As the digital printing market continues to gain speed, Vicks is one printer that has made sure to maintain its edge by expanding its digital capabilities. Recently Vicks moved its digital print facilities to its headquarters. This increased many efficiencies and although the move required a mass effort by many in the plant (and I imagine sleepless nights for some) Vicks is delighted to report the transition was smooth and all units are up and running.

How do all the improvements at Vicks potentially affect you? For starters, digital printing is an extraordinary asset when it comes to added savings and decreased production time. There is hardly a company that exists that wouldn’t benefit from its advantages. Below are a few ways you can capitalize on the added value digital printing can provide:

• Meeting tight deadlines – with once took days can now take hours.
• Personalizing projects - by supplying a database of unique information for each piece you can more effectively target your audience and customers.
• Short-runs – by printing smaller quantities more quickly and cost effectively without losing quality.
• Reducing storage space and inventory - by printing only what you need thus saving you rising warehousing costs.
• Re-releasing slower moving titles and back catalog - by printing small quantities you can print lower quantity runs and give your market exactly what they are asking for.
• Easy Updates – because of the digital file, it is extraordinarily easy to update digital jobs.
• Low waste and Minimal setup – no plates or film to process.

…and the best part about it is the quality. In fact, I know some people that have reported they can hardly tell a difference in color quality when they’ve compared their digital work to an offset job. Now that’s impressive!

The digital workflow that Vicks has implemented is guaranteed to offer you flexibility and quick turnaround while producing a cost effective way to print your short run projects. I would highly recommend this digital print house.

For more information about Vicks, follow the link below:

Vicks Lithograph and Printing Corporation

http://www.vicks.biz

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More and more publishers are switching to recycled stock for their products. Not only could this be a strategic branding technique, but using recycled stock also has many global benefits. To help you better understand this evolving sector in the paper industry, I have included a quick list of benefits and myths of using recycled paper below.

Paper made from 100% recycled content reduces:

• Wood use by 100%
• Wastewater by 50%
• Solid waste by 49%
• Total energy consumption by 44%
• Net greenhouse gas emissions by 38%

The process for making paper out of recycled material is generally more clean and requires less energy than making paper from virgin fibers. Additionally, many publishers are using recycled stock to more effectively target their products to their young adult audiences. For example, the latest hardcover edition and U.S. Deluxe Edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was produced on a 100% recycled stock. Additionally, higher education institutions such as Princeton are also requiring all of their academic departments to use 100% recycled paper.

Common myths about recycled paper

• Recycled paper is too expensive.

Take the long view. With the rise and fall of paper prices, sometimes all paper is expensive and sometimes it is low. The experienced paper buyer realizes that paper markets fluctuate and one should recognize that recycled paper’s benefits are far greater than simply dollars.

• Quality is uneven and sometimes spotted.

Many of these issues were confined to the developmental phase of creating recycled paper in the 1980’s but the technology being used by recycled manufactures today have significantly increased. Many studies have proven that recycled paper today meets the highest technical standards, sometimes even exceeding familiar virgin papers.

• Belief that recycled paper has too much curl.

Curl is a complex issue and mostly related to fiber orientation, moisture content and the drying strategy. Many paper manufacturers have refined their processes to significantly limit paper curl and it is important that customers are basing their opinions on high quality recycled grades now available and not on experiences gathered years ago.

There are many resources available today to determine if using recycled stock is right for you and your company. One thing is for sure, using environmentally and socially responsible paper is an opportunity for publishers to make a significant impact on a global level.

For further research on recycled paper organizations and initiatives, please visit:

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