Last week I received an invitation to the auction of the assets of a well known, London-based, large format printer that I've been dealing with for many years. Naturally, my thoughts go out to the staff and suppliers who often pay a disproportionately high price when a business slips into administration.

A total of twenty Colortrac SmartLF Cx 40 scanners have been supplied by Allied Images for use as part of a national reform of the planning process.

EFI has expanded its suite of inkjet solutions by investing in Jettable, an inkjet technology company specialising in digital printing onto ceramic substrates.

Epson Traditional Photo Paper will be available from Colurgen at 50 per cent of the recommended retail price until 30 September. The offer applies to A4, A3+ and A2 papers with prices starting at £11.83 for 25 A4 sheets.

Europoint Display, a subsidiary of The Paper Company, has launched an initiative to encourage high street retailers and supermarkets to print their signage, packaging and displays on environmentally friendly substrates.

Colour management and proofing solutions supplier, GMG, has updated its website with new functions, user-friendly design and a clearer structure.

An open door policy ensures DCP Systems' new centre of excellence is accessible to both photographers and fine art professionals keen to find out more about the company's large format Epson printers, scanners and projectors. These, along with various media and inks, will be available for demonstration, training and seminars at the Sheffield facility.

Spühl is set to introduce a new five metre wide roll-to-roll printer during its in-house show, running 12 to 14 November in Wittenbach. The large format digital print specialist will debut the new system, capable of printing up to 300m2/h, depending on colour configuration. Rolls up to 500mm diameter and 700kg can be handled.

With more than 350 individuals already signed-up, Fespa's new online networking site, the Wide Network, is the ideal place for wide format digital print professionals to share ideas and discuss current issues.

Sign manufacturer, Vista System, has been recognised by the Society for Environmental Graphic Design Green Committee (SEGD) as a company that employs green practices in the creation of its environmentally friendly modular sign system. It also highlights that the processes and materials used throughout the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of its goods are as environmentally friendly as possible.

Web-based inquiry and procurement system, Print Support, has been enhanced so that suppliers can register for free. The site, which is used by  print buyers and printing companies to purchase paper and outsource jobs, can now be utilised across the entire purchasing process, with no additional costs.

Unlike other heating methods, contact drying systems work by drying inks from the substrate surface to the top side of the ink. This means the technology actually works in reverse to heated air and infra red (IR) ovens, which dry from the ink's top side down to the material surface.

Lauren Displays' journey began in 2006 when it invested £1.2milion in both digital and lithographic kit in order to offer customers a one-stop-shop for point of sale and display related products.  Then, in August 2007, the company was bought wholly by London based agency Creo Retail Marketing in an affiliation that should see the joint turnover of the two entities soar to £20million by 2011.

This family run firm operates successfully in the POS market, competing on quality, delivery and price, using screen printing technology. How is this achieved? Managing director, Dieter Jernej, believes it is down to investment in the best equipment, backed by sound research and regular upgrades, at least every five years.

A few minutes spent on any motorway or suburban road now guarantees that you will see giant advertisements attached to trucks or trailers. Not the advertisements you might expect for cars and petrol, but eye catching raunchy adverts for underwear. Adverts for radio stations, train travel, holidays, fashion, health foods, films, record releases, video games and new technology to name just a few.

There can't be many wide format printers that haven't suffered the consequences of a head crash. One minute everything is fine, moments later the printer is stalled, the job is ruined and the trouble has only just begun. With luck, the situation can be recovered with some TLC. Unfortunately, it's more likely to require a visit from an engineer to replace a damaged head.

The show promises a diverse exhibitor profile, with traditional techniques showcased alongside modern advances to create a multi-faceted event. A number of significant names have signed up including Axyz Automation, Daktronics, Grafityp, Spandex, Ashby Trade Signs, Avery Dennison, Canon, Robert Horne and William Smith. A full exhibitor list can be found by visiting the event website.

Specialising in engraving and signmaking materials, plus traditional and laser engraving systems, Identify's stand is designed as an Aladdin's cave of solutions.

Robert Horne Sign and Display will be promoting its website, which enables signmakers and printers to order ancillary signmaking products on-line. Items range from squeegees, tapes and vinyl to high visibility clothing, knives and gloves and even office stationery. Payment is by credit card, in a safe and secure environment, so there is no need to set up an account.

Visitors to The Sign Show not only have the chance to view the latest technologies and innovations, they are given hands-on opportunities to try out sign making techniques, including gold gilding, as demonstrated by Torquay-based, Chapman and Smith. Delegates are encouraged to try their hand at this skill at the show.

Claimed to be the industry's first amalgamated back lighting unit, Applelec Sign Components will launch its LED Light Sheet panel. This comprises a number of high brightness LEDs embedded in an acrylic panel, said to result in a slender profile and lightweight, easy to install design. Various new lighting opportunities will be possible using this flat light source.

Following the success of its Clustarack media storage unit, Atomic Media and Display is set to launch a combination rack for storing two and three inch core materials together. The new Clustarack Combi exhibits the same advantages of the original product, which is designed to store hand rolled media vertically on a flat base. This helps prevent damage to the roll end, which can cause waste and downtime when printhead snags occur.

A range of consumables, vinyl and accessories will be showcased by Doro Tape, which will be celebrating 20 years in the sign and graphics industry during the exhibition.

With over 50 CNC installations in the last 18 months, CNC equipment supplier, Emach, has witnessed great growth in recent times. Developments in both CAD CAM software and C02 laser systems look set to continue the success this year.

Bringing a touch of colour to the exhibition, Grafityp will display both the Grafitack and Graficast range of signmaking vinyls, produced by Grafityp in Belgium. The stand will also showcase Grafiprint media for those with digital printers.

New for 2008, the Hampshire Flag Company will display its Pop-up Event Banners, available in four frame orientations: horizontal, vertical, tower and round. Suitable for use both indoors and out, the company claims the banners can be assembled and displayed in seconds without the need for assistance or tools. A variety of sizes are available and every Pop-up is supplied in a storage bag.

With over three hundred models in its current pen range, trade supplier, The Pen Warehouse is dedicated to the production and sale of promotional writing instruments.

TheMagicTouch digital image transfer process is being adopted by customers as a means to add value for existing and prospective clients.

Throughout the show William Smith will be demonstrating the RollsRoller Flatbed Applicator, together with one of the newest additions to its portfolio, the Mutoh Blizzard inkjet printer.

Big has had its day. From cars, to computers, to mobile phones, the message is that good things really do come in small packages. Being compact is a desirable commodity as technology enables us to produce an ever greater output, with minimal input.

The holidays are over and we should all be refreshed for whatever the market can throw at us. Oil prices are falling after the commodity brokers have taken their snouts from the trough, so the market may see a little more optimism on the horizon.

Whenever a new venture starts, in almost any field of endeavour, in needs momentum before it can really accelerate away from the starting grid.

Generic cyanoacrylates have earned the reputation of ‘instant' adhesives from their ability to bond quickly with little joint preparation. ThreeBond's TB7700 Gold Series is formulated to take this capability a stage further, offering ultra-fast curing (as low as 2s), high initial bond strength and enhanced substrate applicability, even encompassing porous or hard to -bond materials such as PBT, PCM or PPS. The company expected all types of industrial user will find the product a significant advance over conventional materials.

Textured polyester film from MacDermid Autotype's Autotex range is being used in membrane keypads made by Hoffmann and Krippner. The backlit keypads are installed in laser-optical precision alignment equipment, developed by Prüftechnik Alignment Systems.

ALCAN COMPOSITES' UK sales team has revealed that many customers are favouring KAPA® over conventional polystyrene foamboards and other sheet materials, due to superior digital image quality, ease of processing and other benefits.

The ability to handle small production runs makes Calson's F10 Foil-Tech system ideal for cost effective prototyping, as greetings card manufacturer, Oboe Publishing, illustrates.

Packaging design specialist, TDX has established an independent, tradeonly thermoforming service as a fastresponse back-up for UK thermoformers caught out by sudden surges in demand. It can be used to manufacture trays for soft fruits and BBQ products for example, which are subject to seasonal demand.

Glamour packaging from FiberMark was selected by Bacardi USA when it launched a new premium tequila, Corzo, targeted at the luxury market. The drinks manufacturer wanted its packaging to work hard and selected products from the Dorset range, not least because of FiberMark's experience as a luxury goods material supplier.

Designed to enhance safety in a range of manufacturing process equipment, ETE RF Engineering has introduced a new arc sense unit (ASU) based on digital electronics. The basic unit is 24VDC supply and boasts a typical total trip time of 174ns.

How to reach specifiers?

As a worldwide leading supplier of the stationery industry Alkor Draka b.v. have now created the latest version of their ‘Designer Collection Binder'.

Since 1995, Tarrant Machines has built a reputation for supplying the UK stationery, pattern book and book-binding industries with reliable finishing equipment. Predominantly sourced from Italian suppliers, machinery is available from basic start-up kit to sophisticated automatic systems.

Designed to work with materials up to 50mm thick, Zünd's G3 cutter and router family automates all cutting and trimming functions, enhancing the production process and introducing energy savings along the way.