclusively for quick and small commercial printers.

The new eight-page quarterly Quick and Small Commercial Printers Trends Reportcovers the latest economic news and industry trends as relates to printers with annual sales below $3.5 million, including data and interpretation from regular surveys and interviews of printers in this segment. It is produced by the NAPL Research Center and sponsored by Xerox.

Introduced this spring, the new NAQP News is a six-page quarterly management newsletter with columns and articles specifically aimed at meeting the needs and exploring the issues executives and managers of quick and small commercial printing companies face daily. Both newsletters are mailed to NAPL members in this category.

“Executives and managers of quick and small commercial printing companies—many of them hands-on owner-operators—face difficult daily challenges during this time of industry change and economic uncertainty,” says NAQP Managing Director Mitch Evans. “We’ve created these new publications to help them navigate today’s challenges successfully as they grow and seek to achieve greater profitability.”
The Owners Conference, immediately preceding GRAPH EXPO, delivers speakers, printer panels, and vendor programs exclusively for the quick and small commercial printer, including the popular Ideas Exchange and Annual Supplier Showcase.

Built on the theme, “Embracing Change: Finding New Paths to Profits,” the information-packed 2012 conference will be held at the Doubletree Hotel Magnificent Mile in Chicago, Oct. 4-6. It will also be the setting for the annual PrintImage Excellence Awards, showcasing the outstanding output of the smaller printing company. All Owners Conference attendees also receive complimentary show floor admission to Graph Expo, Oct. 7-10 at McCormick Place South in Chicago.

“The program for this year’s conference has been put together by a group of knowledgeable quick and small commercial printer members who have used their frontline experience to identify today’s most important industry issues and assembled speakers and panelists who can address these topics from a real-world perspective,” says NAPL President and Chief Executive Officer Joseph P. Truncale, Ph.D. 
“Those who attend will return to their offices with innumerable takeaways they can make use of immediately.”

Topics covered at the 2012 program range from Equipment Financing and Agency-Printer Relationships to Social Networking and Exit Strategies. Already scheduled for this year’s program: Bill Farquharson of Aspire For, John Foley of Grow Socially, Joe Manos of MindFireInc., Barb Pellow of InfoTrends, Nancy Proffitt of Proffitt Management, Frank Romano of Rochester Institute of Technology, and Julie Shaffer of Printing Industries of America.

For more information about the 2012 Owners Conference, contact NAPL Vice President/Member Relations Dean D’Ambrosi at (800) 642-6275, Ext. 6314, or ddambrosi@napl.org, or go to www.napl.org/2012OC

Technology Product Highlights from AIA 2012 Expo: Part 2


From AECbytes
Newsletter #58

May 31, 2012

Article Summary
This article continues with the descriptions of the products and services offered by AEC technology vendors at the recent AIA 2012 Convention and Expo that was held in Washington DC from May 17 to 19. It looks at what was exhibited by established vendors like Autodesk, Bentley, IES, Trelligence, and Cadalog; newcomers to the show including SMART Technologies and SmartBIM; and some additional highlights relevant to AEC technology.
Article Link