Last week we posed a question in our weekly survey: "In light of recent sign industry insolvencies costing it & the ATO millions, what is your opinion on how the process works, what are the effects on well-run businesses and in general, what is your view how these insolvencies have played out?"  The number of replies amazed us.

Print on demand businesses Canva, Redbubble and 99 Designs are among 1900 companies who’ve joined the Not Business As Usual alliance and pledged to allow employees time off on Friday to attend rallies across Australia as part of the Global Climate Strike. Events are scheduled in all capital cities and more than 90 smaller cities and towns

In a new legal twist, a New York judge has refused to approve a proposed settlement in a Xerox shareholder class action suit following the terminated $6 billion merger agreement between Xerox and Fujifilm.

They say that 'the cobbler's children are often without shoes' and this can be true in other industries. Let's face it, sometimes a signee's own signage and vehicles are less than striking, while others are brilliant. D&D (Dudley & Dennis) Signs of Whangarei in New Zealand's north have now completed a total makeover of logo, image, website, vehicle wraps and facebook page - and the result is highly commendable.

Wide format printers Cactus Imaging and Grand Print Services have taken two of the five awards in the Outdoor Media Association’s (OMA) quarter two 2019 Creative Collection competition.

Roland DG Corporation says owners of its TrueVIS VG-640/540 printer cutters can now upgrade their devices for free to the recently launched VG2-640/540 with new TrueVIS TR2 ink.

Industry leaders including Ricoh, Fujifilm, Konica Minolta, HP and Screen have previewed the new technology they’ll be showcasing at the inaugural PRINTING United trade show (formerly the SGIA Expo) in Dallas, TX next month. 

The Australian Sign and Graphics Association (ASGA) is taking its annual awards and industry gala dinner out of Sydney next year, with the event to be held during Visual Impact Gold Coast 2020 at the Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre in Broadbeach.

Affordable energy and increased funding for training will be at the top of the agenda during the Print and Visual Communication Association’s second annual Print 2 Parliament! lobbying event at Parliament House in Canberra next month.

Mimaki Europe will showcase its new SWJ-320EA large format solvent printer at several trade shows over the next few weeks, including at The Print Show (NEC Birmingham, UK, 17–19 September) Salon C!Print, (Madrid, Spain, 24–26 September) and at Viscom Italia (Fiera Milano, Italy, 10-12 October).

Shane Hilton of the Design Shop in Central Otago, New Zealand has won Avery Dennison’s all-expenses-paid Bathurst 1000 Race Experience prize valued at over $18,500. Shane and three friends will enjoy an exclusive experience at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 from 10-13 October 2019.

Screen GP’s Peter Scott has invited label printers from Australia and New Zealand to the company’s stand at this month’s four-day Labelexpo Europe show in Brussels, where Screen will feature its popular Truepress Jet label printers and preview an all-new 7-colour, 80 m/min model, the L350-SAI.

Centre Alliance Senator Rex Patrick has reintroduced a bill into the Senate that would ban the importation of all flammable cladding into Australia. The move - opposed by the federal government and the Australian Sign & Graphics Association (ASGA) - comes days after the discovery in Victoria of counterfeit flammable cladding - said to be imported from China - with stickers attached falsely declaring it to be fire resistant.

Following a sabbatical, Vince Bezzina of the Print Head Doctor is again accepting clogged inkjet printheads for recovery, using his unique equipment, solutions and methodology. With replacement industrial printheads costing between $2,000 and $10,000 each, it’s a welcome return.

The suspended CodeMark identification system was once deployed by Fairview Architectural for Vitrabond

With so much debate and finger-pointing happening as the Bill to ban all imports of PE-cored flammable ACM sheets becomes nearer to Law, our attention is drawn to a now withdrawn simple fix instituted by a leading supplier of ACM/ACP to the building industry, Fairview Architectural. However, there is a glitch; the issuing body, CertMark's accreditation is under suspension for non-compliance, and the labels were withdrawn.

A team of 15 talented young Australian ‘Skillaroos’ - including Visual Connections-sponsored Indy Griffiths - has placed 8th in the world after competing in their chosen skills with teams from 65 other countries at the 45th WorldSkills International Championships held in Kazan, Russia.

Landa Digital Printing is expanding its Nanographic press production facilities at Rehovot in Israel to meet “growing customer base and high customer demand.” Six Australian companies – including Blue Star, CMYKhub and Heroprint – are said to have signed up for Benny Landa’s nano technology.

Women in Print’s nationwide 2019 Breakfast Series begins in Adelaide SA this week (Thursday morning) before similar events in WA, Victoria, NSW and Queensland.

Canon is the latest print technology giant to consider moving its manufacturing facilities out of China because of the escalating US-China trade war. The Japan-based company says it’s looking at alternative sites in 40 other countries.

Tickets are now available for drupa 2020, with 1,800 exhibitors from 50 countries, including at least 400 first-time exhibitors, expected at the world’s largest printing industry trade show that takes place 16-26 June 2020 in Düsseldorf, Germany. Organisers also announced the start of the ‘drupa world tour.’

The second major global technical conference on the growing use of electronic and conductive inks in the multi-billion-dollar printed electronics market will take place in Chicago next month.