Training and Education

STEVE FORBES has been described as a media mogul, a Web-savvy ideologue, a simplified tax advocate, a publisher and, more relevant here, the keynote presenter at next month’s Web Offset Association (WOA) meeting in Orlando, FL. Not only does Steve Forbes know our business, he lives it. Forbes Inc. is an 88-year-old publishing company riding the cusp of the Internet and new media challenges. Having invested tens of millions into the Internet, the president and CEO of Forbes Inc. and editor-in-chief of Forbes magazine continues to be very optimistic about the power of print. In addition to his intimate dealings with the printing industry

ORLANDO, FL—Industry change brought about by the growth of the Internet, consolidation, global competition and outsourcing were key discussion points at the NAPL Top Management Conference and NAQP Annual Conference held last month at the luxurious Ritz-Carlton Orlando Grande Lakes Hotel. And even the event itself exemplified change—marking the first time the two industry conferences were conducted as one overall meeting with several combined breakout sessions, keynote addresses and social activities. Andy Paparozzi, NAPL vice president and chief economist, kicked off the NAPL portion of the meeting with highlights from the 2006 “NAPL State of the Industry Report.” Always a crowd pleaser with his keen insight

MIAMI BEACH, FL—After watching attendance at its conference dwindle since the booming days of the ’90s, Xplor International teamed up with the successful Graphics of the Americas (GOA) exhibition and conference this year, putting on a joint event held here last month. The partnership seems to have been a wise move, as it freed Xplor from the task of organizing a trade show, allowing it to concentrate on its educational mission. More than 250 sessions were available, covering PDF, JDF, XML, digital prepress, design, variable data and more. GOA, in turn, got a host of new attendees, as well as a larger base of

NEW YORK CITY--John Sateja, senior vice president for information products at Consumer Reports, the publishing arm of Consumers Union, will serve as keynote speaker at the 2006 BookTech and PrintMedia Conference & Expo, to be held March 20-22 in New York City. Consumer Reports has more than 7 million combined paid subscribers to its various information products.  Sateja oversees the publishing, editorial, technical and survey research divisions of the organization and has ultimate responsibility for all information products at Consumers Union, including Consumer Reports magazine and ConsumerReports.org (the world's largest publication-based subscription Web site), as well as several other Web sites, newsletters, books, special interest

User groups are far more likely to be a source for news than the subject of it. That wasn’t the case in 2005, and continuing into this year, largely due to the ripple effect of recent consolidation within the industry vendor community. Advances in technology are also contributing to the transformation of user groups. Much of this activity has been on the digital printing side of the industry, so user groups for products in that segment will be addressed here. An expanded version of this story—including updates on a broader spectrum of industry groups—will be published on www.piworld.com. When Hewlett-Packard announced last

GREENWICH, CT—Longtime PIA/GATF public affairs crusader Ben Cooper has been appointed executive director of The Print Council. Cooper replaces Marty Maloney of the public relations firm Broadford & Maloney, who has been appointed to the executive committee of the board of directors, which guides The Print Council. Maloney served a special one-year term as executive director. Cooper comes to The Print Council after spending more than 27 years with the Printing Industries of America (later PIA/GATF). Much of that time, Cooper has focused his efforts as a government affairs specialist, spearheading the organization's lobbying efforts to influence legislation affecting the commercial printing industry. Launched in 2003, The

Drawing a contingent of more than 60 journalists from 30 countries, IPEX 2006 Inward Mission offered a glimpse into the upcoming international trade show of the same name. Held recently in Birmingham, UK, on the grounds of the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the press event was a precursor to IPEX 2006, running from April 4-11. Owned by Picon, IPEX has evolved from the Great Exhibition of 1851 and is now one of the largest and most anticipated exhibitions on the international printing industry calendar. Picon reports 575 exhibitors committed to this year’s show, and expects a visitor base of 74,000 attendees. The show’s ownership feels the

NEW YORK CITY--The publishing industry is experiencing a radical transformation, and publishing executives at every level face new roles and responsibilities. Everyone is trying to figure out how best to tap the new revenue potential and publishing technology out there, from custom publishing to digital editions, webcasts and RSS. Even top executives of magazine publishing companies of all sizes admit they don't have all the answers to the media landscape right now. Nobody does, says Noelle Skodzinski, PrintMedia magazine's editor in chief. The 2006 PrintMedia Conference & Expo has been designed to give publishing executives practical solutions they can apply today to their businesses

CHICAGO—The Windy City will soon get a lot breezier when the onslaught of printing-related equipment heats up at the McCormick Place Complex September 9 through 15 during PRINT 05 and CONVERTING 05. The event, produced by the Graphic Arts Show Co. (GASC), is being billed as the largest showcase of commercial printing, package printing and converting equipment in the world this year. Online registration for the international exhibition is available by visiting the show's Website, www.PRINT05.com. More than 80,000 visitors are expected to flood the McCormick Place Complex during the week-long print festival. Approximately 800 vendors will gobble up a lion's share of the

KENNESAW, GA—Touted as its largest Print Media Demonstration Center (PMDC) in the world, Heidelberg showcased the newly expanded, 33,000-square-foot facility during a President's Night gala held here on May 25th. The event was attended by some 300 printers from throughout North America. Housing a range of prepress, press and postpress equipment and workflow solutions, the PMDC will serve as a venue where prospective and existing customers can run actual test jobs, as well as a site for hands-on tutorials, meetings and conferences. The center required a 12˝-thick continuous concrete slab with rebar and 4,000 amps of power consumption. The special event also marked the