E version pf may june 2014

Vol. XVI • No. 93 • JUNE 2014

Rs. 20

Elected New Office Bearers & Committee Members of The Printing Technologists Forum for 2014-16

(Details inside)

Mr. D.Ramalingam, Returning Officer of the AGM seen announcing the Nominations received.

The Forum’s elected new office bearers for 2014-16 (L to R) : Mr. K.B.S.Shanmugasundaram - Hony. Joint Secretary, Dr. B. Kumar - Vice-President - II, Mr.P Chellappan - President, Mr. Rm. Senthilnathan - Vice President - I Mr. M. Venkatesan - Hony. Genl. Secretary, and Mr. R. K. Sridharan - Hony. Treasurer.

Members in view Mr. P. Chellappan sharing his vision on the future of THE FORUM

New Office Bearers with Executive Committee Members (details printed in pages 16 and 17)

Members in view

Dr. B. Kumar compered the AGM

33rd Annual General Body Meeting of the Printing Technologists Forum

May - June 2014 / Vol. XVI, No. 93 / Print Forum 1

From President’s Desk

P [email protected]

Dear Members,

At the outset I would like to thank all of you for having elected me as the President of the Printing Technologists Forum for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16.

I also thank all of you on behalf of the new team that has been mandated to run the affairs of the Printing Technologists Forum for the next two years.

I along with the new team would like to place on record our appreciation of the Immediate Past President Mr.Bakshi and his predecessors for having led the Forum admirably over the past 33 years.

Over the past few years we have been witnessing a lack of interest amongst the members in attending meetings and seminars. We have also not been able to increase our membership base. Our first priority would be to reverse this disturbing trend. Our new “Plan of Action” is based on this immediate priority.

Our major areas of concentration would be :

• Membership Drive : Over the coming year we plan to increase our membership base by at least 50 to 100 members. Of course we will be concentrating on getting quality members rather than just mere numbers.

• Monthly Talks : On a fixed day every month we plan to organize a Talk on either a Technical or Management topic that would be of interest to the members.

• Paid Seminars / Workshops : We plan to conduct at least three programs every year. Experts from the relevant field will be invited to talk during these programs. Since these will be paid programs, it will help in augmenting the finances of the Forum.

• Technical Services : Being a technologists forum, we plan to provide technical services to the printing industry where ever possible with the help of experts in our Forum.

• Journal & Publication : In addition to bringing out the regular Printing Technologists Forum magazine, we also plan to bring out some technical publications.

With the guidance of our seniors and your support I am sure we will be able to take the Printing Technologists Forum to greater heights.

The PrintingTechnologistsForumREGISTERED No. 149/1989

2, Venu Reddy Street, GuindyChennai 600 032

e.mail:[email protected]

Office-bearers P. Chellappan, PresidentMobile 93810 01810Rm. Senthilnathan, Vice-President IMobile 98410 41997Dr. B. Kumar, Vice-President II Mobile 94440 51707M. Venkatesan, Hony. General SecretaryMobile 98842 74908K.B.S.Shanmugasundram, Hony. Jt Secretary Mobile 9884274912 R. K. Sridharan, Hony. TreasurerMobile 98416 47690

Committee Members V. S. Raman, 99403 19704R. Venkatasubramanian, 98402 60413S. Giridharan. 9884030519 V. Vaidyalingam, 9382867972Nitin Shroff, 98400 22652K.R.S.S. Mahendran 86953 29444 N. R. Kumar, 99401 72067Alan Baretto, 9841721406Murugavel, 95001 22075

Copted MembersT.E. Srinivasan, 98403 55284L. Ramanathan, 87540 16030Nizam Appas, 99625 28890

Advisory Committee (Past Presidents of THE FORUM)

M. S. NagarajanV. SubramanianVipin SachdevDr. N. SankaranarayananR. NarayananD. RamalingamR. JayaramanR.S.Bakshi

n

All communications about THE FORUM and the Journal are to be addressed to Hony. General Secretary The Printing Technologists Forum 25, Peters Road, Royapettah, Chennai 600 014.

2 Print Forum / Vol. XVI, No. 93 / May - June 2014

Print ForumRegd. with RNI Under No. 71818/99

May - June 2014Vol. XVI / No. 93The Official Journal ofThe Printing Technologists ForumChennai

In this issue . . .

Rs. 120 per annum (Six issues)

Assam’s First Printing Musuem 2

FORUM’s AGM Report 3

Adobe New Products 4

Malayala Manorama’s new acquistion 5

Masterwork Diecutter 6

Guide to decide page size 7

ESKO Suite 8

Couple who have printed coffee table books from FACEBOOK 11

Cycle Pedal driven Printing press 13

Book on stamp designing 14

Successful Women 15

FORUM’s New Team with EC Members 16

Online printing benefits 18

Digitisation of Sanskrit Library 19

Importance of proofing 20

Innovative packaging by retailers 21

Books never get old 22

Scan and get receipes on your mobile 24

THE HINDU in AP 25

Quran Printing Centre 25

WAN IFRA Conference in Mumbai 26

Book Cover designing 27

Urdu Calligraphy 29

Kodak News 30

Chennai’s Publishing icon 31

Members Page 32

n Copyright for all materials published in print forum remain with the authors/editors/publishers of the respective magazines books/newspapers from which materials are reproduced.

n the facts set out in print forum are from various sources which we believe to be reliable and true to the best of our knowledge. However, we cannot accept no legal liability of any kind for the publication contents, nor for the information contained therein, nor conclusion drawn by any party from it.1

n FurtheritisnotifiedthatneithertheEditor,PublisherorthePrinter,orthePresidentandhisTeamofTheForumwillberesponsibleforanydamageorlosstoanybodyarisingoutof any error or omission in print forum. members/readers are advised to satisfy themselves about the merits and details of each before taking any decision.

n Articles and materials appearing in the pages of print forum are drawn from a number of sources : books, journals, newspapers and internet - current as well as very old. to many editors of various technical journals and newspapers, the accomplished authors and business leaders who have shared their wisdoms and their words whose articles published in thesejournals,andtheirpublishers,weoweourdebtsandgratitudewhichisdifficulttoassessoracknowledge.Wealwaysacknowledgethesourcesofeveryarticleandmaterialspublished in every issue of print forum at the end of the articles, with our courtesy.

n Oursisamembersupportednon-profitorganisationandourmainobjectiveistospreadprint-knowledgetoallwithinourlimitationsandconstraints.

Publisher B. G. Kukillaya Ph: 4228 7300

Editor P. Chellappan M : 2454 1893

Designer R.Venkatasubramanian M : 98402 60413

Brief history of printing machines- Golaghat collector hopes to create a museum for his 16 showpieces

Khirod Kumar Goswami with one of the printing machines in his collection, in

Golaghat.

Khirod Kumar Goswami has a passion for collecting and preserving age-old printing machines with the hope that his passion would translate into the first museum of printing history in Assam.

Goswami, a resident of Golaghat, has been collecting and preserving the printing machines since the late 1980s. He has 16 machines in all and they are in perfect working condition, with the oldest one dating back to 1790.

“It was in the late 1980s when computerised offset printing took off and the letter press became gradually obsolete. During that period, many people started selling their old printing machines at throwaway prices. I started to preserve some of them so that our younger generation may know more about the early days of printing,” Goswami told The Telegraph. He hopes that his antique possessions can be part of a museum of printing history.

Some of the machines have an i n t e r e s t i n g b a c k g r o u n d . T h e

Golding Jobber printing machine, manufactured by Golding & Co. of Franklin, Massachusetts in the US, was used by famous names like Lakshminath Bezbaroa, Nilamani P h u k a n , B e n u d h a r R a j k h o w a , Tirthanath Goswami, among others.

The oldest machine is a hand-operated one manufactured by the UK-based Payne & Sons and bought in 1922 by his grandfather Tirthanath Goswami.

Goswami’s family has been associated with Jadoomani Chapakhana since 1969, which has played a significant role in the printing and publication industry in Upper Assam since 1922.

His father, Purna Chandra, bought the Reddish Jobber printing machine manufactured by London-based Furnival & Co., from Ashutosh Addi and Company of Calcutta in 1931. It was used to publish two books — Abhijan and Swaraj Sangeet — written by Dhiren Dutta and Sankar Chandra Barua respectively and Purna Chandra was subsequently arrested by the British for promoting anti-imperialistic works.

Others include the ones made by the US-based Challenge Machinery Co. of Grandheaven and Chandler & Price Co. of Ohio, Pyne & Sons of Otley in the UK, Cope Sherwin & Co. of Shoreditch in London and Miller & Richard of Edinburgh in Scotland, Germany’s Mansfeld Co. and two from Japan-based OMA Works and Murakami & Co., both in Osaka. n

Courtesy: www.telegraphindia.com


In his welcome speech, Mr. R.S. Bakshi, President thanked all the members of T H E F O R U M and executive committee members for their solid support and excellent co-operation for the successful functioning of THe FORUM.

As per the agenda, Mr. M. Venkatesan, Hony. General Secretary gave an overview on the functioning of THe FORUM during 2013-14. As per his report, the membership strength is 327. He whole heartedly appreciated the members who had contributed to strengthen the activities and functioning of THE FORUM.

Mr.R.K.Sridharan, Hony. Treasurer presented the audited accounts and clarified the points raised by participants.

Mr.D. Ramalingam, returning officer, announced the list of office bearers and committee members for the ensuing years.

enthus iast ic , mer i tor ious and pioneer Mr.P. Chel lappan and Mr.M.Venkatesan were selected as President and Secretary respectively.

After the declaration of results, the returning officer invited the new team to take over and conduct the remaining proceedings of the Agenda.

The elected President Mr. Chellappan thanked the members of the forum

33rd Annual General Body Meeting of the Printing Technologists Forum

and assured to carry out the activities of the Forum in a fitting manner.

Young and dynamic Mr.Venkatesan elected Secretary declared and assured that he would continue to strengthen the forum effectively. He appealed to the members to come forward with workable and innovative suggestions for the productive functioning of the forum.

Mr. K.S. Shanmugasundaram, elected Jt. Secretary, outlined his programme for the year.

THE FORUM’s Annual General Body Meeting was held on 30th June 2014. (Seated L to R) Dr. B. Kumar, Hony. Joint Secretary, Mr. Rm. Senthilnathan, Vice-President II , Mr. R. S. Bakshi, President, Mr. Chellapan, Vice-President I and Mr. R. K. Sridharan,Treasurer of The Forum.

Mr. Balasubramanian was unanimously appointed as Auditor for 2014-15.

This was fo l lowed by a br ief introduction of the ofice bearers and committee members.

Dr.B.Kumar profusely proposed vote of thanks and fervently appealed to the members to involve and participate to promote the movements of the Forum. The AGM was adjourned for a sumptuous dinner. n

Mr. R.S.Bakshi Mr. M. Venkatesan

Report on

held on Monday the 30th June 2014 at Hotel BR Mathsya, T.Nagar, Chennai - 600 017.

Mr. D. Ramalingam


Adobe on June 20 unveiled a new suite of mobile apps and complementary hardware that connects Adobe Creative Cloud to Apple iPad. Adobe also released for anyone interested in photography, a new plan — for Rs 499 per month — Photoshop CC and Lightroom5. Photoshop CC along with some other softwares have been updated, making these apps smarter and easier to work on.

According to The New Creative Report survey of 1,000 US creatives (issued June 16), nearly half of creatives use their mobile devices to capture inspiration on the go, and one in three would like to create more contents on tablets.

Keeping in mind the needs of the users, Adobe has made its apps available for Apple iPad and iPhone users for free. The apps are also connected to Behance, allowing designers to seamlessly share and get feedback on their work with a community of over 3 million creatives. The apps include:

• Adobe Sketch, an iPad app for free- form drawing. Sketch offers the essential drawing tools: a graphite pencil, an ink pen, two blending makers (brush tip, chisel tip), and an eraser.

Adobe unveiled a suite of mobile apps, hardware, and Creative Cloud 2014

Along with the apps, Adobe has also launched two supporting creative hardwares, Adobe Ink and Adobe Slide.

• Adobe Ink, is a hydro-formed aluminium stylus for the iPad running iOS7. It enables controlled, expressive drawing and connects Creative Cloud, giving users accerss to their creatice assets, all at the tip of the pen. Built using the Adonit Pixelpoint technology, the pressure sensitive pen is lightweight and balanced for a comfortable grip.

• Adobe Slide, a category defining digital ruler (and companion to ink) for iPad running iOS7. Taking a modern twist on traditional tools used before computer graphics and desktop publishing, Slide enables precision sketching — straight lines, perfect circles, and balanced shapes — on the iPad.

Adobe also launched a software library, Creative SDK, that enables developers to build mobile apps; example, browsing files stored in Creative Cloud and extracting elements from PSD files, etc.

Adobe Photoshop Mix utilizes these new APIs and offers some of Adobe’s best imaging technology for applying Photoshop looks and compositing images.

Adobe Creative SDK is initially targeted at the delivery of iOS applications and is currently being tested by select developers. A beta launch is expected in the coming months.

Launching these products, Adobe is targeting professionals, enterprises and eduational institutions.

Pricing and Availability: Adobe Sketch, Line and Photoshop Mix are free applications, available in english, French, German and Japenese in the Apple App Store. Adobe Ink and Slide are available only in USA right now for US $199.99; it is expected to be made available in the other regions later this year. n

Courtesy: www.deccanchronicle.com

• Adobe Line, an iPad app for precision drawing and drafting. Line can be used in conjunction with Slide and it allows creatives to combine organic drawing with straight lines, french curves and perfect shapes that can be drawn in plane and elevation views or in perspective.

• Photoshop Mix : It offers a new Creative Cloud connected mobile workflow with access to powerful creative imaging tools on iPad, including Upright, Content Aware Fill, and Camera Shake Reduction. In addition, it as non-destructive photo enhancements, selections, the ability to cut out and mix images, and more.

• Lightroom mobile for iPhone e x t e n d s r e c e n t l y s h i p p e d Lightroom capabilities to the iPhone. It provides the most efficient way to mange and edit images across desktop, mobile devices and web. Additionally, the recently announced Adobe Voice, a free animated video app for iPad, has also been updated to sync with Lightroom.

• Creative Cloud for iPad and iPhone allows Creative Cloud members to access and manage their files, assets, and more from their mobile devices.


Malayala Manorama, one of India’s leading newspaper publishers, is modernizing and expanding its p r i n t i n g c a p a c i t y w i t h n e w generation presses and mailrooms. Five identical direct printing lines from Muller Martini will ensure a speedy production process from the printing press to the ramp at its three plants in Kozhikode, Kottayam and Kollam (all located in the state of Kerala).

The “Malayala Manorama” daily with a circulation close to 2.3 million copies, is the flagship of the Indian publishing company with the same name, which also publishes more than 40 periodicals/magazines, runs television channels, FM radio stations, and internet portals. To enhance its printing capacity, the company, which was established 126 years ago, is installing five double-width Diamond Spirit SA newspaper rotary presses from Mitsubishi with a maximum production speed of 75,000 copies per hour, and printing capacity of 40 broadsheet pages, at its three printing plants at Kozhikode, Kottayam and Kollam in the state of Kerala in south India. “Printed newspapers continue to be the main

Leading Indian Newspaper Publisher Invests in Five State-of-the-Art Direct Printing Lines

source of our company's revenue and that will remain the case for the foreseeable future,” says Chief Editor Mammen Mathew, explaining the major investment.

New generation NewsGripIn order to convey the newspapers smoothly from the printing press to the ramp, Malayala Manorama opted for a total of five identical direct printing lines from Muller Martini for the three sites – two each at Kottayam and Kollam and one at Kozhikode The centerpieces of the state-of-the-art mailroom systems are the latest generation NewsGrip conveyor chains, each with a receiving and delivery station. They not only have a new control system, but also feature new guide sections, are easier to maintain and have a longer economic life-time. In addition, the five lines, which will come on-stream between December 2014 and December 2015, each include two NewsStack compensating stackers, Solema belts, a Sitma bundle film wrapper with cross strapping, manual application of pre-printed top sheets and a control system for bundle production.

Malayala Manorama to Invest in 5 NewsGrip and 10 NewsStack Machines from Muller Martini

Faster than the Printing PressMr. Mathew explains that Malayala Manorama opted for the solution from Muller Martini, due to financial and technical reasons. “We calculated the total cost of ownership of all the proposals we received and Muller Martini stood first. The maximum speed of 90,000 cycles per hour for the mailroom exceeds that of our new printing press by 15,000 copies. That means the mailroom systems are not producing at their limit, which lowers maintenance costs and increases their economic life-time.”

In addition to the good after-sales support by Muller Martini India, the feedback given by another Indian Muller Martini customer also spoke well of the new solution, Mr. Mathew states: “I enquired at 'The Hindu' about their experiences with the Muller Martini systems there and heard only positive reviews from them.” n

Courtesy: www.mullermartini.com

Mammen Mathew (left), Editor-in-Chief of Malayala Manorama and Roland Bangerter, Regional Director of Muller Martini Asia/Pacific sign the contract for the five direct printing lines.

Malayala Manorama is printed in a daily run of 2.3 million copies.

Take up one idea. Make

that one idea your life -

think of it, dream of it, live

on that idea. Let the brain,

muscles, nerves, every part

of your body, be full of that

idea, and just leave every

other idea alone. This is the

way to success.

- Swami Vivekananda


New Masterwork die cutterMasterwork Graphic Equipment has launched the MK1060ERS, an automatic platen die cutting machine with stripping and blanking facilities.

The MK1060ERS offers even greater accuracy, speed and stability than previous models while also being easier to operate.

The unit incorporates five processes, feeding, die cutting, stripping, blanking and waste conveying, allowing one operator to turn printed sheets into finished products in a single pass. Optional devices include pre-stacking and stripping preparation stands. The timing belts incorporated into the feed table improves the presentation of stock to the front and side lays, while the slow-down device enables thin paper to be controlled accurately.

Continuous feeding is aided by the high level of automation, with sheet detectors and control devices reducing waste. The stripping unit has a quick locking facility for easy operation and fast positioning of the stripping board. The transmission mechanism and smooth cam movement ensure stability and accuracy. Separation sheets can be inserted automatically in the non-stop blanking unit at pre determined quantities.

The MK1060ERS can handle sheets from 400 x 350 mm to 1060 x 760 mm, and offers an impressive die

cutting area of 1,060 x 745 mm with an accuracy of ± 0.075 mm. The machine can be used with paper/board between 0.1 - 2 mm thick and corrugated board up to 4 mm. High productivity is aided by speeds of up to 6,500 sph. The feeder and delivery pile heights are 1,550 mm and 1,200 mm respectively.

'Our R&D teams and engineers are extremely experienced in every area of die cutting and this allows us to continually develop and test new ideas,' said european sales manager Ken Farnsworth. 'All our machines are built to be highly productive, easy to operate and robust - the MK1060ERS offers a die cutting force of up to 260 tons. n

Courtesy: www.paperandprint.com

Priming solution enables inkjet printing on standard offset coated mediaHP has released its new Priming Solution, which enables inkjet web press users to print on a broader range of media, including standard offset coated media that is not typically compatible with production inkjet technology.

Coatings used in offset papers are designed to repel water, including water-based inks used in high-speed production inkjet environments. This results in print-quality defects such as coalescence and issues with drying the ink at production speeds. The new priming solution addresses this challenge, allowing print service providers (PSPs) and book manufacturers to print on low-cost, coated offset stock without compromising print quality or productivity.

'Customers and prospects considering production inkjet equipment want to print on a wide variety of media,' said Aurelio Maruggi, vice president and general manager, Inkjet High-speed Production Solutions. 'The new HP Priming Solution reinforces our strategy to offer choices to customers for expanded media options, while continually bringing to market new technology that helps our customers do more with their HP inkjet web presses.'

Available for the full HP inkjet web press por tfolio, the first HP Priming Solution offers a matte finish that can provide a cost-effective coated-media solution and help increase the crossover points vs. traditional offset in both publishing and commercial printing.

Components of the solution include an HP-developed, aqueous-based priming agent for HP A51 Inks, engineered to work with the Epic PrimeCoat priming system from Epic Products International, an industry leader in developing custom priming and coating solutions.

HP's media strategy also includes HP Bonding Agent for production on low-cost, uncoated offset papers, collaboration with leading paper mills on the development of inkjet optimised papers with ColorPRO technology, and the HP Media Certification Program for the identification of substrates compa t i b l e w i t h HP h i gh -speed production. n

Courtesy: www.paperandprint.com

Success is to be measured

not so much by the

position that one has

reached in life as by the

obstacles which he has

overcome.

- Booker T. Washington


A Guide to Deciding on Page Size for Printed Leaflets and Flyers

Leaflets and flyers are a popular promotional tool for businesses of all sizes, but for SMEs, they are often a core part of how they promote their products and services. With the cost of print often putting smaller companies off using larger formats, it’s important that they decide on the right size of page for the job. Below, I take a look at some of the most popular page sizes for printed leaflets and flyers, and when these tend to be used.

Popular page sizes to use when printing leaflets and flyers

A4A4 (297mm x 210mm) is the largest I would recommend going when printing a leaflet or flyer. While you can print a leaflet onto A3 paper, this tends to be used more for small print runs and can often resemble posters. A4 is a popular page size for leaflets and flyers as you have lots of room to promote your offering. It’s also a size that many of us are familiar with, and if you are printing internally to save costs, you will likely have a decent of A4 paper. A4 leaflets and flyers are popular for trade shows and conferences, and can also be used in your shop or place of business to highlight the features and benefits of your product.

A5A5 paper is half the size of A4 and perhaps the most popular size when it comes to printed flyers. A5 is a popular choice because it is small enough to fit into your customers pocket, and large enough to get the detail you require on to it. Remember though that your space is less than that of an A4 page, so be sure to use your space well. A5 flyers are a popular choice for direct mail campaigns and can also be used to provide additional information on your product or services at a trade show or conference.

A6A similar size to postcards, A6 flyers are becoming more and more popular as the digital age continues to impact on the retail industry. A6 flyers are a popular size for flyers that are inserted into packages to help promote additional products or services from an online supplier. The size and weight of A6 pages also make them an affordable way of printing large amounts of flyers, but just remember the size in which you have to work with is starting to become less and less. A6 flyers are best used as an insert or ‘filler’ to try and push an upcoming sale or event, and have proved to be successful in the retail industry.

DLDL flyers are 1/3 A4 page (210mm x 99mm) and this means they fit perfectly into DL envelopes. This has made them a popular flyer size for direct mail campaigns. They are also a popular size for the food industry, with many eateries using a DL layout for their menu. DL flyers still give you enough room to get creative,

while also giving you a flyer that fits perfectly into your customers pocket or bag. DL flyers are popular at trade shows, and as they are 1/3 of A4 page, they can also be a cost effective way for producing multiple flyers for your customers.

Which size is right for you?Deciding on the paper size of your flyer will really come down to what you plan to use it for. If you need to get lots of information onto your flyer then you will need an A4 or A5 flyer. If you want something cheap that your customers can take with them on the go, consider smaller flyer sizes like A6, A7 or DL.

Whatever size you decide on, ensure that your message is clear and easy to read. Don’t try to put too much information on to your flyer. Make it something that your customers will want to pick up or want to read, should it land on their door mat. n

Courtesy: www.myprintresource.com

Training programme for differently-abled in PondySpecial employment exchange for differently-abled people functioning under the Labour department will hold a training programme in data entry operation and book binding.

The candidates, who cleared SSLC can apply for training programme in data entry and candidates who passed class 8, can apply for training in book binding. The candidates between 18 years and 35 years as on August 1 this year are eligible to apply for the training programmes.

The department will extend a stipend of Rs 2,400 per month besides providing stationery items.

Application forms can be collected free of cost from the special employment exchange office in Labour department complex, Vazhudavoor Road, Gandhi Nagar, Puducherry - 9. n

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.

Albert Einstein


esko announces the release of esko Suite 14, a comprehensive collection of new and updated software designed to give brand owners, premedia houses, converters, sign and display producers and commercial printers the resources they need to manage today's complex preproduction environment.

"To be successful today, packaging service providers and brands owners are required to perform exceptionally well in all areas of packaging preproduction," says Carsten Knudsen, Esko President and CEO. "Brand owners must create packaging designs that resonate with consumers and that are designed, developed and produced with the utmost accuracy. Converters must execute perfectly and efficiently to remain profitable. There is also a need ensure regulatory compliance and to operate in an environmentally sustainable manner within the entire ecosystem. Above all, everyone throughout the entire packaging supply chain must be able to work together effectively to achieve these goals."

Esko Suite 14 builds on Esko's years of packaging preproduction expertise and features breakthrough developments as a result of ongoing investment in innovation, and based

on feedback received from brand owners, packaging converters and industry thought leaders.

Knudsen adds, " In the Suite 14 development process, esko c o n c e n t r a t e d i t s r e s o u r c e s on addressing five key trends in packaging preproduction:

• Increasing importance of Workflow Automation

• The use of Smart Templates to handle package variations

• Quality as the most important driver

• A more task-focused software user interface to drive increased efficiency

• Integration of the Supply Chain and data-sharing via the cloud

The result is Esko Suite 14, bringing together a family of solutions that provides all parties in the packaging preproduction supply chain with the resources they need to succeed in this dynamic market. We believe that the Esko software Suite is the broadest and deepest collection of professional software tools available today in the package production industry."

Efficiency, Productivity, Ease of Use: Suite 14 is a Sweet Deal for Packaging PreproductionEsko Suite 14 includes a wide range of breakthrough improvements and enhancements that support these key trends in the packaging preproduction market. each element has been fine-tuned to better meet the needs of the entire supply chain. Details of each of the enhanced Suite 14 modules follow.

WebCenter: Focused on Supply Chain ConnectivityImproved connectivity leads to faster turnaround times and reduced errors. WebCenter 14, now a 64-bit application and supporting HTML 5 for the Viewer, offers easy-to-implement connectivity with third-party solutions.

Interconnectivity among esko products is also boosted with WebCenter 14. Seamless data transfer between WebCenter and packaging

Esko Suite 14

visualizer-in-illustrator

i-cut-layout


editors such as ArtiosCAD and Adobe Illustrator guarantee better utilization of centrally managed assets and information.

And WebCenter servers can now interact with each other to even better integrate the entire supply chain. Launching a task or sharing assets among multiple WebCenter servers shifts workflow automation into high gear. This makes it easier to achieve true supply chain integration with exceptional efficiency and real-time communication among all stakeholders in the packaging preproduction supply chain.

Automation Engine: Taking Time and Touches Out of the Packaging Preproduction ProcessSuite 14 includes a broader and more sustainable integration framework that goes well beyond the boundaries of XML and JDF by standardizing the way third-party solutions are integrated with any esko component. This Connect software kit enables users to further remove manual activit ies from the packaging preproduction process, driving end-to-end automation. Connect allows for easy integration with all wide-ranging third-party solutions as MIS, shipping systems, popular web applications such as Google Maps, or other web portal or cloud-based solutions.

In addition, a series of new color tasks are now integrated into the Automation engine. This ensures

consistent color through automated color management. Automation engine now automatically converts brand colors to a fixed ink setting using Equinox profiles, reducing the need for spot colors and increasing press productivity and quality while reducing overall ink usage.

ArtiosCAD : More Creativity, Less ClickingWith the updated ArtiosCAD editor, users have more time to be creative and will spend less time clicking buttons. Users can now create more accurate BOM's in less time with the new BOM capability available directly from the ArtiosCAD browser. Other enhancements increase designer productivity when preparing designs for production and improve die-press efficiency as well.

Suite 14 also gives ArtiosCAD users more realistic 3D visualization when folding corrugated and paper board, setting more realistic expectations for clients when presenting designs.

This update of ArtiosCAD also features a number of improvements for die making manufacturers, resulting in higher precision and productivity. This includes single-click options for filling a line or path with nicks and configurable options for driving various output devices to reduce the time it takes to get a design into production. enhancements to the die-board bolt hole mounting pattern tool allows users to select mounting holes more quickly and efficiently, optimizing die-press efficiency.

3D VISUALIzATIOn: 360 DEgREES OF PACkAgIng3D tools are increasingly important in the packaging des ign and preproduction processes to ensure as early as possible in the process that the final product meets the needs of all stakeholders. Esko Suite 14 includes a number of enhancements to its 3D capabilities.

• Visualizer effects in Illustrator: Suite 14 lets users of Studio Designer go beyond the normal 3D view to add special effects and finishing details when creating packaging graphics in Illustrator. This streamlined solution brings enhanced speed and enables better creative decision making during the design and review process.• Store Visualizer: Created in partnership with VTales Graphics, Esko Store Visualizer lets users place virtual objects in photographed scenes, enabling them to see their designs in an in-store setting to determine how they compare with competitive products. The integration of an innovative LOD (Level Of Detail) system gives users enhanced speed when rendering virtual store views, especially in environments with vast numbers of 3D models. Suite 14 ships with three pre-established hyper-realistic environments that help users quickly and easily see what their 3D products will look like in a store environment.• Studio: Two new and one enhanced flexible bag types are available in Suite 14, including the popular quattro seal bag. In addition, the

store-visualizer

store-visualizer


new version of Studio includes an Augmented Reality viewer for mobile devices which is perfect to share and view 3D packaging designs in context for quick comparisons and informed decision making.

CHILI Publish Integration: Cloud based package editingEsko has partnered with CHILI Publish to bring to market the world's first in-browser editor dedicated to packaging design. With this solution, the artwork creator can enable anyone in the supply chain, such as the brand manager of a global brand, to modify packaging content within established constraints. This gives brand owners control over their packaging content, avoiding mistakes and ultimately product recalls, and ensures that both the brand integrity and design intent are protected throughout the entire process.

Visual Inspection Systems: You Have to See It to Believe ItIn Suite 14, this module provides digital communication of critical parameters for automatic setup of the visual inspection system, eliminating set-up time and saving 3-5 minutes per job. This is especially important in digital printing environments with shorter runs and a larger volume of jobs running through the shop. For these operations, time savings can quickly add up to two hours per day or more. In addition, this digital link to inspection systems is the only way to

inspect variable data in the packaging production process.

ArtPro+: Exceptional Quality ControlArtPro+ in Suite 14 is a new application that gives users a tool for quality control of artwork and prepress files. ArtPro+ is a no-charge companion product to ArtPro 14 and Packedge 14, running on both Mac and Windows. With its innovative interface and modern 64-bit architecture ArtPro+ is ready for the workflow of the future.

Imaging Engine: APPE3 for CTPNow built on Adobe's PDF Print engine (APPE3) platform, Esko's Imaging engine 14 brings users into the next generation of CTP production. R e d u c e d n e e d f o r o p e r a t o r intervention in the platemaking process, more consistency, fewer errors and elimination of duplicated data entry are just a few of the benefits of the updated Imaging Engine included in Esko Suite 14.

FlexProof: The Proof Is in the ... Proof!A new, task-driven, wizard-style user interface makes it much simpler to fine-tune and optimize proofer device profiles for the highest possible accuracy. FlexProof enables users to quickly meet color accuracy expectations while saving operator time.

i-cut Layout+: next-generation Layout EditorSuite 14 speeds up production with a next-generation layout editor. i-cut Layout+ is a simple, task-oriented user interface that makes the learning curve extremely short. It is compatible with both Mac and Windows for full flexibility.With a new flexible subscription model for i-cut Layout+, users can better manage software costs, reduce risk and achieve more flexibility in load balancing across regions and during peak periods. Using a "pay as you go" SaaS model for software is becoming increasingly popular, both from a usability perspective and to transition software ownership from a capital investment to an operating expense. DeskPack and Preflight are also now available in a subscription-based SaaS model.

Sweet Success with Suite 14E s k o i s r o l l i n g o u t S u i t e 1 4 beginning July 2014. Customers with maintenance contracts will receive the software for which they are entitled to as part of those agreements. esko's customer services organizations around the world are prepared to install, support and provide training for the new version of the software to guarantee smooth transitions and continuity of operation.

"At esko, we are in close contact with our customers and industry thought-leaders," concludes Bernard Zwaenepoel, Senior Vice President Software Business. "We are aware of the many challenges that are involved in packaging preproduction and have worked hard to incorporate as many solutions to those challenges as possible in this release. That is why everyone at Esko is so proud of Suite 14. From extensive previews and testing at customer sites, we know the impact it will have on improving various aspects of the process, and, most importantly, the way in which it will make our customers even more successful." n


studio-viewer-augmented-reality


Alabang couple turns Facebook photos into coffee table books

Alabang-based couple Pocholo and Ayee Ignacio discovered an innovative way of turning hundreds of photos stored on Facebook pages into high-quality coffee-table books at a minimal cost.

In an interview at a Greenbelt 5 restaurant in Makati City, Pocholo, a photographer turned entrepreneur, says the best way to preserve images is to have them printed, and printed at the best quality possible.

Ayee and Pocholo Ignacio

“It is the perfect way to preserve memories,” he says. “Digital pictures can be lost. Although you can have them uploaded on Facebook, the best way to preserve them is to turn them into a coffee table book.”

Pocholo is a former dive master and photographer, who contributed u n d e r w a t e r i m a g e s t o s u c h magazines as Mabuhay. He worked with advertising and modeling agencies and shot wedding events on the side. Ayee’s father is also a photographer.

A s a p h o t o g r a p h e r , P o c h o l o discovered that most local prepress were not able to meet the need of professionals for high-quality custom prints. So, he established his own photography studio in 2006 in Mandaluyong City, before transferring to Muntilupa City in 2010.

“I was doing commercial photography and then some of our clients wanted

me to do their wedding. So I had a bit of wedding gigs also. But I stopped doing photography because I had to focus on the printing side,” he says.

Pocholo says as the photography b u s i n e s s g r e w , s o d i d t h e requirements for custom prints. He decided to establish a digital press to meet the demand. He is now the president of Pixel 800 Inc., a digital prepress based at Madrigal Business Park in Ayala Alabang, Muntinlupa City. His wife, Ayee, serves as the vice president of the company, with six employees. The couple have three children.

Pixel 800 specializes in coffee table book printing at a fraction of the cost of typical albums, says Pocholo. It has major corporate clients such as Art Post Asia of Singapore and prints coffee table books, corporate albums, annual reports, corporate planners, calendars, product catalogues, flyers, journals and brochures.

“One of our biggest achievements is to pass the standards of Art Post Asia, a publishing company based in Singapore. They do the books of Malacañang. They found it difficult to search for a prepress partner with high-quality services here. They were looking for a company, and we got in touch with them. They saw the quality of our work. Since then, we have been doing the books for them. We did books for Malacañang,” says Pocholo.

“Basically, the company [Pixel 800] is a digital press. As a digital press, we are able to print everything, from the marketing collaterals to the usual business cards, but we specialize in the photo books, particularly the coffee table books,” says Pocholo.

“When we started, it was really the lack of service for print-on-demand. There was no actual service. We wanted to be able to provide that service and that’s how we started,” he says.

Pocholo says Pixel 800 initially served the need for print-on-demand services with professional-grade quality. “This was initially directed towards professionals such as photographers. But there was lack of good quality prints here. Most of the services offered were in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, India. That’s where they get good prints,” he says.

He says professional photographers mostly order five to 10 photo books, which they can show to agencies for their portfolio but they cannot get that kind of service from offset printers, which require bulk orders.

“Others want a special book for whatever reason, like personal book. For personal books, you cannot go to an offset printer, whose requirement is by the thousands. Nobody would offer the print-on-demand service here. The quality wasn’t there. That’s what we studied,” he says.

Pocholo says Pixel 800 also aims to serve the consumer market and provide them with the same high-qual ity services that are currently enjoyed by corporate and professional clients. “There is a bigger market at the consumer level,” he says.

Ayee says they discovered the unmet demand among consumers for print-on demand photo albums and coffee table books when they began attending wedding exhibits.

“We used to join exhibits before, like wedding expos. When we joined the expos, our target then were the couples for their wedding books. But during these exhibits, even the suppliers like the designers, make-up artists and photographers would come to us. It turned out that we could cater to both groups—the couples and the suppliers. The couples, for their wedding books, and the suppliers for their wedding kits. So basically, a lot of our clients now are the artists, designers, photographers,” Ayee says.

“The couples like the coffee- table-book type because it is lighter. Back


then, even our own wedding album is a very thick photo book,” she says.

Pocholo says the company now gives an alternative to wedding albums, in the form of coffee table book. “A coffee table book is pretty normal to see. We had a good request for that, and many asked us if we can do their wedding album. We were able to provide an alternative to the typical wedding album. That’s how it started,” he says.

This year, Pixel 800 established an online portal called Snapper.ph, which allows clients to upload photos and place an order for a personalized coffee table book containing the digital photos. “You can have your own coffee table book for as low as P575 for a 32-page package,” says Ayee. “It is inclusive of the delivery charge.”

“There are so many printing press, but the other press usually impose minimum orders. If you need a personal book, you can’t order just one. With snapper, you can order just one book,” she says.

Pocholo says there is a strong demand for instabooks or personalized coffee table books in the Philippines. “We have a very strong drive for the coffee table books because we want to present an alternative to typical books that you see nowadays. Wedding albums, for example, get very heavy. So we thought of doing the timeless, classic coffee table book. It is time tested and it really works,” he says.

Pocholo says Snapper.ph bridges the gap between professional-grade books and the consumer books. “Snapper.ph is able to serve the consumer level. That’s why Snapper.ph came, because we wanted to have a new identity for the consumer side. We had a lot of requests for print-on-demand type of books and they wanted the quality that we had for the professional level. So we just bridged that gap,” he says.

“Basically, Snapper.ph simplifies everything. If you don’t know how

to start your own photo book, just upload your own pictures on our site and you can get Inspiration from the templates,” he says.

Pocholo says to make it easier for consumers to place their orders, Snapper.ph has features that allow them to do so. “We developed snapper to create a new identity that would cater to the consumer grade requirement of photobooks. It was established in 2014,” he says.

“Snapper is still in its infancy but the engagement is quite overwhelming. I honestly did not expect that we would get that much hits. We started advertising it just a month ago, and our reach now is hundreds of thousands in terms of hits. We started with Muntinlupa only. We did not even go full-scale yet. The reception is overwhelming. We are very optimistic about the whole thing. We already delivered some products and the customers are pretty happy about it,” he says.

He says aside from coffee table books, they also deliver instabooks, portfolio kits, flipbooks, wedding books, invitations, customized calendar, photo prints, stationary, among others.

Pocholo says Snapper.ph aims to revolutionize the print-on-demand business by lifting the minimum orders for prints imposed by other printing press. “With Snapper.ph, you can order a single coffee table book,” he says. RTD n

Courtesy: www.manilastandardtoday.com

Sidharth Sonthalia promoted as AGM, New Indian Express

The New Indian Express Group has appointed Siddharth Sonthalia as assistant general manager. Promoted last month, he will look after the newspaper operations in Tamil Nadu. Sonthalia also holds the position of executive director, Express Networks where he takes care of the Group's internet business. He was appointed to the position in February 2013.

A graduate in business management from Australia, he popularised the web-first mindset in the Express Group with making breaking news realtime breaks. He focussed on promoting mobile apps to encourage young readers access NIe papers on their smart phones and pushed content aggressively to social media. The Group claims that the reforms have helped the Group's internet division record a 7 per cent growth against the industry average of 2 per cent.

He has also turned around the web-presence of Dinamani and Express Online. Sonthalia is exploring fresh possibilities - creating a new platform for online readers, partnering with startups to diversify the Group's portfolio and plans to capture the imagination of new generations of college-goers in semi-urban rural areas.

He learned the basics of work in a variety of departments like marketing and accounts and joined the group when he was 23. n

Courtesy: www.afaqs.com

Success is not measured

by what you accomplish,

but by the opposition you

have encountered, and

the courage with which

you have maintained

the struggle against

overwhelming odds.

Orison Swett Marden


This Guy Built a Pedal-Powered Printing Press Because Computers Are BoringAs we near the start of the 2014 Tour de France, Brian Trevaskiss wants you to consider the bicycle, all the mechanical energy cyclists create, and how the two could be used to power machines. To demonstrate his point, Trevaskiss built the Pedal-Powered Printing Press, or PPPP, as he calls it.

Around the same time that Macs came to the fore in print and publishing, Trevaskiss was training in graphic design. During that time, he acquired some familiarity with traditional printing techniques. After working on websites for around eight years, he felt the itch to print again in 2011.

Trevaskiss’s design might owe something to the eco-friendly ways of Ed Begley, Jr. (A Mighty Wind, Best In Show), who is known to power his toaster and computer with a stationary bike. But instead of powering his home, Trevaskiss is interested in bringing back the world of print with pedal power.

“I missed print,” he said. “The desire was there to learn more about hands-on print—letterpress, in particular. Something about the simplicity and honesty of black type on white paper really appeals to me, and I couldn’t afford go out and buy an old press, so I built one.”

Trevaskiss’s first printing press was constructed out of scaffolding poles, decking leftovers, a metal box section, and a bottle jack. At the same time, he was getting more and more into cycling, commuting daily regardless of weather conditions, and riding on

weekends when he could. So, fusing his two passions seemed like a natural progression.

“I think I joked about building a pedal-powered printing press and the idea just stuck around,” he said. “Printing and cycling had become my antidote to a modern screen-based life.”

Aside from that motivation, it wasn’t so much about being DIY or being sustainable as much as it was about the design and build challenge. For Trevaskiss, it was a chance to build something unique, and create a better printing press than the one he already had.

Trevaskiss then pitched the idea to the Sheffield Culture Consortium. The group was organizing arts and culture commissions for the Yorkshire Festival, a 100-day celebration being held as part of the Tour de France’s Grand Départ out of Leeds. “When I heard about the festival and the commissions, I saw the opportunity to take the idea of a pedal-powered printing press and make it a real thing,” said Trevaskiss. “I’ve never submitted a request for funding for anything, so it was all a bit of guess work. I was pretty sure it was unique and thankfully they loved the idea.”

A pedal-powered machine is a natural fit at anything Tour de France-related. But the enthusiasm might have also had something to do Sheffield’s printmaking history.

“When I first started printing in Sheffield, I was researching traditional metal and wood typefaces and quickly discovered the Stephenson Blake foundry was from Sheffield and how huge it had been,” said Trevaskiss. “In its day it was the biggest supplier of type in the UK, and they even set up a foundry in London to service the daily newspapers. They also created a typeface called Vogue for the magazine of the same name.”

After the earning the commission, Trevaskiss set to work on designing and building PPPP. But he only had five weeks until the start of the festival on March 27th, so he knew he’d need help.

“Friends, keen cyclists, and product designers Click were my first port-of-call, and over beers we started to sketch out ideas,” Trevaskiss said. “I wanted to use as many bike parts as possible, which is fine because bikes are so flexible and readily available.”

“The main ‘engine’ as we called it is made from six bike bottom brackets, various chain rings, and a crank spider from a BMX,” he added. “We spent a lot of time drawing and talking compound gear ratios.”

The main challenge for Trevaskiss’s team presented itself in the need to convert the rotary motion of pedaling into the reciprocating motion needed to create and release the letterpress printing pressure. They also wanted anybody to be able to print by the themselves, which would be impossible

The Pedal-Powered Printing Press in operation.

A sketch of the Pedal-Powered Printing Press.

Building the Pedal-Powered Printing Press


if the pedaling process became more difficult over time.

“We wanted people to be able to pedal for a reasonable amount of time, we didn’t want the experience to be over too quickly or take too long,” he said. “We achieved it with different gears and chains, all from bikes.”

The design and build process taught Trevaskiss that there is a lot of cross-over in design disciplines, and that modes of thinking and problem solving are more important than specific skills. But when Trevaskiss began the design process, he never thought he’d see the design as a CAD drawing moving in three dimensions. “It goes to show that you can’t get away from computers,” he said.

Using the PPPP, Trevaskiss designed a special Tour-inspired print that commemmorates the Tour de France’s Grand Départ in Yorkshire. Trevaskiss is making the prints available on both jaune and blank paper over at his Folksy page.

“I suggested the press be showcased on the launch weekend, which they agreed to but also asked if I’d take it down to the finish line event on 6th July in Sheffield,” he added. “So, the press will be printing for the whole of the Stage 2 race day—a hundred yards or so from the finish line.”

As he wrote in a blog post, Sheffield cycling fans will be able to make their own unique prints using Stephenson Blake foundry type, thanks to Sheffield-based typography experts Dust. If current reaction is any indication, PPPP should be a big hit at the Grand Départ.

“A really great thing has been the reaction to the experience of printing on the press,” he said. “I’d been so wrapped up in design and build, I hadn’t really given that much thought, it was a nice surprise.”

“It’s when people get to try it out for themselves that it comes into its own,” he added. “Print will never die completely, as it’s very much about creating something with your own hands. It takes skill and, in this case, a bit of pedaling, too.” n

Courtesy: www.motherboard.vice.com

It’s got the stamp

A Stamp is born: By C.R. Pakrashi Published by Niyogi Books Price Rs695 Pages 205 (+11 pages acknowledgements and index).

Philately, as a genre in book publishing, is very specialised. And, recently, a couple of interesting books in this genre hit the stands. The first is veteran journalist B.G. Verghese’s Post Haste—Quintessential India. The author captures the essence of Indian history from ancient times right up to the present. But what is novel about the book is that it is illustrated entirely with pictures of postage stamps of post-independence India with the odd foreign stamp, too. So, it is like a mega twenty-frame philatelic exhibit, for it runs into 320 odd pages. Incidentally, a frame is made up of 16 philatelic exhibit pages. However, unlike philatelic exhibits that are made up of a host of philatelic items such as stamps, stamp sheetlets, first day covers , special covers, postal cancellations, commercially-used covers, pre-paid postal stationery and maxim cards, the book has only pictures of stamps. But it makes for a good general knowledge book for students, and, in fact, for anyone who wants an overview of India’s history, touching, as it does, upon geography, history, politics, art and architecture, culture and traditions, flora and fauna, science and technology and important personalities.

The other book is A Stamp is Born by Chitta Ranjan Pakrashi who designed more than fifty postage stamps for

India and some overseas countries as well since the mid-1950s. In the book, Pakrashi describes his fascinating journey as a stamp designer. And, in describing the process of designing stamps, he details the artwork involved and the research that he undertook. The book is also peppered with interesting anecdotes about the designing of the stamps. It is really a personal account beautifully woven into a compelling story.

Pakrashi gives a lot of insights into the process of designing stamps so that the book will be useful for artists, philatelists and researchers of history.

The list of postage stamps designed by Pakrashi for India’s postal department is impressive. Starting with the maiden two-anna stamp designed on Buddha Jayanti, commemorating Lord Buddha’s 2,500th birth anniversary in 1955-56, he went on to design stamps of many important personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Swami Vivekananda, J.R.D. Tata, Shirdi Sai Baba and Ustad Bismillah Khan, and, to commemorate significant international events and occasions such as the opening of the 1,00,000th post office of the country, centenary of the Universal Postal Union, centenary of the Indian National Congress, the ninth Asian Games held in Delhi, the eleventh Asian Games held in Beijing, the golden jubilee of the United Nations and international philatelic exhibitions held in India. He has also designed stamps for the postal departments of Mauritius and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Besides stamps, he has designed postal cancellations and FDCs, too. Of course, not all his designs have been described at length in the text as that would have made the tome too weighty.

The well-designed book has been interestingly illustrated with postage stamps, preliminary stamp designs, FDCs which he designed, postal cancellations, letters from dignitaries, autographed philatelic items and commercially-used covers.

Both books are collectibles. And, what is common to the two authors? Both were born in the 1920s. n

Courtesy: www.week.manoramaonline.com


Story of growth: Business woman emerges out of sick firm

For the success of a business, a good management is as important as the product itself. Several people have made fortune just by reviving companies that have fallen sick due to inefficient management. Padmasree Gunn-ala belongs to this creed.

Padmasree, a young home maker who was a lawyer by education, found reviving a sick company more interesting and challenging. “In 2005, I was planning to start a business as I was always interested in entrepreneurship. My friend suggested me to start a unit in ancillary sector. He had an experience in that sector. So we partnered to buy a sick company and revived it to be known as Mudra Flexible Printers and Laminators,” she told this newspaper.

Mudra operates in the roto-packaging industry, which manufactures food-grade packaging products. Its specialty lies in catering to all kinds of flexible packaging material in multi-colour printing and laminations. The partners, however, later found that acquiring a sick company will have its own share of hiccups. And Padmasree was very quick to realise that getting a bank loan for a sick company was very difficult.

“So we pooled in about `6 lakh for working capital as no bank was forthcoming to help us. The same was the case with customers. It took pretty long time for us to convince customers to give us orders as they were unsure about our business continuity,” she recalled.

A well-trained karata, Padmasree had to endure testing time when her factory was gutted in a fire accident. “I don’t whether I can call it a turning point or not; but the fire accident that gutted my factory has strengthen my resolve to succeed and it showed my customers’ faith in me.”

Mudra, which started off with 18 clients, claims a fairly strong customer base of 700 companies, comprising varied spectrum starting from MSMEs to MNCs. The customers spread across sectors like food and FMCG, pharmaceuticals, agro industries, bio-technology, cement, automobiles, distilleries and many more - both in India and abroad.

Though successful in business, Padmasree rues about the fact that her work-life balance was skewed towards business and as a result, she could not focus on the upbringing of her son, who is now pursuing engineering course. “I feel woman

entrepreneurs must focus on this aspect also.”

Padmasree was among the chosen few to be a part of the Golman Sachs 10,000 Women’s program-me along with Indian School of Business (ISB).

Ask her about her success mantra and she is quick to respond saying, “hard work.” She explains that there is no other alternative for hard work, quality and customer satisfaction. Mudra saw the growth from being a small scale enterprise to a medium scale enterprise and now, Padmasree, only dreams of Mudra to flourish with a better annual turnover every year. n

Courtesy: www.deccanchronicle.com

Mini camera performs packaging inspections

The Vision MINI Xi is touted as the world’s smallest machine vision smart camera with embedded ethernet connectivity for ease of programming and data acquisition (in plant or remotely).

From Microscan, the industrial vision system fits into confined spaces within packaging machines to perform a variety of inspections, including optical character recognition (OCR), color matching and bar code decoding. It measures just 1 x 1.8 x 2.1 inches (25.4 x 45.7 x 53.3 mm) and weighs just 3.2 oz (91 g). The patented mini design includes a built-in lens, LeD lighting, a 24-volt interface and optically isolated I/O. Programming is simple with the company’s easy-to-use AutoVISION machine vision software. n

Courtesy : www.packagingdigest.com


At the Annual General Body Meeting, held on Monday, the 30th June 2014, following members were unanimously elected as Office-bearers and Committee Members for the year 2014-16.

The Printing Technologists ForumNew Team for 2014-16

OFFICE-BEARERS P. Chellappan, President Rm. Senthilnathan, Vice-President I Dr. B. Kumar, Hony. Vice-President II M. Venkatesan, Hony. General Secretary K.B.S.Shanmugasundaram, Hony. Joint Secretary R.K. Sridharan, Hony. Treasurer

COMMITTEE MEMBERS V. S. Raman N.R. Kumar S. Giridharan Nitin Shroff Murugavel Alan Barretto Vaidyalingam Mahendran R. Venkatasubramanian CO-OpTEd COMMITTEE MEMBERS T.E. Srinivasan Nizam Abassi L. Ramanathan

Vice-President IIdr. B. KuMARAssociate ProfessorDepartment of Printing TechnologyCollege of Engineering,Guindy, Chennai 600 025Phone : 2235 8965Mobile : 94440 51707E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : 24/69, Nehru Street Kanagam, Chennai 600 113.

Hony. TreasurerR.K. SRIdHARANSenior Engineer The Hindu, Chennai-600 002Mobile : 98416 47690E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : AS-3, Journalist Colony, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai - 600 041

Phone : 26174769

OFFICE-BEARERS OF THE FORUM FoR 2012-14

Joint Secretary

K.B.SHANMugASuNdARAMAssociate Director: Scientific Publishing Services (P) Limited303, TTK Road, Alwarpet, Chennai – 18Phone : 42197750Mobile : 9884274912Email : [email protected]

Res : 23, 4th Street, Ragava Reddiar Colony, Ashok Nagar, Chennai – 600083Email : [email protected]

Hony. General SecretaryM. vENKATESAN Associate Director:Scientific Publishing Services, Hardy Towers,Ramanujam IT Park,TRIL,Taramani, Chennai - 600 113.Mobile : 98842 74908E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : No 1, 4th Cross Street, Karpagam Garden, Adyar, Chennai - 600 020.Phone : 24916493

President

p. CHELLAppANPartner - PM Digital Products‘Konar Maligai’ , New No.25, Peters RoadChennai - 600 014Phone : 044-28132863 / 43408000 / 43408040Mobile : 93810 01810Email : [email protected] Web : www.pmdigital.in

Res. : New No.5, Rutland Gate 2nd Street, Chennai - 600 006.

Vice-President IRm. SENTHILNATHANCEO : Dot Line DataNo.3, 21st Avenue, Ashoknagar, Chennai 600083.Phone : Office : 044 24730102, 24730103 Direct : 24730104Mobile : 9841041997Email : [email protected]

Res. : AP 364, 35th Street, 7th Sector, KK Nagar, Chennai 600078.Phone : 044 42705802


COMMITTEE MEMBERS OF THE FORUM FoR 2014-16

The New Team in full strength

dedicates itself to the services of The Forum seeking the members’ full co-operation.

v.S. RAMANSr. Lecturer (Rtd.)Institute of Printing TechnologyTharamani, Chennai 600 113Visiting Lecturer,MCC, Tambaram, ChennaiMobile : 9940 319 704E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : A-1, Ranganathan Cross Street, Chitlapakkam, Chennai 600 064.Phone : 22234540

T. E. SRINIvASANJunior Foreman,Govt. Central PressVallalar Nagar, Chennai 600 079.Mobile : 98403 55284E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : 21/12, Mosque Street Saidapet, Chennai 600 015.

NITIN SHROFFCEO Micro Chem Products India Pvt LtdNo. 3, Muthiyal Reddy Street, Alandur, Chennai - 600 016.Phone : 22312662 / 22315458Mobile : 98400 22652Email : [email protected]

Res. : Amar Villa, New No 26, Old No. 20 Dr. Guruswamy Road, Chetpet, Chennai 600 031.

N.R. KuMARPartner MWN PressPattu Kootu Road, Mangadu. Chennai.Phone : 28111876 Mobile : 99401 72067 E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : Deivasigamani Road Royapettah, Chennai 600 014

K.R.S.S. MahendranProprietorSentinel Prints16/9, Thambu Street,Tripicane, Chennai - 600 005.Mobile : 86953 29444 98401 56007E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : 9/5, Thayar Sahib Street, Second Lane, Mount Road, Chennai - 600 002.

S. gIRIdHARANCEO : Kapoor Imaging Pvt. Ltd.,No. 3 Masilamani Road, Balaji Nagar, RoyapettahChennai - 600 014.Phone : 4347 1000Fax : 4347 1020Email : [email protected] : 9884030519 / 9840050855

Res : 17, South Road, West C I T Nagar, Chennai - 600 035.Phone : 24350855

R. vENKATASuBRAMANIANConsultant Iyyan Colour World4, (Old No. 9), Basement,4th Main Road, United India Colony, Kodambakkam, Chennai-600 024Phone : 42133245Mobile : 98402 60413E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : 14/23, 2nd Cross Street, Trustpuram, Kodambakkam, Chennai 600 024.

v. vAIdyALINgAMDirectorSuba Solutions Pvt. Ltd.1/479A, 8th street, Eranniamman Koil,GST Road, Vandalur, Chennai 600 048.

Mobile : 9382867972 E-mail : [email protected]

Res. : 25, Devadi Street, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004.

L. RAMANANATHANManaging PartnerSree Vinayaga Screens12, Subramania Pillai Street,S.S.Colony, Madurai - 625 010Phone : 0452 - 2600300Mobile : 87540 16030Email : [email protected] : www.vinayagascreens.com

Res : 40A/92, Parthasarathy Street, S.S.Colony, Madurai - 10

CO-OPTEd MEMBERS

ALAN BARRETTO Managing Director :Nilpeter India Pvt LtdSurvey No 113/1, 200ft Radial Road Zamin Pallavaram Chennai 600117Mobile : 9841721406Email : [email protected]

Res. : 7A Block 2 Magnolia Park 2 Five-Furlong Road Guindy, Chennai 600032

MuRugAvELManaging DirectorSun Packaging Co.,5A, Achuthan Nagar 1st Street,Ekkathuthangal, Chennai - 600 032.

Mobile : 95001 22075

E-mail : [email protected]

NIzAMAppAS Consultant & MDOne Stop Solutions #119 & 60 Jammi Building, First Floor, Fly over side, Royapettah High Road, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004,Phone : 2466 1195 / 2466 0824Mobile : 99625 28890Email : nizamappas@one1stopsolu- tions.comWeb : www.one1stopsolutions.comRes. : 182/256,1st floor, R.H. Road, Mylapore, Chennai – 600 004.


4 ways your small business can benefit from online printing

Small-business owners are used to the do-it-yourself approach, serving in roles from accountant to sales rep to IT guru. Nowadays they can add “printer” to the mix — sort of.

entrepreneurs often have plenty of ideas about the reports, marketing pieces and other items they’d like to produce, but lack the equipment to print them.

That’s where online printing comes in. The concept allows you to design your own projects, order them online, and either pick them up at a retail location or have them delivered.

In other words, it’s a hybrid DIY printing option.

Baby K'tan, which sells baby carriers and other products, uses online printing for some projects and a commercial printer for others.

“We like having various printing options available based on needs and budget,” said Reina Christian, the firm’s marketing coordinator. “We look at every dollar we spend, and we use online printing when it makes sense.”

And if you prefer to get in-store help with your project, you can also use a retailer’s online printing site to learn about options, pricing. and how to set up your files before going to the bricks-and-mortar location.

Here are a few advantages of online printing:

1. Flexibility : How and where you should print depends in part on how much you need to print.Online printing works for the Davie, Fla.-based Baby K'tan when it needs small quantities. That often means coupons, gift certificates, greeting cards or, in some cases, business cards.

“With a small growing company, our titles are constantly growing and changing — thus smaller numbers

of business cards ordered once or twice per year,” Christian said. “This helps us to avoid wasting cards with outdated titles or contact information.”

Orders for trade-show f lyers advertising new products or special pricing also typically go to an online printer.

2. Cost : By using your own labor for the design work, you might be able to save money.Many projects are straightforward, and even if you don’t have an artistic bent, templates are often available for presentations, newsletters, catalogs and other jobs.

Donna Turner, who owns Reptile Adventure in Richmond, Va., has made a long list of items to promote her company, which provides educational shows. They include business cards, rack cards, postcards, stickers, name badges, banners and shirts.

“I own a very small family business, and without low-cost online printing companies I could not afford my marketing material,” she said.

3. Simplicity : Angela Lawrence, managing director of the Tulsa, Okla.-based advertising agency AcrobatAnt, balances budget, quality and speed when recommending a vendor. She typically gets two or three estimates.“The online printers definitely make it easy to determine the cost and turnaround without needing to wait on a printer sales rep to put together an estimate,” Lawrence said. “For complicated projects, I appreciate the consultative nature of our traditional printers, but for simple projects such as brochures and stationery, online is often in the consideration set of options.”

She said some clients request specific online printers because they’ve used

them and liked their quality and service.

4. ConvenienceWith its quick turnarounds and widespread availability, online printing can be a boon to business travelers.

Paul Brown, managing principal of L iberty Lake, Wash.-based Brownstone Business Advisors, often finds himself in a hotel room, in an airport, or on a plane putting the finishing touches on a financial plan or summary. He uploads it to an online printer and picks it up on the way to see the client.

Brown said: “There are times when I would not have been able to complete a project without it.” n

Courtesy: www.bizjournals.com

Manroland Sheetfed to open New subsidiary in IndiaManroland Sheetfed GmbH has established an own subsidiary in India. Manroland Sheetfed India Pvt is based in New Delhi with local offices in Mumbai & Chennai.

Mr Neeraj Dargan heads up the new Manroland Sheetfed operation as Managing Director. A commerce graduate from Delhi University, Mr. Dargan brings a wealth of experience, having spent more than 30 years in the fields of sales & marketing, technical, operations and commercial, in capital goods and consumables for the print and graphic arts sector.

Mr Dargan said “I am delighted to be heading the new Manroland Sheetfed subsidiary to expand the company’s APAC operations. My local-market experience will enable us to better serve the group's existing client base and with year-on-year growth in India’s printing industry, I am looking forward to the challenges." n

Courtesy: www.worldpressonline.com/


The heritage building of the Madras Sanskrit College may be surrounded by new structures but within the concrete walls of the tall buildings are treasures more than 200 years old. The Kuppuswami Sastri Research Institute has hundreds of rare books and palm-leaf manuscripts in Sanskrit with english translations. The institute is now turning over a new leaf and is digitising its books and manuscripts dating back 200 years.

"The treasure trove in our institute wil l soon be onl ine. We have identified several Sanskrit books that are 200 years old and which are not available in the market any more. We have outsourced the digitisation job to a private company, which has brought its equipment to set up a small facility on the campus," said institute director V Kameswari.

The staff give 50 books at a time for digitisation and get it back the same day. "We do not allow our books and manuscripts to be taken out. That is why we refused an offer from Google to do the digitisation for free," said institute deputy director K S Balasubramanian. "Google wanted to take all the books and manuscripts to the US for a month, digitise them and return them but we refused and started digitisation on the college campus itself."

But the institute is short of funds to carry out research on the palm-leaf manuscripts that have details of various branches of science. "The institute needs funds to decode the details in the manuscripts. There are people ready to conduct research but lack of funds prevents us from undertaking the job," said Kameswari.

The institute is busy with the release of the Sanskrit grammarian Pathanjali's work by scholar P S Subramanian. There are 14 volumes of the work and 12 volumes have been released. The institute hopes to

Library turns over new leaf, digitizes 200-year-old books

release the other two volumes with the help of Subramanian's family, said Balasubramanian.

The institute, one of the three involved in Sanskrit research in the country, has been surviving on private donations. Without enough resources, the management is unable to pay the faculty the benefits of the sixth pay commission.

The institute was started as a private non-profit organisation in 1944 in memory of Kuppuswami Sastri, a renowned Sanskrit scholar. It has a library with books on astronomy, architecture, fine arts, mathematics, Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads and various branches of science. n

Courtesy: www.timesindia.com

540-year old book sold for over £1m

A 540-year-old book, known as the first to be printed in the english language, has sold at auction for more than N1million pounds.

The Recuyell of the Histories of Troye is a version of a French book written around 1463.

It was translated over a three-year period by William Caxton, who pioneered the printing press in england.

He published his version around 1474, at a time when most books were printed in Latin, in either Ghent or Bruges, Belgium.

The story is an epic romance which portrays the heroes of Greek mythology as chivalric figures, according to Sotheby’s, which auctioned it.

It was produced as a gift for the Duke of Burgundy’s new wife Margaret — the sister of the english King, edward IV.

The guide price going into the auction was £600,000 for a volume that is one of only 18 surviving copies.

But a bidding war between three rivals pushed the auction up to a hammer price of 900,000 pounds, with the buyer paying 1,082,500 pounds after the Sotheby’s added its commission.

Sotheby’s books specialist Gabriel Heaton said the work marked “a watershed moment in literary history when “the father of english printing”, William Caxton, embarked on the radical commercial decision to print the first book in English.

“Produced at a time when printing in the vernacular was still in its infancy, and when there was a relatively small domestic readership, this was a risky enterprise”, he added.

The Recuyell of the Histories of Troye, was the first book Caxton printed, and its production appeared to take its toll on a man who was a leading figure, in the 15th Century English mercantile community.

In the book’s epilogue, Caxton said: “In the writing of the same my pen is worn, mine hand weary and not steadfast, mine eyes dimmed with overmuch looking on the white paper”. n

Courtesy : www.pmnewsnigeria.com

man needs his

difficulties because they

are necessary to enjoy

success.

A. P. J. Abdul Kalam


The importance of ProofingYou’ve spent hours developing your flier for printing. Now it’s time to get it off your plate and over to the printer. What do they say? “Your proof is ready for your approval.” By this time you are done with this project and have moved on to the next one. The last thing you are interested in is putting your head back into it. You may even be tempted to offer your approval without one last look before printing. Time and again pieces get printed without a contact phone number or requesting your “presents” rather than your “presence” at an event. Here are some tips so that you can avoid this happening to you.

1. Make time to proof: Business moves at lightning speed, but there are times to slow down and check the details. Proof reading is one of those times. Taking 15 minutes to really look at your piece can make all of the difference. If you are proofing a larger piece, then schedule a portion of your day to devote to the job.

2. Proof from a printed copy: even if your printer sends you a digital proof, you should always print it out. It is very easy to scroll past errors on the computer screen. It, also, gives you a perspective on what your clients will receive. You may discover that you want to add information or move things around when you can see things from their point of view.

3. Whenever possible, see the original proof in person: This is particularly important when a piece is color critical or when choosing the stock. Nothing is worse, for you and your printer, than when your printed piece does not live up to your expectations. Remember, the goal of your piece is to remind your clients about you, and that happens when appealing to all of their senses. You ensure that the color and the paper stock texture and weight are

correct when you proof your project in person.

4. Another set of eyes can help:Asking another person to take a look at your piece can offer a fresh perspective and even vet out errors for correction. Often printers are focused on file preparation and color correction, rather than content, but they can add insight on the things to check.

Proofreading is a very important part of the design/printing process. In the long run, it will save time, money and frustration. Partner with a local printer and reap the rewards! n

Courtesy: www.valleybusinessjournal.com

Goss Opens Packaging Technology CenterGoss International, a respected player offering a wide array of commercial offset and newspaper presses, has broadened its reach into the packaging world with the opening of a new Packaging Technology Center at its headquarters in Durham, NH.

“The response to the opening has been overwhelming,” says Peter Walczak, Goss’ director of product management. “We’ve had to hit the ground running to fit in all the viewings and meetings requested.”

Industry pressures are driving interest in both the Center and the Goss’s new press that targets the packaging market. “Converters and brand owners are looking for lower costs, higher print quality, easier repeatability, faster turnaround times and shorter run lengths,” continues Walczak. “We created the facility to demonstrate our Vpak web offset technology and to generate and test new concepts for improved packaging printing.”

The centerpiece of the 7,000-square-foot facility is the company’s Vpak 500 press, which is available for d e m o n s t r a t i o n s a n d t e s t i n g . Featuring seven web offset units, EB and UV curing, and flexo coating, the Vpak accommodates web widths up to 33.5 inches with a repeat range from 16 to 32 inches. According to Goss, the Vpak’s versatility allows it to fit into many types of packaging including folding cartons, flexible packaging, preprint and labels.

In opening in the Technology Center, Goss has shown a clear dedication to the packaging segment of the printing industry. One of the most important aspects is the Center as an educational resource, much like similar facilities operated by other analog and digital press suppliers. At Goss’s Center, printers and converters from any segment of the print industry—not only converters but commercial printers looking at entering the packaging space—can get a sense of the entire production process, explore and test new packaging ideas, and see what the Vpak has to offer.

The center saw its first visitors in May and was quickly booked with visits for the summer. Walczak says Goss may host an event in the fall as part of a larger-scale opening of the center and presentation of the press. In the meantime, he said, visitors to New Hampshire are encouraged to stop by.

“We want people to come check it out,” says Walczak. “It’s here for people to use.” n

Courtesy: www.packageprinting.com

Develop success from

failures. Discouragement

and failure are two of the

surest stepping stones to

success.

Dale Carnegie


Flipkart, Myntra strike with packaging, make boxes worth keepingIndia's online retailers are thinking out of the box, in a manner of speaking. With hordes of ecommerce companies aspiring to be the next Flipkart, some of them are trying to rise above the clutter by using str iking packaging. While the corrugated box symbolises urban India's wholehearted embrace of internet shopping, no longer is it merely a piece of folded cardboard.

even the market leader is upgrading its packaging. As the country's largest e-commerce company, Flipkart. com ships almost 5 million items a month, 3 million of them in corrugated boxes. These containers now come printed with board games and puzzles — Sudoku, Snakes and Ladders, Ludo — or animal prints as it seeks to leverage that last-mile connect for brand recall. Some of the packages used by Myntra.com, which Flipkart is taking over, are even designed to be reused as jewellery boxes while the larger ones can be cut and used as clothes hangers.

"A few years ago, packaging and shipping was simply a way to receive a product purchased online, but things have changed now," said Ganesh Subramanian, COO of Myntra. "People are paying attention to packaging and presentation as a crucial part of their shopping experience." Aakriti Khanna hasn't thrown away the boxes she got from shopnineteen. com, from where she buys clothes and shoes. "Packaging really matters when it comes to the overall shopping experience and I like to order more if a well packed and presented parcel is delivered," said the New Delhi-based wedding planner.

She has about a dozen shopnineteen. com boxes, black with white and green doodles, in her east of Kailash apartment. She plans to turn them into side tables or lamp bases. "The gratification of shopping will definitely go up if the boxes are

usable," said the 22 year old. Another online shopper said she was delighted to get a package gift wrapped in ribbons when she ordered from forevernew.co.in, the India-specific website for the Australian fashion retailer. "Product packaging is a great marketing tool," said Subramanian of Myntra.

"It's the brand's first impression/connect with its customer." Flipkart is looking to prolong the life of the box. "We have added games on our boxes as a pleasant surprise for our customers," said Ankit Nagori, vice president, marketplace. "In this case, we turned the prosaic box into a Ludo board. This is also in tune with a line of packaging we are trying to pursue - we want all our packets to have a second life, be retained and reused by the customer.

Having begun the experiment six months ago, currently about 50% of Flipkart's boxes comes with board games and the company says this will grow. Amazon.in, Myntra.com and Jabong. com have all been air ing televis ion commercials with corrugated boxes featuring prominently in TV commercials. Thanks to the online retail boom, box makers expect almost 10% of their business to come from this segment in the next five years. n

Courtesy : www.articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com

FingerReader is a 3D - Printed Device that reads Text aloud to the BlindResearchers at MIT have developed a new technology that enables blind and vision-impaired people to read any printed text without the use of braille.

The "FingerReader" is a 3D-printed, ring-like device fitted with a small camera that scans and reads words out loud in real-time, as users follow text with their finger. It is "a tool both for visually impaired people that require

help with accessing printed text, as well as an aid for language translation," according to the FingerReader's website.

The device offers an experience like “reading with the tip of your finger” to people who cannot see, according to Pattie Maes, an MIT professor involved with creating the prototype. “It’s a lot more flexible, a lot more immediate than any solution that they have right now,” she told the Associated Press.

Other Optical Character Recognition devices exist, including Text Detective and Say Text, but the FingerReader is unique in its mobility and adaptability, according to developer Roy Shilkrot. It is the only wearable device of its kind that allows blind and vision-impaired users to read with the “well-practiced gesture of using the index finger to trace written text,” he said.

The FingerReader is geared toward reading multiple words and entire lines of texts. It connects to a laptop or mobile phone, allowing users to take the device with them to read items such as restaurant menus, business cards or any other text that is larger than 12-point font. The FingerReader also gives vibration-based feedback to users if they stray from the text’s baseline.

The device, which took three years to design and develop, is currently just a prototype. However, researchers said they hope to attract investors, and soon produce an affordable, marketable device for the public.

“Almost 3% of the population is visually impaired, so that is the market size for the FingerReader,” according to MIT. “Down the road, we think it has potential to assist not only visually impaired persons but also the elderly, children, language learners and tourists.” n

Courtesy : www.mtechzone.com/


Books never get oldPicture books for children have for years been considered a great resource in aiding child development and learning and as a form of wholesome entertainment. But in recent years, the world-wide sales of these books, especially in the United States, has declined because—according to a 2010 New York Times article by Julie Bosman—more parents are encouraging their children to read chapter books with fewer pictures and more text. Modern technology, which has increased access to information, could be another factor. It is altogether a different story here in Nepal, though. A country that is yet to establish a full-fledged reading culture has seen a visible growth in illustrated reading material for children in recent years.

Shantadas Manandhar is one of the first editors of children’s literature in Nepali. The 80-year-old, who is also a writer and an illustrator, is credited with having initiated, in 1979, the publishing of Baalposh, a magazine that featured poetry, short stories and other articles for children. “We used three-colour woodblock prints to do the magazine. It was a grand feat back then,” says Manandhar, referring to the decade prior to the introduction of offset printing technology in Nepal. A lot has changed now, with publications from organisations like Room to Read and Kathalaya mass-producing high-quality images printed on laminated paper. The plastic-coated paper pages used in their books are a delight for children as opposed to the news-print paper that was previously used (and is still used in government-commissioned textbook publication). Plus, these books don’t tear easily and are ideal for younger children.

Just like with adult-literature, there is the need for much planning and brainstorming to produce a quality literary work for children. That’s why Room to Read hosts workshops for writers and illustrators, which they hope will help produce picture

books that kids from around Nepal can best relate to—work that won’t hamper the kids’ growth in any way. The last workshop, held in Pataliban last month, hosted an eclectic group of veterans and budding illustrators.

“During the workshop, we ask the artists to pick from a set of stories and then let them go through it thoroughly. Once done, they start designing the primary characters and then start story-boarding. We then move on to making page dummies, and after a month, the illustrators come up with the final work,” says Shashwat Parajuli, an editor at Room to Read. Apart from the structured routine of the programme, participants also get to learn from their peers, adds Parajuli. Since the workshop hosts illustrators from different generations, the veterans can share with their younger counterparts their years of experience, while the seniors can be inspired by the energy and experimentations of the young.

A part ic ipant dur ing the last workshop, Bhawana Tulachan, says that the programme conducted by Room to Read has been helpful for her because she has been getting direct feedback from seasoned illustrators as well as editors, which in turn helps her improve her craft. Her

last published work was Jhusulikira Le Kasari Khola Taryo, written by Santosh Neupane. The work is not ink-drawn nor coloured with water-based paint, like conventional children’s book illustrations are; all the images are collages done with different kinds of coloured paper stuck together to form the compositions. Because the style keeps away from the almost-clichéd style that has been practiced for some time now, the book succeeds in creating a fresher form. The illustrator has refrained from bothering about anatomical or figurative intricacies but has placed an emphasis on the expressions of the characters and the moods of the scenes. The objects in the book have been reduced to more basic shapes, and this rendering perhaps helps children understand better how basic shapes can be put together to form more complex entities.

Children’s book illustrators in Nepal have varied approaches. “If it’s a humorous story or if it’s fantasy-based, I generally opt for a more stylised, cartoonish approach but if it’s a socially relevant story, I try to keep the illustrations as realistic as possible,” says Yuwak Shrestha, a freelance illustrator who has been working in children’s literature for about two decades now. The artist, who graduated from Lalit Kala and


also trained under senior illustrator KK Karmacharya, says that it’s imperative that an illustrator have the ability to provide the text with relevant imagery. “Kids from rural areas and from the cities relate to images in different ways. To a city kid, the word ‘rice’, for example, could bring up the image of a sack filled with grains, but for a kid from a village, the same word could mean fields of rice plantations. So it important for an illustrator to be sensitive to these issues and keep in mind the target audience,” adds Shrestha, who believes there are no rules set in stone for working with children’s texts; he does say, however, that common sense and general knowledge, apt execution-skills, creativity and imagination, and a basic understanding of children’s psychology is important.Manandhar believes that the art used in children’s literature should not devolve into the abstract and should not contain anything other than what the story intends to describe, but Tulachan’s illustrations speak otherwise. She also focuses on elements other than the primary characters, and this attention to tertiary detail makes the work more engaging for the viewers. The background creates a certain ambience for the reader, which the text alone probably wouldn’t have been able to build, and thus opens up paths for a child’s imagination to run free.Unfortunately, not all books that are being produced cater to the children with such skillful renditions. Apart from books illustrated by Promina Shrestha, Suman Maharjan, Krishna Gopal Shrestha, Kirti Kaushal Joshi and some others, many picture books can seem pedestrian, with illustrations that seem to have been done just for the sake of completing the work. These books work, but the idea is to excel, and with kids, who are the future, we can’t be more careful. But this is not always the fault of illustrators alone. Sujan Chitrakar, an associate professor at KU Art, says that in most cases artists

are constrained by the story given to them and the guidelines set out by the writers and the publishers, which unfortunately restricts the illustrator from working freely. “I stopped doing picture books because I felt like there was not enough freedom, but I’ll start again when I come up with my own story,” he says.Yuwak Shrestha expresses similar dissatisfactions and also says that he has a couple of drafts that he wants to craft into children’s stories that he will illustrate. Tulachan stresses on the need for more imaginative stories involving more fantasy, which would give an artist the freedom to explore and experiment more.Although the future of picture books isn’t entirely certain—since modern technology and moving pictures are taking over—it’s likely that in the case of Nepal, the books will fare well for now because apart from a few major cities, the rest of the country’s children should certainly be able to make use of them. Besides, in a way, these hard copies are irreplaceable: because they make for great storytelling mediums that engage all the senses and faculties of the kids—the kids can take in the pictures as their guardians narrate the stories, and they can touch the pages and even smell them. “A still image has its own charm,” says Yuwak Shrestha. “You can’t get the same feeling out of a film or an animation, even if you pause them. These books are like paintings, works of art.” n

Courtesy : www.ekantipur.com

Qatar Airways’ ‘My Q-Tag’ enables printing baggage tag before arrival at airport

Qatar Airways has developed an online system for passengers who wish to print their own baggage tags before arrival at the airport, as per a release. The Qatar Airways’ ‘My Q-Tag’ enables customers to arrive at the airport and proceed directly to the web check-in bag drop counter, where a customer service representative will process their already labelled baggage.

The My Q-Tag is currently available to 103 destinations for passengers exiting Doha. Akbar Al Baker, CEO, Qatar Airways, said, “With the capacity to handle 8,700 customers per hour, Hamad International Airport Doha (HIA) will provide a seamless, hassle-free experience to our passengers, from check-in to passport control and boarding. Qatar Airways passengers will be thrilled to take advantage of our new My Q-Tag service, along with the comfort and functional design of the new airport, and the exceptional shopping and dining choices it offers.”

The HIA Passenger Terminal Complex houses 138 check- in counters across five islands, including 108 counters for Qatar Airways economy passengers and all other airlines, 16 counters dedicated to Qatar Airways Business Class travellers and 14 luxury, bespoke, seated check-in counters for Qatar Airways First Class passengers. In addition, the new airport is also equipped with 34 self-check-in kiosks to further streamline the process and enable customers to print their own boarding passes. n

Courtesy : www.deccanchronicle.com

You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

Steve Jobs


Scan food item’s bar code, get recipes on your phone

Those packets on the supermarket shelves may soon start conversing if the changing packaging trends in India and across the globe are anything to go by.

Innovations like being able to get more recipes by scanning a simple soup pack or being able to send personalized chocolate gift packs with photos of dear ones printed on them are all underway.

“We are now trying to convert packaging into an active sales medium through usage of technology,” said Sethu Padmanabhan, director of Alia group, a company engaged in premedia services for over a decade.

With over a dozen blue chip clients to its kitty, the group is working on making dynamic packaging of products that communicates with individual consumers.

“For example, we are engaged in developing concepts such as making a simple Rs 5 soup pack generate a dozen recipes on swiping the bar code of the pack on the consumer’s phone screen,” he added.

Pre-media publishing services r e f e r s t o t h e p r o c e s s e s a n d procedures that occur between the conception of original artwork and

the manufacturing of final output channel, be it in cartons, satchets, tins or bottles. “Brands are paying more attention to making their packs not just attractive but also communicative, both on the physical shelf and e-shelf,” Mr Padmanabhan said.

In India, 65 per cent of food followed by 35 per cent of pharma and cosmetics products are packaged.

Indian packaging industry is highly fragmented with more than 22,000 registered packaging companies, of which 85 percent of them are MSMEs. “It is in this context that our services of a prototype lab, colour coding and even ink supplies to local printers gains significance,” he said. n

Courtesy : www.deccanchronicle.com

Labelexpo returns to India from Oct 29Registration is now open for the seventh edition of Labelexpo India. South Asia’s premier label and package printing exhibition, it returns to Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 29 October – 1 November and will be bigger than ever before.

Covering 5,800sq meters, Labelexpo India 2014 will feature around 250 exhibiting companies including over 50 first time exhibitors. Underlining the growing importance of the Indian market, many of the industry’s leading suppliers have taken larger stands including Dupont, esko, Nilpeter, Technova Imaging Systems, UPM Raflatac and Xeikon.

Other leading press and material suppliers showing their latest solutions include Avery Dennison, Dragon Foils, epson, Flint Group, Multitec Aids, Nuova Gidue, Omet, Webtech and Weigang Machinery. Aimed at label and package printers, brand owners and label designers, many new product and service launches are scheduled to take place.

Visitors to the show will be able to see the next generation of printing machinery coming onto the market as well as learn about global market trends and see live demonstrations of the most advanced technologies available, compare the latest materials and find out about the newest developments in flexible packaging and intelligent labels. In addition, Labelexpo India will once again play host to the LMAI Avery Dennison Label Awards at New Delhi’s Le Méridien Grand Ballroom.

Jade Grace, event director said: “Labelexpo India is an important professional platform as it serves the needs of label and packaging printers across Indian and South Asia. Reflecting growth in the marketplace, the size of the show has grown steadily with each new edition, as has the number of products and solutions being displayed. With the increased number of exhibitors, Labelexpo India 2014 is no exception as it confirms the strong commercial opportunities that exist across FMCG.”

Success is walking

from failure to failure

with no loss of

enthusiasm.

Winston Churchill


The Hindu comes up with three editions for Andhra Pradesh

The new editions will cater to coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema and Telangana, in the newly demarcated state of AP.

Starting March 15, Kasturi & Sons-owned english daily The Hindu has launched three new editions in Andhra Pradesh catering to coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema and Telangana regions.

The publication has restructured its editions to meet the changes in the state’s geography after the formation of Telangana, India’s 29th state. The paper claims to be the first one catering to this change.

Page 2 of the Telangana edition will provide the cultural and social activities of the would-be new state. Page 3 will focus on civic and municipal coverage, while Pages 4 and 5 will provide the political, economic and infrastructural developments. The already existing Hyderabad city edition will continue to focus on city coverage.

The Coastal Andhra Pradesh edition will cater to districts from Prakasam to Srikakulam including Krishna, Godavari , Visakhapatnam and Guntur. The Rayalaseema edition will cover the districts of Anantpur, Kurnool, Cuddapah and Chittoor, while the Telangana edition will cater to the nine districts of Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Khammam, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar, Medak, Hyderabad and Rangareddy.

Page 2 of Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema editions will cover the cultural life and social trends of the region. And, Page 3 for both editions will focus on political, business and economic activities of the region. The Coastal Andhra Pradesh edition will come out from Vijayawada.

The Hindu will continue to bring out the city editions of Vijayawada and Vishakhapatnam which will have

news of life in big cities, while Page 3 will cover urban governance, civic and infrastructural issues. Pages 4 and 5 will continue to provide the news from Hyderabad as the joint capital of the two states.

The total print run for the Andhra Pradesh market as claimed by the publication is around 3.25 lakh copies. The cover price for the edition remains the same. The paper has printing centres in Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Nellore and Anantpur.

The Hindu group started in 1878 and has a business daily, english and vernacular dailies, along with a couple of magazines to its name. Its english daily, The Hindu, is published from 20 cities across eight states and enjoys a dominant status in South India. n

Courtesy: www.afaqs.com

Quran Printing Centre

H i s H i g h n e s s S h a i k h M o h a m m a d B i n R a s h i d A l Mak toum, Vice-Pres i dent and Prime Min is ter of the UAE and Ruler o f D u b a i , i n a u g u r a t e d t h e Mo ham mad Bin Rashid Qu ran Print ing Cen tre.

The cen tre will be the first of its kind to pro vide copies of the Qu ran in all type script, writ ing

styles and variant read ings for all Mus lim coun tries.

S h a i k h M o h a m m a d s a i d , “Serv ing the book of God, as well as p r e s e r v i n g , p r i n t i n g a n d dis sem i nat ing the Holy Qu ran is the grace of Al lah and I thank God for guid ing me to do part of my duty in serv ing Is lam and Mus lims.”

W i t h a n a n n u a l p r o d u c t i o n ca pac ity of 6 mil lion copies, the new Qu ran print ing cen tre ini tially aims to print the ‘ Khal ifa Bin Zayed Mus’haf’ (edi tion of the Holy Qu ran) and the ‘ Shaikh Mak toum Bin Rashid Mus’haf’.

Shaikh Ham dan Bin Mo ham mad Bin Rashid Al Mak toum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Shaikh Mak toum Bin Mo ham mad Bin Rashid Al Mak toum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, other shaikhs and se nior offi cials were present.

Tol er ance and peace The cen tre is aimed at pro mot ing true mes sage of Is lam, the teach ings of the Qu ran and the Sun nah ( the way of life pre scribed as nor ma tive for Mus lims on the ba sis of the teach ings and prac tices of the Prophet Mo ham mad PBUH), tol er ance, mod er a tion and in ter cul tural in ter ac tion in or der to achieve peace and co- ex is tence be tween all races and to make the world a bet ter place for hu man ity.

The new cen tre will ben e fit from the fa cil i ties of Masar Print ing and Pub lish ing, Dubai’s lead ing high qual ity print ing and pub lish ing house. It will also con tinue to co or di nate with Dubai’s Depart ment of Is lamic Af fairs and Char i ta ble Ac tiv i ties, Dubai In ter na tional Holy Qu ran Award and char i ties in the UAE and abroad to en sure full ser vices in all stages of print ing the Holy Qu ran.

The es tab lish ment of the state- of- the- art cen tre is in line with the wise di rec tives of Shaikh Mo ham mad and the UAE’s strong in ter est in serv ing the Holy Qu ran through a ded i cated full- time team. n

Courtesy: www.khaleejtimes.com

Shaikh Mohammed inaugurating the Mohammed Bin Rashid Quran Printing

Centre in Dubai.


Design must speak to the readersHotel Courtyard Marriott in Mumbai was the venue for the two-day conference on News Design organized by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (Wan-Ifra), in association with the Society for News Design (SND). The conference, which took place from June 3 to 4, was attended by more than 35 publications from India and abroad. Over two days the topics under discussion were newspaper design and redesign, typography, photo, information graphics and tablet design.

Lucie Lacava of Lacava Designs giving the keynote speech

Unique stylesThe keynote address of the conference was delivered by world-renowned newspaper designer Lucie Lacava of Canada-based Lacava Designs, who said that the design must be tailored to content and must speak to the readers in its own unique voice. In her presentation, she showed the audience how various newspapers from across the world have used innovative designs over the years and have created their unique styles.

Among the highlights from the Design and Redesign session on Day 1 was the presentation by Vinod Verma, editor, digital and convergence, Amar Ujala. Verma’s presentation dealt with how Amar Ujala Coacmpt, a sister publication of Amar Ujala, has been designed to meet the demands of hyper-local markets in Uttar Pradesh.

“The whole design of Amar Ujala Compact is to have maximum focus on local news. every city has an edition which has a unique local flavor such as the business section dealing with local businesses. This has been well received by readers and Amar Ujala Compact has carved its own identity,” Verma said.

Complete redesignAnother interesting presentation was

delivered by Sachin Kalbag, editor of Mumbai-based Mid-Day in which he told the delegates about how the newspaper has gone for a complete redesign recently. The Mumbai afternoon paper has increased its focus on Mumbai city. The paper is now divided into four broad sections apart from the front page — Hitlist, Guide, Sports and Classified. All stories have a short introduction and bullet points to highlight key elements.

Kalbag said a new section called the ‘Sunshine Page’ has been added which shows positive things about the city. “The idea of this page was to feature the brighter side of Mumbai. It speaks about people who are trying to make a positive difference to the city.”

Day 2 of the conference began with a talk by John Niedermeyer, deputy editor digital design, NYTimes.com who spoke on the topic of news design for digital platforms. Niedermeyer showed how various stories were designed and conceived for the New York Times digital platform. Citing an example of a story of a reporter’s journey through Russia, from Moscow to Saint Petersburg, Niedermeyer showed how lots of interactive features were incorporated with the written story.

Role of fonts Among the many speakers on the second day, the talk by professor GV Sreekumar was particularly interesting. Sreekumar spoke on the role of fonts in the future of communication. Speaking about the role of fonts he said it is a bridge between the content and the reader as publications create identity by using specific fonts.

In the context of India, Sreekumar said that Indian vernacular languages face an issue of limitation of fonts and creating font design in Indian languages is a challenge. To tackle this problem awareness has to be created about design in India.

The conference was wrapped up with a talk by Haika Hinze, art director, DIE ZEIT, Germany. DIE ZEIT has won SND ‘World’s Best Designed’ award six times, more than any other newspaper in the world. Hinze showed the audience the newspaper’s classic design styles. n

Courtesy: www.indianprinterpublisher.com

WAN-IFRA to establish “World Printers Forum”The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) is creating a World Printers Forum, a new initiative for the newspaper printing and production community including both experts from newspaper printing and production operations and vendors of related equipment.The World Printers Forum, similar in structure to WAN-IFRA’s World Editors Forum for senior newsroom executives, will address the issues of concern to the printing community and will work to bring innovation to all areas of newspaper production.“Though digital media gets most of the attention today and is increasing the audiences for newspapers, it is important not to overlook print, which still attracts 2.5 billion daily readers and produces more than 93 per cent of newspaper company revenues globally,” said Vincent Peyrègne, CEO of WAN-IFRA.“Our members engaged in printing and production operations, and the suppliers who provide much of the innovation in this sector, are key assets to our industry, and the World Printers Forum concept is the result of their requests for a global platform for the exchange of ideas and best practices.”The World Printers Forum will come together with an inaugural conference at the World Publishing Expo 2014, the largest global trade exhibition for the news publishing and media industry to be held in Amsterdam from 13 to 15 October. The two-day conference will feature innovations in print from around the world, how to make the printing plant into an independent profit center, savings from “going green”, latest developments in digital printing, cost calculation models for digital printing and more.Full details about the World Publishing Expo can be found at http://www.worldpublishingexpo.com. The World Printers Forum (WPF) will guide WAN-IFRA’s activities in all areas of newspaper production, materials and sustainability. This will include promoting the unique value of print, encouraging the creation of innovative products, as well as developing new business models for print and operating printing plants as an independent profit center.

The WPF, which will take final form at the Expo in October, is expected to be driven by a board comprised of printing and production experts and representatives from the technology supplier companies. n

Courtesy: http://www.wan-ifra.org/


Going by the cover

A well-designed cover on its own can be irresistible to the buyer.

A pretty face can only get you so far, and of course it’s that fabled inside that counts. The world of books, though, is one of overflowing, endless shelves, and any distance travelled from the book-rack to the reader can go a long way. And while metaphorically, the old adage that warns you against judging a book by its cover remains true, it’s fast losing its literal ground. With too much to read and too little time, a beautiful cover can be magnetic for readers. Of course, for bona fide bibliophiles, they’ve always been irresistible.

How a book looks can go a long way in determining how it sells, and who it sells to. Both voracious and occasional readers will know that covers vary between genres, and tend to stick to certain colour schemes and typography within a specific genre. The chick-lit section is a veritable feast of pinks and pastels, and the thrillers are darker, blacker and sometimes, bloodier. Each cover attracts a specific reader, addresses a particular need, and occasionally, on the sheer strength of its beauty, creates new readers. Milee Ashwarya, editorial Director for Random House India’s Ebury and Random Business divisions, echoes this idea. “Covers are crucial, as they are the face of a book, the first thing

a reader notices about the book. The cover on its own might tempt somebody to buy a book.”

Bena Sareen, Creative Director at Aleph Book House, adds that sometimes, a reprint of a book with a new cover, can boost sales. “Classics are perhaps the best examples. They are constantly given new looks and packaging, and almost always, attract new readers.” Penguin’s exquisitely designed Threads series, as well as the minimalistic Vintage Classics, stand witness to this fact.

P o o j a T . , w h o s e b o o k b l o g whimsybookworm stands testimony to her love for the written word, echoes this idea when she talks about what guides her frequent book hauls. “To be honest, the only time book covers guide my book buying is when it comes to Classics. There are just so many options, including free ones (e-books), when it comes to Classics, that I want to get the prettiest edition I possibly can. This desire stems from knowing that these books will stand the test of time and are ones I will not only re-read but also cherish forever. When it comes to some of my favourite books, I don’t even mind getting

multiple pretty editions of them!”

It’s important to remember that before a book is picked out and the blurb read, the cover is the only thing visible, forming that first communication between the book and its reader. Gavin Morris, who heads Penguin India’s design department, feels that the first impressions formed by a reader, based on its cover “can make or break a book”. “It’s essential to ascertain that each cover fits the book perfectly, and gives the reader just the right amount of information,” he adds. Of course, the front cover of the book is only part of its packaging, and sometimes, the entire package, including the front, back and spine of the book, contribute towards giving the readers a sense of the kind of book they are about to pick up. Speaking from a marketing perspective, Caroline Newbury, VP Marketing and Publicity, Random House India, says that with an ever increasing number of books being published every year, making a book stand out from the market is always key. “A good cover can really help with this. As shelf space in physical retail is competed over more fiercely by more titles and, in many cases, is decreasing in stores, it becomes harder and harder for books to be discovered.”

each genre, of course, demands a different designing process. Sanjana Roy Choudhury, Publisher with Hay House India, talks about the kind of covers that work best with Hay House’s list of primarily non-fiction and self-help books. “Our constant effort is to ensure the book cover design is inspirational, so that the reader connects with it instantly. For our self-help books, we design them to have a more ‘real’ look; that people instantly connect — it could be their story. They have to be warm, soulful, yet depict strength, especially for inspirational memoirs.” Gunjan Ahlawat, Art Director with Westland Books, has worked with Duckbill’s new and attractive History Mystery series for kids and says that children’s books are an entirely different ball game. “The whole personality, the attitude changes. Starting from the imagery, typography and most importantly colour palette, and to excite kids in particular, post-press effects, like


embossing, innovative textures and anything quirky one can think of to trigger excitement in them. In the past, we have done many such experiments. Like putting HOLe in books, spilling sugar like texture etc.” Newbury adds that the process includes the editorial team working closely with designers. “They are given a brief which accurately reflects the content of the book before they present jacket options to our sales and marketing team. Along with other colleagues we then all look at these carefully to discuss the suitability of the design. Sometimes we will look at options and the right one will be there straight away; other times it is a long process before we finally get that perfect design.”

Crucial, as well as central to this process, are the designers and illustrators who work ceaselessly to produce multiple book cover options. Sareen has designed some beautiful books in the past year, working on, among others, Jerry Pinto’s Em and the Big Hoom, Nilanjana Roy’s The Wildings. “When I hire people, I look for this natural inclination to design that I feel cannot be taught in design schools.”

Speaking on the importance of front cover illustrations, Sareen says that they are very different from the illustrations that one finds within the pages. “The cover design, or illustration, needs to be more general, more symbolic of the whole book, while what goes inside is more chapter or narrative specific.”

Sareen’s work has delighted the authors she has worked with. Nilanjana Roy, whose books have been beautifully illustrated by artist Prabha Mallya, says that she loves how they look. “They are so important to authors, and the gratitude you feel when you see a really beautiful cover is immense. It’s not just knowing that your book looks good, it’s the feeling that the publishers, the designer, and the artist cared enough to create something as perfect as this.”

The authors are also involved, in varying degrees, in the process itself. For each publishing house, the methodology differs, and designers, while not keen

to let an author have a complete say in their book’s cover design, often turn to them for the final go-ahead. “The author’s role varies a lot,” says Ahlawat. “Some have such fixed ideas that you are only left to massage their egos. And on the contrary some leave it entirely to your judgment. And allow me to be subjective, those who leave it to you get the best designs,” he adds.

V. Geetha, Director, Tara Books, says that her publishing house ensures that the cover is liked, as well as approved, by the author. “Some authors see it as something to do with marketing, and are willing to let publishers decide, others want to be part of the discussion. Ultimately, if the author does not like a cover, or an illustrator is uncomfortable with our use of her or his illustration, we have to either give up what we’ve chosen, or convince them of our choice,” she adds.

Hay House has a similar outlook, and Roy Chowdhury says that the cover of the book is shared with its author.

Do these covers, so painstakingly deliberated over and designed, lose their importance as e-books? It seems like they don’t, at least while the digital space is still underutilised. Currently, the usual practice is to convert physical copies of books to their digital format, and the cover remains unchanged. Thus, even while browsing online, tiny thumbnail displays of these covers help you pick and choose, and authors previously unread can catch your eye, introducing you to newer pastures. In fact, the drastic size reduction e-books bring about makes cover designing an even bigger challenge. “You need covers with clearer message and better clarity for e-books as the printing effects won’t be visible. Some publishers design separate covers for the physical and e-books keeping the different markets in mind,” says Ashwarya.

Whether as e-books on your Kindles, Nooks and tablets, or as good old paperbacks and hardcovers on your shelves, beautiful covers and intelligent designs can go a long way in making you meet your next favourite book. n

Courtesy: www.thehindu.com

Frank Romano’s Love Letter to Linotype

Professor Frank Romano’s new book, “History of the Linotype Company,” is like a love letter with references and footnotes. Beautifully printed and illustrated, it smells great too. It also weighs about as much as a fully-loaded agate type magazine from a Model 9 Linotype machine. With more than 460 pages, this book does not constitute light reading. If the names James Clephane, Whitelaw Reid, and Linn Boyd Benton mean anything to you, then this will be your goldmine. If they don’t, then this book provides the opportunity to drink in a rich mixture of historical documents and Romano’s astute observations. Romano is clearly obsessed with this topic, and for that we should all be thankful. Who else as a young man would have had the forethought to collect old type catalogs and preserve an unpublished company history?

In the Preface, Romano describes the book’s intent perfectly: There are lots of books about Ottmar Mergenthaler and the invention of the Linotype. This one brings together in one place all the major documents and all the corporate information. It is a time capsule of just about everything the company did.

It’s an accurate description, but almost an understatement. James Clephane’s “History of the Linotype”? Check. Joseph Mackey’s 1936 History of the Linotype Company? Check. Excerpts from Mergenthaler’s autobiography and the 1936 book “The Power of Print, and Men”? Check. One hundred plus pages of fonts manufactured by Linotype or its subsidiaries? Check.

My favorite parts of the book are the images that you would never be likely to see if it weren’t for Romano’s detective work: Mergenthaler as a jaunty young man (mostly clean-shaven, only a moustache) in the days before the bushy beard of his most frequently reproduced photo; Mergenthaler and his wife Emma in a 1899 portrait; a 1944 Linotype-themed comic strip called “Lines of Letters”; and a true gem, a Milton Glaser line drawing of a Linotype machine.

Admittedly, Romano’s “History of the Linotype Company” is not for everyone, but if you think you might enjoy a bouquet of obscure historical delights collected and arranged to perfection by today’s foremost Linotype expert, then this is the book for you. It is truly the work of a lifetime.

You can order “History of the Linotype Company” for $39.99 through its publisher, the RIT Press.n



Lettering beautyThere once lived a group of artistes called ‘katibs’ whose calligraphy was so fine that queues formed to have their writing on invitation cards and notes. They even wrote for newspapers and religious texts.

As I glance at books that spell excellence in calligraphy, Khalid Alavi, a well-known name in Urdu literature, educates me about a long forgotten, highly skilled class of artistes: the katibs.

Flipping through a rare edition of Kulliyat-e-Iqbal in his possession, beautifully handwritten by Naeem Farooqui, Alavi Sahab tells me, “In Delhi, the calligraphers or katibs par excellence were found at all the printing presses and newspaper offices. They wrote books and newspapers, and their work was in great demand! All these calligraphers have now disappeared.”

Calligraphy or the adornment of lettering reached its peak in India in the beginning of 20th century.

“There was a point in time,” Alavi Sahab informs, “When calligraphy was the only way in which the Koran was written.”

Urdu calligraphy began in India in 1836, when Urdu became the national language, and the first newspaper in Urdu came out. Before this, calligraphy was in Persian.

Flourishing artThe craft flourished in the 60s and 70s with innovation in print technology doing justice to what was being drafted by the hand. Katibs, in fact, did good business till the 1980s, as major newspaper houses and printing presses continued to print text that was handwritten.

Not too way back, in the early 1900s, the bi-weekly newspaper Madina, published from Bijnor, used to go to distant countries like Saudi Arabia.

It was as well-known for its calligraphy as for the great personalities who wrote for it. The BBC used to give its reference.

Reminiscing about old times, Alavi Sahab says, “When I started out as a writer, I used to get the text handwritten by a katib and then send

it for print. What worth it held! The katibs made each book unique, unlike books projecting almost the same kind of styles by computers today.

Two very well-known katibs of our times were Anis Siddiqui from Pakistan and Khalique Tonki from Tonk, in Rajasthan.

Khalique Tonki used to sit at the Ghalib Academy at Nizamuddin, in Delhi.”

He tells me that the big cultural centres for Urdu calligraphy were Lahore, Delhi, Lucknow and Hyderabad.

He also conveys that the Mughal e m p e r o r s h a d a p e n c h a n t f o r ca l l igraphy. “The last popular calligrapher among the Mughals was Bahadur Shah Zafar. Aurangzeb was a renowned calligrapher too and so was Razia Sultan’s brother and Sultan of Delhi, Nasiruddin Mahmood.”

‘katibs’ of Old DelhiUrdu Bazaar in Old Delhi, bursting with people and activity, was once famous for its katibs who wrote wedding invitations and posters.

“There used to be a hundred katibs here once, but now there are only four or five,” says the aged Nizamuddin who owns a shop in the area. He shows me a stretch of shops starting right from the Taj Hotel in front of Jama Masjid to the mouth of the lane that brings one to Urdu Bazaar.

“This whole stretch used to be full of katibs who had clients at their doorsteps urging them to write a few things to be framed. During elections, they used to write the posters.” He tells

me what I have heard before — “And they displayed a lot of nakhra because their work was so appreciated.”

The state of things is so dismal now that not only have the katibs disappeared, but also the shops once famous for calligraphy.

Nizamuddin points out Nazir Ahmed’s once-famous shop that now sells cassettes.

In that busy lane, during peak work hours, I could find just one katib. As I asked around, people in the shops directed me to Nizamuddin’s, where they said I could find one.

There, sitting in the corner was Ghalib, waiting for somebody to turn up for his first piece of work that day.

“Business is bad. I am doing this because it is the only thing I know to do,” he tells me. “My sons actually run the household. None of them is in the calligraphy business.”

Ghalib pays no rent to Nizamuddin for sitting in a corner of his shop. And the latter is only too eager to provide space to what he perceives as “the last of the katibs of Urdu Bazaar”.

Vanishing with time Today, as interest in calligraphy has dwindled, so has its demand. And with computers doing what they did, the katibs have long perished.

The Urdu Department in Delhi University has a publication division and it had a katib, Jafar Zaidi, who was from Lucknow.

After his retirement, his place was taken by a gentleman who used to be a katib but now did his work on the computer.

The Urdu Academy in Delhi has a school that teaches calligraphy. There are a few students learning this dying art for the pure love of it. Unfortunately, there are no more katibs at Ghalib Academy, which had once been the bastion of the great Khalique Tonki.

And in Urdu Bazaar, Ghalib, along with the rest of the dying tribe, have been reduced to a pitiable existence.n

Courtesy: www.deccanherald.com


Kodak has commercially released new extensions to its industry-leading Kodak Flexcel NX System, enabling customers in the post-print and pre-print corrugated markets to drive significant print quality improvements while taking advantage of increased print stability and pressroom efficiencies. Developed in response to customer demand, the new Kodak Flexcel NX Wide 5080 System, and new range of Kodak Flexcel NX Plates will extend to the corrugated sector the print excellence customers have grown to expect from Kodak flexographic solutions.

With a proven track record in labels, flexibles, cartons, shrink sleeves and bags, the Flexcel NX System allows prepress providers and printers to maintain a competitive edge by delivering highly impactful packaging of exceptional quality while streamlining production costs. Through continued i n n o v a t i o n a n d i n v e s t m e n t i n technologies such as Kodak SquareSpot Imaging Technology and Kodak Digicap NX patterning, corrugated producers will now be able to take advantage of these benefits with a solution that enables expanded tonal range, higher line screens, more efficient ink transfer, and improved print quality on lower grade boards.

Kodak adds corrugated applications to Flexcel NX

’We are excited to deliver on our customers’ requests for a Kodak Flexcel NX System that focuses on corrugated packaging,’ said Doug Edwards, president, Digital Printing & enterprise. ‘We know that there are always strong cost pressures in this segment and have worked hard to deliver a solution that focuses on both quality and total delivered cost. Whether customers are focused on achieving high quality results in pre-print and post-print or impactful, cost-effective post-print results on lower grade liners, we are confident that Kodak now has an innovative solution to meet those needs. Commercial print trials have already yielded an overwhelmingly positive response from both printers, and their brand clients alike.’

The Flexcel NX Wide 5080 System includes a newly designed imaging platform and laminator that enables plate making in formats up to 1270 x 2032mm (50 x 80-inches). Designed for operator ease of use, rapid throughput and robust performance, the system features the tried-and-trusted Kodak SquareSpot Imaging Technology for precise, repeatable, high-resolution imaging.

The new Kodak Flexcel NXC Plates are formulated specifically for post-print

applications delivering superior ink coverage, reduced fluting, improved highlight reproduction and cost-effective on-press performance. Kodak Flexcel NXH Plates, now available in 50 x 80-inch format (1270 x 2032mm), are ideal for high quality pre-print applications, enabling efficient on-press performance, long plate life and photo-realistic print reproduction.

For additional information on Kodak, visit: www.kodak.com, follow Kodak on Twitter @Kodak, or like Kodak on Facebook at KodakNow. n

Courtesy: www.graphicrepro.co.za

New Kodak Flexcel NX Wide 5080 System and new range of Kodak Flexcel NX Plates to address the corrugated sector…

Minor Version Release of Shree-Lipi 7.3.0.7In this new version release we have concentrated on new protection and Windows 8 32 bit operating system support.

In this version New Protection Lock (SOFDOG) is released. This lock is having compatibility from Windows XP to Windows 8 (both 32 bit as well as 64 bit) support. This is having better protection, long term support for operating systems on 32bit as well as 64 bit platform. In addition to this Modular is still continuing support for Weblock, MDOG lock and Pencd lock.

Since Tamil Government is standardizing using TACE-16 font layout in Government sector, Modular has released new Tamil font layout for composition as well as conversion to support in different applications like InDesign, Quark, Word, CorelDraw etc.. Modular is also giving 4 Tace-16 fonts along with the Tamil Vairam package. end user can install these fonts using Modular Font Manager by selecting Installation of other font layout option. Tamil Vanavil font is used in many govt. organizations and users face issues with higher applications and operating systems support. To overcome this difficulty Modular has released Vanavil font layout support for composition as well as conversion. end users should have Vanavil font installed in their system to use this option.

Since lots of Tamil users have requested us to give numerals in SL7 font layout similar to old version of Shree-Lipi, all Tamil fonts are modified and now end user will get bigger size numerals in all Tamil fonts. n

Courtesy: Modular Forum Newsletter


Chennai’s own publishing icon

Putparatha Chettiar published rare works with notes, translation

The city today is a hub for book publishing and the increase in the number of publishers who participated in the book fair in January is testimony to the technology available for printing in Chennai. But nearly 150 years ago, a man by the name of Putparatha Chettiar published ancient literary works including the Naladiyar and Thirikadugam, complete with english notes.

The name of his printing press was Kalarathnakaram Atchukoodam and it functioned from Thambu Chetty street, in North Chennai.

“He was very famous and his house was known as Achapeeskarar veedu (publisher’s house). From 1866, he published all the works with elaborate notes and translations so that the english rulers could access it,” said P. Saravaran, a Tamil teacher, who has republished Putparatha Chettiar’s Naladiyar and Thirikadugam.

Mr. Saravanan said Chettiar also published many of the Pathinenkeezh Kanakku works, mostly penned by the Jain Tamil scholars.

Chettiar’s efforts were particularly significant as U.V. Swaminatha Iyer, whose tireless efforts saved

i n n u m e r a b l e a n c i e n t l i t e r a r y works that would have otherwise been destroyed by termites, had not published the Pathinenkeezh Kanakku.

B u t b a r r i n g N a l a d i y a r a n d Thirukadugam, none of the other works published by Chettiar can be traced.

The books published by him just bore the door number: 289, Thambu Chetty Street and the name of K.R. Press.

Chettiar’s standing in the field of printing and publishing can be explained by the fact that C.W. Thamodharam Pillai, who edited and published some of the oldest works of classical Tamil poetry and grammar, had printed Tholkappiyam, with Senavaryar Uravai , f rom Kalarathankaram Achukoodam.

A n o t h e r p e r s o n w h o l e f t a n unforgettable mark in printing and publishing was Arumuga Navalar of Jaffna. Though Navalar visited Tamil Nadu only five times in his life between 1822 and 1879, he set up a printing press in the Mint Street and Vidyanubhalana Achaenthirachalai was there till recently.

“Both Chettiar and Navalar were contemporaries. Navalar had printing presses in Chennai and Chidambaram,” said Mr. Saravanan. Navalar published his first book as early as in 1849. n

Courtesy: www.thehindu.com

Success does not

consist in never

making mistakes

but in never making

the same one a

second time.

George Bernard Shaw

Heidelberg takes full ownership of Gallus

Following an exchange of share-holding, Heidelberg has become the 100 percent owner of Gallus, with the immediate aim of working on the accelerated development of a digital label press.The shareholding manoeuvre sees Ferd. Rüesch AG, a Swiss company controlled by Ferdinand Rüesch, contributing its 70 percent stake in Gallus Holding AG as contribution in kind into Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG against the issue of new Heidelberg shares. After the transaction, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG will hold directly and indirectly 100 percent of the Gallus Holding AG shares.F e r d i n a n d R ü e s c h w i l l h o l d approximately nine percent of the shares of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG and become an ‘anchor shareholder’.Heidelberg has owned one third of Gallus shares 1999, during which time there has been co-operation both on technology and sales and marketing.A statement issued by the two companies said: ‘The planned complete takeover of Gallus Holding AG accelerates the development and use of Heidelberg's digital products in the growing labels sector. In September of this year, Heidelberg and Gallus will be unveiling at the Gallus Innovation Days a new digital printing system for the label market that incorporates Fujifilm technology.’Gallus will continue to operate under its brand name and under its current management, said the statement. ‘Gallus will continue to focus on development, production and sales/service of narrow reel- fed printing presses targeted for the label printer as well as on wide reel-fed printing presses and die-cutting machines for folding carton converters.’n

Courtesy: www.labelsandlabeling.com


We, the Members . . .together formThe ForumThis is Members’ Page, giving updated information on New Enrolment, Change of Categories, Change of Addresses, New Designations, New Appointments & Promotions, Retirements, New or Additional Telephones, Mobiles, E-mail ID, Weddings Renewal details of membership, etc.

Membership ProgressDuring May 2014 to June 2014

Acknowledgement for the Receipt of Annual Membership Fee Renewal for 2014-15 F.Y. (From 01-04-14)

Name of the members M.No. Renewal period Total Recpt.No. Amount From To Yrs & Date Rs.

Published by B. g. Kukillaya on behalf of The printing Technologists Forum from No. 2 venu Reddy Street, guindy Chennai 600 032 & Designed by R.venkatasubramanian at Industrial prints, 23 Second Cross Street, Trustpuram, Chennai 600 024 Edited by p. Chellappan

1. L. Damodaran 537 AA 01-04-14 31-03-15 13 3507, 17-01-14 750

2. S. Uthanu Malayan 770 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 3 3512, 17-02-14 750

3. M.R.Purushothaman 771 AA 01-04-14 31-03-15 3 3533, 03-06-14 750

4. G. Krishnamurthy 306 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 21 3534, 03-06-14 750

5. V.S.Raman 96 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 27 3535, 03-06-14 750

6. N. Krishnaswamy 60 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 24 3536, 03-06-14 750

7. S.M.Ramamurthy 762 AM 01-04-14 31-03-15 12 3537, 13-06-14 750

8. G. Venkataraman 557 AA 01-04-14 31-03-15 11 3540, 21-06-14 750

9. R. Durai 691 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 7 3541, 21-06-14 750

10. D. Ganesh 687 TA 01-04-14 31-03-15 7 3542, 21-06-14 750

11. V. Krishnan 151 AA 01-04-14 31-03-15 28 3551, 30-06-14 750

New Enrolment Fee structure for Annual Members

Quarter Valid upto Rs.

April, May & June 31st March 750/-

July, Aug. & Sep. ,, 600/

Oct, Nov & Dec. ,, 400/-

Jan, Feb & Mar. ,, 200/-

• The above quarterly period and fee is only for the first year of the Annual members.

• Subsequent renewal fees wil l be Rs. 750/-

New Enrolment

Mr. Alan Barretto 791 AM (5)Managing DirectorNilpeter India Pvt LtdSurvey No 113/1, 200ft Radial Road Zamin Pallavaram, Chennai - 600117Mobile : 9841721406Email : [email protected] : 7A Block 2 Magnolia Park 2 Five-Furlong Road Guindy, Chennai 600 032. R.No : 3532 / 03.06.14 / Rs. 3500/-Intro : Mr. R.S.Bakshi, Imm. Past President

Mr. K.B.S.Shanmugasundaram 792 TM (5)Senior Associate Director: Scientific Publishing Services (P) Limited303, TTK Road, Alwarpet, Chennai – 600018Phone : 42197750Mobile : 9884274912Email : [email protected] :23, 4th Street, Ragava Reddiar Colony,Ashok Nagar, Chennai – 600083Phone ; 24894302Email : [email protected]. : 20-03-1966R.No : 3538 / 21.06.2014 / Rs. 3500/-Intro : Mr. M.Venkatesan, Hony. General Secretary

Mr. Murugavel 793 pManaging DirectorSun Packaging Co.,5A, Achuthan Nagar 1st Street,Ekkathuthangal, Chennai - 600 032.Phone : 43570352Mobile : 95001 22075E-mail : [email protected]. : 07.05.1978 R.No : 3555 / 18.07.14 / Rs. 10000/-Intro : Mr. R.S.Bakshi, Imm. Past President

Mr. Nizam Appas 794 TM (5)Managing Director: One Stop Solutions #119 & 60 Jammi Building, First Floor, Fly over side, Royapettah High Road,Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004,Phone : R 2466 1195 / O : 2466 0824Mobile : 99625 28890Email : [email protected]

Web : www.one1stopsolutions.comD.O.B. : 04.04.1979Residence : 182/256,1st floor, Royapettah High Road, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004

R.No : 3543 / 30.6.14 / Rs. 3500/-Intro : Mr. K.B.S. Shanmugasundaram

Mrs. Ramalakshmi Nizam 795 TM(A)Director: One Stop Solutions #119 & 60 Jammi Building, First Floor, Fly over side, Royapettah High Road,Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004,Phone : 2466 1195 / 2466 0824Mobile : 98846 07970Email : [email protected] : www.one1stopsolutions.comD.O.B. : 02.10.1978Residence : 182/256,First floor, Royapettah High Road, Mylapore, Chennai - 600 004

R.No : 3544 / 30.6.14 / Rs. 750/-Intro : Mr. Nizam Appas

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E version pf may june 2014

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Transcript of E version pf may june 2014