Heidelberg

BY ERIK CAGLE Freedom of choice, from a consumer standpoint, is a double-edged sword when your pool of choices is a veritable ocean. Anyone in the graphic arts industry knows what it means to have an unlimited array of manufacturers. It's the old deer-in-the-headlights syndrome—there are far too many choices and simply not enough time in the day to do sufficient homework that would yield an educated choice. At the end of the day during Graph Expo, printers riding the shuttle from the exhibition hall back to the hotel frequently wonder aloud, "You know, I looked at so many systems today—and I still

Printers and prepress operations looking to step up to outputting imposed, eight-up film have a number of drum imagesetters from which to choose. Key features of the leading systems are highlighted here to help potential buyers start making some comparisons. Agfa SelectSet Avantra 44The SelectSet Avantra 44 product family includes three internal-drum models—Avantra 44XT (performance), Avantra 44S (quality) and Avantra 44E (lower cost). The Avantra 44XT has a 30,000 rpm spin motor, enabling it to output 1,113 square inches per minute or 21 flats per hour at 1,200 dpi. It also features a high-performance media handling system. The Avantra 44S boosts the machine's top output

BY MARK SMITH In a surprisingly short span of time, computer-to-plate production has evolved from being the ideal—but still impractical—workflow, to the domain of risk-taking digital pioneers and, finally, to a mainstream process. Since it's human nature to get caught up in all things new, it's understandable that the substantial role film still plays in the industry often gets overshadowed. In fact, by most measures, film is still the dominant workflow. Momentum alone would be enough to keep film around for years to come, but costs and other issues are limiting computer-to-plate adoption rates in certain segments of the industry. Even in CTP's sweet

BY SCOTT POLK What do The Little Engine That Could, Allen Iverson and Vern Troyer (Mini-Me) all have in common? They're proof of the old saying that good things come in small packages. You can add another item to that list from the printing world, specifically small-format sheetfed offset presses. For small- and mid-size commercial printers, as well as quick and franchise printers, small-format presses are ideal since they provide a quality product with fast turnaround time, while meeting the requirements of a tight budget. Last year, A.B.Dick introduced one of these models, the 9995A-ICS, a line extension of its highly successful two-color 9995

CAMBRIDGE, MA—Pageflex Inc. and Xerox Corp. have entered into an agreement that gives Xerox the right to resell Pageflex's Mpower and Persona variable-data software on a non-exclusive, worldwide basis. Pageflex software also will be incorporated into a soon-to-be-announced solution from Xerox for the personalized and customized printing market. (www.pageflexinc.com and www.xerox.com) FAYETTEVILLE, AR—University of Arkansas Printing Services has added a new digital Xerox 6180 Book Factory system to its facility. Consisting of a digital printer and several binding units, the system was chosen by Rich Bundsgaard, director of printing services, after he researched a variety of alternatives. The university is

BY ERIK CAGLE The evolution of book publishing has some parallels with that of the computer. Smaller and quicker are the operative words in this comparison. Before the PC became a household fixture, computers were hulking boxes with reel-to-reel tapes and other round objects that made those cute little concentric circles. And they weren't the sharpest knives in the drawer, boasting the processing speed of a can opener. Book publishing was also big and scarry—1,000-page megatomes were loaded onto presses to churn out millions of copies. "War and Peace" was followed by hundreds of thousands of 500-page copies of biology books. Obviously, they

BY MARK SMITH Bindery automation has long since ceased to be an oxymoron, but the back end of the process hasn't seen quite the same digital revolution as in the prepress and press arenas. Touch pads and automated setup features have become commonplace, but operators are not sitting around looking at computer screens all day, as one trade binder owner put it. The fundamental nature of the work hasn't changed all that dramatically. Faster makereadies and more efficient material handling have been the primary focus of efforts to automate binding and finishing operations. Cutting and folding probably are the two areas that have

Digital Ins and Outs Tech Alert is the yearly conference at which the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (GATF) presents the results of its latest original research studies. At the recently held 2001 conference, studies presented in the digital arena included "Digital Imaging Press Print Attributes," "Digital Photography" and "Remote Proofing—State-of-the-Art Report." According to Dr. Richard M. Adams, study presenter and a GATF research scientist, the digital imaging press study wasn't intended to be a "shoot out," whereby output from competing devices is compared to determine the "winner." Still, manufacturers of the presses in question were asked to print press sheets from a digital

JACKSONVILLE, FL—Jeff Sweetman fully understands if you think heatset and coldset web offset printing have no business being under the same roof. The CEO of Los Alamitos, CA-based Trend Offset Printing won't argue with anyone who feels that way. Yes, it is true that the privately held company crossed into the Top 50 of printers nationwide as ranked by Printing Impressions in terms of revenues with a lusty $150-plus million in sales. It's also true that Trend Offset expanded into a Dallas suburb fairly recently and, yes, it's expanding again with a new facility in Jacksonville, FL. Sure, Trend Offset was able to

When pondering what sets one commercial printer apart from the competition, the answer has to be unique capabilities. The C.J. Krehbiel Co. routinely delivers products and services that other printers cannot provide. For 128 years, the Cincinnati-based company has been partnering with clients to realize their printing goals. From estimate to delivered products, prepress to bindery, C.J. Kreh-biel provides total in-house capabilities, saving customers time and money while producing high-quality products. Complete in-house capabilities allow the 250-employee company to offer flexibility in printing clients' products. Their ability to print in a variety of web formats and signatures, and to produce a mix of