Colin Flinn · Business Development Manager · Horizon USA · PRINTING United 2025

At Printing United 2025 in Orlando, Morten B. Reitoft from INKISH meets Colin Flinn from Horizon USA at the Standard Finishing Systems booth for a detailed conversation about digital transformation in print finishing and the growing role of software — particularly Horizon’s IceLink platform.

Colin, who has spent his career growing within the Horizon family, explains how the company has evolved far beyond traditional finishing. “What we’re really seeing,” he says, “is that many companies that used to be print companies are now IT companies that happen to print — and the same goes for manufacturing. Horizon has always been in finishing, but now we’re focused on the data. That’s what makes our customers successful, and that’s exactly what IceLink delivers.”

He recalls the early days of the platform: “When IceLink first came out, I used to tell people it stood for ‘I can’t explain,’” he laughs. “But today I can. It means Intelligence, Connectivity, and Efficiency — and that’s the foundation of everything we’re doing.”

Colin explains how finishing used to lag behind printing in terms of automation, data visibility, and job tracking. “Finishing was always a black box,” he says. “It’s why you never see a smiling bindery manager. But with IceLink, that’s changing. Now you have job tracking, performance analytics, scheduling, and even preventive maintenance tools — all in one connected ecosystem.”

The software comes in two tiers: IceLink Basic and IceLink Enterprise. “The basic version is plug-and-play,” Colin says. “It’s included with every installation and gives operators access to job tracking, error notifications, and preventive maintenance tools — things that used to require clipboards and paper logs. Enterprise, on the other hand, grows with you. It supports full automation, JDF/JMF integration, and API connections to MIS systems. It’s ideal for advanced operations that need deep workflow connectivity.”

Colin points out how partnerships, such as Horizon’s collaboration with Ultimate Bindery, demonstrate the platform’s flexibility. “If you’re exchanging JDF data and running integrated workflows, that’s where Enterprise shines,” he says. “But even customers just starting their digital journey can see immediate value.”

Asked whether software gets overshadowed by the hardware-heavy show floor, Colin smiles. “The machines bring people into the booth, but the real conversations happen around software. Once people see what IceLink can actually do — the automation, the live data, the efficiency — that’s when things get exciting.”

As the interview wraps up, Morten jokes about Colin’s perfectly timed on-camera “blink,” and both share a laugh — a fitting end to a conversation that captures the quiet revolution happening inside the print finishing world, where data and connectivity now drive the future.