Letter from the manager

Here at the BIA, we have just wrapped up our 2015 annual conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This year’s event brought the postpress industry, suppliers and printers together with the co-location of the Print Leadership Summit. From this event, attendees learned how to build their businesses using LinkedIn; heard panel discussions and case studies from binders, printers and vendors; and got to network with top executives. We heard some great feedback from vendors and attendees, and we will be applying this information to the BIA and our future events.

This was my first time at the annual conference since coming on as manager of the BIA back in March. I met some great industry professionals who I look forward to keeping in touch with in the future. From what I’m learning, I can understand what a valuable and interesting area the postpress industry is, and I am thrilled to be part of it.

If you are interested in speaking with me about the BIA or what you would like to see in the future, please don’t hesitate to contact me at ckapanyko@printing.org. I encourage your feedback on how you would like to see the BIA help you.

Regards, Chrystal Kapanyko

BIA Annual Conference Wrap-Up

In mid-May, the 2015 BIA annual conference was held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This was the first year the conference co-located with the Print Leadership Summit, so attendees were able to participate in the keynote sessions, as well as any of the PLS tracks in which they were interested.

The BIA track brought in speakers TJ Tedesco, Grow Sales; Paul Reilly, New Direction Partners; Valerie Price, Coyne Graphic Finishing; Scott Warrick, Scott Warrick Consulting, Training & Employment Law Services; Patty Meyer; Corey Perlman, eBootCamp, Inc.; and Daniel Dejan, Sappi Fine Paper North America. Additionally, two informational panel sessions and a vendor rapid-fire session were presented.

The final day focused solely on the BIA tour. This year, there was one tour that included three stops: Muscle Bound Bindery, Daily Printing Inc. and 612Brew. At Muscle Bound Bindery, attendees were given the opportunity to see binding capabilities from side-sewn case binding, Otabind and PUR layflat adhesive binding, as well as EVA and PUR perfect binding capabilities. At the next stop at Daily Printing Inc., attendees were given the chance to see the latest technology and equipment to satisfy sheet-fed printing needs. To round out the day, attendees heard the background of 612Brew, as well as the historical location in which the brewery is housed.

New Benefits for Members

As your postpress resource, the BIA is dedicated to supporting its members through the finest networking in the postpress industry and education on the latest innovative technologies. With the recent expansion in member benefits, members enjoy access to value-added resources that allow them to be more competitive and profitable. Here are some of the new benefits a BIA member can enjoy:

• Discounts for Printing Industries of America-hosted conferences, which include the Color
• Conference and Continuous Improvement Conference
• Special pricing on publications made from Printing Industries Press
• Discounts on courses through the Integrated Learning Center
• Discounts on purchases made from Printing Industries of America’s National Buying Power Program
• Access to professional peer networking forums, like virtual peer groups
• Digital access monthly to Printing Industries of America: The Magazine, with articles written by industry professionals on a variety of topics
• Opportunity to contribute to the new BIA blog

See a complete listing of member benefits by visiting www.printing.org/biamembership.

Industry Communication

One big push from the BIA to become a top educational resource is to engage with the industry and suppliers to the industry. The plans to do this not only includes the new BIA blog, but via social media channels, a BIA resource page and the BIA listserv.

The BIA offers this array of communication channels to the industry as a way for professionals to speak to one another to acquire ideas, tips and even assistance when needed. This connection is vital for any company trying to stay competitive in the industry.

The BIA blog contains information on various topics that help the postpress community, including sales and marketing along with binding. The blog will help to develop the conversation on the BIA social channels on Twitter (@Binding) and LinkedIn (search for BIA Binding Industries Association). Be sure to connect with us on these channels to keep up with the conversation and the latest BIA news.

While the BIA listserv is a great members-only benefit, it gets people engaging with one another when help is needed or when looking for a recommendation on equipment. As for the BIA resource page, which is in development, it will house links to educational material for the postpress industry. This will be a one-stop location to the current trends and tips of the industry.

As we move into the middle of 2015, the BIA is a nonstop force to provide members and the industry with a variety of resources and education. For the latest news on BIA, connect with us on social media and check out www.printing.org/bia.

by Brittany Willes, PostPress

Long before the Foil and Specialty Effects Association’s annual Sourcebook begins making appearances at tradeshows and conferences, the association’s directors are hard at work designing each year’s cover. Every year, a new theme is selected, highlighting various aspects of the foil industry. Previous years have included such memorable themes as the 2014 award-winning “Add Bite” Sourcebook, which featured an engraving of a great white shark that literally jumped off of the page with the help of detailed embossing.

For the 2015 Sourcebook, Executive Director Jeff Peterson and Associate Director Kym Conis decided on the theme of “Sweet Finishes,” with the cover displaying a decadent cupcake, drizzled with chocolate and sprinkles and topped with a tantalizing cherry. Thanks to the finishing process, which employed a 3D UV coating, the cover image appears good enough to eat while compelling viewers to reach out and touch. “We knew early on we wanted to use the Sweet Finishes theme,” said Peterson. “With that, it made sense to look at images and graphics that conveyed sweetness. We liked the idea of something that had a cherry on top because finishing is the ‘cherry on top’ of the printing process.” According to Peterson, the cupcake image was the perfect fit once it was determined the cover would utilize Sipe, Inc.’s Touch Me 3D UV coating process in conjunction with a combination (foil and embossed) headline and FSEA logo.

Utilizing Sipe’s Touch Me coating, the cover first was offset printed in 4-color process on a 15pt. C1S Carolina Cover. Specific inks were applied that were able to easily accept both the special UV coating and hot stamping foil. From there, several steps were necessary in order to create the touchable look of the cupcake. Lisa Hill, vice president of sales and marketing for Sipe, explained, “Technically speaking, our designer started by creating a 3D-UV layer mask over the image provided by the printer. He selected the areas of the image that would receive the extra ‘pop’ or ‘texture’ from the 3D-UV and determined how high the build should be.” For the Sweet Finishes cupcake, the cherries and the chocolate sauce were done at 100Micron level, while the sprinkles were at 200Micron. The watermark (blind application, meaning there is no print underneath it) was done at 20Micron and the cup at 60Micron. The file then was sent to Sipe’s MGI JetVarnish 3D digital machine, where sheets were fed through and the coating was applied via MGI’s inkjet varnish technology.

The finishing touch to the final cover image, which included the text, “Sweet Finishes,” embossed and hot foil stamped using red 45-Red foil by Infinity Foils. The red FSEA logo likewise was embossed and stamped with 45-Red foil and offset next to the cupcake. The combination foil and embossing brass engravings were produced by h+m USA for both the headline and logo. Due to the “digital stock” utilized for the sourcebook cover, special attention was needed to ensure the correct depth was used in the making of the combination dies. This was important to make certain there would not be any stress cracks between the letters of “Sweet Finishes” or around the FSEA logo. “We were excited to see the finished covers when they arrived,” explained Peterson. “It always is so gratifying to see a project start from a simple theme and grow into a beautiful finished product.”

The “simple theme” was not without its obstacles, however. “We did have some challenges to overcome on the FSEA cover,” reported Craig Kotzenmoyer, Sipe’s process quality manger. “We realized the digital stock and print did not react the same to the combo as conventional paper and print does.” According to Kotzenmoyer, the designers had a difficult time finding a foil that would adhere fully and cleanly to the digital paper and print before they found the MH 45 foil from Infinity.

Furthermore, the depth of the dies initially proved too great for the digital paper and print, causing stress cracks between the letters of the words “Sweet Finishes.” Kotzenmoyer explained that when then designers first used the dies on conventional paper and print, they looked great; however, when they moved to digital paper and print, it resulted in stress cracks. Sipe immediately contacted h+m, which remade the dies with less depth. “We received the second set of dies and experienced the same issue with stress cracks. It wasn’t as bad as the first set, but it still wasn’t good enough,” he explained. h+m remade the dies once more, and the third time proved to be the charm. The dies were “perfect!” according to Kotzenmoyer. “We learned that the digital paper and print we worked with on this project had its limitations on how much depth can be successfully achieved with a combo. Just as with conventional paper and print, die relief and depth are crucial for producing a quality product. I believe it is even more so when using digital paper and print. Sipe learned a great deal about digital paper and print through this project that will help us in the future.”