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More and more services are moved to the cloud. How do you connect cloud services, and do you need to be a skilled developer to do this? Well, in this interview with John Maxwell and Andreas Aplien from CoCoCo, you will learn that their service will help you connect services without the need to be a programmer. At #HID25, we will even make a test whether it is as easy as they claim to connect - so stay tuned! :-)

John Lingle is the Sheet Feeder Manager of Schwarz Partners, and as he explains to me, probably one of the largest sheet suppliers in the US. Schwarz Partners operates 14 plants and has experienced amazing growth these years. Being in Europe visiting BHS is great, as it gives him a great opportunity to check out some of the newest technology. Enjoy the film!

Marks's Quest for Americans led him to John Lackner, who announced his purchase of an RMGT Series 10 machine at Drupa. The most extended configuration in the US so far - with an 8+2 configuration - made to serve the needs of current and future customers - but learn more in the interview. Enjoy!

It's been a few years since we last met with John DiPippo, and as always great. Loyalty is what we all want, something difficult to earn and document, but with LoyaltyLoop software, the process is automated - and it has a lot of features that measure repeat orders, follow up on bad reviews, and, as John DiPippo explain a software that really helps customers and customers' customers.

Morten Reitoft and John Blyth discuss the upcoming Drupa 2024, reflecting on the excitement and challenges leading up to the event. Blyth mentions that it's been eight years since the last Drupa, and there's a significant amount of anticipation and celebration around the event. He highlights Ricoh's readiness to showcase its innovations and commitment to its client's success through partnership and transformation. Reitoft notes that it's Ricoh's fourth Drupa, emphasizing the company's relatively recent emergence as a major player in the industry. Blyth recalls joining Ricoh 12 years ago when the company was still establishing its presence, and he expresses pride in Ricoh's rapid development and expansion since then. Blyth explains that attending Drupa was an easy decision for Ricoh, as it provides a unique opportunity to showcase their refreshed production printing hardware range, including the Pro Z75 (the world's first B2+ inkjet sheet-fed device with aqueous ink and auto-perfecting) and the new flagship high-speed inkjet Webfed device, the Pro VC80000. Ricoh aims to create a memorable experience with their "House of Hinkaku" theater, featuring a multisensory show highlighting their commitment to transformational innovation. Reitoft asks about the meaning of "Hinkaku," which Blyth explains as "transformational innovation," emphasizing fundamental and far-reaching change. This ethos underpins Ricoh's approach to innovation, which involves collaboration with partners and clients to meet their specific needs. Blyth mentions the importance of aligning their products with market needs through consultation and feedback programs. He recalls the successful launch of the Pro Z75, highlighting the collaborative effort between Ricoh's Japanese R&D team and European staff. Reitoft compliments Ricoh's booth design, noting its contemporary and minimalist style with Japanese influences, including a theater structure reminiscent of a Japanese temple and calming gardens. Blyth confirms the booth's bright accent colors, including pink and purple, and hints at a Japanese flavor in their offerings. The interview concludes with Reitoft thanking Blyth for his time and looking forward to seeing him at Drupa.

German language The Horizon Finishing First event is first and foremost about networking. It is also about technology, but even more important is, of course, the customers attending the event. One is Johanna Hornung, Head of Print Product at Celebrate. At the Horizon Finishing First event, Johanna Hornung is impressed by the robot arms but is seriously considering investing in the BQ-series binding equipment. The BQ500 is shown at the event with a Tecnau roll-based feeder, robots handling both loading book blocks and packing the finished books. New is the ability to use the BQ-series to create book blocks for hard cover production with end-papers, gaze, variable size, and number of pages - impressive technology.

At Printing United Expo in Orlando, Wayne Beckett from INKISH speaks with Johan Mickelson, Vice President of Inline Business at Plockmatic. Johan describes the event’s opening day as strong, with high attendance and valuable leads. A major announcement for Plockmatic at the show is the full acquisition of Renz, including operations in Germany, Argentina, Australia, Turkey, and the UK. This marks the first time Renz equipment is displayed as part of the Plockmatic Group, strengthening its offering in binding, punching, and winding systems. Johan explains that the integration complements Plockmatic’s coating and finishing solutions, expanding value for customers in both digital and offset environments. Discussing the North American market, Johan notes that it remains stable though slightly flatter this year due to tariffs, financing challenges, and geopolitical uncertainty. The U.S. accounts for more than half of Plockmatic’s global business, supported through both dealers and direct partnerships. He confirms that the 15% tariff on European-made equipment has forced pricing adjustments but says efficiency improvements and production cost savings are helping to offset part of the impact. Johan also highlights several new product launches showcased at the expo, including the DigiFold Ultra cutter/creaser, a new AutoCreaser line for small- and medium-format applications, and expanded ColorFlare embellishment solutions. Plockmatic is also presenting flatbed and sheet-cutting systems for packaging and labeling, broadening the applications possible from digital presses. With an extensive and growing product range, Johan emphasizes that Plockmatic is evolving into a complete one-stop finishing provider, aligning its acquisitions and innovations to meet changing customer demands in an increasingly automated print environment.

At Printing United 2025 in Orlando, Morten Reitoft from INKISH visits the Standard Finishing booth for an in-depth discussion with Johan Laurent about Horizon’s latest innovations in stitching and booklet-making technology. Johan explains that the show has exceeded expectations: “It’s been very busy from the first morning — more visitors, more VIPs than in previous years.” He and Morten then walk through three Horizon systems, beginning with the StitchLiner Mark V, Horizon’s top-of-the-line saddle stitcher. Designed for high-quality finishing of digital output, it handles both sheet-fed and roll-fed input and integrates with Hunkeler, EMT, and Tecnau systems. “It’s not just about ‘ready/not ready’ signals anymore,” Johan says. “We now have complete speed control and automated job changes through full data communication.” They move next to the StitchLiner Mark IV, a hybrid solution for both offset and digital production. It combines a high-speed sheet feeder for digital output with tower feeders for offset sheets, eliminating the need for pre-folding. “Customers like Saxoprint in Germany are replacing folding machines with the Mark IV,” Johan notes. “It cuts out an entire step and gets jobs out the door faster.” Finally, Johan introduces the newest model, the SPF-2000 iCE Stitcher, which replaces the long-running SPF-200 series. Compact, faster, and designed for quick changeovers, it’s ideal for small runs and high job variation. Like Horizon’s other systems, it integrates with iCE Link, the company’s IoT production and monitoring platform, offering both basic KPI tracking and full JDF-based workflow automation. Johan concludes that automation and flexibility remain Horizon’s focus: “Even entry-level systems now deliver full automation, shorter changeovers, and higher quality. Whether you’re running offset, digital, or both — we’ve got a solution.”

Johan Laurent from Standard Finishing gives us a presentation of the Stichliner MK V, which was introduced as a web solution only - but at PRINTING United, we get to see the sheet module that makes the stitching solution capable of both web and cut sheet. The Stitchliner has many super interesting features, i.e., individual scoring of every sheet in a book block, variable stitch length, and much more - and fast - not to forget. But listen to Johan Laurent and learn from the master :-)

At PRINTING United 2026 in Las Vegas, Morten B. Reitoft meets Johan Laurent from Standard Finishing to look at a production line that demonstrates just how far automated finishing has come. The concept is straightforward: start with digitally printed rolls containing different jobs and finish them automatically into stitched, trimmed, stacked and banded products — even when format, page count and thickness change from job to job. But making that happen requires much more than fast hardware. Ultimate Tech handles imposition and dynamic barcode information, allowing each job to carry the instructions required further downstream. The Hunkeler unwinder and cutter read those instructions and automatically adjust the cut length, while the Horizon iCE StitchLiner Mark V adjusts stitching, jogging, trimming, and production speed according to the individual job. The same line can also accept cut-sheet work via the Horizon HSF-50 feeder, so customers are not locked into a single production method. Roll-fed jobs, cut-sheet applications and separately fed covers can all enter the same automated finishing environment. At the end of the line, the new Palamides Gamma 502 HO receives information about the format and product thickness, automatically adjusts its jogging and pressing functions, and creates stacks and bands the finished products, ready for packing — or potentially for robotic palletizing. For Johan, the important development is that automation is increasingly making short-run roll-fed production practical. What once required considerable setup and operator intervention can now be prepared in the workflow and executed automatically through the entire line. And Standard's role is becoming increasingly solution-oriented. Depending on the application and customer's existing equipment, the company can integrate Hunkeler, Tecnau, and other technologies upstream of Horizon finishing rather than forcing every customer into exactly the same configuration. Different jobs. Different formats. Different page counts. One connected production line. Watch Morten B. Reitoft's conversation with Johan Laurent from Standard Finishing at PRINTING United 2026 in Las Vegas.

In the '70s, Yurchak Printing was a conventional commercial printing company with web presses and sheet presses, but that all changed when the current management decided as one of America's first to become a fully digital supplier of books. Today, the company, located in Pennsylvania, has specialized in short-run books - often legal books and books printed on thin paper, perfect bound, and with covers often with foil stamping - which is an exciting challenge. The show room has numerous examples of great books printed with Yurchak. Yurchak Printing uses Ultimate Tech Impostrip to manage significant parts of its workflow, and IT Manager Jow Walton explains to INKISH how they are utilizing the software.

Landa customers, employees, and former employees rarely talk to us. Rumors suggested that Landa issued strict NDAs, and this is confirmed in an interview with Joseph Falcone, a former Landa Midwest Sales Manager. He was as intrigued by Landa as the rest of us at drupa 2016, and as Joe loved selling new and disruptive technology, Landa ticked the boxes for a new career. It ended after five years, and when Joe Falcone says something, harsh letters are sent from lawyers. Respecting this, and with the NDAs in mind, Joe Falcone agreed to speak with us. Enjoy the interview conducted by editor Morten B. Reitoft.

Jochen Christiaens explains at the IST UV-DAYS about the segments Zeller + Gmeling covers and why the LED UV-Curing is interesting for a company developing inks and varnishes, as always great catching up with Jochen Christiaens.

Jochen Christiaens talks to Wayne about the work that Imagexperts are constantly undergoing with the major inkjet OEM’s.

A chapter has been turned in Heidelberg's story—more openness, partners, and a new approach to customer collaboration with the new Home of Print. Jochen Bender, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, speaks with Editor Morten B. Reitoft about the celebration, how he sees the future, and many other super exciting topics. Please enjoy!

From the Netherlands, living in Malaysia, having a house in Mallorca, and serving Asia Pacific + North Africa for KAMA. Job Van Hasselt gets around, has broad industry knowledge, and is experienced, curious, and successful with KAMA. We met with him in Casablanca - listen :-)  

The car wrapping market is booming, and for Joaquín de las Parras, Sales Manager Commercial Solutions 3M Iberia, it is essential to offer solutions to increase the effectiveness of vinyl application by reducing application times, which reduces costs for the end consumer. ___ El mercado de car wrapping está en auge, y para Joaquín de las Parras, Sales Manager Commercial Solutions 3M Iberia, es primordial ofrecer soluciones para aumentar la efectividad de la aplicación de vinilos reduciendo tiempos de aplicación, lo cual reduce los costos para el consumidor final.

ROQ has come to Fespa with a 100% digital presence! This might seem odd for a longstanding and well-known supplier of screen printing equipment. Roq has managed to address the needs of its customers, who are looking for fast turnaround and automation in direct-to-garment (DTG). This DTG setup can output +200 photo-quality prints per hour, João Sá explains, and only one operator is needed for loading and offloading.

That radio is funny. I can remember that radio being in my life from the time I was a little girl. We had a little tiny little black and white TV. That got two channels. And I just remember pushing the buttons and trying to find the sound. And when my mom passed and a few years ago, I got a bunch of her stuff. This radio was in there. I'm hearing the same ads, but on different podcasts now. The type of communication hasn't changed. And I love how podcasts have evolved. It takes at least ten touches before your brand is a memory. Is even recognizable. That's where you can really start to recognize the buying patterns and the behaviors. And yeah, a lot of it is because we are bombarded and hit by so many messages. On so many channels. Scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. Oh, oh, I'm going to stop for a second. That spark that makes somebody stop. It becomes a little bit tricky, especially if you're selling a B2B solution. The smart companies are using their employees as brand ambassadors. I tend to be creative with words that need to be graphic designer. I got into the print industry as a typesetter. I have roots in print. And a lot of what I surround myself with are those fond memories. I've got illustrations of my parents. These are the things that I look at. That no matter what craziness is going on. I feel like so much has changed. But yet so much has stayed the same. I think we should stop calling it the print industry. And start calling it the communications industry. You know, I've been hearing for years print is dead. Print isn't dead. Print is dead. Print isn't dead. Print has changed. Print is different. Print is more. Print is communication. Print is the only medium where you can take a digital brand and actually make it physical. Are we ever going to call ourselves the communications industry? I think that would be awesome.

At Printing United Expo in Orlando, Wayne Beckett from INKISH speaks with Joanne Gore from Joanne Gore Communications. Joanne, recognized as one of the inaugural All-Stars at the event, has been active across the show floor, leading student tours, hosting sessions, and supporting the newly formed Customer Experience Management Association. She shares insights on the continued strength and evolution of the print industry, emphasizing that print is far from dead and remains vibrant and full of opportunity. Through her company, Joanne Gore Communications, she helps businesses across the print value chain—from manufacturers to PSPs—understand their audiences, improve their messaging, and sell more effectively. She highlights the importance of marketing, noting that many printers and software providers underestimate the effort needed to attract customers once a website or platform is launched. Joanne also discusses her collaboration with Printing Connect Online, helping PSPs join and benefit from greater industry exposure. The conversation touches on her book, Thriving in Chaos, which offers lessons from her 30-year career in marketing and advice for navigating change and challenges in business.

Automation doesn't only change production. It also changes the people who have to support the machines. At PRINTING United 2026 in Las Vegas, Morten B. Reitoft continues his visit with Meccanotecnica — or, as the company is known in the North American market, Book Automation — for a conversation about something that rarely gets the same attention as a new machine: service. And that service organization is changing. As Meccanotecnica has expanded from its traditional strength in book sewing into increasingly automated finishing solutions such as perfect binding and LYRA casing-in, the technical knowledge required to support customers has evolved as well. Where service calls historically might have focused heavily on mechanics, today's questions increasingly involve automation, electronics, software and communication between different systems. That changes the role of the service engineer. Remote connectivity has become an important first step. Rather than trying to understand a production problem from an email or telephone description, Book Automation technicians can connect directly to supported equipment, see what is happening and begin diagnosing a problem in real time. But remote service isn't intended to replace the technician. Morten asks whether video calls and remote connections can sometimes become a convenient substitute for having a strong local service organization. The answer is clear: remote diagnostics are another tool for qualified service engineers. The same people troubleshooting remotely are the technicians who will travel to the customer when the problem cannot be resolved from a distance. And plenty of situations still require someone standing beside the machine. The discussion also turns to another increasingly important challenge: making sophisticated equipment easier to operate. Meccanotecnica deliberately uses symbols and numerical information extensively in its user interfaces rather than relying on large amounts of written text. That makes operation more intuitive, reduces language barriers and allows similar functions to be represented consistently across different machines. It is another example of how knowledge is increasingly being embedded into the equipment itself. As automation increases, the machine needs to guide the operator through more of the production process. That becomes particularly important as printing and binding companies struggle to recruit highly experienced operators and increasingly need equipment that can be operated by people with less specialized knowledge. But service isn't only about fixing machines after they have been installed. Customer support also creates one of the most valuable feedback channels into research and development. Service engineers see how equipment performs in real production environments every day. They hear what operators struggle with, discover unusual applications and identify where seemingly small changes could make the machines easier or more reliable to use. That information goes directly back to the people developing the next generation of equipment. And in this case, that connection is particularly close, with experience from years working directly with Meccanotecnica's R&D organization now moving into the North American Book Automation service team. As Meccanotecnica expands its product portfolio, Book Automation's service organization therefore has to evolve with it. More automation means more software. More connectivity means better remote diagnostics. Easier user interfaces reduce dependency on specialist operators. And stronger communication between customers, service technicians and R&D ultimately creates better machines. The future of book production may be increasingly automated. But somebody still has to understand how everything works. Watch Morten B. Reitoft's conversation from the Book Automation / Meccanotecnica booth at PRINTING United 2026 in Las Vegas.

Workflow is becoming increasingly important in our industry and is an integral part of both pre-sales and after-sales. Joanna Wojciak Baiguini has great experience in both fields, as she has worked for Meccanotecnica in Bergamo for ten years - now it's time to move to the US to be part of the growth the company expects.

Good talking with Joan Casas about how the Spanish market perceives their new product launches. Fujifilm is launching several European novelties and unveiling them to the Spanish audience here in Madrid at the C!Print show. We delve into topics such as ROI, sustainability, and strategy that they see fit for the Spanish region.

At Printpack India 2025, Wayne Beckett speaks with Joakim Kranz, Sheetfed Sales Manager for IST Metz, about the company’s presence at the exhibition and its long-standing partnership with Heidelberger Druckmaschinen. Kranz highlights IST Metz’s role in supplying UV equipment for Heidelberg presses, emphasizing the importance of the Indian market and the company’s commitment to supporting sales in this price-sensitive yet rapidly growing region. The discussion explores IST Metz’s engineering support for India, with a global service team operating from Southeast Asia and Germany to provide post-sale assistance, repairs, and operational guidance. Kranz also explains the company’s approach to retrofitting UV equipment onto existing presses, as well as upgrading systems to LED technology, which represents the future of UV curing. With India’s expanding print industry and increasing demand for advanced UV solutions, IST Metz is well-positioned to continue its growth in the region. This conversation offers valuable insights into the evolving landscape of UV curing technology and IST Metz’s strategic focus on the Indian market.