Listed print group Ive says an 80-page press from manroland will be the centrepiece of a new greenfield large format web offset operation to be established in Sydney later this year. Meanwhile, Ive’s private equity backer Wolseley cashed in its entire holding in Ive, selling 16.8m shares.

PMP has posted a significant drop in revenue from its Australian print business as it launches its recently approved merger with IPMG. “The half was adversely impacted by extremely unusual print market conditions in the lead into the expected industry consolidation."

In a bid to boost production, Australian Paper has offered a special deal to government departments that send their shredded wastepaper to its under-utilised Maryvale Mill for recycling. “Australian Paper needs to access more wastepaper to maximise our recycled paper production."

Opus Group recorded a jump in profit to $14.8 million in 2016 and says a debt-free balance sheet will allow for a continued focus on its core publishing services division.

A big crowd is expected in Geelong today for the latest public forum hosted by Keep Me Posted as it continues to lobby banks, telcos and other service providers who charge customers to receive paper bills. "These greedy, money-grubbing fees directly affect the most vulnerable in our communities."

Top executives from German colour measurement firm Techkon will visit PacPrint in May and be on hand at the Colour Graphics Services stand (B62) for demonstrations of the just-released Techkon SpectroDens and the SpectroDrive scanning spectro-densitometer.

Label printers and sellers of label printing equipment and consumables face yet another existential threat - laser marking. The process has various environmental benefits including doing away with the ink, plastic, glue and paper associated with conventional produce labelling.

FESPA’s global print expo - the biennial trade show for digital wide format, screen and textile print - will become a yearly event from 2017 onwards. FESPA 2017 takes place in Hamburg, Germany in May; Berlin and Munich have been confirmed as host cities for 2018 and 2019.

Canon Australia has launched its 'Show Us What's Possible' campaign with the installation of a massive photo print at the bottom of a swimming pool. The 49-metre long, 13-metre wide, 700 square metre Eugene Tan print was installed at Bondi Icebergs in Sydney.

Demand for newsprint and printing paper plummeted in 2016 across Australia and New Zealand, while packaging demand increased, according to Pulp & Paper Edge's new 'Sixteen21' report, which captures the major trends in the paper industry and projects what it will look like in five years.

Ahmed Fahour has resigned as CEO and managing director of Australia Post effective July, following controversy over his $5.6 million pay package in 2016. Andrew Macaulay, CEO of Printing Industries, said members are ‘delighted’ at Fahour’s resignation, which was tendered at a meeting of the Australia Post board on Wednesday.

The inaugural Specialised Print Awards were held in Sydney last night where Cliff Royle, Purple Press, (pictured) was named first time winner and received a $10,000 promotional package prize.

Marketing services company Salmat has enjoyed its fourth consecutive half of earnings growth, following the launch of its business transformation program in 2015. In the six months to December 31, 2016, Salmat's EBITDA rose by 28.8 percent on the previous six months.

One of the most widely used workflows in the industry, Kodak Prinergy, has just added a new dimension with the release of its cloud-based archive and data analytics modules. Industry veteran, Peter Janusik, is in charge of lift off.

The New Zealand Pride in Print awards have made a final call for submissions, with all entries closing on February 28. The awards, which will be held at the Wigram Air Force Museum in Christchurch on May 12, celebrate the best and brightest of New Zealand's printing industry.