Written by Colin Gillman | 06 February 2012

Colourgen and Mutoh say they are teaming up to showcase the latest print engines in Mutoh’s popular ValueJet lineup at Sign & Digital UK.

Products on display will include the new Mutoh ValueJet 1324/1624 Eco printers featuring new print head technology as well as the new ValueJet TD series direct-to-fabric printers, available in 165 cm and 260 cm widths.  Mutoh ValueJet wide format printers prices start from £10,400 (ex VAT).

Colourgen managing director, Jeff Biggs (pictured) says: “Sign UK has always been a great opportunity to form, strengthen and consolidate new and exciting relationships with everyone in the industry. It is also gives us the opportunity to talk directly to end users and develop a better understanding of market requirements.”

Visitors will also be able to attend live demonstrations of Mutoh’s entire range of products for commercial print, signage, print-to-cut, dye sublimation and direct-to-fabric applications.

www.colourgen.com

Written by Colin Gillman | 06 February 2012

3M Commercial Graphics is the latest Platinum Patron to join SGP (Sustainable Green Printing Partnership) in the United States.

Minnesota-based 3M is a technology and product leader in the large format graphic materials industry. 

"We recognize that what's good for the environment can also be good for business," says Jean Sweeney, vice president of 3M's Environmental, Health, and Safety Operations. "Our sustainability efforts are focused both on reducing our environmental footprint and growing 3M through the creation of products that help our customers address their sustainability challenges."

This excellent SGP video ‘Recycling waste in your facility’ is well worth watching.

www.sgppartnership.org

Written by Colin Gillman | 06 February 2012

All Print Supplies (APS) Ltd, a UK distributor of wide format consumables to the sign, exhibition and display sectors, has produced a speciality films swatch for 2012 containing samples of etch glass, reflective, fluorescent, metallised, tuning and anti-graffiti films from manufacturers such as MacTac, LG and JAC.

All the speciality films featured in the swatch are available through APS’s “Buy the Metre” scheme, whereby you can purchase as much or as little film as required at any given time. The company says this helps to ensure its customers can keep their own inventories as low as possible in a period where tight financial management is central to success.
www.allprint.co.uk

Written by Colin Gillman | 06 February 2012

Always highly popular with digital printers and sign makers alike, this year the Adobe workshops will showcase all that’s new with the latest Adobe Creative Suite CS5 software including Adobe Photoshop Elements 10 and Adobe Bridge in addition to sessions on Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.

Designed to simplify tired workflows, these Adobe workshops are considered essential for designers and production professionals who want to understand the benefits of the most significant features of CS5, including many that remain undocumented.

Adobe Seminar Schedule (repeated daily)

10.30-11.15
 Photoshop Elements 10 & Premiere Elements 10
Photoshop Elements 10 has been bundled with an intuitive video-editing solution - Premiere Elements 10. Attendees will discover useful ways to easily edit still and moving images and gain step-by-step assistance to one-step shortcuts. Aimed at those looking to whiten teeth, transform skies, merge photos, instantly fix common flaws or create credible looking movies.

11.30-12.15 Adobe Bridge CS5 – Getting started with Bridge

Adobe Bridge is one of the most underestimated and neglected tools within the Adobe Creative Suite. Adobe Bridge is a comprehensive media manager providing immediate access to all project files, automation tools for mundane and tedious tasks, drag and drop compatibility with other Adobe products, the invaluable Mini Bridge and centralised Colour Management control settings. Often overlooked, Adobe Bridge is an indispensable creative tool.

12.30-13.30
 Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 – Hidden gems
Crammed full of new time-saving features, state-of-the-art raw image processing control, black and white conversion functionality, 64bit performance, one-click colour adjustments, powerful printing options and much more; this one hour workshop offers to explore the new tools within Photoshop CS5.1 as well as blend in the hidden gems of yesteryear.

14.30-15.15 Adobe InDesign CS5.5 – Knowledge is power

This 45 minute workshop is aimed at those looking to design and preflight sophisticated page layouts for print or digital distribution. With built-in creative tools, precision typography, native file support and comprehensive preflight and production tools; Adobe InDesign CS5.5 can create, edit and publish faster than ever before.

15.30-16.15 Adobe Illustrator CS5.1 – Different folk, different strokes

Considered the designer's best friend, Adobe Illustrator CS5.1 provides powerful creative tools blended with productivity enhancements allow users to work efficiently, integrate seamlessly with other Adobe applications and produce great looking output with text for both print, web and mobile devices.

16.30-17.00
 Controlling colour – Soft-proofing made easy

This half hour session promises to equip you with the necessary skills to correctly set-up your colour settings, understand how to accurately soft-proof your image onscreen and finally produce that perfect proof.
Note, this session will not run on Thursday 29th March.

www.signanddigitaluk.com