Seattle Bindery Newsletter: Issue No. 53. We welcome your comments.

1. Synthetic Papers. I don’t know if anyone has had a customer ask about using synthetic paper, but I was interested enough in the topic to visit the Yupo Corporation’s site at http://yca.yupo.com/windshield_printers.html. The company purports that synthetic paper is smoother than traditional papers, durable, has a long life span because of superior tensile strength, is waterproof and is tear- and scuff-resistant. However, several local printers tell me that, while they agree that the stocks are smoother, the lack of grain also makes it difficult to hold a fold, giving the paper a tendency to pop open. Synthetic papers also present other production challenges, not the least of which are slower turnaround times because it takes longer for ink to dry. We’ll keep an eye on further refinements. 

2. PIA Flash Report. A recent study by PIA Chief Economist Ronnie H. Davis found that, five weeks after 9/11, PIA printers reported that 47.2% of their customers have not announced any plans to change their print purchases next year. On the other hand, 39.6% of customers said they will probably delay print purchases, 15.1% said they’re planning to decrease print purchases and 2.4% indicated they’d increase purchases. Go to www.gain.org for more information. Keep in mind these statistics are coming from printers, not directly from customers. Perhaps that survey might be a worthy undertaking for our local PIA affiliate, PPI?

3. Foil Facts. A couple of recent presentation projects reminded me to remind you that first of all, we do foil stamping and embossing, and second, there are some general guidelines to follow: Coated stocks are ideal for foil stamping, except when laying down large areas of foil. In those cases, an uncoated stock should be used since it allows air to escape and thus, eliminates air bubbles and blistering. Foil also should be applied before coatings and varnishes. And make sure your customers know that some foils cannot go through laser printers, so it’s wise to test a sample of foiled letterhead before running the entire job.

4. 9/11 as Printing Watershed. Our oft-quoted resource, Kevin Keane of the IAPHC, devoted his entire October 2001 “Totalling Up the Terror” column to extolling the virtues of Network Publishing and how the events of 9/11 will speed acceptance and use of electronic communications. (I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s received notices offering shareholder reports, prospectuses and proxies online, rather than in print.) According to Dr. Joe Webb of Trendwatch, electronic publishing is here to stay, and Network Publishing “is a strategy for printers [who] by becoming a part of the network can survive and even thrive.” For the full text of Keane’s newsletter, go to
www.iaphc.org/tmn/archive/2001/oct30.

5. Sad Partings. Four good customers and friends -- Frank Avery of Alpha One Press, Don Andrews of Springs Printing, Peter Stojowski of VCS/Letterworth, and Sam Tabatabai of Teknocopy -- closed their doors over the past few months. Their companies will be much missed on the Seattle graphic arts scene!

 
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