News

Informa Print and Media Group, the organiser of Ipex and the new Cross Media show, has acquired MediaPro from CloserStill Media. Informa will integrate MediaPro within Cross Media 2012, which runs from 3 - 4 September 2012 at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London.

A bid to force small businesses to pay for their own health and safety inspections is being criticised by the Forum of Private Business. Under the ‘Fee for Intervention’ proposals, set to come into force October 2012, firms deemed to be in ‘material breach’ of health and safety regulations by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) would be forced to pay inspectors’ hourly rates from the moment the inspection begins.

The eight winners of the 2012 Print Futures Awards, the annual grant scheme sponsored by Unite the Union, The Printing Charity and the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF), have been presented with cheques at the All-Party Parliamentary Print Group’s event at the House of Lords, London.

Roland DG (UK) has teamed up with SignElements (formerly isignstock) to offer Roland Forum members up to three free image downloads every week to celebrate SignElements’ re-brand.

Yellotools, a European manufacturer of sign shop and wrap tools, has created a traffic stopping graphic on the side of one of its buildings in Windeck, Germany. The company produced a 15 x 10m print depicting a derelict workshop which was applied to a blank concrete wall.

A novelty at Viscom Frankfurt 2012 will be a special exhibition area called Eco Future that was initiated by a cooperation between the International Trade Fair for Visual Communication, Technology and Design, rgf and the Media Mundo Initiative. The intention is to present opportunities and perspectives for economically as well as ecologically and socially responsible large-format media production.

Companies will have to register by 17 August in order to guarantee receiving the Climate Change Levy discount from April 2013. The new scheme, which extends the discounts until 2023, offers printing companies a 90% reduction of the climate change levy on electricity and a 65% reduction on gas. Existing scheme members do not need to reapply but will be automatically enrolled.

Shuttleworth Systems, in partnership with ROI360, will exhibit at the Cross Media show in September 2012 to demonstrate how it has developed its MIS to help multi media suppliers with everything from project management, workflow control to campaign analysis.

Contex has introduced a 48-bit colour processing scanner with eight-inch-per-second scan speed, 1200 dpi optical resolution and Gigabit Ethernet. It is available in the UK and Ireland via distributor ArtSystems.

The latest weapon in Artworks Solutions’ print arsenal is the supersized Vutek GS3250.

Since International Greetings adopted a Roland VersaUV LEC-540 printer/cutter for prototyping its creative greetings products, its designers spend up to 40% more time designing new products. A one year on from the initial VersaUV LEC-540 installation, International Greetings is considering installing another.

SA International (SAi) will demonstrate its recently launched PixelBlaster production software at EcoPrint Europe 2012 in September.

BAF Graphics has recently completed the outfitting of Whole Foods Market London for its new 1672m² shop on Glasshouse Street. The job meant producing around 500 pieces of print ranging in size from a few centimetres up to over 3m.

24 students have successfully achieved the first Accredited Skills for Industry (Asfi) ‘Award in Basic Principles of Large Format Digital Printing’.