A Primer for Better Results on Press

The key to successfully completing printed projects is communication. Each job has its own set of requirements between the designer, paper merchant, and printer. It’s always a good idea to begin early on in the design process with your paper rep. As a paper rep, we can help you select the best paper stock to fit your job’s requirements including environmental attributes, availability (really important if it’s a smaller run), and budget while maintaining the integrity of your design. We’ll provide you with samples and promotions, dummies, and printing tips (for free) – we just ask that when you send the job out for print quotes that you specify the paper merchant you want them to quote and purchase the paper from.

Choosing a Printer
Print reps love to show their samples – look at them. I mean really look at them – are there any critical areas in the sample and how did they do it? Ask them for samples if you are thinking about using a certain print technique. Ask about specifics: line screen, bindery equipment, proofing systems, digital capabilities. Tour the press room, see how organized they are, check for things like temperature and humidity control – ask about quality control methods.

Releasing the Project
Since you have created an original project, you need to define your expectations – clearly. Talk about important parts of the project and show examples of results you expect. Ask for a production schedule including a timeline for receiving proofs, when they need to be returned, press date and delivery dates.

Make sure the printer knows your paper specs: grade, color, weight, and finish – every part of that job is based on your paper selection, from prepress through bindery.

Ask about the types of proofs you’ll receive, digital proofs are great if you are on a tight deadline and need to save money. What about inks? If your working with a special ink or color match is crucial, ask for ink drawdowns – make sure its on the paper stock you’ll be using – showing any respective coatings on the drawdowns as well. Coatings can affect the ink shade.

Confirms your dates, ask for a finished sample for your approval before the job ships. Make sure to specify packing instructions with addresses and carrier info.

Whenever possible, its always a good idea to get all communication in writing – ask for a follow up email if you’ve had a conversation about a change, and don’t forget to ask for an estimate before making changes.

On Press
You’ve done your due diligence - have final proofs, original artwork, and ink swatches/drawdowns – use those to check against on press. Make sure you have a loupe, and take your time. Sign and date three sheets – one for you, the printer, and the client. Ask the printer to slip sheet a complete set for you to take. Some areas to note:

Solids – all inks should be laying down smoothly. Densities should be even cross the sheet and match between forms. Check by eye and densitometer. Look for mottling.

Images – are they dark or plugged in? Look at the dot gain targets and dot shape; check the type for crisp edges.

Position – rule out a sheet with trims and scores. Have the sheet folded and trimmed to size. Make sure it’s backed properly and the crossovers line up.

Registration – are color overlapping, causing a dark line, not touching, causing the paper to show? Look at the targets, the edges of images, any knock out and screened type.

Color Match – compare the proof and ink swatches to the press sheet. For color and crossovers, have the printer cut the sheet for flat, side by side comparison. Rely on the experience of the press operator and production manager for color shift options. Move one color at a time and make sure to note any moves on the press sheet. Examine important areas of color – especially flesh tones. Remember color on press may never exactly match the color proof – the goal should be to make the images look as good as possible. Ask about dry back.

Check for flaws like broken type, hickies, blade streaks, spots, and ghosting.

Review for overall impact and legibility. They key to success on press is communication. Make sure your printer knows your expectations and you understand their capabilities.

Connect with Cougar

Ask any printer or designer about Cougar Opaque from Domtar and they'll tell you they know it well. There's good reason for that. Cougar's printability, runnability and affordability delivers consistent results.

Domtar has expanded the grade with a new super smooth offering. This newset finish to the Cougar line up offers an extremely smooth, uniform surface for great print results delivering eye-opening resolution, crisp type, bold graphics, vivid color and outstanding performance. But don't take their word for it, check it out for yourself, order your copy of the latest promotional sample on Cougar: "Connectivity" from our sample studio.

Below are some images from "Connectivity", a commercial buy-in (love that!)on Cougar 80#C Super Smooth. Designed by Compass360 in Toronto, according to their website "We had some fun with UV spot varnishes on bright hits of colour, and some nice paper selection to make this little book feel (and look) great in your hands."

5 Steps for Specifying Eco-friendly Papers

I get asked a lot by my customers what is the most environmentally friendly paper. Many think because a paper has 100%PCW that it must be the best choice for their client - not necessarily so. To make life a little easier for those who really want to be eco-conscious when selecting paper for print, here are 5 simple steps to remember.

1. Choose paper with the highest amount of PCW for the job. Did you see that last part - for the job. Just because a sheet is 100%PCW does not mean it is appropriate for every print project. For example, it is very easy to find a sheet for an identity system that is 100%PCW and I would say that is a very conscientious choice. However, if you are working on an annual report, or corporate brochure and require a coated paper, 100%PCW is not going to be a good fit. Why?

Let me break it down - most coated papers are made with 10%PCW for a reason due to the manufacturing process. Now many coated paper mills can produce sheets with up to 30%PCW without compromising the integrity of the sheet, but when you get past that point - all bets are off. Paper can be recycled up to 7 times, by that last time it's like tissue paper. The more a sheet is recycled the weaker the fibers become - weak fibers can present a whole host of issues , but the most common one is cracking. So if it's a project with solid ink coverage and on a cover weight - high PCW content (above 10-30%) on a coated paper almost guarantees cracking issues.

Then there's also the issue of not nearly enough recycled pulp available to manufacture all the paper we have that way. If the industry attempted to manufacture all papers with 100%PCW they'd run out of pulp in two months.

2. Select a sheet that is manufactured with third party chain of custody certification. Today in the US that means one of three options: FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), SFI (Sustainable Forestry Initiative), and PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes). These certification insure that the paper is coming from a well managed forest. This is not really an issue in North America, however it is in places like Indonesia and China. Right now FSC is the most widely held here in North America. To use these logos all three parties in the chain (paper mill, paper merchant, and printer) must be certified.

3. Select paper that is manufactured with renewable energy. This is becoming more and more important. Right now we are fortunate, there are many paper mills that have long employed renewable energy as a means of manufacturing - now they are just becoming better promoters about it. Renewable energy could mean wind power, solar, bio-mass, hydroelectric - to name a few. Look for the Green-e logo on the swatch books to insure certification.

4. Select paper that paper that is manufactured chlorine free. When paper is recycled, the mills need to remove the ink on the existing sheet - that is done by bleaching. Up until the late 1990s, chlorine was the chemical of choice for bleaching paper in the kraft pulping process, which produces almost all printing and office papers, as well as tissue products, along with some types of packaging. Not only does chlorine get paper fibers very white, it also pulls out and binds with lignins (the structural cells in the tree that cause paper to deteriorate).

However, when chlorine bonds chemically with carbon-based compounds (such as lignins), it produces dioxins and toxic pollutants. When released into water, they do not break down. Dioxin, even when released in miniscule amounts, bioaccumulates as it moves up the food chain, reaching its highest concentration in humans, where it is increasingly linked to cancers as well as endocrine, reproductive, nervous and immune system damage.

Look for either Process Chlorine Free (PCW content papers) or Totally Chlorine Free (Virgin fiber papers)to insure no chlorine was used in the manufacturing process.

5. Look for papers made with alternative fibers. Sounds simple, but sometimes I think we forget that there are many options other than wood out there. Some alternative fibers are bagasse, hemp, kenaff, bamboo, and even rocks.

Hopefully this will help simplify the process of specifying environmentally friendly papers. If you are looking for more info, check out our eco-friendly guides for coated and uncoated papers here.

Embossing Tips

Embossing is a process by which a metal plate containing an image in relief is pressed into paper, forming a raised image - the opposite process, debossing, results in a lowered image. Here are some things to think about when using this technique:

Embossing tends to smooth out the paper's surface - you can take advantage of this by contrasting the smoothness of an embossed image with a highly textured paper (like a felt finish).

The finished image appears smaller than the original because of the bevel or rounded side of the emboss.

When done improperly, embossing can sometimes cause the paper to tear, crack, or pucker around the edges.

Brass or steel dies dies tend to be better for longer press runs or a multi-level emboss. Magnesium dies can be mor ecost effective for shorter runs or a simple emboss.

Make sure the emboss is imprinted with the grain of the paper to prevent cracking/tearing.

Specify a bevel emboss for sharp details or pointed edges; bevels allow for a deeper emboss without tearing the paper.

Make images and type slightly oversized, and space your type to provide extra room to allow for beveled or rounded edges.

Avoid small type or type with pointed serifs.

Avoid printing type over the reversed embossed image on the opposite side of the sheet.

Request to have the die undercut slightly at the edges, to adjust for the amount of pressure necessary to emboss a highly textured sheet.

Coated Paper Industry Files Major Unfair Trade Cases Against China And Indonesia

Appleton Coated LLC, NewPage Corporation, Sappi Fine Paper North America, and the United Steelworkers of America (USW) announced today that they have filed antidumping and countervailing duty petitions covering imports of certain coated paper from the People’s Republic of China and Indonesia.

The industry seeks to have the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. International Trade Commission, the agencies responsible for investigating unfair trade practices, impose duties to offset Chinese and Indonesian government subsidization and dumping. The paper products covered by the petitions include coated paper used in high-quality writing, printing, and other graphic applications using sheet-fed presses, whether in finished sheet form or in semi-finished roll form, with a GE brightness rating of 80 or higher.

Under the antidumping and countervailing duty statutes, the International Trade Commission is expected to make a preliminary injury determination in November 2009 and the Department of Commerce is expected to issue preliminary determinations in the countervailing duty and antidumping duty cases in December 2009 and March 2010, respectively.

The petitions estimate that total imports of covered coated paper have jumped from 131,687 short tons in the first six months of 2008 to 185,422 short tons in the first six months of 2009 -- an increase of nearly 40 percent. During the same period, covered coated paper shipments by domestic manufacturers are estimated to have declined by approximately 38 percent. China and Indonesia together are believed to account for nearly 30 percent of the U.S. market for the coated paper covered by the petitions in the first six months of this year, almost double the share they had at the same time last year.

“What we are seeking in this petition is a level playing field. Sappi’s operations across the globe reflect both economic and environmental sustainability principles,” said Mark Gardner, president and chief executive officer of Sappi Fine Paper North America. “We want fair competition and protection against those companies not making investments in sustainable practices.”

The petitions allege that various subsidies are being provided to Chinese paper producers, including low interest loans, tax subsidies, input subsidies, land use programs, grants, export tax subsidies and the pervasive undervaluation of China’s currency. Similarly, the petitions allege that Indonesian paper companies are benefiting from timber provided from government-owned land at below-market prices, a ban on log exports, government loans, debt forgiveness, and tax incentives for certain encouraged businesses.

“This case is not about protectionism—it’s about fair trade,” stated Rick Willett, president and chief executive officer of NewPage Corporation. “Domestic manufacturers enjoy numerous cost advantages over their Chinese and Indonesian competitors for paper used in our domestic marketplace, including abundant, well managed forest resources, energy and raw materials, as well as lower transportation and logistics costs. In addition, we continue to invest in modern technology, well-maintained assets and our world-class work force. We are not afraid to compete with anyone on a level playing field.”

“The domestic paper industry producing certain coated paper covered by these petitions has been significantly harmed by unfair trade practices,” said John Cappy, president and chief executive officer of Appleton Coated LLC. “It is important that we offset the dumping and subsidies which are benefiting the Chinese and Indonesian paper companies at the cost of American manufacturing jobs. The domestic paper industry cannot afford to continue to lose more market share, more profits and more jobs to unfair competition.”

The domestic industry has experienced substantial capacity reduction and under-utilization resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs. The petitions show that unfairly traded imports from China and Indonesia are a significant contributor to that underutilization of capacity and resultant job loss.

The Impact of the "Mega" Printers

A recent PRIMIR study entitled "Mega Printers' Impact on the North American Print Market" explores the merger and acquisition activity among printers in the graphic communications industry has resulted in a new breed of printer - the "mega printer."

According to the report, "This group of companies (with over $750 million in annual sales) represented $32.584 billion in revenue in 2007, and comprised more than 30% the commercial print market. While overall revenues for the "mega printers" declined during the study period of 1999 to 2007 by about 6%, they represent a growing share of a declining commercial print market. Thus, not only are "mega printers" themselves increasing top-line revenue, but they stand to play an ever-larger role in the rapidly changing North American commercial printing industry."

When you 'look under the hood,' the study revealed some striking findings. While more efficient buying practices are a hallmark benefit of these large companies, in reality it appears they are neither more efficient manufacturers nor more efficient purchasers.

Additionally, many consolidation economies-of-scale are being offset by increased organizational complexity, loss of flexibility, murderous competition for shrinking sales volume and correspondingly relentless pricing pressures. The public companies have the added complexity of the pressures of Wall Street to deliver increased operating and net margins results.

The research found that each "mega printer" operates very differently, however, in most instances purchasing decisions for capital expenditures (presses and equipment) are on a schedule and planned well in advance but decisions come from corporate. Other equipment, software and supplies and consumables like paper or ink may be decided at the plant level sometimes with geographic or shipping considerations in mind (but with a limited number of suppliers on the preferred list).

With the current economy, there is no doubt that the merger and consolidation activity will continue, and the few successful/profitable "mega printers" will serve as role models for the others. Although the number of firms in the industry is declining, the research team reported that the remaining firms should demonstrate a healthier printing industry.

Survey: Print Publishers Ready to Capitalize on Mobile Market

The digital advertising and publishing market is poised for growth, supported by new mobile devices and advances in applications and technology. A new survey from the Audit Bureau of Circulations reveals that print publishers are focusing on the market as a prime opportunity to expand their brands, reach new audiences and generate additional revenue while offering advertisers the chance to reach locally targeted, engaged audiences.

“The results of ABC’s survey demonstrate that publishers recognize the growing importance of mobile devices in consumers’ daily lives and are actively embracing mobile as a new way to extend their brands,” said Michael Lavery, ABC president and managing director. “We continue to hear from newspapers and magazines as they integrate mobile into their digital publishing plans. And interest in ABC’s multimedia reporting options is very high, with mobile poised to be one of the next distribution channels included on those reports.”

Survey Highlights
-More than 80 percent of newspaper and magazine respondents believe people will rely more heavily on mobile devices as a primary information source in the next three years.

-Nearly 70 percent of respondents agree that mobile is receiving more attention at their publication this year than last. More than a third believe their publication already has a well-developed plan for attacking and conquering the mobile market.

-Forty-four percent of respondents who track mobile’s impact on their Web site traffic said the devices increased visits by up to 10 percent today. Half believe mobile traffic to their Web sites will increase by five to 25 percent in the next two years.

-Among senior executive respondents, 56 percent said their publication has plans to develop a smartphone application in the next 24 months, in addition to the 17 percent of respondents who already have an app in production.

-Regardless of mobile’s anticipated rise, ABC publisher members do not plan to abandon their print publications in favor of a digital-only product in the near term. While 55 percent believe that digital delivery of their publication is important to their strategic future, three-fourths believe that their publication will be available in a print form five years from now.

-More than half of the survey respondents believe that the future business model of mobile content will be supported by both advertising and subscriptions.

-Nearly a third believe that mobile will have a significant impact on their publication’s revenue in just three years.

To read about the survey's entire findings, click here.

Forest Ethics vs. SFI

ForestEthics and SFI are going at. The two groups committed to sustainable forestry practices have taken off the gloves and began swinging at each other this week. Its no secret that third party forestry certification has slowed down a bit, it's kind of funny to see these groups argue over who certification scheme is more "green."

ForestEthics has accused SFI of greenwashing and tax fraud and SFI says these accusations are an affront to the efforts of it's foresters. To read more about the pot calling the kettle black, check out this post on the Dead Tree Edition.

Media Spending Cuts to Fall Most Heavily on Print

The economic downturn is causing most marketers to decrease media spending budgets, and the remaining expenditures are shifting further toward digital, according to emarketer daily.

More than two-thirds of senior executives responding to the “2009 Media Survey Results & Analysis” reported their media budgets would decrease at least somewhat in 2009 compared with 2008. Still, almost one-quarter expected spending to climb by up to 10%, and a few respondents reported even greater increases.

While a majority of respondents said they would hold budgets for each medium except print steady in 2009 compared with 2008, digital was still the clear winner. Budgets were more likely to be cut than increased for traditional media such as TV, radio and direct mail, but more respondents said they would up their investments in e-mail marketing, search and interactive than said spending would be reduced.















E-mail marketing was most likely to see an increase in spending in 2009, and print was the biggest loser (what a shocker). The across-the-board shift from traditional to digital media represents a general reallocation of marketing budgets to newer media channels.

Stochastic vs. Conventional Printing

Computer-To-Plate technology has allowed more printers to utilize a different technique for printing halftones known as Frequency Modulation (FM) screening, or stochastic printing. However, conventional screening, or Amplitude Modulation (AM), is certainly not obsolete, especially when higher line screens of 175 to 200 are used in halftone and four color process printing.

The best way to define stochastic printing is to compare it to conventional printing.

In conventional printing, images are printed using grid-like screens that separate the image into evenly space dots that are larger in size in the darker areas and smaller in size in the light areas. In four color process printing, separate screens are used to reproduce each of the four colors, black, cyan, magenta and yellow.

In stochastic printing, images are printed by dots spread randomly throughout the image area. The dots are not equally spaced and aligned in a row or grid and they vary according to the tonal value to be reproduced. The lighter areas have few dots, the darker areas have more dots.

There are significant differences, advantages and disadvantages of both stochastic and conventional screening. Printing with stochastic screening offers the advantages of more detail, less ink on the sheet, no moiré pattern, increase tonal values, crisper fine lines and small type and cleaner reverses. Conventional screens have the advantages of greater latitude of changing color density on press, more forgiving halftone reproduction, better printing of large amounts of ink on paper and better production of one and two color printing.

To read more about advantages and disadvantages of stochastic printing, check out this article on neenahpaper.com

Print Still Drives the Bus

At the annual Print '09 conference in Chicago, a future-focused discussion entitled "What's Print Got to Do with It?" too kplace. It consistsed of a panel featuring media and marketing heavyweights such as Ogilvy & Mather Chairman Shelly Lazarus, Deutsch CEO Linda Sawyer, Wired Magazine Publisher Howard Mittman and Kodak Chairman-CEO Antonio Perez discussed the medium's future, and, for the most part, arrived at sunnier conclusions than fans of the printed word are used to hearing.

According to Mr. Mittman, print's most valuable role is as a source of increased reader engagement and as a driver of traffic to Wired's websites."Print can do what the other [media] can't," he said. "It has a level of engagement that really begins the process." Read the full article featured in Ad Age.

FSC - 15 years later where are we?

The Forest Stewardship Council, FSC, was formed back in 1994 with the intent to promote responsible forest management and to find solutions to the problems created by bad forestry practices. Today, FSC has over 100 million hectares of certified forests in over 80 countries, with the majority coming from North America and Europe. Here's a glimpse of some of the progress the organziation has made over thast 15 years:

-experienced a 50% growth rate in 2008
-Total number of FSC forest management certificates issued worldwide is over 900
-82 countries hold FSC forest management and chain of custody certificates
-It is becoming the fastest growing certification scheme in the world, with greater sources of suppliers globally and increased brand awareness

According to FSC's 2008 Market Survey, 49% of certificate holders who completed the survey said they became certified to gain a competitive edge; 46% indicated that their clients required them to become certified; 37% responded that it was the right thing to do. To read the complete report, click here

Strathmore Show Winners

Mohawk Fine Papers announced the winners of the Spring Quarter Strathmore Show. The Strathmore Show is a design competition that showcases the works of graphic designers and printers, from stationery to invitations, announcements, or any other type of communication printed on any Strathmore paper.

The Strathmore Show Spring Quarter 2009 winning entries are:

Gold: Blackedge Strategic Capital Letterhead designed by Briony Crane, BRANDFX, and printed by Nathen Printing on Strathmore Elements.


Silver: Dallas Show Invitation, designed by Rhonda Camp Warren, Color Box Design, for the Dallas Society of Visual Communications (DSVC), and printed by Color Box Letterpress on Strathmore Script.


Bronze: The Walt Disney Family Museum Letterhead. The letterhead was designed by Frank Kofsuske, Em Dash Design and Pentagram designed the logo, printed by One Heart Press on Strathmore Writing.

“The number and quality of entries into Strathmore Show continues to increase every quarter. Despite the economic downturn, there’s still a lot of great work being done out there. In fact, it has become very difficult for us to choose only three winners each quarter,” says Tracy Smith, Marketing Project Manger, Mohawk Fine Paper

Reinventing Print Media

In the current issue of Strategy + Business Magazine, an article called Reinventing Print Media offers four new strategies offer a path to future profits for today's troubled print industry.

Develop deeper relationships with readers around targeted interest areas.
Strong print brands enjoy a trusted relationship with their audience; readers are loyal to print publications because they provide high-quality content about specific interest areas. Digital media afford opportunities to deepen and extend those relationships.

Tap into revenue streams beyond advertising and circulation.
New publishing models will include marketing services such as custom content, consumer insights, and lead generation, and new offerings for customers such as premium content and data-based applications.

Reinvent the content delivery model (with a particular focus on lowering costs) and emphasize a “profitable core” of unique and brand-defining material.
Print media companies need to avoid the formula-driven approaches to cost cutting that have been prevalent so far, and instead adopt approaches that better align their cost of content with the revenues generated.

Innovate with new products and pricing models.
As the pace of change continues to quicken in the digital world, as new devices for accessing printed content continue to emerge, and as new applications are developed to exploit online content, this will lead to as-yet-untapped opportunities for media companies.

To read the entire article, click here

When the Person is the Brand

The latest edition of @issue features a great article about Wolfgang Puck - the brand. Puck's name is synonymous with fine dining and all things foodie, but as Puck's empire grew the need for consistent messaging became apparent. What Duffy & Partners found out was that two things held the brand together: the name, Wolfgang Puck and his image, and they knew these two things had to be a part of the visual identity.



The message needed to work across all media types - signage, print, packaging, and online. They developed iconography that worked in a number of ways along with graphics specifying a fresh palette of colors, patterns, and typeface, resulting in both a personal and timeless effect.




>

The Future of Paper

With the advent of Amazon's Kindle, and the downward spiral of newspapers and print ads, one has to wonder what the future holds for paper. I stumbled across this video from cbsnews.com, where Mo Rocca explores this question and discovers paper's rich history in the process. Check it out here.