As a managing director I find myself inundated with marketing material and sales calls. It doesn’t worry or aggravate me unless I’m incredibly busy and the product for sale is obviously not relevant for my business.

In a promotion which lasts until 31 July, Quark is partnering with Linotype and Pantone, to offer a design and layout tools bundle. The package will include three Linotype fonts, chosen from over 9,500 fonts on the Linotype website; a Pantone 100 top colours swatch; and Quark XPert Tools Pro XTensions software, with a combined value of up to £199.

Antalis UK has recognised Sealed Air as its supplier of the year, making it the first non-paper supplier to lift the trophy.

The award follows a series of performance reviews which ranked suppliers on their supply chain management, account management, commercial support and quality and environmental performance.

Garment decorators supplying the retail fashion and promotional clothing sector can now dip into a new resource offered by the British Garment Decorators Federation (BGDF). The new federation hosts a free internet based networking resource aimed at boosting industry standards and improving business practises.

Paper supplier, Robert Horne, has updated its product information and swatches with a new combined guide to coated and uncoated paper.

Developed as a result of customer feedback, the guide includes application ideas, price banding, stock range and environmental and technical data.

Signage specialist, Palm Signs, has installed the UK’s first Océ Arizona 250 GT at its Greenfield site in North Wales.

Ratio is marking the UK launch of its Cad Station print/scan management software with the appointment of ArtSystems as its UK trade only distributor.

Resellers who invest in the package can use the software to integrate up to three Canon wide format plotters into a single high speed plotting solution with a fully managed work flow.

Everydayprint has appointed Jenny Williams as its new senior designer.

Colourgen has appointed Karen Oosthuizen as internal sales manager and Neil Head-Rapson as internal hardware sales executive.

DCP Systems has appointed Duncan Evans as technical director.

Italian producer of wood-based flooring panels, Gruppo Frati, has significantly improved quality and throughput at its Bipan factory following the installation of a Kodak continuous inkjet digital printing system.

Large format distributor, Atech, has completed its first upgrade on an original Chromira printer using the new 5X upgrade path. In fact two companies, Loxley Colour in Glasgow and Colorset Graphics in London, took the step to improve their first generation Chromira 50 printers, increasing speeds by up to five times without losing quality.

Successful vending machines must attract customers and then offer reliable operation. Material selection plays a critical role as German-based Richard Wöhr explains

From the buzz in the halls it was clear that visitors and exhibitors had enjoyed a busy Sign UK and Digital Expo. Looking ahead, over a third of the 2008 event was sold during this show with companies including Roland DG, Spandex, Hybrid and B&P Lightbrigade already confirmed.

Atomic Media & Display used the show to launch a new range of media storage units. Clustarack is designed to hold rolled media for large format print and finishing applications.

Agfa’s newly announced XL2 and M are now available from B&P Graphic Systems. The first of these, the XL2, is a 2.5m printer with a maximum resolution of 727 by 800dpi for outputting at speeds of up to 29m2/hour onto rigid and flexible materials.

Just when many observers thought screen ink development was being forced to a halt by digital technology, in steps nanotechnology to revolutionise the industry and breathe new life into the screen process

by Peter Kiddell

Wedding photographers will tell you they are always asked to slightly modify the final pictures: touching up grey hairs or removing unfortunate relatives. The fact they can do this is testament to today’s equipment. However, with digital photo printing taking off it isn’t just wedding photographers who are benefiting

by Tracey Rushton-Thorpe

Celloglas has launched Cellogreen, an environmentally friendly alternative to oriented polypropylene (OPP). Cellogreen is an over lamination film and adhesive designed to simplify waste handling and reduced disposal costs.

Ink Technologies states its new EVOSol inks represent the next generation of truly compatible eco solvent inks for wide format printing.

Atech has announced the Manta KM8/720UV, a large format flatbed machine offering a 2 by 3m print area and vacuum system designed to provide uniform grip across the aluminium table.

DCP Systems has announced the arrival of HP’s Z6100 series inkjets. The 42 and 60in machines (PostScript versions to follow) suit display graphics, posters and photos, plus GIS, CAD, maps and fine art.

Where and when: Warrington 4 July and Oxford 5 July 2007

Chairman and Presenter: Peter Kiddell, DSPA President

www.dspa.co.uk  Tel: 01737 240792