“We help our customers simplify their printing processes and boost their productivity by offering them a high level of automation and flexibility, something that is especially important at a time when the skills shortage is becoming more acute worldwide,” says Heidelberg CEO Dr. Ludwin Monz.

Additionally, Heidelberg is supplying another Speedmaster XL 106 with a total of 19 printing and coating units to a WestRock site in Obersulm, Germany, the second longest in the world.

Mark Shaw, business leader, EMEA and APAC at WestRock said, “Innovation and sustainability are the bedrock of WestRock’s operation, and by investing in print technology from Heidelberg we are future-proofing our capabilities for our customers. There is no better demonstration of this than the two longest presses in the world being developed specifically for WestRock facilities. As brands continue to drive demand for sustainable, fibre-based packaging, through our continued investment and industry-leading expertise, we are well positioned to meet these needs.”

Kornit’s Global Fulfillment Network helps companies like Amaze Software connect creators with garment and textile production fulfillers across the globe. The platform is backed by the KornitX workflow engine, which seamlessly integrates with Kornit Max technology-based fabric and textile decoration systems for end-to-end production, visibility, and control.

“The social commerce market is growing rapidly, but creators struggle to capitalize on delivering branded products, as typical production cannot meet the expectations of brands and consumers for greater sustainability, creativity, agility, and market reactivity. Our flexible Global Fulfillment Network and proven on-demand digital textile technologies are designed to tackle those complexities,” said Ronen Samuel, CEO, Kornit Digital.

“There are more creators on social platforms than ever before. Our vision is to translate these voices into enduring brands by allowing virtually anyone to create and capitalize on their ideas,” said Aaron Day, CEO at Amaze. “Kornit is key to making this possible, allowing us to enter new markets faster, offering better fan experiences and remaining nimble in this ever-changing market.”

Lecta plans to solely focus on the production of specialty papers, glassine and C1S on PM8 of Condat mill, in which it invested through a conversion in 2021.

Additionally, Lecta is currently investing in an RDF boiler to improve energy efficiency in PM8 and reduce the mill’s carbon footprint. The RDF boiler will be operational by mid-2024.

The jury’s verdict: “The printer addresses a very mature market where versatility, driven by new applications and substrates, is critical.”

Kudu is the only swissQprint model with 10 freely configurable colour channels. The result is a yet broader spectrum of applications for users. A maximally equipped Kudu prints with 30 print heads. The printer offers speeds up to 304 m²/h.

SwissQprint’s Nyala, Impala and Oryx flatbed printers offer a glass option. Made for efficient, full bleed direct printing on pre-cut glass panels, it scored an EDP Award in the ‘Glass Production’ category.

“This solution enables new applications while protecting existing investments,” stated the jury. In addition to the mechanical part of the solution – an alignment mechanism and protective paper – SwissQprint offers an ink set optimised for glass printing.

In the third quarter, from October to December 2022, the Group bucked the general trend in the mechanical engineering industry by recording stable incoming orders of €630 million. This led to a high order backlog of almost €1 billion. At €609 million, sales in the third quarter were around five per cent up on the equivalent quarter of the previous year. Adjusted for non-recurring effects, EBITDA was €18 million higher than in the previous year, primarily due to the positive impact of rising sales.

Posting the full collectively agreed inflation relief bonus had a detrimental effect during this accounting period. The production-related increase in inventories led to a free cash flow of €–4 million in the third quarter, which represented a stable development compared with the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

Thanks to the good performance in terms of sales and incoming orders and the significant improvement in the operating result, the company is confirming its forecast for financial year 2022/23 as a whole.

“We had a positive third quarter and were able to further increase our sales and operating result. Looking ahead, the coming months will continue to be affected by the expected increases in material, energy, and personnel costs,” said Dr. Ludwin Monz, CEO of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG. “We will continue to counter this through price rises and maintain our cost discipline. We are therefore very confident of achieving our targets for the year.”

The partners to the initiative recognize it is only through cross-industry collaboration that progress can be made. Founded in 2019, German startup Wildplastic aims to clean the environment from plastic waste. In co-operation with communities of collectors, the start-up works globally to collect “wild” plastic from beaches, landfills, and illegal dumpsites. In spring 2019, Wildplastic started selling the first trash bag that is 100 per cent made of recycled plastic. Currently, their focus is on sourcing low density polyethylene (LDPE) such as bubble wrap or certain food packaging. LDPE cannot yet be widely recycled, so the market collection incentive for it is still limited. Wildplastic wants to change this by creating a demand for this material and showcasing the potential of post-consumer LDPE recycling. After collection, the plastic is transported to a recycling partner who washes, melts and processes it into granules. These recyclate granules are then sent to a production partner and used as a substitute for virgin LDPE material. This material is then used to create trash bags and mail bags. A broader scope of applications may be possible if the materials could be successfully deinked first.

In 2021, Wildplastic and the Institute of Circular Resource Engineering and Management (CREM) of Hamburg University of Technology (TU-Hamburg) started a co-operative research and development project, financed by the Investment and Development Bank of Hamburg (IFB), to study the feasibility of improving the quality of LDPE-recyclates from post-consumer sources. Evonik is supporting this project as a co-operative partner.

“We started to conduct research on deinking of post-consumer plastic waste with Wildplastic about one year ago. As a technical university, it is important to carry out meaningful research relevant to the real-world problem. From our project, we have learned that a successful circular economy only works by motivating all the stakeholders involved. Siegwerk, as the producer of printing ink, can play an important role in this context since it brings the producer’s perspective to solve the problem in the beginning,” said Jinyang Guo from the Institute of Circular Resource Engineering and Management (CREM) at TU- Hamburg during a kick-off meeting between the partners in November 2022.

Siegwerk is supporting Wildplastic in this initiative by providing the deinking chemistry and knowledge to enable the creation of clean recyclates. In order for successful deinking to occur, a precise combination of the right ink chemistry, the right deinking detergent and the right process needs to be applied. Inks on packaging can often be a hinderance to recycling, as the inks degrade during the recycling process and can contaminate the recyclates, leading to unpleasant odours or unsightly colours. Even if the inks are not totally removed, the opportunities for recycling are increased exponentially.

“It is a pleasure to work with our partners from Wildplastic and from the University of Hamburg on this topic. We have a strong can-do attitude in common. The scientific perspective and the conscientiousness contributed by Jinyang helps us to maintain a fact-based and objective view, not only in the design of experiments, but also in the interpretation of results. Wildplastic has the ambition to benefit from deinking in their recycling activities in just a few months and brings in an industrial perspective,” said Ingo Fehr, senior project manager at Siegwerk.

“We have started this collaboration with Jinyang and the University about one year ago following our deep interest to find a solution for specific washing needs for highly challenging post-consumer plastic film materials in a small scale batch operation. From day one we have worked together in a very open and solution-orientated way and with shared passion. It’s all about getting the right people together, therefore we are extremely happy to share our results and to extend our collaboration with the team at Siegwerk,” said Wildplastic co-founder Dieter Gottschalk.

Canva will buy carbon removal sourced by Frontier, an advance market commitment focused on accelerating permanent carbon removal. Frontier was founded by Stripe, Alphabet, Shopify, Meta and McKinsey Sustainability. Canva is joined by Boom Supersonic, SKIMS, and Zendesk in the Watershed-led cohort.

This first-of-its-kind partnership allows Canva and companies across a diverse range of sectors to access rigorously vetted and science-backed permanent carbon removal solutions that range from direct air capture to enhanced weathering.

“At Canva, we’re passionate about solving the world’s biggest problems and hope our participation in Frontier will inspire other organizations to think about their own carbon footprint and further their sustainability practices. It’s only through collective action that we’ll be able to preserve our planet for future generations,” said a media statement.

Following the earlier introduction of varnish on the HS model, the UHS model now also comes with varnish printing at a speed of up to 150 m²/h, offering producers of corrugated cardboard displays the possibility to embellish prints by adding a layer of high-gloss or satin varnish, either applied to the entire surface (flood varnish) or selectively (spot varnish). All models can also use white ink, or white and primer. The inks on the Jeti printers are GreenGuard Gold certified.

“We are excited to present our latest printing solutions at C!Print”, said Koen Steert, head of sales, sign and display Europe at Agfa. “We look forward to welcoming print service providers at our booth to discuss their questions and needs, and to explore how our integrated offering of printers, inks, software, training and services can fit their growth paths and lead to sustainable success.”

C!Print 2023 will take place in Lyon, France, from January 31 to February 2. Agfa can be found at stand 1F24. Get your free entrance ticket at https://www.salon-cprint.com/commande-de-badge.

The execution of binding documentation, and the completion of the acquisition of 100 per cent of the shares of Papeterie Zuber Rieder, remain subject to the consultation of the works council of Papeterie Zuber Rieder.

Founded in 1881 in Boussières (France), Zuber Rieder was taken over in the early 2000s by Luc Gaillet and Alain Martz, with the aim of repositioning the company in a fast-growing segment: premium papers for wine and spirit labels. Since then, Zuber Rieder, with its 130 people, has experienced strong growth, turning its industrial facilities into one of Europe’s most efficient specialty paper production sites.

This partnership would represent another important step for Fedrigoni Group on its consolidation path as a global manufacturer of premium wine and spirits papers. Zuber Rieder would benefit from Fedrigoni’s production capabilities and international network.

Martz, chair, and Gaillet, CEO of Papeterie Zuber Rieder would maintain a strategic role in order to support the integration into the Fedrigoni Group and the future development of the company. Martz would retain an executive role as general manager of Zuber Rieder, while Gaillet would keep a non-executive role as a member of the board.

“We are very pleased to announce our intention to acquire Papeterie Zuber Rieder,” said Marco Nespolo, CEO of the Fedrigoni Group. “Their marked specialist skills and proprietary technologies will allow us to supplement our already rich product portfolio both for papers for luxury packaging and those for high end wine and spirits labels, where we want to consolidate our position as the leading global player. This future transaction once again shows that we are determined to pursue a constant global strategy of growth, both in specialty papers for all creative applications and in premium self-adhesive materials, in order to better serve our customers worldwide.”

The two companies are working together to bring a new digital press to market in late 2023. This press will print at speeds of up to 6,000 m² per hour.

This new partnership combines Barberán’s manufacturing expertise with Fujifilm’s knowledge of inkjet integration, ink chemistry and its extensive experience in the sign and display market. The new press will print with a bespoke new Fujifilm ink and primer, developed at its factory in Broadstairs, UK.

At 30 m in length and with an excellent built-in print engine, the machine will be able to print on all typical sign and display substrates, up to a width of 1.6 m.

David Burton, business and commercial director at Fujifilm WFIJ HQ, says, “We choose our partners carefully and Barberán is no exception. We’ve been in close talks with them for more than two years because they have a huge amount of expertise in industrial print manufacturing and we saw an opportunity for a mutually beneficial relationship. They already have a single pass product that is proven in the corrugated sector, and we have the expertise to help them adapt it for the very different requirements of the sign and display market.”

Eladio Lerga, technical director of Barberán adds, “We’re really excited to be bringing our technology to a whole new market. Fujifilm’s breadth of experience in print for sign and display will be crucial to this – as well as its expertise in inkjet ink chemistry and inkjet systems. Working together we can maintain our print speeds and quality, and adapt our systems to accommodate a much wider range of substrates and to meet the very different market requirements of this sector.”

It was on 17 September 2007 that Reto Eicher, Roland Fetting and Hansjörg Untersander had the SwissQprint company entered in the commercial register. With a crew of six, the company was under way. Already on board was the present CEO, Kilian Hintermann. The following year, notwithstanding the financial crisis then in full swing, the team launched the first SwissQprint flatbed printer.

SwissQprint has since grown to employ around 200 people with 130 of them, including the founders, working at headquarters in Kriessern, Switzerland. Just under 70 employees do duty at subsidiaries in Germany, Spain, Belgium, the United Kingdom, the USA and Japan. The company continued its growth through the pandemic years and pressed ahead with development projects. The latest product is Kudu, a high-end printer launched in May this year.

Today’s product range comprises eight models: six flatbed and two roll-to-roll printers. More than 1600 SwissQprint machines are in operation worldwide. Sales and service are handled by six subsidiaries in concert with over 30 distribution partners around the globe. Development and production of the machines stays seated in Switzerland. Company headquarters also recently began managing sales to the Swiss home market.

“Born out of the need to give our U.S. acquisition Vanguard Digital Systems a home in Europe, the idea for the ‘Durst Kraftwerk’ was born,” says Christoph Gamper, CEO and co-owner of the Durst Group. “A powerhouse that brings together our spin-offs and start-ups and offers them a new home. In this way, we provide a creative environment where the companies can fully concentrate on their respective areas of expertise without the ‘burden’ of integration into an established structure. I am grateful and proud of the individual co-founders and their teams and convinced that top performance and business success will go hand in hand in the Durst Kraftwerk. In fact, we’ve already created 35 highly qualified jobs by the time of the opening. In the final expansion stage, more than 100 employees will be researching, developing, designing, optimizing and teaching at the Kraftwerk, helping to shape tomorrow’s production processes and methods.”

With Vanguard Europe GmbH, Kraftwerk is home to the European branch of the U.S. company Vanguard Digital Printing Systems, which Durst Group acquired in 2020.

Kraftwerk is also home to the Durst Academy, a modern training centre for the group, with facilities for online and offline seminars and green-screen presentations to provide customized training for process technology, hardware & software to customers and service partners from around the world.

The new building will combine R&D, administration, and sales functions together in a single office area.

By manufacturing in mainland Europe, the company has shortened its lead times for consumables and increased its production capacity. It has also reduced its environmental impact by reducing the shipment of raw materials and finished goods required to produce its products. Designed to improve its consumables supply chain, the new facility ensures market leading service to its portfolio of European customers and their international brands.

Gil Oron, CEO, Landa Digital Printing said, “Our new Sittard site is geared toward sustainability, service reliability and business growth. It provides Landa customers with local supply, which in times of very challenging worldwide logistics and parts supplies, offers considerable reassurance. What’s more, with customer production volumes increasing daily, this also ensures prompt and reliable delivery too, crucial in increasing efficiency.”

“We are excited to welcome BC Partners as a new partner in Fedrigoni,” said Ivano Sessa, chair of Fedrigoni Holding Limited and co-head of industrials at Bain Capital Private Equity Europe. “We have partnered with Marco Nespolo and the rest of the management team over the last four years to transform Fedrigoni and create a global leading platform in luxury packaging and labels. In this next phase of the journey, we will work with all our partners to continue building on the great success that Fedrigoni has achieved, with a focus on strengthening its global leadership and delivering sustainable packaging solutions to an outstanding set of global luxury and consumer brands.”

Stefano Ferraresi, partner at BC Partners, said, “We are delighted by this opportunity to invest in Fedrigoni, a leader in sustainability focused packaging. We have long admired the quality of the Fedrigoni management team, and its operations built under Marco Nespolo’s leadership. We are confident this partnership with Bain Capital will create significant growth opportunities across the business. We share Marco’s vision and ambitious growth agenda and view Fedrigoni as the ideal platform to invest in this attractive segment of the market, with scope to continue to build on its leading positions in luxury packaging and labels and broaden its product portfolio through acquisitions and strategic partnerships.”

“The whole Fedrigoni leadership team and I are thrilled to continue our very ambitious growth path in partnership with Bain Capital and BC Partners”, said Marco Nespolo, CEO of Fedrigoni. “The last four years have seen Fedrigoni undertake a very comprehensive and successful transformation on product portfolio, geographic footprint, go-to-market, operating model, culture, and governance. This has been possible, thanks to the great partnership with and strong support by Bain Capital. We look forward to sharing the next leg of the journey with an additional, very relevant investor and partner, whose trust makes us feel honoured.”

This new partnership, a combination of reinvestment by Bain Capital and investment from BC Partners, results in a change of control of Fedrigoni to joint control between Bain Capital and BC Partners. The Fedrigoni family, already a partner of Bain Capital as a minority shareholder, will remain invested in the business as the entire management team.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2022, subject to approvals by relevant regulatory authorities. A group of financial institutions has committed to provide a debt financing package in support of the transaction. Fedrigoni’s existing senior secured notes are expected to be refinanced at closing of the transaction.

JBF has announced that it will pay CHF 78.- in cash per Bobst Group share. The offer is not subject to substantial conditions. Following completion of the offer, JBF expects to take Bobst Group private through a delisting of its shares from Six Swiss Exchange. The pre-announcement of the offer is available at https://investors.bobst.com/tenderoffer/. The offer prospectus is expected to be published on the same website page, on or around 5 September 2022.

The board of directors of Bobst Group has reviewed the offer, is convinced of the business rationale of the transaction and welcomes the possibility for shareholders to tender their shares at a premium in these uncertain times.

All4Labels Global Packaging Group celebrates 25 years in the digital printing sector in partnership with HP Indigo. On the occasion of the celebration, All4Labels and HP Indigo have signed off the extension of the Master Global Agreement for five more years. The agreement endorses a strategic co-operation aimed at increasing All4Labels’ worldwide digital footprint by more than 30 per cent.

During the 25^th anniversary All4Labels revealed its intention to install one of the first ever HP Indigo V12 digital press in its facility in Trittau, Germany. The narrow-web label press is capable of printing at 120 linear meter per min.

“We are extremely excited to be marking 25 years since the installation of the first HP Indigo digital press at All4Labels. The relationship has since grown over the years into a deep and trusting collaboration that has gone from strength to strength,” said Haim Levit, SVP and GM at HP Industrial Print Business. “The past 25 years have seen the All4Labels business evolve through four generations of our products and solutions. This is a great opportunity to build on the past but also look at the future. We have invested in a huge number of innovation and resources into our future platforms and are extremely proud that All4Labels is looking at continuing and expanding this journey with our latest platforms. These game-changing platforms will position All4Labels at the cutting edge of the industries in which they operate and allow them to continue to make a difference within the market”.

Adrian Tippenhauer, CEO at All4Labels said, “With our technological and digital capabilities, paired with our innovative mindset, we’re helping our customers to maximize the benefit out of our partnership – by reinventing printing. Twenty-five years ago, our digital printing site in Trittau set the first step toward our successful story in digital label leadership and our expertise is consecutively expanded to the whole global group. We anticipate consumers’ needs and enable our partners to fully leverage on key drivers, such as digitization, customization, and sustainability. Our capabilities are state-of-the-art, enabling us to automate, and to improve productivity, quality, and safety.”

Bobst, along with industrial adhesives specialist BASF and barrier film expert Evertis, is supporting European recycling company Sulayr in this endeavour. Together, the companies have formed a partnership to combine their expertise from across the packaging value chain. Their collaborative approach is key to the success of this innovative recycling process and its potential for adoption on a wider scale.

The European Green Deal requires all packaging to be reusable or recyclable by 2030, a target perceived as particularly challenging for multilayer packaging laminates, where layers must be separated before entering the recycling stream. However, that perception could be about to change. Sulayr has successfully commercialized a multilayer recycling process that achieves closed-loop status and enables PET to be reused, with virtually zero waste. While a circular economy practice for packaging materials with PET content already exist, the process can be improved to become more practical and effective, if the whole value chain works together to make separation of layers easier.

At the core of the process is a multilayer film produced by Evertis, comprising PET and polyethylene (PE) layers, which is laminated on a Bobst coating system with BASF Epotal water-based adhesive. Multilayer films are used for various packaging applications, such as thermo-formed food trays. After use, the waste is delivered to sorting facilities. Sulayr can use this waste as raw material in a closed-loop cycle. The company separates the layers and prepares the PET for re-use, which is then delivered to Evertis and other film producers who restart the cycle.

Seen as an important step toward universal recycling of PET, enabling its continued use in a Green Deal-compliant packaging economy, the process can apply to both post-consumer and post-industrial waste, meaning it has enormous potential to transform the entire PET-based packaging use model.

The four partners emphasize that collaboration, as well as cutting-edge technology, is key to the success of the process, and hope to change industry perceptions on a wider scale.

“We were able to talk to some medium and large commercial printers. They are ready to handle large print volumes using their multi-colour B1 and B2 size offset presses and bindery departments. We also met with several digital native print houses specializing in short runs, just-in-time jobs, indoor and outdoor campaigns, using sheetfed digital presses, large-format printers, and cutters. Besides integrated groups, several small and medium-sized packaging converters can produce printed and embellished boxes and labels. Some have invested in state-of-the-art digital embellishment and narrow-web digital label presses,” said Lorenzo Villa, co-founder of the Meaningful Print Foundation.

What do Ukrainian printers need?

Through direct calls, recorded interviews, and interactions in the discussion group, the Print Against War team is in touch with dozens of companies, recording their difficulties and gathering their requests for help. Most of them prioritize keeping their company open and ensuring a minimum wage for employees and their families. Unable to rely on domestic orders and exports to Russia, Ukrainian printers and converters seek partnerships with European companies, to which they can supply printed materials at reasonable costs. Logistics is an issue, but many are ready to produce and ship.

Among the companies interviewed:

New Media is a 100 per cent digital printer and label converter. Its owner, Viktor Artyushchenko, is looking for clients and partners to supply roll labels and embellished prints.

Wolf Print House is a large, modern offset printing house that can handle high volumes. Its founder, Igor Wolf, would like to receive orders to run his equipment.

RBP Publishing is a bookseller, publisher, and printer. Its founder, Rostyslav Burlaka, is desperately seeking work so as not to lose his employees.

SVM is a complex digital company that operates B2B and online and produces small- and large-format commercial printing, packaging, and displays. Its co-founder, Sergii Mamonov, is ready to expand the business outside Ukraine’s borders.

If you’re interested in meeting these entrepreneurs, talking to them, and discussing how you can help, please join the Print Against War community, which already includes dozens of friends worldwide. The group is a private and safe place to meet and cross-reference requests and offers of help.

Revolutionary advancements in digital printing capability have allowed Xitron, Memjet, and Paper Converting Machine Company (PCMC) to partner on this first-of-its-kind application.

An innovator in instant ticket games, IGT sought alternatives to current, single-colour technology used to print scratch-off (instant) lottery tickets. It ultimately decided on a full-colour digital imaging solution. The result was not just the ability to print the variable indicia at high speeds, but also the artwork including variable bar codes retailers scan to authenticate winning game pieces.

“Since the late 1980s, printing instant tickets has been a multi-stage process where the majority of printing was done on flexo presses with the indicia applied using a 240-dpi electrostatic print unit,” explained Keith Cash, IGT VP and general manager of instant products. “Using the Memjet DuraLink printheads and Xitron Navigator DFE, IGT can print full-colour tickets at 1600 x 1580 dpi on a wide web format.”

Primers, security coatings, and the scratch-off material are applied flexographically on the same press, which is over 300-ft in length.

IGT’s patented process provides several benefits that were impossible to achieve prior to the DuraLink/Navigator integration. “First, every ticket can now be different, which means we can fine tune artwork and design to the audience demographic,” Cash explained. “Second, we’ve added another layer of accuracy and reliability since the symbols are now printed as rich, or four-colour black instead of single colour.”

Xitron’s scalable DFE based on the Harlequin core renders the incoming jobs, spreading the data across 16 RIPs housed on four PC platforms. The raster data is routed directly to the Memjet DuraLink printheads without writing any data to disk (a security concern), allowing the press to run at incredible speeds, even with extremely high levels of variable data.

Karen Crews, Xitron’s president, said, “This is a remarkable achievement by Xitron’s engineers and our partners at Memjet and PCMC. The fact that we can interpret and deliver this volume of data at the speeds required is a testament to their dedication and effort.”

In the interim, Vanguard will be managed by Tim Saur, president and managing director of Durst North America, and Jim Peterson, co-founder of Vanguard and vice-president of sales.

Vanguard Digital and the Cich family kindly ask that, out of respect for the family, please refrain from texts, phone calls, emails, and, most importantly, social media posts regarding this matter.

With this deal, Fedrigoni acquires the majority of Tageos’ capital through a direct investment and from shareholders including Newfund Capital as well as Tageos’ founders, who will retain their leadership positions in the company. As part of the agreement, Fedrigoni will have the right to purchase Tageos’ remaining shares in in the future.

“Tageos is a company with excellent growth prospects and operates in a sector that is definitely interesting for us, with a technology and customer base that is very complementary to ours,” says Marco Nespolo, CEO of the Fedrigoni Group. “Thanks to this acquisition, we are entering the ‘smart label’ market, pursuing our strategy of continuously widening our offer in all the most attractive and promising adjacent segments.”

Matthieu Picon,  co-founder and CEO of Tageos also expressed his excitement. “Being backed and supported by Fedrigoni Group, and its owner Bain Capital, will allow us to further boost our global market expansion and continuous growth as a market leader in RFID inlays and tags. Our existing and new customers will undoubtedly welcome Fedrigoni and its offerings. I am fully convinced that both our companies’ DNA as well as our common ambitions fit perfectly together, and will form a strong basis for our joint success,” he said.

The graphic industry experiences a paper supply shortage it has never experienced before. The print industry with its manifold products serves citizens and businesses throughout Europe every day. It produces schoolbooks, labels for food or pharmaceutical products, advertising, packaging of all kinds as well as printed media such as books, magazines and newspapers. The continuous supply of these products is in real danger.

For over six months, the sector is experiencing an unprecedented crisis. Paper prices have been registered a growth rate of 45 per cent on average in the last six months, even up to 80 per cent for newsprint paper used to produce newspapers. These soaring prices, mainly due to increasing energy costs, are now accompanied by a major shortage of paper and board across Europe. The lack of paper and board will shortly have major implication for the European economy as vital products like food, medicines but also newspapers and schoolbooks face supply chain disruptions.

The recent and still ongoing strike in Nordic paper mills – now set to last until the end of March or even April- aggravates the situation for the supply of paper and board in Europe in the very short term. The stocks of printing companies will not last until the strike has been settled.

The current war in the Ukraine will have impacts not only on the energy prices, but also on the supply of wood and pulp for European paper makers. This will further tighten supplies in the middle to long term, which are a major concern for the future of the industry.

The combined effects of a reduction in graphic paper capacities in Europe (in the last five years, a total of 25.8 per cent of European graphic paper capacity closed), the reduced availability of recovered paper and the increased competition for wood fibres from several other sectors like construction, textile, or energy, are creating uncertainty for the continuous supply of wood fibres for European sectors.

While the European printing industry acknowledges that it has little influence on several of these factors, there are some concrete actions that can be taken by involved economic operators and authorities. Intergraf is therefore calling for:

• an immediate stop or a significant reduction of exports of pulp and paper to third countries to safeguard the autonomy of Europe’s printing and publishing industries;
• in the short term, that both sides involved in ongoing strike in Nordic paper mills find a common path toward a solution to guarantee the availability of necessary paper and board on the European market; and
• in the longer term, securing European autonomy on wood, pulp and paper supplies for all economic sectors, by ensuring a sufficient supply of raw material and production capacity in Europe.

VG: The first priority, of course, is to get them to the safest places possible. From the beginning, we have consulted with a retired U.S. Army colonel, who has helped us understand military tactics and identify strategic targets. With this information, and my knowledge of the country, we were able to help direct most of our employees to safety. So far, one was able to cross into Poland. One will be in Moldova soon if all goes well. We got four employees out of Kharkiv, and one away from a strategic railroad bridge across the Dnipro River. We still have one employee in Mykolaiv, and we are working to help him get out.

After safety, we are concerned with making sure they have shelter and supplies. We have assured them that regardless of their ability to work while this is going on, we will continue to pay them. We are sending additional funds to anyone who needs them to get to safety. We don’t want anyone to stay where it’s not safe if it’s just a matter of money, and we want to make sure they have everything they need.

And, of course, this is a horribly stressful situation, which is changing every day, so we want to provide support. We are maintaining several communication channels in case one goes down. I speak to each member of our Ukraine team at least once a day and I am in constant contact, messaging throughout the entire day. I am trying to help them keep up the hope, telling them that this will end and just focus on getting through it.

What are their needs now? Do they have enough essential supplies?

VG: When the invasion seemed imminent, we encouraged everyone to stock up. We have also sent additional funds to make sure they have everything they need. Right now, our employees are fine.

How can companies aid their Ukrainian employees?

VG: First, they must help them get to safety. If they can provide advice about where to go and money to help them get there, that is number one. Or, if they are somewhere safe, make sure they have money to buy essential supplies. Second, reassure them that their jobs are safe and that even if they have to flee or if their electricity or internet goes down, and they can’t work, they will be paid. Third, stay in touch. People are terrified and stressed out, worried about their parents and their kids, and messages and phone calls from colleagues are helpful.

What did you learn from your 2014 experience and how differently are you handling the current situation?

VG: The key thing we learned in 2014 is how fast things change. For example, we don’t know if the banking system in Ukraine will go down. So, in addition to the financial support we’re providing for our staff to get to safety, we’ve offered anyone who needs it, an advance on their salary. Also, we learned to listen to our team there – they know what they need better than we do, and we make a point of getting them whatever they ask for.

How are you managing to keep running company operations given that half of your staff are in a war zone?

VG: The Ukraine staff are able to work some of the time, so some of their tasks are getting done. For those who can work, it’s good for them to have a distraction from what’s going on there. We have shifted some work to our U.S. team. Fortunately, the part of the team that’s had the most trouble with internet and other issues is our software programmers, and although we lose opportunities by not being able to continually improve our website, it does not affect our day-to-day operations.

This must be stressful to you and employees outside Ukraine too. What steps are you taking to help address your mental well-being?

VG: It is horrible to see people you care about going through this. I feel very much responsible for our employees. I am trying to stay calm and get enough sleep, so that I can provide support to everyone else. Like many companies, this company is like a family. Many of our Ukrainian staff have been with the company over 10 years. Some of our U.S. staff have been to Ukraine. People are close and they really care, and they feel a little better if they know what’s going on. So, the primary thing we’re doing for our U.S. staff is providing regular updates on the safety and well-being of the Ukraine team. Earlier this week, we had our regular staff meeting with everyone who was able to log on, partly because we’re still running a business, but also for people to see each other and connect.

The jury declares PrimeCenter the “Best Workflow Solution”, while the Pick&Place Interface Option and the Visualizing Option are recognized as “Best in Robotics” and “Best Print Support Tool”, respectively.

The latter are two solutions for removing/unloading cut parts, offering visual support and robot integration, respectively.

Zünd has evolved into a complete solutions provider in cutting/finishing workflows and automation. It offers customers tailor-made workflow solutions for every step of digital production.

Explaining their decision to grant this award to Kodak, the EDP Awards judging panel commented: “The fact that the jury nominated a universal solution like the Kodak Ascend Digital Press for this category is due to the uniqueness of the machine. More than just an ordinary toner press, it combines CMYK printing with foil finishing in a single pass, as well as printing on board and large-format sheets. The press opens up new markets for users without having to forego classic digital printing applications.”

“We are thrilled to have won the prestigious EDP Award for our latest digital press. The Ascend Press is proof of Kodak’s commitment to the printing industry and investing in leading-edge solutions for digital print,” said Jim Continenza, Kodak’s executive chair and chief executive officer. “The new Ascend Press will help our customers capitalize on opportunities in the growing short-run packaging and retail POP segments without the long run requirements of litho, or the cost and complexity of large-format inkjet.”

The company was considered to be in the top 21 per cent of companies rated by EcoVadis in the manufacture of paints, varnishes and similar coatings, including printing inks. It was rated in the top nine per cent of companies in the Sustainable Procurement category, as well as in the top seven per cent for Ethics.

Steve Dryden, CEO for Flint Group, said, “This is a tremendous achievement for our business around the world. It reflects the hard work and commitment our teams are making in driving toward our 2030 sustainability vision – to be recognized by our customers, employees and shareholders as an ethical company, supplying sustainable products and services to the packaging and printing industries. This vision supports long-term value creation and growth for our customers, employees and shareholders.”