Top 7 Day Print News Clicks
The biggest news story in the print industry this week was the Print21 report on the IVE Group annual results, with sales 4.4 less than last year; the company reported a $76m profit, and revealed that senior execs and the board had all taken big pay cuts at the start of the pandemic.
IVE took a 6.6 per cent hit on its EBITDA, but profit still came in at $76m, in sales that were down by 4.4 per cent to $691.5m, including a $50m boost from its Salmat letterbox business it acquired in January. IVE was hit with what it says were “meaningful reduction in catalogue production and letterbox distribution for a number of our retail customers”. However, CEO Matt Aitken said, “The company remains well capitalised, highly liquid, and confident that we are ideally placed to maintain our strong market position as we emerge from this period of uncertainty and disruption”. IVE will pay a dividend in the current year and will reduce its debt further.
The number two and number three stories were both new B2 digital press installations, testimony to the rising levels of interest in digital capabilities in that format.
Satellite Print in Lane Cove, NSW has installed its first B2 digital press, an HP Indigo 10000, and coupled it with a suite of new Horizon finishing kit – all supplied by Currie Group – in its biggest-ever investment. Owner Paul Culliver told Print21, “We realised the time was right for Satellite Print to have its own B2 digital print solution, so made the move for another HP Indigo. It is a significant investment with all the finishing equipment as well, but one which we have carefully planned for.”
Meanwhile, across town, Imagination Graphics owner Emmanuel Buhagiar was firing up the company’s new Konica Minolta AccurioJet KM-1 UV inkjet B2 sheetfed press. It replaced the first KM-1, which, like the rest of the Imagination kit, was flooded out in the days before the plague. Buhagiar said, “In the short time we had the original KM-1 we were getting offset quality print from it, and with no makeready and no waste. It is so good to have the new machine up and running now, and we look forward to producing high quality print for our clients.”
Getting close to the top three clicks this weeks were the Print21 reports on the Amcor annual figures, which saw profit break through the US$1bn marker for the first time, and Labelmakers entry into digital flexibles with the installation of its new HP Indigo 20000.