When Japanese publishers wanted to expand their approach to logistics and publication management, they began working with the Rotomail team and their solution, Bronte Global Alliance. In this exclusive Inkish interview, Kenichi Igarashi speaks publicly for the first time.

Ken Garner is the VP Development & Industry Relations for the American organization, APTech, short for Association for PRINT Technologies. APTech used to be the organizer of GraphExpo and Print shows in Chicago but chose in 2019 to team up with Tarsus to continue the show under the name Brand Print Americas. In this, Over the Skype session, we get the chance to hear more about the work of APTech. We also hear about the first larger virtual conference that due to the COVID-19 was moved from being a physical conference to a virtual one - and many more exciting subjects. As with all our ‘Over the Skype’ interviews, quality is limited to bandwidth, web-cams, and ability to literally LIVE mix the conversations. However, it works, and with Over the Skype, we will bring you more than 20 exciting people, and angles on the industry as it is right now. Enjoy!

Soon after the pandemic got its grip on the world, the British Web-to-Print company Vpress started The Crown Pub. Two times a week, the pub opened its doors for users to discuss meaningful subjects. Rarely the topics were about anything relating to Vpress and their products. Regardless Kelvin Bell and his team continued the pub, and in this session, we talk to Kelvin Bell, whether this is just REALLY smart marketing, will this format continue forever, and what has the take-aways been for Vpress.

Keith Michael is the founder and owner of Lebone Litho in Johannesburg, and many sides to this story are surprising. First and foremost, what should one expect when driving through a city that has slums and the most beautiful buildings? We arrive at a street where it seems Lebone has taken over most of it. The facades are renovated, and when we arrive at the reception, you realize before even entering the company that Lebone is beyond most printing companies. In the board room, we meet with Keith Michael - a fantastic personality whose background is in plastics, and you soon realize a person who has an eye for detail. No dust and no mess. Wherever we go in the large facility, his eyes are everywhere, and his people know it. Lebone has about 600 employees and though we "only" visit Lebone Litho, the next door buildings have large format, multi-media, publishing, and across the street a super optimized production of exam papers, including scanning facilities to afterwards scan the submitted papers and deliver an electronic output - and I can go on - but we are at Lebone covering Fujifilm Jetpress S750 and some of Fujifilms highly acclaimed print bars, mounted on various printing and finishing machines. Keith Michaels is obviously proud of what he has achieved for good reasons, and when listening to his personal story, everything becomes even more impressive, as he lived in a township before the end of apartheid. Besides the continued growth of Lebone, Keith Michael is also giving back to his community, having donated to the construction of five churches. We are impressed.

Paul is a friend, and if you are not connected with him, you should. Paul Gardner owns the second-largest print group on LinkedIn, with more than 120,000 members and a quite active community. He is the Director of Operations with AlphaGraphics, Sandy, in Utah daily. Whenever we are in Salt Lake City, we get a chance to meet with Paul, have some great food, and talk about the industry - and, of course, we had to interview one of the people who connects the most people in this industry. Please subscribe to Digital Printing and connect with Paul Gardner. Before doing so, please watch the film :-) LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/100048/

Wayne Beckett talks to Katharina Prins from Opinion Printing on the first day of OPS 2025. Katharina talks about their new AI offering as-well as a new adhesive material they have recently launched.

At any open house, the presenter/moderator makes the day flow. With the BHS Open House, the woman that 'glued' the event together was Katharina Aguilar, a professional presenter and moderator. We got the opportunity to ask her how much she had to prepare and understand the customer, and we believe you'll find this interview great. Enjoy!

Kasper is the second printing company in the world, being cradle-to-cradle compliant. In this session we hear about the journey, why it's important, and how it can be good business! LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kasper-larsen-b230252/

Looking back at the many interviews we have done up to the upcoming #HID25, it's amazing how many software companies you will see at this year's Hunkeler Innovationdays. Impressed from Germany is both a distributor for companies such as Enfocus and Ultimate Tech also a developer of a platform called IWS (Impressed Workflow Server) that enables various sources like MIS/ERP/W2P and more to connect to IWS that then triggers various workflows to various production setup. Seems very smart, but you can check out for yourself in Lucerne :-)

At the Horizon Finishing First event, one of the Horizon partners was the German workflow software specialist Impressed. Impressed has for 30 years delivered workflow solutions from Ultimate TechnoGraphics, Enfocus, and software for color management - pretty much all the needed software on the pre-press side. At the Finishing First event, Karsten Schwarze demonstrated the Impressed Server platform, which converts and streamlines the XML data. The software is super interesting for companies with multiple input data sources, but see the presentation and learn!

Karsten Kejlhof talks about Lundberg Tech supplying a waste management system to a printing and converting line demonstrated at Labelexpo Americas 2024 by Martin Automatic, ETI Converting, and Lemu Group. The Danish company's technology allows converters to reduce downtime by diverting matrix waste from the press and compacting it for more efficient disposal. LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karstenkejlhof/

At the LabelExpo-Americas show, we got the chance to talk to CEO Kevin Karstedt from Karstedt & Partners, who today, Tuesday, September 20th, announced the company's acquisition by Keypoint Intelligence. Kevin Karstedt is well-known for the company's 20+ years of experience in packaging, and with his experience, he and his partner Jeff will be leading the packaging division at KPI. Super cool to meet Kevin Karstedt, and I am sure you will like the interview.

Despite being less than a year old, You may have heard a lot about CoCoCo. CoCoCo has, however, made an impact by covering a need in the market, connecting various solutions seamlessly and without the need for programmers. Carl Ciz is one of the founders and obviously very passionate about the project - and you should be too :-)

The KAMA ProCut76 is an amazing machine, and in the interview soon to be published on INKISH, the founder of Studio on Fire, Ben Levitz, explains how and why the KAMA ProCut76 is a game changer for the company - but in this film, we take the operators perspective. How easy is the ProCut to use, and what makes it stand out from similar machines in the market. Eric Ryan operates the ProCut76 and explains to Editor Morten B. Reitoft how it's used - and I am sure you will understand well - so sit back and enjoy!

Almost exactly a year ago we met ION Print and Kairit Parker for the first time. It was literally days before version 1 of ION Prints print broker platform was released. The software is made to help print brokers utilize printers, and instead of asking printers for quotes, ION Print automatically calculate the prices based on a large number of parameters. ION Print is out of Estonia, and for those who don't know, Estonia is one of the most developed IT-nations in the world. Now a year later, ION Print has been launched, and customers are using the platform daily. Listen and learn! As with all our 'Over the Skype' interviews, quality is limited to bandwidth, web-cams, and ability to literally LIVE mix the conversations. However, it works, and with Over the Skype, we will bring you more than 20 exciting people, and angles on the industry as it is right now. Enjoy!

Italian with Italian, English, German, and Spanish subtitles. This time, your hardworking INKISH team visits Cartotecnica in Turin, Italy. We are visiting a mid-sized family-owned company that, like many others, started in commercial printing and is transitioning towards packaging. As always, the hospitality in Italy is exceptional, and we are introduced to Lorenzo Berruto, the next generation of Berrutos running Cartotecnica. The company operates two Koenig & Bauer presses. It has also invested in an iPress 106 die-cutting machine, as well as two folding/gluers, also from Koenig & Bauer, known as Omega. But the story is, of course, also about how Lorenzo Berruto got involved in the company and his view on the future - he is optimistic - so dig in and enjoy.

In this conversation with Jutta Hendrikx and Hayco van Gaal from Canon Europe, we get a chance to talk about the new iX-series sheetfed inkjet printers from the global print-giant. We also get the very first view of the machine in action, filmed by Hayco van Gaal from their experience centre - so that's all very cool. As with all our 'Over the Skype' interviews, quality is limited to bandwidth, web-cams, and ability to literally LIVE mix the conversations. However, it works, and with Over the Skype, we will bring you more than 20 exciting people, and angles on the industry as it is right now. Enjoy!

In this 'Over the Skype' session Chief Co-creation Juriaan van Beelen of the online printing player - Print.com - talks with Jacques Michiels from INKISH Benelux about their business strategy, their focus on the professional market of Printers and print shops. Print.com offers online printing services in a "closed platform" and with App Connectivity. We talk about how Print.com see their own future and that of their customers, the Printers and Print providers in the BENELUX and the surrounding countries. All very interesting considerations and evolutions! We keep you Up to date! --- In deze 'Over the Skype' sessie spreekt Chief Co-creatie Juriaan van Beelen van de onlinedrukwerkspeler - Print.com met Jacques Michiels van INKISH Benelux over hun bedrijfsstrategie en hun focus op de professionele markt van drukkerijen en printshops. Print.com biedt online drukwerkservices in een "gesloten platform" en met App Connectivity. We praten samen over hoe zij hun eigen toekomst zien en die van hun klanten, zijnde de drukkerijen en Print providers in de BENELUX en haar omringende landen. Allemaal interessante overwegingen en evoluties! Hou dus samen met ons de vinger aan de pols!

We got the invite from our friends at Future School, as Shekar Balakrishna was awarded the first FOGRA certification in India. FOGRA celebrated and acknowledged this moment as the certificate was signed at the FOGRA booth. Enjoy the interview with Jürgen Gemeinhardt, and remember to see the interview with Shekar Balakrishna. Enjoy!

At Printpack India 2025, Wayne Beckett will meet with Jun Sudo, President of Komori India, to discuss the company’s continued expansion and success in the Indian print market. With a strong presence in the commercial, packaging, and publishing sectors, Komori has solidified itself as a leading supplier of offset presses in the region. Jun Sudo highlights the company’s strategic growth, particularly in packaging, where demand for high-end, automated printing solutions rapidly increases. Introducing specialized models like the GL 40 Advanced EX and the SRA1-sized 637+ coater machine has allowed Komori to cater to India’s evolving market needs. Additionally, the shift toward automation is gaining traction, with customers increasingly opting for fully automated systems to improve efficiency and reduce waste. A key focus of the discussion is Komori’s commitment to sustainability. The company’s G-Series presses, designed for eco-friendly operation, have been instrumental in reducing power consumption and CO₂ emissions. Komori aims to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030 and achieve full carbon neutrality by 2050, making sustainability a core part of its future strategy. The conversation also touches on Komori’s upcoming innovations in digital printing. While the IS29 has yet to gain a foothold in India, the company is preparing to introduce its latest digital press, the J-Trone 29, featuring Komori’s own engine, ink, and inkjet head. This marks an exciting step forward in Komori’s digital expansion, and the company plans to launch the product in the Indian market within the next year. This interview provides valuable insights into Komori’s technology, market approach, and sustainability initiatives for anyone looking to understand the future of printing in India.

Julie Watson is the CEO of Ultimate TechnoGraphics based in Montreal, Canada. Since 1989 the company has focused on the imposition and was the first to introduce imposition using computers. Just imagine how many things have changed since then? Technology, customers, speed, CPU-power, Memory, and Julie Watson's career plan changed in 2008 when her father suddenly passed away at drupa in 2008. First, her mother, Joanne Watson, took over the leadership. Five years ago, Julie Watson became CEO of Ultimate Technographic - the company by some better known for their flag-ship software Impostrip. In this Conversation with Editor Morten B. Reitoft, Julie Watson shares her views on technology and why speed continues to be an essential factor in efficient workflow/automation. INKISH has months ahead of this interview filmed two Ultimate TechnoGraphics customers Print On Demand from Cape Town, South Africa, and Sendmoments from Germany. Print On Demand https://inkish.tv/inkish-video/pod/ Sendmoments https://inkish.tv/inkish-video/sendmoments/

Always excellent to see successful collaborations and our friends from Ultimate Tech and Horizon International is a brilliant example. This is being talked about in this Bonjour - but more interesting things - so dig in :-) LinkedIn Profiles: Julie Watson https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliew/ Yasuo Taketsugu https://www.linkedin.com/in/yasuo-taketsugu-55999134/

Ultimate Tech was the first company in the industry to use computers for imposition, and the signature software, Impostrip, is used globally by thousands of companies. In the past years, Ultimate Tech has developed products for binderies and large-format, and here at PRINTING United, the company shows its BestCut solution, helping operators optimize the guillotine work. As always super interesting listening to CEO Julie Watson.

Morten Reitoft and Julie Watson discuss Ultimate Tech's preparations and excitement for Drupa 2024. Watson highlights the company's recent activities, partnerships, and technology introductions. She explains that while Printing United was significant for introducing new technologies like the AI-driven cutting buddy and new nesting technologies, Drupa remains crucial for showcasing its latest innovations to a global audience. Watson mentions the upcoming releases, including the 2024.1 version of Impostrip with enhanced job organization features and compatibility with PDF X4 from the Ghent Workgroup. She also discusses their container version of Impostrip on AWS, demonstrating their commitment to cloud-based solutions. Ultimate Tech will showcase its full-featured solutions across multiple platforms (Linux, Mac, Windows). Reitoft asks about Ultimate Tech's integration capabilities, particularly with their Ultimate Bindery software, which automates finishing processes and supports over 85 devices. Watson explains that their drivers validate jobs and automate device setups, allowing seamless integration and reduced manual intervention. They discuss Impostrip/Bindery's scalability, highlighting its ability to handle high volumes of short-run digital print jobs efficiently. Watson emphasizes the importance of starting with automation and gradually integrating more processes and devices to enhance productivity. Watson also discusses integrating their solutions with other systems, such as MIS and Web2Print platforms, using APIs for open connectivity. She mentions their collaboration with Omikai to showcase an end-to-end workflow solution at Drupa. Reitoft and Watson conclude by discussing the logistical ease of being a software company at Drupa compared to hardware manufacturers and the historical significance of Ultimate Tech's participation since 1990. Watson shares a personal anecdote about her family’s long-standing involvement in the industry.