Written by Scott Bury on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:34 The annual graphic arts trade show in North America, Graph Expo will run from October 15 to 18 in Chicago's McCormick Place, including Converting Expo.

Show managers don't want to make any predictions about the number of people they expect to come, but they will confirm that they expect the numbers will be greater than those of 2004, when 38,000 people in total — visitors, vendors, exhibitors, staff, students and others — came through the gates.

Graph Expo 2006 will have more than 600 exhibiting companies filling 440,000 square feet of exhibit space. There will be more than 80 first-time exhibitors.

That's a lot of ground to cover in four days, especially considering there's more to see than booths and displays. Vendors are holding any number of press conferences, VIP demos, socials and other events. Plus, the Graph Expo show itself is holding a program of free seminars and workshops at the same time.

To help you make the most of your time at the show, Graphic Arts magazine has put together a list of some of the highlights that should be interesting to graphic arts professionals from Canada. This isn't intended to be a comprehensive guide; but from the rumours we've heard in advance of the big show itself, these are the exhibits, seminars and events we'd like most to see.

Education
Workshops and seminars organized by the Graphic Arts Show Co. (GASC), the organizers of Graph Expo and Converting Expo, will be held in two special areas right on the show floor: the Mailing & Fulfillment Center, and the Wide Format Pavilion.
The Mailing & Fulfillment Center

Theatre will have sessions on:
• trends in mail processing
• cameras and matching systems
• selling mailing services
• how to make mail applications more secure
• profiting from discounted bulk mail postage rates
• how to make your business more profitable
• how to save on postage during rate increases
• generating profits from mailing centers
• mailing services: natural addition for printers
• building a solid address quality foundation
• taking personalized mailing to the next level
• protecting critical data
• how to decrease costs and increase accountability
• a common sense approach to building an adf

The Wide Format Pavilion presents 45-minute sessions on various creative uses of digital inkjet printing:
• digital die cutting on short-run graphics
• optimizing your RIP's efficiency
• digital tools for quality printing
• solvent printing and packaging proofing using UV inkjet
• finding the right RIP
• printing on 3-D surfaces
• collaborative work environment
• new markets and specialty applications for digital printing
• digital textiles
• color management for large format printing
• superwide printing
• wide format inkjet printing for the offset commercial printer

Of course, the main event of any show is the exhibit floor. Here are some things that a graphic arts professional shouldn't miss.

Prepress and workflow management

Agfa
Booth 4218

Agfa Graphics is going beyond hyping their own new products, and is presenting sessions on business development for Graph Expo visitors. Agfa's employees and customer experts will even offer business advice on subjects from colour management to networking and automated workflow.

Don't worry: Agfa is still showing its latest products and software, such as the Avalon family of thermal, violet chemistry-free thermal and chemistry-free violet platesetters, ApogeeX software for collaboration, and Delano workflow software.

"While we want visitors to see the latest advances in technology such as true enterprise-wide automation, we also want to help them move their businesses in the right direction. That requires expertise that goes way beyond which platesetter or proofer to choose," said Susan Wittner, Agfa's director of marketing, North America."

Artwork Systems/Enfocus Software
Booth 5229

Artwork Systems and Enfocus Software have united their companies and their Graph Expo displays. Artwork Systems will show their Concentric Screening halftone screening solutions; Nexus label and packaging workflow solution; Odystar 2.5 prepress workflow management software; Neo PDF editor; and WebWay 4.0 for collaboration over the Internet.
Enfocus will show PitStop Professional 7 PDF preflighter, auto-correction and editing tool; PitStop Automate output automation software.

Dalim Software
Booth 4811

Dalim will showcase its full line of production and workflow software for professional "premedia," printing, packaging and publishing operations. It's planning to show several new features, such as XML-driven workflows and JDF-driven preflighting.

DALiM TWiST software, which runs on Mac OS X, automates workflow and is fully compliant with JDF, all nine Ghent Workgroup PDF output and Pass4Press v6 specifications. DiALOGUE is a SWOP-certified soft-proofing system that enables remote and collaborative viewing of high-resolution files through the Internet. A new feature at the show is JDF-enabled soft-proofing that integrates with several third-party systems. Dalim MiSTRAL is a web-based production management program; new features include an interface for production assembly as well as tracking, correcting, approving and printing. Finally, PRiNTEMPO is a print production system that allows printers and clients to monitor production status through the Web, and to trigger actions like making plates or proofs. New features include print deadline management tools, greater integration with third-party digital asset management (DAM) and MIS systems.

ECRM

At Graph Expo, ECRM will emphasize platesetter solutions for the commercial printer, such as its MAKO 2, 4X and 8 models.

The Mako 8 can produce plates for two, four, six or eight-page signatures. With a maximum output speed of 19 eight-page plates per hour, the Mako 8 can accommodate any plate size between 824 mm x 1143 mm and 254 mm x 254 mm. Its integrated registration system uses the same registration notches as the press for better imaging-to-plate-to-press registration and faster make-ready during press start up; the integrated registration system can be adjusted in seconds to accommodate a range of presses. In addition, its straight-through plate path enhances productivity and quality while easing operation.

Electronics for Imaging
Booth 4212

EFI will show its full range of RIPs and printer controllers. Its newest integrated Fiery controller for the Sharp 36PPM AR-C360P digital colour printer. The controller is designed for high-volume output where colour fidelity is critical.

GMG
Booth 4663

Developer of colour management and proofing systems, GMG will show its software and proofing technology, including GMG ColorServer for automatic colour conversions; GMG DotProof for calibrating digital halftone contract proofs; and GMG FlexoProof for proofing packaging and label files for flexographic, offset and gravure package printing.
Also on display will be the GMG ProofControl system for monitoring digital proofing quality, and InkOptimizer to save ink in printing.

Heidelberg Prinect
Booth 1200

Heidelberg's Prinect Printready System is a JDF-based workflow system that manages print jobs from prepress to print finishing. It includes the Prinect MetaDimension RIP, which reduces file size for faster transfers and easier management. Printect Printready also monitors the whole process from one central location.

Kodak
Booth 400

Kodak will show version 4 of its Prinergy workflow system. New features include a digital print manager; a JDF Production Hub for centralized and automated production management; the Prinergy Dashboard customizable interface for monitoring job status; improvements to JDF and PDF workflows; rules-based automation and  data management controls.
Kodak will also show a new version of its Profile Wizard 4.0 colour management software, with an improved colour engine for ICC profile-based colour management of all colour devices in a workflow.

Quite Software
Booth 5254

Quite Imposing and Quite Imposing Plus are plugs for Adobe Acrobat that do imposition, including step and repeat and booklet making. The software can also add page numbers; the Imposition by Example function is quite interesting.

Variable data printing

Jet Letter
Booth 2427

Calling itself an "industrial strength variable data printing software product," Jet Letter is designed for direct mail marketing firms. It manages the substitution of variable data, such as names, addresses and other information, into documents to be mailed.

Uses include "ask letters" for charities, statements for financial institutions, personalized booklets for insurance customers, collection letters, post cards, direct mail and invoices.
Jet Letter merges fields into individual documents at over 100,000 pages per minute. It can use up to six printers at one time, and supports PCL5e, HPGL2, PCL5c and PDF languages for a wide range of printers and digital presses.

PageFlex
Booth 4846

The Persona Cross Media Suite is a variable data printing system; it enables the user to personalize, with names, addresses, text and images, page layouts for direct mail and other applications.

Virtual Systems
Booth 2483

Virtual Systems will show two product lines: Mail-Shop business management mail information system for direct mail companies, and 3PF Manager fulfillment management software.
Mail-Shop includes contact management, estimate and order management, production management, inventory, equipment scheduling, capacity planning, job-cost analysis and invoicing functions and integrates with leading accounting software.
3PF Manager provides mail fulfillment through the Web.

XMPie
Booth 4661

XMPie produces software for variable-data publishing, providing control to authors, designers and document owners. Its uDirect is a desktop prouct that provides easy entry to variable data printing (VDP), while the PersonalEffect system is a server-based solution that integrates VDP, cross-media publishing and web-to-print solutions. Take a look.
Commercial offset presses

Akiyama
Booth 2637

The Bestech series of offset presses are designed for short runs and quality. Akiyama will show the Bestech 40, among other products. It features a piston-type pickup sucker and a unique impression cylinder and blanket cylinder configuration, which together allow the press to print on a very broad range of stocks. It also has a remote-controlled automatic ink roller wash-up system.

Akiyama is also stressing its Akiyama Inker System, with large diameter form rollers and a temperature-controlled inker; take a look at it.

Heidelberg
Booth 1200

Graph Expo 2006 will be the first North American showing of Heidelberg's Speedmaster SM 52 four-colour press with their new Anicolor inking system. The Anicolor system reduces waste because it gets the press "up to colour" in very few sheets. This makes shorter runs profitable for offset printers.

The "flagship" of the Heidelberg armada at Graph Expo will be an eight-colour Speedmaster XL 105 offset press with coater and extended delivery. The Heidelberg team plans to demonstrate fast makereadies and production speed of 18,000 impressions per hour.

The Speedmaster CD 74 six-colour press with coater and extended delivery will be worth a look, running at up to 18,000 impressions per hour with the new Peak Performance Package. Also on the booth will be the Speedmaster CD 102 in a six-colour configuration with coater and extended delivery.

The company is also showing the smaller Printmaster PM 52 two-colour perfecting press, with full remote register control.

Heidelberg will also show its Prinect Integration System, which centralizes printing and pressroom data and uses JDF to manage print jobs through prepress, printing and finishing. The Prinect Pressroom Manager automates workflow.

Komori
Booth 629

Komori will show the Lithrone 40, which features complete computer control from plate preparation to makeready to delivery. It features a new ink roller temperature control system, an automatic plate changing and washup system, and an automatic ink film adjustment system. Top speed is 16,000 sheets per hour.

The environmental considerations are interesting, such as a non-alcohol dampener, oilless bearings and a safer spray powder.

MAN Roland
Booth 3237

MAN Roland will show its Roland 700 41-inch press, which has a double-size impression cylinder and touchless sheet transfer for better quality, as well as the CIP3-compliant PECOM control console. MAN Roland will show its abilities in automatic settings, ink and roller blanket washup and remote control inking. PPL is standard and APL (automatic plate loading) is available. Also offered are automatic washup, sheet size and thickness changes, and straight-to-perfecting mode changeover in less than a minute. Speeds: 15,000 sph in straight production or 12,000 sph in perfecting mode.

Mitsubishi Lithographic Presses
Booth 2612

The 24x40-inch Diamond 3000LX sheetfed press and ist cellulose, carton stock and plastic printing abilities will occupy centre stage in Mitsubishi's exhibit.

The demonstration press will have six printing units, an inline tower coater, extended delivery and a new SimulChanger automatic plate changer. Other features include options for printing on plastic and synthetic paper, and a UV curing system. Top speed is 16,000 sheets per hour.

Sakurai
Booth 2417

The Oliver 258EII 22-inch, two-colour press has a top speed of 12,000 impressions per hour. Sakurai will also show the Sakurai 58 series, which can print a two-up 11x17 sheet as either a straight two-colour or a perfector. The presses also have an automatic plate changer, touch-panel display, continuous dampening system, remote control register adjustment, automatic roller wash-up and blanket cleaning.

Pressroom supplies

Flint Group
Both 3217

The Flint Group is the result of the merger of Flint Ink Corp. and XSYS Print Solution in 2005, and Graph Expo is a good opportunity for the industry to find out what that will mean.
As a result of the merger, Flint Group now offers K+E premium sheetfed inks, in addition to its ArrowStar products.

Sun Chemical
Booth 2424

Sun Chemical is showing its XX-TREME sheetfed offset inks. Formulated for stochastic FM screening applications, where ink transfer, colour strength and dot fidelity are crucial, these new inks deliver great brilliance and colour intensity.

Digital printing

Canon
Booth 1253

The new imagePRESS C7000VP and imagePRESS C1 digital colour presses will highlight Canon USA's booth.

Built for high-end digital printers, the two new models were previewed at Canon's EXPO 2005 in New York last year as "imagePRESS X and Y."

The C7000VP model runs at 70 pages per minute for monochrome A4 pages, ledger, 12-inch, 13-inch and 19.2-inch sheets, with a 1200 dpi resolution using a new fine-grained toner. In addition, an advanced fusing technology allows for "gloss optimization," matching the gloss of the toner to that of the paper.

The C1 model is designed for proofing, short-run and production colour printing; it has the same toner advances as the C7000VP, but runs at up to 14 ppm in colour and 60 ppm in black only, at 1200 dpi.

Epson
Booth 4815

Take a look at Epson's new UltraChrome K3 ink for inkjet printing. The new eight-colour set of inks include three levels of black.

HP Indigo
Booths 248 and 646

HP Indigo is showing its model 5000 digital press, designed specifically for mid- to large-size commercial printers. It's rated speed at 4,000 four-color A4 images per hour (two-up); 8,000 two-color images per hour (two-up); or 16,000 full monochrome A4 images per hour (two-up). Other features include electronic collation, automatic duplexing, seamless job changes and color personalization.

A new digital front end, HP Press Production Manager, provides a unified user interface for print job and workflow management and an on-board RIP.

KBA North America
Booth 2029

Koenig & Bauer's innovative Genius 52 UV 20-inch press is sure to be another draw at Graph Expo. Developed for the short-run colour market, it has a single impression cylinder for all colours. It also features fast automatic makeready with less than 10 sheets of waste. Take a close look at this one.

Also on the booth with be KBA's sheetfed offset presses like the Rapida.

Presstek
Booth 3822

Graph Expo 2006 will be the North American debut for the new 52DI direct imaging press from Presstek. The new press drew a lot of attention at its worldwide presentation at Ipex last spring.

The new press has a 52 cm landscape format and a top running speed of 10,000 sheets per hour, offering greater flexibility for printers competing in the 250 to 1000 copy run length. Presstek says that total job changeover, from the last sheet of one job to producing the first sellable sheet of the next job, is just over 10 minutes.

Presstek will also show its DirectPress 5634DI, a portrait format direct imaging press with a top speed of 7,000 sheets per hour.

Xeikon (Punch Graphix)
Booth 1245

The new Xeikon 6000 web-fed digital colour printer has a top speed of 160 A4 pages per minute and a duty cycle of almost 4,000,000 pages per month, making it the fastest digital colour press available.

The new press has a digital front end, the X-800, for workflow management. New Form Adapted (FA) toner enhances print quality. The press handles stocks from 40 to 350 gsm, as well as paperboard and other substrates.

Xerox
Booth 1217

The new DocuColor 5000 digital press makes a stroll past Xerox' booth more than worthwhile. This new digital colour press prints at up to 50 ppm in 2400 dpi on stocks up to 80 pound. The press integrates into the Xerox FreeFlow digital workflow series, with up to three colour servers. It has several options for feeding, finishing and scanning. A high-capacity stacker and a common stacker-stapler can be used individually or together.

Inkjet Printing

Gandinnovations
Booth 4878

The Jeti 5024 Solvent roll-to-roll super-wide format, flat-bed printer is always worth a look. At 5.1 metres, or 16.5 feet across, it has a resolution of 600 dpi (1200 apparent dpi) with six colours from 24 print heads. It can also print at 300 dpi in four colours for higher speed output, at 1650 square feet per hour.

Inca Digital Printers

Inca Digital Printers, manufacturers of the Eagle and the Spyder wide-format digital inkjet printers, will show its new Spyder 320+ flatbed UV-light printers at the booth of Sericol, its U.S. and Canadian distributor. This flatbed printer comes in two versions: a six-colour with light magenta and light cyan in addition to CMYK, and the Spyder 320+white, which can lay down a layer of white ink either before or after the other colours are laid down. The six-colour model has a top print speed of 80 square metres per hour. The white model was the company's top draw at its booth at Ipex in Birmingham, UK in April.

Kodak
Booth 400

The new VERSAMARK DS5340 digital inkjet printing system will be running at speeds up to 1000 feet per minute. Designed for label printing for mailing houses and other users, the Versamark DS5340 has a print width of 1.07 inches and resolution of 240 dpi. It has an Ethernet port for universal connectivity and high data throughput. A usage tracking system tracks the cost of ink used in each job for charging back to the client.

Kodak will also show four-over-four colour label printing driven by its new Versamark CS600  system controller. Also, the Versamark VT3000 printing system will show Kodak's rugged Continuous Inkjet Technology for high-volume output at low cost per piece.

Print finishing

Heidelberg
Booth 1200

The new Stitchmaster ST 450 saddle stitcher will be a main feature of Heidelberg's print finishing display. With shaftless technology and a number of innovations in feeding, gathering, stitching and trimming, it can run at up to 14,000 cycles per hour.

MBO America
Booth 1229

The first "marbleless" folding machine should be a major draw at MBO's booth. This new feature has a single button setting system, as well as the Navigator electronic set-up system. It also has a CIP4-compliant electronic interface for JDF control.

Standard Finishing Systems
Booth 2446

Graph Expo will the launchpad for the new Standard Horizon SPF/FC-200A automated bookletmaker, which complements the Standard Horizon SpeedVAC 100 Collating System. The new booklet maker features automatic set-up through a colour touch-screen control console.
The software sets gap, fold, end stops and plates. Top speed is 4,500 booklets per hour.
This is a selection of some equipment, software and solutions. They're worth a look. See you at the show.•

Written by Staff Writer on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:35 On September 12 at its headquarters in Hudson, New Hampshire, the originator of the direct imaging press concept, held a "pre-Graph Expo event" to launch its most versatile, productive product ever: the 52DI.

The event drew media and experts from across North America, including Dr. Joe Webb of PrintForecast.com and Dr. Frank Romano, founder of TypeWorld and professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Presstek today employs over 1000 in three manufacturing facilities and sales offices in the U.S., Canada and Europe. It has approximately 18,000 customers in North America and another 2,000 in Europe.

In addition to direct imaging presses, Presstek manufactures plates for both on-press imaging and computer-to-plate output. In fact, half of the company's business is in CTP and DI consumables—plates and chemistry.

Presstek now also owns venerable small-press and duplicator manufacturer AB Dick, and sells, services and supports its full line of prepress, printing and finishing products as well as supplies.

As 50 percent of Presstek's sales are of consumable products for DI and traditional offset printing, 35 percent are in equipment, including the AB Dick lines of printing and finishing equipment; the remainder of Presstek's sales are in service.

The New Press
Presstek's new 52DI is already drawing rave reviews. "Because of the increased demand for four-colour printing and our improved ability to produce it thanks to the DI, I expect to see our revenues grow by at least 20 percent over the next couple of years," said Brent Lawrence, owner of Kwik Kopy Print and Design in Pickering, ON.

"DI presses are well—suited for short-run, fast turnaround printing," said John Zarwin, an analyst for American Printer magazine. "It's very competitive in the 250 to 5000 copy range."
InfoTrends, the U.S. consulting and analyst firm for the digital imaging industry, conducted an independent study into firms that already use Presstek DI presses. "Makeready on a DI press takes half the time of a conventional offset press," it found; "90 percent of (users) said DI printing allowed them to increase their business through new customer acquisition," and "96 percent increased business by growing their share of customers' total print business."

The new press is a major step forward for the manufacturer. First unveiled at Ipex in the U.K. last spring, it's a 52-centimetre (20.47 inches) landscape-format press. This makes it much more versatile for the printer than a 19-inch, "portrait-format" model.

Like all DI presses, the new model simultaneously images all four plates directly on the press, on the cylinder. This ensures precise register as well as optimal dot quality. Because the imaging and printing is waterless, there's no problem with ensuring ink-water balance and a lighter impact on the environment. It also delivers better colour saturation with less dot gain.
The 52DI is also Presstek's most productive press to date. Makeready, including imaging plates on the press and getting "up to colour" takes just over 10 minutes in independent tests. •

Written by Harold Taylor on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:13 In 1947, a book called The Technique of Getting Things Done, by Donald Laird, appeared in the bookstores. The book gave example after example of how successful people were able to get more done by taking advantage of the early morning hours. A famous orator and judge would rise at 4:30 a.m. Some would get up even earlier. A quote on one of the pages stated, "I have always believed in long hours. It is the only way to get things done."

Over 50 years later, time management books are still advocating an early start. Some even remind us of the number of months or years we could save over a lifetime by extending our days by one hour. Successful people are still heeding their advice. An article in the February 3, 1999 issue of the Financial Post quoted David Lunsford of Dell Computer Corp. as saying, "I often hear people proudly claim they work 100-hour weeks."

In fairness to time management experts, most of them are not really advocating longer hours, simply a utilization of the most productive early-morning hours. They are assuming that people are getting enough sleep. The problem is that they are not. According to an article in the St. Petersburg Times [April 11, 1999,] "During the past three decades, Americans have put in longer hours at the office and packed even more into their pre-bedtime hours: working at home on laptop computers, surfing the internet and e-mailing friends, flipping among ever-expanding choices on television." The article claims that as a result, nearly two-thirds of adults get less than eight hours of sleep a night. Nearly one third gets by on 6 1⁄2 hours or less. And, according to the National Sleep Foundation, Washington, DC, this is a dramatic decrease from thirty years ago.

Has this decrease in sleep increased our personal productivity? Not according to an article in the May 7, 1999 issue of The Toronto Star [Feeling Sleep Starved? Welcome to the Club, by Leslie Papp.]

"Lack of sleep makes people moody, impatient, unable to concentrate, less attentive. Over time it can take a toll on their physical and mental health and significantly affect performance."

Working longer hours and cramming more activities into the day can certainly cause stress. And US Today, May 11, 1999, indicated that work stress, family stress and unspecified stress were the greatest reasons for sleeplessness. USA Snapshots also reported that three in four adults say they had problems sleeping at night.

There appears to be a struggle between the need to get more done and the desire to lead a balanced life. Unfortunately the extra time spent on work, family and personal pursuits is extracted from sleep time. This in turn reduces the quality of the time being spent as well as endangers our health.

We must realize that adequate sleep is not only a priority, but a necessity. If you need eight hours of sleep, make sure you get it, even if it means having a late afternoon siesta. Don't cruise the internet or watch an action movie on television and then expect to fall asleep immediately. Read a boring book [I have authored several,] relax, talk, and stay away from coffee for the hour or more before you go to bed. Try to maintain a similar routine each night, including the time you turn in. Don't work too hard trying to fall asleep. Simply relax and let your mind go blank.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, one third of adults don't keep regular sleep schedules, 21 percent have a caffeinated drink at night, and 90 percent report watching TV or listening to the radio in the hour before bedtime. Sleeplessness could be the result of medical problems; but chances are, it's self-imposed.

Companies are beginning to recognize the value of sufficient sleep. An article in The Toronto Star [December 13, 1997] told about a computer consulting firm based in Berkley, California, that views regular siestas as a fundamental part of doing business. Naps enhance morale, performance, production and safety."

You could argue that people should get their sleep on their own time. I would agree. But by the same token, don't try to get more done at the expense of adequate sleep. Sleeping one hour less each night might lengthen your day; but it could also shorten your life.•

Harold Taylor Time Consultants Inc.
1-800-361-8463
harold@taylorintime.com

Written by Peter Dulis on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:20 Consac 2006, also subtitled "Imagemakers," trade show and conference was held Sept.15-16/06 in Toronto and was geared to address digital imaging, sign making and signage needs for the sign industry. I was interested to see where the trends in grand-format imaging are going. According to industry stats, the grand-format printing market has shown sizeable gains over the past two years. And, with increased end-user demands, grand-format systems are becoming even more affordable for even sign and graphics shops that once farmed out their oversized jobs. Here are some of the product high lights that impressed me at the show.

Mutoh (through it's dealers) was showing the new ValueJet 1204 48" eco-solvent printer at Consac. This ValueJet printer was cranking out great prints that are well suited for outdoors durable printing applications.

The ValueJet has 1440 total nozzles and variable dot technology to produce outdoor durable, photo quality images at resolutions of 360, 540, 720 and 1440 dpi. The ValueJet produced brilliant images using Mutoh's Eco-Ultra inks, available in 220 ml cartridges. The ValueJet incorporates a new and exclusive Mutoh printing technique (interweaving technology) that reduces banding typically associated with bi-directional inkjet printing. The ValueJet printer includes a starter set of Eco-Ultra ink, a Mutoh version of Amiable SE software, and a 1-year on-site warranty. The printer sells for around $15,499 Cdn.

Canon (though it's dealers) was showing the W8400 44" aqueous printer. Canon uses pigmented based inks to deliver great looking prints at 2400 x 1200 dpi resolution. The 24"x36" posters were coming out in 3.6 min at 1200x1200 dpi quality. The W8400 offers Canon's proprietary print head technology that enables high speed printing at 2400 x 1200 dpi with a precise four Pico liter ink droplets for high image resolution, clarity and detail. Canon's unique print head enables the W8400 to achieve print speeds up to 307 square feet per hour. The W8400 includes a wide array of software needed to easily create, process and print high quality output. Since this printer is aqueous based, there are no harmful vapors and can easily be used in any office environment. Canon press release also shows a 60" 12 color pigmented ink printer, which will be available at the end of this month. The W8400 (with a True Adobe postscript RIP and Ethernet card) sells on the street for around $7400 Cdn.

Gerber (though it's dealer) was showing the GERBER SOLARA UV2 large format, hybrid, ultraviolet (UV) inkjet printer. The SOLARA UV2 prints either roll-to-roll or as a flatbed and can accommodate a variety of materials up to 60" wide including rigid materials up to 1/2" thick (13 mm). With only a small conversion process of the included flatbed table, the SOLARA UV2 can be easily switched to accept different material types, enabling shops to run a full material portfolio. Evolving from our original SOLARA UV inkjet printer design, the SOLARA UV2 is ideal for shops wanting to print durable outdoor/indoor signs, point-of-purchase displays, banners, and backlit signage that is instantly dry and ready to cut and apply. The SOLARA UV2 sells for around $85,000.

Gandinnovations can never be missed at a show because of the size of its printers.  Gandinnovations had the Jeti 3318 in operation on the floor, which is able to print on up to 10.9 feet wide media. Based on the 12-head Jeti 3300, the new 4- or 6-color Jeti 3318 includes 18 Spectra print heads, features resolutions up to 600 dpi, and speeds up to 732 sq ft/hr. Other new technology includes a software upgrade that compensates for any individual nozzle misfiring. Also included is an automatic head-wiping feature, designed to eliminate the need to stop production and manually clean the heads, and a mesh blanket that works with the heating system to ensure media will not stick to the front of the printer. The Jeti 3318 is well suited to print on Reinforced Vinyl, Pressure Sensitive Vinyl, Canvas, Fabrics, Mesh and Paper. Price: $255,000 to $316,000.

For a small show (compared to SGIA) there was quite a selection of printers to choose from - Mutoh, Canon, Gerber, Gandinnovations, Roland, HP and Mimaki. Feel free to contact me with any further questions. 
 
Peter Dulis
Wide Format Printing Specialist
647-895-3315
pdulis@iprimus.ca

Written by Angus Pady on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:23 It is amazing how technology can change responsibilities. If you think back five to ten years ago it was the job of the scanner operator to ensure your CMYK file was ready for print. But today the responsibility is in the hands of the content creators, the designers and the photographers.

Unfortunately, the problem with this shift in responsibility is that the content creators have not been trained in things like GCR, ink limits, tone value increase or how a Web press differs from a Sheetfed press.

These are areas that have been reserved for the prepress and printers that have years of experience in these areas. But if you are willing to learn how the process works you gain better control of your images and in the end have happier clients.

Creating a CMYK file is an easy step if you own Photoshop and know how to use a computer. But creating a CMYK separation that is appropriate for a specific printing condition requires more thought and an understanding of a few of the variables involved.

What are the Main variables in Print?
Paper Type: Coated or Uncoated.
Paper Colour. A yellow stock can have a huge impact on the colour reproduction. Think of paper colour as the fifth colour in printing.
Press and Press Age. Older presses tend to have a higher dot gain.
Press Type: Sheetfed vs. Web.

Guidelines to Controlling Colour on Press:
1) Ask questions. Talk to the printer or print broker. Try to learn as much as you can about the variables. Paper type, paper colour, press age, stochastic or traditional halftones, proofing options, dot gain amounts (tone value increase TVI), total ink limit recommendations (TIL) and what have they done in the past that worked well.

2) Monitor calibration:  If you plan to use your monitor to make colour adjustments you need to calibrate and profile it using a colorimeter and calibration software.

3) Soft-Proofing: Learn how to use Photoshop's Soft-Proofing options to see a more accurate representation of how your job will print when converted to CMYK and after conversion. (See figure below)

4) Use Photoshop's "Convert to Profile" option when converting from RGB to CMYK. Select the profile that best represents your target. If you are unsure the safest option is to use: USWebCoatedSWOP.icc.

5) Using Photoshop's colour adjustment tools such as levels and curves to optimize the image for maximum impact. Ensure that your blacks are dark and the whites are white, sounds simplistic but it is very important to maximize the dynamic range of your image to ensure maximum scalability.

One of the most important elements in a good colour separation is the ability to print with predictability and consistency throughout the print-run. When the grey balance of an image is made up of mostly Cyan/Magenta/Yellow, the colour on press will shift with the slightest variations in density and registration. Therefore it is very important to have a strong black separation that will stabilize the colour balance. Unfortunately, digital proofs and soft proofs (your monitor) may look fine, but the results on press will not be satisfactory.

Gray component replacement (GCR) and Undercolour removal (UCR) determine how much cyan, magenta and yellow are replaced with black when an image is converted to the CMYK colour space.

UCR reduces the amount of cyan, magenta, and yellow primarily in the shadow areas of an image and increases the black. UCR will affect only the neutral areas of the image—it has no affect on the colour areas of a printed reproduction. It helps alleviate potential printing problems associated with heavy ink coverage such as set off or blocking.

By contrast, GCR is more aggressive—it affects the neutral and colour areas throughout the entire image. GCR replaces the gray component of the trichromatic colours with black during colour separation. (A trichromatic colour is any colour that is made up of all three primary printing colours: cyan, magenta and yellow.) The gray component of the trichromatic colours is the level to which all three primaries are equally present. Applying GCR replaces the tertiary colour with black.

GCR improves colour consistency on press. GCR separations will produce more consistent, repeatable colour throughout a press run. The disadvantage of this, however, is the reduction in the ability to make colour changes on press.

Lastly, if you want to be sure your job is printed correctly go to the press approval. Work with the pressman or woman to achieve your desired result. Keep in mind that only slight adjustments can be made on press. This is not the time to make up for you not doing your homework.

Resources:
http://www.printtools.org/
http://www.idealliance.org/
http://www.swop.org/    
http://www.gracol.com/
http://www.colourmanagement.com•

Angus Pady is the president of Digital Solutions. Complete colour control from desktop to press.
T: 905-764-6003
Angus@ColourManagement.ca
www.colourmanagement.ca

Written by Andrea Mahoney on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:19 When designing in InDesign or Quark, you often need to layout and format tables. Both programs have basic table tools built in and will take an existing Excel table, place it and make it easy to format. Subsequently changing and updating the data can be a challenge, but there are some tricks.

Tables are easy to create in InDesign. You can import an Excel file or Word table file -  instant table. You can import comma or tab-separated text and convert it to a table. You can insert a table by defining the number of rows and columns and start typing.

Using the Table Menu we can now fix the borders up, add alternating fills, lines and make attractive headings. We can add drop shadows, gradients and high-resolution inline graphics. For large amounts of data, the data will flow from one table to the next with headers on each page. The loaded cursor will keep making formatted, linked tables until it runs out of data.
What happens when the customer sends a new Excel file?

If you originally linked the table to the InDesign document thinking you could update the link, you'll find that all your formatting is lost. The Object Styles in CS2 don't apply to Table settings so it must be redone manually.

Next, you try to copy the cells from the Excel file only to find that all the data is pasted in the first cell of your table. Then there's the scary thought that each cell must be pasted one at a time.  Don't worry, the easiest way to do this is to bring in the new excel file as a table and place it on the pasteboard. Copy the rows, columns or cells in InDesign and paste into the formatted table. This is fine for small tables but can cause problems for those that span several pages.

Scripting to the rescue, there are many javascripts written for InDesign available on the Adobe Studio Exchange - www.studio.adobe.com. I found a javascript at www.pdsassoc.com called Populate Table from Clipboard (PopTabFmClip.js). This script adds a new dimension to your tables. Using the script from the Window->Automate->Scripts palette, you can copy and paste new data into an existing table. You can copy rows, columns or the entire table. This is shareware and it comes with install instructions. There is a version for CS and CS2. I tested the CS2 version and it worked very well.

If you would rather do the link and update workflow, there's a plug-in available from Teacup Software. The TableStyles and CellStyles plug-in allows you to create a style from the Table Options dialog and the Cell Options dialog so that when you bring in your table . . . click, it's formatted!  Cost is $99 on their website www.teacupsoftware.com, and you can try a demo first!

The table tool in Quark 6.5 and 7 is very similar to InDesign and can follow the Place and Paste rule mentioned above when editing data. Quark does not give you the option of bringing in a Word Table (only Excel), but it does have some neat extra features.  Quark treats each cell as a box that can be designated as text, picture or graphic.  Pasting an inline graphic in Quark will result in a low resolution file, however, you can place a linked picture in the table and manipulate it the same as any other picture.

Quarks Linking Tool can also be used in a table when the option is checked to Link Cells. You can flow text any way you like through the cells and when the tool is selected, the arrows will show the links. Quark's text formatting rules apply here so the "next column" command will break to the next cell.

I checked the Quark XTensions website but could not find any that specifically apply to Tables.  Quark does come with a built in Applescript that applies alternating fills to the table, but that's all I found so far.

Give the table tools another try if you had previously abandoned them, and keep your eyes open for scripts, plug-ins and extensions that make the tools in these programs easier to work with.•

Andrea Mahoney
TriBay Enterprise
T: 416.72939687
E: andrea@autoflowforprepress.ca
www.tribay.ca

Written by Arash Ekbatani on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:26 When I started out taking digital photos at night, boy, did I have problems! The issue is that many digital cameras do not perform very well under low-light conditions. To take good night photos, there are some tricks you need to remember - so here are a few of them.

Use Long Exposures
The key to successful night photography lies in a long exposure. We're talking about exposures measured in seconds. When a long exposure is used, more light is allowed into the camera, allowing the details in your night photo to be captured.

The problem with using long exposures is that you may shake the camera, resulting in poor pictures. The way around this is to use a tripod. I prefer to install a tripod with a shutter-release cable to ensure that I don't jolt the camera at all.

Play with the Aperture
In addition to shutter speed (which determines exposure time), you can play around with the aperture size of your digital camera. There are two scenarios here. If you set a long exposure, try to use a small aperture to avoid overexposing any stationary lights in the picture. On the other hand, if you set a short exposure, try using a larger aperture to avoid any motion in your shot.

Try to capture motion
With a long exposure, you have many creative options when it comes to photography. This includes capturing motion. For example, have you ever wondered how those professional photographers shoot pictures of trails of car lights as they zoom down the highway at night? It's all due to long exposures. Try to keep this in mind the next time you're taking a night photo - you don't have to restrict yourself to still image

How to use the flash
As a general rule, I turn the flash off when taking night photos. There are some exceptions though - one specific example I can think of is trying to shoot a subject in the foreground, with motion trails of car lights in the background. In this case, bring along an external flash unit and shine it on your subject manually. Set a long exposure, then have your subject wait until the picture is taken.

When to take night photos
When's the best time to take night photos? I usually like to take them during dusk when colors and details are easier to capture. I'd recommend that you do some research on the evening before the photo shoot. Decide on the location, then come back the next day to take the photo at dusk.

Final thoughts
Hopefully, this article has taught you some tips on taking better night photos. The important concept to remember is that a long exposure is needed for good night photos. This means you need to keep your digital camera really, really still. Once you understand that, the quality of your night photos will definitely improve.

Most digital cameras, even the consumer point-and-shoot models, have a tremendous amount of functionality built into them. By applying a little ingenuity and creativity, you can take shots that will make viewers ask, "So what kind of camera do you have?"

Written by Bob Weller on Sunday, 22 October 2006 13:59 When asked to write an article on selling in the graphic arts industry, my first thought was, what hasn't been said? Every professional journal and magazine has an article on selling; the Harvard Business Review just devoted an entire issue to it; and corporations are spending millions and millions of dollars on multi-session courses for employees at every level of the organization. There's relationship selling, consultancy selling, soft selling. Google 'sales course' and you get 198,000,000 hits.

So can anything new be brought to the equation? Probably not. Prospecting, cold-calling, establishing, relating, discovery, closure -  there's no end of terms, delineation of steps in the selling process and no end of exercises, diagrams, charts, role play, etc. that explain and attempt to teach these skills.

So why doesn't every company have the best sale force? Why isn't each recruit brought up to speed and making substantial contribution shortly after hiring and training?

Maybe, just maybe, it boils down to the simple fact - you've got to have the aptitude to start with.

Skill would be a nice accompaniment to talent, but skills can be taught - aptitude cannot. Prospecting, cold calling - these are talents, not skills, believe it or not. Organization, frameworks, references, etc. are things that can be learned, that will help you reach your goals more quickly. But you have to really want to make that first call.

You've got to be born to sell. Then all of the courses, all of the books, all of the audiotapes - they'll just make you better.

So what's the basic qualification for a successful salesperson?

Easy! It's passion.

You have to be passionate about your product. You have to present the annual report, the car brochure, the DM piece you have worked on and be genuinely proud of the product. You have to see your contribution - the quality of the piece, the effectiveness of the piece, and the solution it provides. It's not just ink on paper - it's a story that should be told. And when told it will interest, and maybe even excite the prospect. People are enthused when you are enthusiastic, when you are telling them a story. It's not just a matter of presenting the product - it's your telling the story behind the product.

You have to be passionate about the people who support you every day. Prepress, press, bindery staff, etc. have to be recognized for their contribution. You have to respect and acknowledge their abilities. You have to be much more than an order taker - you can't just bring a job into your plant and then leave to round up the next one. You have to be a part of the team, be available and show commitment to those who are actually producing the product. It's not too difficult to say 'thank you'; it just isn't done enough.

You have to be passionate about the technology. The most effective salesperson will take the time to have a basic understanding of the programmes (e.g. Quark, Photoshop, etc.) and the processes (e.g. colour management, perfecting, etc.). You should have more than an awareness of new technologies on the horizon, their advantages and disadvantages.
Nothing looks better on a salesperson than the ability to answer questions, advise of potential pitfalls or make suggestions on product improvement, all right at the source. There's nothing wrong with getting back to the client with information needed, but think of the impact of answering on the spot. You are now the expert in the customer's eyes.

You have to be passionate about your industry. The printing industry has done very little to promote itself to its members or to the communities at large. This is your job. Read the trade magazines, attend seminars, visit suppliers, walk the shows - find out what is so exciting about print. It just may surprise you. And it will give you something else to talk about when sitting down with a prospect or existing client.

You have to be passionate about your customers and prospects. You truly have to care about them. You have to become a working member of their team, which means you have to understand their goals and their frustrations. And although it may sound simplistic, you have to like them and they have to like you. It will make life so much easier (not to mention the 3:00am press approvals).

You know, this isn't brain surgery - it's just basic common sense. If you love what you do, respect the people you're doing it with and get delight in interacting with clients and prospects, you are going to be very, very successful. Plain and simple!•

Bob Weller is Sales Manager of Transcontinental Yorkville - O'Keefe, a Director of the Digital Imaging Association, as well as Chair of the Member Services Committee of the Digital Imaging Association.

Written by Jeff Mowat on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:11 Let's be frank -- if you work for a company, then your primary goal is to make money.  Period.  You may have secondary goals to serve the interests of your customers, employees, and be a good corporate citizen, but your number one priority is strictly return on investment.  Profit.

When I speak at conventions and meetings on how to boost profits through customer retention, I often find that business owners and managers don't have their priorities straight.  The result is they lose customer loyalty, face increasing operating costs, scramble to replace staff turnover, and struggle just to keep up to the competition.  They may work hard and think positively, but their impact is marginal.

On the other hand, by simply realigning their priorities, managers can lead their company or department in a way that builds customer and staff loyalty, reduces operating costs, makes more money, and serves as a model corporate citizen.  You won't have to work any harder; just smarter.  To find out how, answer the following questions according to your current practices.  Then read the accompanying suggestion for the best way to optimize your time and effectiveness.

What is normally your first task of the day?
• * a) returning phone calls
• * b) administrative paperwork
• * c) work on strategic projects
• * d) dealing with customers
• * e) responding to employee requests

Your first priority of the day should be c) working on strategic projects designed to prevent problems and increase profits.  Typically however, managers put off strategic work to do other work that has a deadline.  They confuse urgency with importance.

It's always easy to put off work that's strategic in nature because the deadline is usually non-existent or not urgent, and strategic work requires something many of us prefer to avoid -- thinking.  The problem is that if you continually put off projects designed to increase profits or reduce problems, then you end up having more crisises to deal with.  So you get caught in the vicious cycle of crisis management.

"A lot of managers and business-owners secretly love putting out fires because it makes them feel like heroes.  In fact, they live in a fool's paradise; treating symptoms every day rather that curing the disease."

Doing strategic project work for the first 1 to 1.5 hours of your day puts you in proactive mindset.  Even though crisises may spring up during the day, at least you have the comfort of knowing you're doing something to prevent these problems from reoccurring.  In other words, doing strategic project work gives you a sense of control and a feeling that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

When I speak at seminars about the hour and a half of uninterrupted strategic project work, I often hear a chorus of protests from the audience.  People talk about the emergencies that require their attention.  The truth is, unless you work in emergency services, there is almost no problem or 'crisis' or customer request that can't be handled by someone else in the organization, or wait a mere hour and a half for your personal attention.  Realistically, you'll accomplish more in that hour and a half of strategic project work than the other 7 hours of crisis management combined.

Of your major project work, which do you typically work on first?
• * a) the one with the most pressing deadline
• * b) the one that's the easiest to do quickly
• * c) the one that will generate the most profits over the long term

Obviously, you should work on c) the project that will generate the most profits over the long term.  That's what you're in business for.  Ironically, most managers don't do it.  They react to deadlines -- submitting to the tyranny of the urgent.  It's fine to work on projects with urgent deadlines, but at least spend the first hour on the long term profit project, then work on the other projects with the urgent deadlines.

Administrative activities are some of the most important tasks as a manager
• * a) true
• * b) false

Answer: b) false.  Adminis-trivia is the day-to-day organizing of money (cash flow) manpower- (scheduling) and machinery (inventory).  It's the tedious, mindless reporting and paperwork that simply has to be done.  And it's the lowest form of work for any manager.  It should be automated, delegated or outsourced.  If you are doing this work yourself, you are a clerk -- not a leader.

The path of least resistance
The problem is that adminis-trivia is seductive because it's easy to do and it usually has a deadline.  Ditto for dealing with customer requests that should be handled by your employees.  They are paths of least resistance.  Long term strategic project work, on the other hand, requires concentration, vision, and rarely has an immediate deadline. 

A classic example is developing an ongoing staff-training program.  You can put it off indefinitely and still look busy doing paperwork.  The consequences are that the rest of your day is spent in crisises management because your front line staff isn't properly trained.

The bottom line is that to be an effective manager, you don't have to be the most intelligent, the most enthusiastic, or even the hardest worker.  You simply need to learn how to organize your working day so that you're less busy and more productive.
  
Jeff Mowatt is a corporate trainer, business author and internationall speaker.
1-800-JMOWATT

Written by Tony Curcio on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:05 Imagine having the luxury of hiring a colour specialist who would guarantee the highest quality of colour-matching output each and every time, regardless of media.

Imagine hiring an on-site technician who would be available on a moment's notice to fix any technical problems quickly, especially during tight deadlines.

How much would this set you back? $100,000? $150,000? $200,000?

Well, you don't really need to, according to Hewlett-Packard, if you purchase one of its new Z2100 or Z3100 large-format printers, which both boast 24" to 44" output sizes.

"In our extensive research, we started at the top," says Charles Dimov, HP Business Manager, Designjets. "We went to the industry's leading portrait and commercial photographers, best fine artists and design studios and top prepress specialists. We asked one simple question: What exactly do you need? What can we do to help you do your job better?

We discovered that professional photographers wanted longer-lasting, gallery-quality prints and didn't want to invest either the time or money outsourcing to professional labs.

Graphic designers wanted precise colour consistency day-in day-out. They needed to produce the most accurate reproductions in-house to show clients quickly, and maintain full quality control.

Prepress experts required continuous industry standard colour calibration to streamline their total print production operation.

Our new Z2100 and Z3100 Designjet Series large-format printers offer all that and more with breakthrough printing technology."

The technology he was referring to, and what makes these printers truly unique, is the industry's first built-in spectrophotometer with GretagMacbeth/X-rite Eye-One Color Technology. This enables the Designjet Z series to economically deliver consistent, accurate colors across a wide range of media, print to print.

The Z2100 8-ink photo printer, says the company, is the perfect solution for photographers, graphic designers, architects and commercial printers in need of high-quality, large-format prints and proofs. It features HP Vivera pigment inks that include Three-Black inks for amazingly detailed gray/black tones.

The Z3100 12-ink photo printer is ideal for creative professionals in photography, digital fine arts and prepress, and offers extended capabilities for museum-quality color and black-and-white prints on a wide variety of media, including fine art and glossy media. The Z3100 features additional HP Gloss Enhancer and HP Vivera pigment inks, including HP Quad Black inks.

The series boasts an industry-leading color gamut, says Hewlett-Packard, with more than 80% Pantone coverage and full support of main prepress color standards such as Gracol and SWOP. This enables users to produce brilliant, life-like photos and fine art prints with excellent color rendition and fine gradations within the color space.

Even black and white reproduction is stunning. Matte black, photo black and mid- and light gray HP Vivera pigment inks are used for true gray neutrality to produce smooth transitions, higher black optical density and low-image grain on glossy and matte media - without changing ink cartridges! This saves a huge amount of time and aggravation.

The HP Gloss Enhancer with the Z3100, for example, is used on photo media (with the exception of matte-finish papers) to produce images with uniform gloss from highlights to shadows, and eliminates bronzing as an image quality issue. In addition, the HP Quad-Blacks significantly reduce metamerism issues in black and white prints.

HP Vivera pigment inks, says the company, are carefully designed to work with other elements of the new printing system to provide reliable, stable performance and to help prevent ink and printhead nozzles from clogging inside the printer.

If they do clog, or if there are other technical problems, HP's Easy Printer Care/Printer Utility Software helps the user proactively maintain the printer and manage printer status, desktop alerts and automatic updates, saving additional time and effort.

Print Preview eliminates trial and error and reduces wasted ink and media with real-time layout and orientation preview from drivers on both Mac and Windows.

For prepress specialists, the HP Color Center effortlessly guides users through color management and printing. Intuitive instructions enable easy ICC profile creation and installation. Quite literally, you can set for re-calibration, go on a 20-minute coffee break, and everything will be done when you return.

As mentioned earlier, the Designjets exquisite, long-lasting prints employ HP Vivera pigment inks with 8-ink (Z2100) and 12-ink (Z3100) options. The color can be optimized for a variety of photo and fine art papers, more than 30 in total, that provide superior fade resistance and durability that lasts more than 200 years, says HP.

These include photo, fine art, proofing, bond and coated papers, as well as canvas (many new options are now available), vinyl, scrim and banner media options. The HP Designjets can print with or without borders.

The Z2100 was released Sept. 26 and the Z3100 will be available in the first half of 2007.
Prices are very competitive and range from $4,699 (CDN) for the Z2100 24" to $7,799 (CDN) for the 44". Estimates for the Z3100 range from $5,699 (CDN) for the 24" to $8,799 (CDN) for the 44".

For more information, please visit www.hp.ca, or call 1-888-447-4636.•

Written by Jonathan Weaver on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:09 Recently my company secured one of the most lucrative relationships in our history - a seven-figure, multi-year deal. But we had been adding value to the client for over three years, first establishing high trust with them and then fostering that trust until the relationship matured into a long-term partnership. And that's where the real profits bloomed. But the truth is that we're still not done adding value. As long as we are in business together my company will continually seek to meet the maturing expectations of our client as they will seek to meet ours because we know that's the only way to realize the full value of the relationship. You see, as a business relationship grows so does its earning potential. And never is that more true than in the financial and banking industry.

There are no shortcuts to building the most lucrative, long-lasting relationships - especially when it comes to clients who are entrusting their financial futures to you. That's why I call this principle the Law of Incubation, which says that the most profitable relationships mature over time.

Incubation is the process by which you consistently add value to a client for as long as you do business together, knowing that over time this will ensure that the relationship matures to fruition. The salesperson in the financial industry who adds value after the sale clearly demonstrates that the relationship is more important than revenue and the person is more important than profits.

Incubation is not about getting a sales relationship going. Incubation is about keeping a sales relationship flowing. While adding value is critical throughout the selling process, realizing the full value of your clients is about using the long-term transference of value as your main client-retention - and client-referral - tool.

Often the main difference between the mediocre salesperson and the high-trust sales professional is how they treat their clients after a sale. The mediocre salesperson immediately moves on to the next sale. On the other hand, high-trust salespeople know that the most profitable relationships are a result of a time- honored investment, and they therefore take the steps necessary to retain their best clients for as long as possible; and the longer the relationship, the more lucrative it can be.

There are four steps that you should take in order to consistently add value to your clients and maximize the potential of your relationships. As you consider each of these steps, understand that once this system is in place, it is intended to be sustained throughout your sales career.

1. Develop a three-tier ranking of your clients. Which clients are your most valuable? Which produce the highest percentage of sales? Which are more likely to refer you more business? Which clients have the most potential to you and your firm? Once you answer these questions, establish your ranking system, placing the most valuable clients at the top.

2. Commit to a specific investment for each client. For example, if I know that a loyal client for our firm is worth $1,000 dollars each year then I need to answer the question: "How much do we want to regularly invest in that client to ensure high loyalty?" I generally tell students that they should come up with three investment levels. For example, for Level One clients, invest fifteen percent of their annual value back into them each year. For Level Two clients, invest ten percent. And for Level Three clients, invest five percent. Ultimately, you decide the amounts you will invest back into clients to retain them, but there is no magic to it. Like any investment, you want to measure your return.

3. For each tier, decide your annual contact plan. You must plan to have more contact with your best customers than you will with your marginal customers. These points of contact do not include necessary calls or meetings that must be made to discuss or generate more business. They are strictly to create loyalty and build trust.

4. Collaborate regularly. The greatest advantage you have over your competition is knowing your clients better than they do. The best way to do this is to get in the habit of continually interviewing your clients though weekly or monthly "partnership planning sessions" in which you both ascertain existing needs and seek to discover new needs; and also through "annual client reviews" in which you both revisit your progress for the previous year and determine if there are any ways to improve the productivity of the relationship.•

Jonathan Weaver, principal of Peak Performers
email: jonathan@peakperformers.ca
phone: 905 479 7979
web: peakperformers.ca

Written by Fred Pamenter on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:18 Years of experience with a number of organizations has led to the conclusion that two tasks that managers dislike doing most is conducting performance reviews and terminating employees. They frequently perform both poorly.

In the case of performance reviews this negative attitude should not occur since a well developed performance review program should be a positive experience both for the manager and the employee.

In the case of terminations, they are seldom if ever positive experiences. They are frequently fraught with confrontation and bitterness. In many cases they can be emotionally draining events.

Communication, Training and Planning
The stress attached to both tasks can be lessened by improved communications, manager training and preparation (planning).

Recently a client complained to me that one of his junior manager's had delayed for an extended period of time the task of executing a necessary termination. The situation had become so acute that the senior executive had to do the termination.

My initial reaction was that perhaps there should be two terminations; the termination of the employee, and the termination of the junior manager who failed to carry out the task.

However, the more that I got to know the client the more I became convinced that the fault did not lie completely with the junior manager who had procrastinated in firing the employee.
It became apparent that the organization had carried out little if any training of individuals in management skills. The internal communications program was deficient. The performance appraisal program was not well designed nor well implemented.

Communications
Termination generally divide into two types i) redundancy due to changed business parameters or ii) poor performance or conduct.

Terminations should not be surprise events in either of these cases. If the termination was due to lack of profitability, management should have been honest enough to make the employee(s) aware of the changing business situation. If the employee is being terminated for personal performance they should have had sufficient warning through performance reviews and ongoing mentoring to know that they were not performing at the standard that senior management required.

In many cases when an organization has good communications, employees will either improve their performance or realizing they are in trouble will leave the company on their own, thus saving the organization severance costs.

However, having made this statement, organizations must be careful not to threaten employees in such a way that the company's communications can be construed as constituting dismissal.

Training
Have your junior managers received any training on how to terminate employees or conduct performance appraisals? In many organizations, junior managers have risen from the ranks. Their current assignment may be their first as a manager. Their management skills likely will be intuitive or learned from a book.

Very few management courses teach a manager how to terminate an employee or how to conduct an effective performance review.

Is it a surprise therefore that these two tasks are poorly executed? Unfortunately terminations that are poorly handled often end up as lawsuits. These can be very expensive for the company. In most cases the company is the loser because a poor job has been done.

It would benefit a company financially to send their managers on courses specifically covering the subjects of how to terminate employees and how to do performance appraisals. If it is not feasible to have managers away from work, an alternative is to have  experienced person conduct "in-house" workshops on the subject during periods when the plant is closed or at a low operating level.

A training program needs to cover both the "when" and "how" aspects of termination. It also needs to cover those issues that result in mistakes being made. Although it may cost a few thousand dollars to train employees in this subject, the cost will be much less than a law suit.

Planning;
The last area that needs to be managed in a termination is that of preparation (planning), its execution and its ramifications.  Our next article will cover many of the planning aspects of terminations. We will cover issues that affect both the employee being terminated as well as managing the remaining employees, managers and other stakeholders.•

Fred Pamenter is managing partner of PPB&D Consulting Limited, a Toronto based Human Resource firm. T: 416-620-5980
E: ppbdconsulting@aol.com

Written by Sid Karmazyn on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:03 "A contest between relatives is usually conducted with more acrimony than a dispute with strangers."• Latin proverb

Picture your most obnoxious relative. You know that individual, the one who always makes you cringe when they approach you at family gatherings. Every family has one: the loud-mouthed, opinionated, blow hard, who thinks 'tact' is something that secures paper to the wall. How do you deal with that individual? How do you decide that enough is enough? How do you extricate yourself gracefully from the clutches of that idiot? Or do you quietly suffer as they consume your time on this earth?

Dealing with difficult people is a constant challenge. It's made more demanding because there are so many of them. It is particularly tough on business owners in people industries, you know, service enterprises, hospitality, restaurant, retail, among others. In every business there is a certain amount of contact with customers, who are generally 'people', but in some cases they can be insufferable monsters. People can be customers or 'tire-kickers'. Customers know they have a need and are looking for a solution.

Tire-kickers on the other hand just came in to get out of the rain. Under the subset of customers, you have your normals and your maniacs. Normals can be a joy to work with, but they can always be turned into maniacs by impatience and frustration when they don't get what they want. You always have a chance with normals, it's dealing with maniacs that is a challenge. I'm talking here about the lunatic fringe which we've all encountered at some time or another. How you deal with these types will set the course of the rest of your day, week or month. Let me give you a few tips:

The first thing you need to realize is not every person who enters your store or business is a customer. By my definition, a customer is someone who pays for the goods or services you are providing. If they are just looking, they are guests, but not yet customers. On the road to a successful sale, you need to evaluate what your guest needs and whether you can fill that need. At the same time you are assessing visual and verbal clues as to their ability to pay. You are in effect qualifying them. It follows that not every guest to your store is going to be a customer. You may be able to turn a guest into a customer by deftly evaluating their needs and demonstrating that your goods or services satisfy their needs and meet their budgetary constraints. When you accomplish this, you have a sale!

On the other hand, there are people who will show up at your door who will do nothing more than suck the life out of you. They have no intention of buying, or if they do they will not be satisfied unless you make absolutely no money on them. If they think for a moment that you've made a penny profit on them, they won't rest until they exact some form of payment from you, so that the sale costs you more than they paid! Rest assured, if you haven't met this person yet and you're in business, at some point you will. How this plays out is really dependent upon your attitude.

You start by evaluating people. Not every guest is going to be a customer. Some people may be turned into customers depending upon your approach. You welcome them in, you introduce yourself, you ask them politely what they are looking for, in essence you ask them what they need. During this verbal interchange, which is usually one-sided from your end, you evaluate your guest and their perceived need. Sometimes the solution they have in mind does not fit their need, and if you're good at what you do, you'll be able to help them. You help them first by helping them understand the benefits of your offering and how that solves their need. Let them mull it over a little, and once they get it, they can make an informed decision to buy from you, because you've won them over. They trust you.

Monsters on the other hand don't trust anyone. They don't trust themselves, so how can they trust you. They live to make other people's lives as miserable as their own. That is their mission in life. No matter what you do, no matter how nice you are, unless you pay them to take your goods or services, they will not be satisfied. So to defend yourself against these types, you need to recognize them early, and get rid of them gently, but quickly.

Think of it this way: the sooner you get rid of them, the sooner you can spend time on a real customer, a paying guest who will be happy and refer more paying guests. Sometimes we feel a moral obligation to look after monsters, but let me tell you, it's like picking at an open wound, nothing you do will help, get rid of them and concentrate on your real patrons.

It also depends on the value of the purchase. I've seen monsters stand in line at coffee shops and flip out because their coffee wasn't right! A cup of coffee is a quick, low value purchase. The easiest thing to do for the server is to replace the coffee and send the monster packing. The worst thing one can do is to try to argue with them, while dozens of customers are within earshot, and the coffee line is steadily growing. get rid of them, quick!

Replace their coffee, and if they're not happy, give them a free donut and they'll disappear, or refund their money and tell them to go next door. You always have that right, you can sell to whomever you want, you are not required by any law to have to sell to somebody. It's up to you to make that decision. It's generally not an issue, but when dealing with monsters, it is an issue, and it's up to you to make that decision quickly or it will cost you.

It depends on your attitude. If you expect that everyone who enters your shop is going to buy, then you will be held hostage by every miscreant who has the good fortune to stumble in. They will waste your time, they will use up your energy, they will not buy anything, but they will amuse themselves at your expense. You will feel guilty that you lost them as a customer and it will cost you your confidence and self-esteem. You can't allow yourself to be imprisoned by the notion that you are going to sell to everyone.

Customers are like trains, there's always another one coming down the track. You need to lose the fear that the person in front of you is the last potential customer that you are ever going to see. As soon as you realize that there is another customer out there and the only thing separating you from him is this monster in front of you, then you get rid of the monster and clear a path to your customer. Lose the fear that every customer may be your last. There are a zillion of them out there, they are generally nice people, if you satisfy their needs they will be back and they will refer more customers of like kind. Change your attitude, and you change your fortune!    

Sid Karmazyn is a Chartered Accountant, author and speaker, who lives and works in York Region. Your comments are welcomed.
T: 905-771-3813  F: 905-771-3810

Written by Kelley Robertson on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:07 I wasn't ready to make the purchase that day, but when I returned almost two weeks later my regular "sales guy" had obviously been told what product I was considering. That meant that I didn't have to go through the entire sales process again, which saved me some time.

A couple of days later, I discovered that a particular component was missing from the package, so I called the store to have it replaced. My salesperson wasn't working but someone else handled the call and told me I could pick it up any time.

When I arrived at the store the following day, the salesperson - a different one than the previous two - was expecting me and knew exactly what I needed. Once again, it was obvious that his coworker had briefed him on the situation.

This level of communication among the employees definitely reinforced my decision to continue buying from that store. Plus, it got me thinking about the impact effective communication can have on a business.

Customers often make requests, and while the person they initially spoke to is aware of the situation, their coworkers usually don't know what's going on. This means that the customer has to explain the situation again (in some cases, several times) before it gets resolved.
Think of the number of times you call a company and tell the person who answers the telephone about your situation. They transfer you to someone else and you have to re-state your concern or problem again. Sometimes, this person can't help you, so they pass you to yet another person. Once again, you have to repeat your story and it's not uncommon for this process to be repeated several times before you connect with the right person and finally get a resolution to your situation.

All of this takes time, and time is the most precious commodity people have today.
When you communicate customer concerns or situations to other people on your team, you make it easy for people to do business with you. You save them time. You demonstrate a higher level of customer service. And this encourages people to buy from you. This also applies to the speed at which you respond to your customers, whether it's by email, telephone or face-to-face.

I can't count the number of times I've contacted companies by filling out their online web forms, but never received a response. A car dealership I deal with suggests making service appointments via their website, but the process doesn't always work - which means the appointment doesn't get made or that relevant information gets lost.

In other cases, I've requested quotes for products or services, but no one ever responded. In fact, in one situation, a salesperson called me two months after I submitted my request. By that time, I had already given my business to one of their competitors. On a positive note, I have emailed some companies and received a response within a few hours. Unfortunately, this tends to be the exception rather than the rule.

Effective communication means reducing the number of steps your customers have to take. It means making sure that the automated systems you put into place work and that someone actually responds by emailing or calling that customer quickly.

Here are a few other instances that illustrate how prompt and effective communication will help you improve your business and customer loyalty.

When customers are waiting for back-orders
Instead of forcing your customer to contact you, be proactive and keep them apprised of their order. While it's not enjoyable telling people that their order hasn't arrived yet, it's better to be proactive.

When your customers have complaints or concerns
The faster you take care of customer concerns and the fewer hoops you make them jump through, the more satisfied they'll be. If you can't solve their problem immediately, give them a time frame then keep them updated of the progress.

Don't make them call you when policies change
Give your customers advance notice when your policies change. This will give them time to adapt to the change and reduce the number of complaints you receive.

In today's highly competitive world you can't afford to make it difficult for your customers to do business with you. Otherwise, you run the risk that they will jump ship and use another company or supplier.

When you improve your communication with your customers and within your company, you improve your service level and that leads to repeat sales.

Effective communication can help you improve your sales. It may seem trivial but it definitely makes a difference.•

Kelley Robertson, President of the Robertson Training Group, works with businesses to increase their sales and motivate their employees.
www.RobertsonTrainingGroup.com

Written by Tim Mitra on Sunday, 22 October 2006 14:25 On August 7, 2006, Apple completed it's latest transition, with the addition of two new models. They introduced two Macintosh models based on the Intel platform, the Mac Pro and a new Xserve. In fact, these are the last two machines to be switched over to Intel and represent a major paradigm shift in the computer industry.

Apple started down this new path at the start of the millennium when it introduced its tenth operating system, Mac OS X, based on a variation of Unix. From my point of view, this held nothing but promise for the future, as I had already converted to Unix after being a Mac-evangelist. The beauty of Unix is that it offers a true device-independent operating system - because at it's core, it connects to any platform and operates above it.

So when Apple introduced Mac OS X based on the Berkley variation (BSD), it was only logical to conclude that it would eventually be available on PCs. Apple does present its products as "computers for the rest of us" - so they added the Graphic User Interface we had come to love. They in fact, produced "Unix for the rest of us", making it so simple that users barely even knew that they're working on the most versatile, stable and reliable platform as they click on iTunes and fill up their iPods.

So on the stage at the Apple World Wide Developer conference, Steve Jobs proudly announced the new Mac Pro. Actually Phil Schiller took the audience through the machine's configuration amidst the ubiquitous "Ohhs" and "Ahhs" that accompany these venues. Steve Jobs was cavalier as he stated that the Power Mac G5 (up until that moment the fastest Mac ever) would "fade in to the past."

The Mac Pro is based on the Intel Xeon processor ("Woodcrest") and is a Dual Core processor - actual two CPUs in one that runs at speeds up to 3 GHz. To double our pleasure, Apple is putting two of these Dual Core Xeon processors and essentially making it a Quad Xeon computer. The more significant fact is that this is a 64-Bit processor which means it can address more that 2 GB of RAM, the current limit in the Intel based iMac, MacBook and MacBook Pro models.

The Mac Pro can address up to 16 GB of RAM, and due to the fact that the Xeons run so much cooler than the G5s there's more room inside the case. With 4 hard drives you can have up to 2 Terabytes at your finger tips. Apple is offering the Mac Pro in one configuration - 2 x 2.66 GHz Dual-Core Xeons with 1 GB of RAM, a 250 GB hard drive, a lightning fast Nvidia GeForce 7300GT video card and a 16x Dual-Layer SuperDrive (DVD-RW drive). With the various options, Apple boasts that there are up to 4 million possible configurations!

In a mere 210 days, Apple has transitioned its entire offering of computers over to the Intel platform - waving "goodbye" to the overheated PowerPC processor. As mentioned earlier, it was only a matter of time. We've seen Unix and Linux run on everything from  the largest super computers down to the Sony Playstation 2. (I'm predicting that we'll be doing page layout on the iPod any day now - just putting it out there!)

Apple also took the opportunity to give the developers a sneak peek at the next version of Mac OS X - 10.5 codenamed "Leopard."  (By the way, the first was "Cheetah" then "Puma," "Jaguar," "Panther" and the current "Tiger - in case you're curious. You're probably running Tiger or Panther now. If not give us a call!) Apple also took a moment or two to throw stones at Microsoft's upcoming Vista operating system (it's still coming isn't it?). The most interesting feature they showed is "Time Machine" - which automatically backs up your Macintosh.
Time Machine opens a folder as a series of receding folders. You can flip back through time until you find the file that was deleted or revised and with a click bring the file into the present. You can restore files as well as Address Book entries and Photos in iPhoto. (I wonder if I can go back and get my G5?).

Apple will also be including all of the Front Row software with Leopard, which allows the use of the Apple remote to control iTunes and movies from across the room. Apple will also include "Boot Camp" which makes it possible to run "Microsoft Windows XP" which makes the Mac a full-fledged PC - and a really fast PC at that!

The circle is now complete - no tweed jacket required!
  
Timothy Mitra assists companies in mastering information technology in pre-press, print and web design.
Do you have a question you would like answered by the IT guy? Please contact him at: E: tim@it-guy.com C: 416-278-8609