Boston-based BFS Business Printing recently acquired the fully automated, five-color Spica 529P perfecting press. Premier manufacturer of sheet fed and web offset printing presses Komori America Corporation announced this purchase as the first East Coast installation of the five-color Spica. This recent acquisition confirms the historic commitment of BFS to providing the latest print technology to the Boston community.

Founded in 1965, as a printer primarily servicing architects, engineers and developers, BFS is one of the last independent commercial printers remaining in the heart of Boston. During the 1970s, the company expanded and added a commercial offset printing division that continues to do well. BFS remains proactive in catering to the needs and challenges facing their growing client base by installing cutting-edge print technology and upgrading existing print media technology and applications.

The Spica 529P is flawlessly designed and streamlines traditional turnaround constraints of the offset printing process. In the current market, BFS is committed to personalized service and dedicated to exacting print media solutions to satisfy a wide range of customer demands. BFS is a mid-sized printer that faces the same challenges as their target competitors to keep pace with the changing market, but with fewer resources. Their management team is always looking to enhance business growth in the most efficient and cost-effective ways.

The latest addition to Sony’s SnapLap digital photo printer line offers new business and revenue opportunities for retailers. Its range of features extend instant digital photo printing into non-traditional environments like convenience stores, general merchandise stores, book stores, and grocery stores.

The new mini-kiosk is a high-speed, affordable system that can print 3.5×5, 4×6, 5×7, 6×8-inch photos, in either glossy or Pro Matte finishes, using the same media roll. The system is the only instant digital print kiosk available offering a Pro Matte finish, which allows retailers to add a more professional look to printed digital photos. The system takes up minimal space while being designed for maximum profitability. It takes advantage of the inexpensive and rapid print processes of traditional terminal-plus-printer systems, without the large initial investment.

The unit’s space-saving design enables several systems to be placed in the same area for retailers looking to increase the visibility of their digital photofinishing services. Retailers who traditionally found instant digital photo-printing to be cost-prohibitive can now offer it to customers using this type of low cast, high-return solution. Retailers can also offer customers premium prints with built-in templates to easily create split images.

Heidelberg USA recently announced a selection of 10 new installations during the month of September. Since its formation three years ago, Multi Packaging Solutions (MPS) has grown to become one of the most highly-acclaimed print and packaging companies in the United States.

In order to keep pace with rapid growth and meet evolving customer needs, MPS invested in new equipment from Heidelberg at its Louisville, Kentucky location, which focuses primarily on the media industry, including packaging and design for the music, movie, video game and computer software markets. The latest additions include a two-color speedmaster CD 102 press and a Stahlfolder TH 82 folder. This has increased their production speed thanks to improved press speeds, reduced makeready time and decreased blanket washing time. The new folder replaced a competitive machine and has been up and running since early 2008 in the MPS Louisville plant.

Features on the TH 82 significantly shorten makeready times and reduces bottlenecks in the bindery for MPS. With the folder in place, MPS’ bindery was prepared for the increased production and folder output that came when the CD 102 was added to the pressroom a few months later. Finlay sharpens its bindery automation with Heidellberg’s Polar 137 XT. Finlay offers its clients innovative ideas on how to use both offset and digital printing methods to grow their business.

In order to spearhead development of new digital printing market opportunities, F.E. Burman Ltd. has installed an HP Indigo 7000 Digital Press. The installation also includes an HP SmartStream Production Pro Print Server capable of handling the high volumes of data required to feed the high-speed HP Indigo 7000 Digital Press and enable sophisticated variable data printing and personalization.

The 50-year-old London based company has a reputation as an innovator and was an early adaptor of digital printing with the installation of an Indigo E-Print 1000 press in 1995, and subsequently an HP Indigo press 3050. F.E. Burman is a modern print service provider that began as a repro company, pioneering digital prepress and currently provides repro, print, mailing and IT services to blue-chip customers. The company specializes in information architecture, digital and short-run offset printing, mailing, database management and pre-media production.

The HP Indigo 7000 Digital Press is not located on the company’s production floor, but showcased in a new, purpose-built marketing suite. The HP Indigo 7000 Digital Press was launched earlier this year and is aimed at companies printing more than one million pages per month. It runs at a process speed that is 76% faster and uses 25% less power than earlier digital presses, and offers on-press image oil recycling, and longer consumables life.

Mercury Printing Co. LLC is starting a $6 million expansion at its Memphis facility as part of plans to enlarge its digital printing customer base. The company’s expansion could grow as much as $27.8 million should the Memphis facility receive a payment-in-lieu-of-tax credit and be selected by its parent company to receive the new business.

The expansion is part of a plan by Mercury’s parent company, Consolidated Graphics, Inc., to increase its digital printing service offering. Mercury will add 25 new full-time employees along with another 85 temporary employees. The company currently employs 102 full-time workers and approximately 20 temporary employees. The $6 million investment will go toward the purchase of multiple Hewlett Packard Indigo and Kodak Nexpress printing presses and a Xeikon printing press.

Mercury will also build out another 12,000 square feet from its current building to accommodate the new equipment and capacity. They currently occupy a 120,000-square-foot facility. The digital printing presses will allow Mercury to compete in direct mail and other piece-specific contracts. As the technology advances, more companies are deciding to purchase digital equipment.