Consumables-Paper - Offset

BY MARK SMITH Predictions of the paperless office may have lost their edge, but not the threat of a paperless printing plant. One only has to go as far back as 1995 to find the last time some printers were faced with shutting down their presses for a lack of paper to run through them. The buyer's market of recent times saw printers, and their clients, being doubly blessed with a ready supply of paper at historically low prices. Everyone knew it was just a matter of time before the market swing came, though. In the case of paper, the more apropos saying would

BY MARK SMITH For better or worse, the fortunes of printers and paper producers are inextricably linked. If one sees this as an adversarial relationship, then the paper producers clearly are in a defensive position. Printing papers have been on a downward trend for some time and now are at or near historically low prices. Even the mega-deal consolidations among the major producers have yet to have any obvious impact on the level of competition in the marketplace. Lower paper prices are not necessarily good news for the printing industry, so say even those responsible for buying large quantities of it. "We

BY CAROLINE MILLER The price of paper continues to remain at an all-time low thanks in part to industry consolidation, a stagnant economy and weak demand. However, in the long term, market watchers are predicting that prices will begin to increase as the economy continues its slow climb out of the recession. The National Association of Printing Leadership's (NAPL's) March survey of printers found that just 9.8 percent of those responding to the survey reported that paper prices were rising. "That is just half of the 18.4 percent who reported that paper prices were rising last November," reveals NAPL Chief Economist Andrew Paparozzi. "In

BY CAROLINE MILLER Case Paper believes in commitment—both to its customers, employees and the local community. It's a philosophy that is embodied in the recently completed expansion at Case's Philadelphia operation, which is now said to be the largest non-mill converting facility in North America. Located in North Philadelphia, this 700,000+-square-foot warehouse, converting and distribution operation houses eight sheeters, five trimmers and five slitters/rewinders. Case Paper acquired the facility in 1988 as part of an acquisition of another paper company. At the time, the acquisition was an easy way for the 59-year-old, family owned business to expand into the Delaware Valley area, recalls Robin

BY CAROLINE MILLER It's a good news/bad news situation. The good news: Printing paper prices are very favorable and popular grades are readily available. The bad news: When prices are low and paper is readily available it generally means that the demand for printing is soft, as well. And that is exactly what the trend in the paper market has been for the past year. In late October and early November, just 2.5 percent of those who responded to the National Association for Printing Leadership's (NAPL's) national monthly paper survey indicated that paper prices were rising in that period. "It's the lowest we've ever seen that

Paper prices and production drop as a slow U.S. economy continues to plague suppliers. BY CAROLINE MILLER A flagging U.S. economy, an increase in offshore paper and the never-ending merger and acquisition dance among paper producers is continuing to keep the price of paper low, reports NAPL Chief Economist Andrew Paparozzi. In his latest survey of printers, 72.5 percent of those polled responded that paper prices are stable. However, what is more interesting is the growing number of printers that are reporting falling paper prices. In June 2001, 18.5 percent indicated prices were falling. That number has increased progressively from last summer when

BY CAROLINE MILLER As a weak U.S. economy continues to batter the printing industry, several pulp and paper producers have announced that they are either closing mills or cutting production. In a flurry of first quarter earning statements, companies such as International Paper, Weyerhaeuser and Sappi Fine Paper North America, among others, have announced plans to cut production in response to a softening economy. In its first quarter earning report, Weyerhaeuser says that it expects the slowing global economy to result in a weaker demand for production in all its major pulp, paper and packaging product lines. This resulted in Weyerhaeuser's decision to

Like the rest of the business-to-business dotcoms, the online paper procurement segment has seen its share of out-of-business signs in recent months. Still, despite the inevitable thinning of the dotcom ranks, the fact remains that the graphic arts is continuing to move toward e-commerce. By 2003, 30 percent of all transactions for wood, paper or building products will be made online. And that number will rise to an estimated 75 to 80 percent by 2010. Whether you are looking for a marketplace to sell or buy paper, or a supply chain management solution to help you streamline your inventory, there are a variety of

Printers debate the availability and prices of paper as the economy weakens. BY CAROLINE MILLER It could be said that as the economy goes, so goes the paper market. And, in recent months, that has certainly been the case. The slowing economy has resulted in what appears to be a stabilization in pricing and availability, reports NAPL Chief Economist Andrew Paparozzi. "We saw paper prices continuing to aggregate along with the economy right through mid-year 2000. Prices really peaked sometime in the spring of 2000. Then, in the second half of the year, prices started to moderate significantly as the economy rapidly degenerated," he

BY CAROLINE MILLER When it comes to buying paper online, change certainly seems to be in the wind these days. There is currently much activity in this space; companies are adding new features to their Websites, restructuring their business models, expanding their offerings and some are closing up shop for now. And, don't look for the wind to die down any time soon. There are four new companies that are about to enter into the online paper procurement mix. Printing Impressions presents a look at all the new developments in online paper procurement. PaperExchange.comPaperExchange has announced plans to expand beyond its original