Eastman Kodak Co.

DIGITAL COLOR was introduced to the marketplace more than a decade ago. Indigo and Xeikon unveiled key new products in the mid-1990s, and early projections were that these technologies would take off. Initially, as with a number of new technologies, there were technical issues. Presses were unreliable; ink and toner didn’t stick to the paper; and the cost of consumables was too high to generate any substantial application transfer from offset technology. Today, Indigo has been taken over by Hewlett Packard. Xeikon faced bankruptcy before being acquired by Punch Technologies. Kodak bought out Heidelberg’s share of NexPress. Ink and toner are now sticking

Fox Valley Technical College recently installed a Kodak Trendsetter 400 II Quantum platesetter. It will be used for both production and training of students. The Appleton, Wis., school’s in-plant operates around class schedules to maximize hands-on training. “For five years in a row our students have won the PIA/GATF Premier Print awards in the student category,” noted Drake. “No other school has ever won even two years in a row, and the training our students get on KODAK technology helps us achieve these excellent results.” The Trendsetter 400 II Quantum platesetter offers semi-automatic operation, easy maintenance and excellent imaging quality. In addition to

WHILE DIGITAL color has been the hot topic in the printing industry for the past few years, digital black-and-white printing still accounts for the majority of the digital print volume. According to InfoTrends, black-and-white devices produced 874 billion impressions and generated $17.8 billion in retail value of print in 2005. Total equipment revenues (equipment, supplies and service) reached $7.41 billion. Equipment vendors have not lost sight of this opportunity and have continued to introduce new and improved devices to replace existing digital black-and-white equipment, as well as to open new market opportunities. Vendors realize that selling equipment has become about more than feeds and

I was listening to the radio the other morning when a short piece about on-demand book publishing caught my ear. The reporter mentioned a company called On Demand Books that was promoting its all-in-one printing/binding device, which can reportedly produce 20 bound books an hour. The device—called the Espresso Book Machine—wasn’t exactly news to me; the company’s been talking about it for a while, and the World Bank installed one back in April. But this news report was the latest in a series of references to on-demand book publishing that have come to my attention. Apparently, demand for printed-while-you-wait books is on

Charlie Pesko, founder and president of InfoTrends, will deliver the keynote address at the Xplor Document University, to be held in conjunction with Graphics of the Americas/Xplor. Pesko’s address, to be followed with a panel discussion, will take place on Thursday, March 1 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Titled “Cross Media Publishing: Enhancing your Customer Relationships,” this session will explore the development of cross-media publishing strategies that will serve an organization in forging deeper relationships with its customers. Topics to be covered include: • The changing business of document communications • Cost-effective

If you missed the National Government Publishing Association conference in Rochester, now you can get a feel for what it was like in a new video on the IPG Web site (www.ipgonline.com). Government in-plants from all over the country travelled to Rochester for the annual conference, where they not only attended educational sessions, but they visited the facilities of Xerox, Kodak and R.I.T. Bruce James, U.S. Public Printer, addressed the group at R.I.T., and part of his speech is captured in this 3.5-minute video. The video also offers some of the in-plant marketing ideas given in presentations.

The National Government Publishing Association (NGPA) spiced up its recent conference in Rochester, N.Y., with visits to Kodak, Xerox and R.I.T.

THIS ARTICLE will attempt to use the past, as well as the present, to get a clear look at the future of the printing industry. Predicting the future, however, is a slippery slope. Here are some of my favorite predictions, just so I can feel I’m in good company. “This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us.” —Western Union memo, 1876 (By the way, after 145 years, Western Union, has finally gotten out of the telegram business.) “The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would

THE MARKETING budget in corporate America typically falls victim to intense scrutiny. In a results-driven age, the chief marketing officer feels intense pressure from executive officers, boards, shareholders and customers to deliver measurable results. As a consequence, marketers are always asking questions like these: • How can I be as efficient as possible in my marketing efforts so I don’t waste time and money? • How can I make sales personnel more productive in prospecting and closing business? • How do I keep the sales funnel filled with qualified leads? • How can I more effectively get clients to come to me instead of

The Association of College and University Printers met for the 42nd time recently. Here are some scenes from the gathering in Boston.