Business

The new HP Designjet L25500 Printer and the new HP Designjet T1200 Printer are on show on the HP stand (Hall 1 Stand K21/L30) at VISCOM Visual Communication Milan, 5-7 November.

These two latest innovations from HP were launched in October and will be on display for the first time in Italy, today.

The HP Designjet L25500 Printer is designed for ease-of-use and available in 42- and 60-inch models. It utilises HP's Latex Printing Technologies to deliver unrivalled versatility for a wide range of large format applications. Offering print service providers with print durability comparable to eco-solvent inks, the HP Designjet L25500 enables users to significantly reduce the impact of printing on the environment, and increase customer value.

The new HP printer is the ideal solution for small and medium digital print and sign shops, as well as copy shops and photo labs interested in offering an enhanced range of high impact indoor and outdoor applications and increasing their competitive advantage.

The HP Designjet T1200 Printer is one of the latest additions to HP's large-format portfolio. Designed for AEC and GIS professionals to enhance productivity and versatility, this new product features two online rolls with smart switching media length tracking and high-volume ink cartridges, including the new Original HP 726 Matte Black Ink Cartridge, to offer a continuous printing experience at speeds of two D-sized prints per minute.  The HP Designjet T1200 Printer also delivers the thinnest lines in the industry, to enable users to produce prints with precise detail, crisp text, and clear and accurate drawings.

Avery Dennison has appointed Horst Rothenberger to the post of Technical Support Specialist, Offset and Screen Printing, for the Graphics and  Reflective Products division in Europe.

Mr Rothenberger joined Avery Dennison in 2006 at the Schwelm, Germany, manufacturing facility, where he served as process engineer, production manager, and quality engineer.   In his new role, he is responsible for supporting both customers of the Graphics and Reflective Products sales team on technical matters, taking over from Joop van Lammeren, who retires this year after 37 years with the company.

Having worked in commercial offset printing and in bookbinding, qualified as Diplom-Ingenieur Drucktechnik at the Media University in Stuttgart, and worked as a freelance journalist for print-related business magazines, Mr Rothenberger is well-positioned for his new assignment.   He will continue to be based in Schwelm.

Compared to the third quarter of 2008, Group sales decreased 8.1 percent to 681 million Euro, which indicates that the crisis-driven decline in Agfa-Gevaert's markets is bottoming-out.

The Group's recurring gross profit margin improved from 30.1 percent in the third quarter of 2008 to 32.3 percent. It was positively influenced by efficiency programs, lower raw material prices and certain one-off effects and negatively impacted by manufacturing inefficiencies due to lower use of capacity.

Continuing its strict cost management, Agfa-Gevaert further reduced its Selling and General Administration expenses. The average monthly SG&A expense was brought down from 51 million Euro in the third quarter of 2008, to 44 million Euro in the third quarter of 2009, which is a cost decrease by 13.7 percent. The SG&A expenses represented 19.4 percent of sales, versus 20.8 percent in the third quarter of 2008.

The Group's recurring EBITDA (the sum of Graphics, HealthCare, Specialty Products and the unallocated portion) increased from 54 million Euro in the third quarter of 2008 to 68 million Euro. Recurring EBIT increased strongly from 27 million Euro to 43 million Euro.

The restructuring and non-recurring items resulted in an expense of 7 million Euro, versus 8 million Euro in the third quarter of 2008.

As in the first half of 2009, the non-operating result was affected by pension provisions (mainly concerning inactives), to cover for increased pension deficits in theUSAand theUK. The non-operating result amounted to minus 23 million Euro.

Taxes amounted to 8 million Euro, the same as in the third quarter of 2008.

The net result amounted to 4 million Euro, compared to minus 13 million Euro in the third quarter of 2008.
Balance sheet and cash flow

* At the end of September 2009, total assets were 2,931 million Euro, compared to 3,160 million Euro at the end of 2008.
* Inventories were 514 million Euro (or 97 days). Trade receivables (including deferred revenue and advanced payments) amounted to 532 million Euro, or 70 days and trade payables were 190 million Euro, or 36 days.
* Notwithstanding the limited impact of the securitization program, net financial debt improved to 500 million Euro at the end of September 2009, compared to 569 million Euro at the end of June 2009. Net financial debt improved by 350 million Euro over the past 2 years.
* Net operating cash flow amounted to 55 million Euro.

Agfa Graphics' sales decreased 8.8 percent versus last year's third quarter. Both the market environment and the activity levels were in line with the second quarter, but sales were positively influenced by certain one-off effects.

Profitability was positively impacted by efficiency programs, by lower raw material prices and by the above mentioned one-off effects. Negative effects came from the underutilization of the manufacturing capacity, bad debt provisions and competitive pressure. Compared to the third quarter of 2008, Agfa Graphics further reduced its Sales and General Administration expense with 9 million Euro.
The recurringEBITDA margin amounted to 8.8 percent of sales. The recurring EBIT margin increased to 5.6 percent of sales.

In prepress, Agfa Graphics received its first order for :N92v printing plates from the Chinese Guangzhou Daily, one of the world's top 100 daily newspapers. Furthermore, Agfa Graphics supplied an :Avalon N8 platesetter to Sungwon Adpia, the largest consumer of Computer-to-Plate printing plates in the Korean Printing industry.

In Norway, Agfa Graphics signed an important contract with Hjemmet Mortensen Trykkeri AS, the largest printer in the country. The deal includes the installation of two :Avalon N16 platesetters, a service contract as well as a three-year contract for :Energy Elite printing plates. Agfa Graphics also signed an exclusive 5-year printing plate contract with Roularta Media Group, a majorBelgian-French publishing and printing firm.

Also in prepress, Agfa Graphics announced the signing of an agreement with Kemtek Imaging Systems Ltd. for the distribution, service and support of Agfa Graphics' product range for commercial printers in Southern Africa.

In industrial inkjet, Agfa Graphics' next generation range of :Anapurna large-format printers continued the success of the last quarters. With contracts signed all over the world, Agfa Graphics was able to expand its market position in the large-format segment.

Furthermore, Agfa Graphics introduced new features for its :Dotrix Modular inkjet press. The new Express Print Mode increases the press' productivity by 35 percent. The second feature expands the :Dotrix Modular's color gamut.

In the USA, Digital Packaging Solutions recently installed Agfa Graphics' :Dotrix Modular press. The system enables the company to deliver on-demand services for the packaging industry.

The world's first :M-Press Tiger was successfully installed at the SMP Group in London. The :M-Press Tiger is the second generation of the :M-Press industrial flatbed press. In recent months, various orders were booked for Agfa Graphics' high-end inkjet press.

Outlook - For the rest of the year, the Agfa-Gevaert Group does not expect major changes in the market environment.

Xaar, the world's leading independent supplier of industrial inkjet printheads has confirmed the appointment of Keith Nixon (BSc, MBA) to the role of European Sales Manager.

Keith joins Xaar after spending 12 years with Fujifilm Sericol, where his most recent role was Digital Business Manager. Prior to that, Keith spent some time working for both Domino Printing Sciences and Linx Printing Technologies.

Phil Eaves, Sales & Marketing Director at Xaar comments: 'We are delighted to be bringing Keith on board. His knowledge of inkjet applications and the printing industry is ideal for this role. This is a great appointment for Xaar; it strengthens our sales presence in Europe at a time when Xaar inkjet applications are developing into new market segments. I am extremely confident that he will be a valuable asset to the team.'

FESPA has welcomed the recently merged Swiss trade association Verband Werbetechnik + Print (Association of Advertising Technology and Print) to its global community of member associations, ratifying the decision at its recent General Assembly in Lisbon, Portugal.

The new entity, abbreviated to VWP, is the result of the consolidation in Spring 2009 of Verband Sieb-und Digitaldruck Schweiz (VSDS), and Verband Werbetechnik (VWT). The VWP brings together businesses in Switzerland that are engaged in advertising and print production, embracing both screen and digital processes.

The VWP’s principal goals include: the support and growth of businesses in these industries; representation of members’ interests with third-party institutions and government bodies; development of apprenticeships, training and development in all business and production disciplines; promotion of quality assurance and profiles through rules and guidelines for members; and development of links and agreements with other business organisations.

VWP board member Pablo Morf, explains: “The synergies we achieve with this merger allow us to intensify our focus on benefits to our members. As a larger organisation, we can use our combined resources more quickly and effectively to deliver a broader range of professional support services that address the changing needs of our stakeholders. Unified, our organisation is stronger and more prominent in the market, and can drive positive change. The VWP’s continued membership of FESPA guarantees further advantages to our members, giving them immediate access to best-practice information, global market research, educational materials and events, and a host of business development opportunities.”

FESPA CEO Nigel Steffens comments: “VSDS was a long-standing member association of FESPA, so we are delighted to welcome the new VWP to the fold. FESPA has been a strong advocate of this consolidation, having seen their close working relationship at first hand during our FESPA Digital exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2008.

He adds: “This is an inspirational example of how business support organisations can build partnerships and combine complementary strengths and service offerings to deliver greater value to their members. We are working through challenging times for all businesses. SMEs in particular need to be able to access affordable and relevant support and advice, and unite with similar businesses to tackle bigger issues such as training and skills development, which may hold the key to their future success. We look forward to working with the VWP in the years to come, and to welcoming their members in person at FESPA 2010 in Munich in June next year.”

An appetite for business rather than frustration with the economic situation: viscom continues on the upswing and sets markers for upturn DISPLAY/POS-World new core segment starting 2010

Düsseldorf. An appetite for business rather than frustration with the economic situation, impulses for an economic upturn and innovations with a stimulating effect: there was hardly a hint of crisis at viscom which, with a marked increase in visitor numbers, set a signal for an economic upturn in the entire sector.

"In a generally difficult economic environment, viscom was able to demonstrate its strength as a positive impulse giver", Hans-Joachim Erbel, Managing Director of Reed Exhibitions Deutsch¬land GmbH, remarked at the close of the three-day event. With more than 10,900 trade visitors, viscom succeeded in growing by more than 22 percent compared to the previous event in Düsseldorf (2007: 8,900), again exceeding last year's top result in Frankfurt. Growth was generated equally at home and abroad.

"Our exhibitors' innovative capacity beats the crisis", is how viscom Director Petra Lassahn delightedly sums up the course of the three fair days. This is also evident from the results of the business barometer, a survey taken at viscom by an independent research institute. According to this survey, more than 80 percent of the companies interviewed expect a positive trend in business, with only one in six expecting the economic situation to deteriorate further. The optimism is due primarily to the business generated by the large number of innovations presented at viscom.

This is not only true for the digital high-tech segments which attracted great interest from a broad range of advertising agencies and retailers at the Digital Signage World, and will continue to expand considerably. The segment of industrial inkjet printing which is used increasingly in industrial production - as in the clothing and furniture industries or in interior furnishings - is also attracting a growing number of customers at viscom who can gain an impression of the possibilities already available in production technology at this stage. There are hardly any limits these days to the industrial processing of all types of materials. More than 150 materials were presented at viscom in the "Industrial Inkjet meets Materials" special show. This is another reason why, with a new visitor structure, viscom is attracting new target groups to the fair and developing more and more into an event also frequented by advertising agencies, decision-makers from industry and the retail sector as well as the manufacturing sectors. A trend that again continued this year.

Yet even in the "classic" segments of advertising technology and light advertising with their predominantly trade character, innovative capacity helps to reach new markets and target groups by using new technologies and materials. A case in point is the first "European Wrap Star" which demonstrated the design possibilities available today with the use of new high-performing films.

All in all, 15 product innovations and best practice applications from the segments of Digital Printing/Large Format Printing, Light Advertising, Signmaking and Digital Signage received awards at this years' viscom (for more detailed information on these, visit www.viscom-messe.de).

In the segments relevant to POS which, with the application of new materials and finishing techniques as well as of digital media and lighting technologies, are growing in importance for product presentation and packaging, viscom further strengthened its leadership. Especially the combination of classic displays, digital POS media and innovations in material technology proves that viscom has the potential to become the POS industry's central trade fair in future.

From 2010 onwards, this is to become another viscom core segment named DISPLAY/POS World, specifically targeting manufacturers and suppliers of display, POS and packaging solutions. "For our exhibitors and visitors, the concentration of exhibitors from the Display/POS sector in a segment of their own represents an additional asset and ideally complements our established core segments advertising technology, lighting technology, digital and individual printing, as well as finishing technology and digital signage", says viscom-Chefin Petra Lassahn. In addition to the exhibition area, the segment will also include an extensive supporting programme as well as the traditional SUPERSTAR contest.

viscom frankfurt will take place from 28 to 30 October 2010 in Hall 3 of the Frankfurt Exhibition Centre.