Although overshadowed by the national tragedy of Sept. 11, PRINT® 01 at Chicago's McCormick Place nevertheless produced impressive sales for exhibitors and provided both printers and converters a look at the latest cutting-edge technologies. Total attendance was about 66,300, according to event organizer The Graphic Arts Show Co., Reston, Va., and nearly 900 exhibitors were on hand, filling almost 850,000 net sq ft of display space.

Exhibitors reportedly praised PRINT 01 as a strong selling show, saying the industry professionals there had definite buying interests. "Sales results are always the real measure of success for a trade show," says GASC president Regis J. Delmontagne, "and by that measure PRINT 01 was a productive event, with deals signed worth millions of dollars."

PRINT's international dimensions were also noteworthy and included such highlights as a first-ever delegation of industry leaders from Uzbekistan and Ukraine. More than 20 formal international delegations visited the show, and over 5,000 international visitors representing 125 nations were among the show's participants. A series of regional-interest "days" staged by GASC offered conferences and networking opportunities to visitors from Latin America, the Asia/Pacific region, Canada, Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

Because it's impossible to do justice in our available space to all the new developments at PRINT 01, Converting's editors hereby present a sampling of the technologies on exhibit.

Heidelberg USA's (Kennesaw, GA) new Speedmaster CD 74 offset press (Enter 210) is specifically engineered via format and automation for short-run packaging printing of 500 to 5,000 sheets. Double-diameter impression cylinders ensure minimum bending of paperboard up to 0.8-mm thickness. It can be supplied with a chamber doctor blade-equipped coater, and its 40-in. pile height is said to be ideal for processing board.

The Diamond 1000 (Enter 211) from Mitsubishi Lithographic Presses (Lincolnshire, IL) is a versatile mid-size offset press in a 20x28-in. format. Capable of handling up to 28-pt board at 15,000 sph, the press at PRINT 01 was configured with six colors, a tower coater, extended delivery, automated plate changing and a CIP3 digital interface. Specialties of the Diamond 1000 are POP displays and software packaging.

MAN Roland's (Westmont, IL) Roland 900 (Enter 212) press on exhibit was sold to folding-carton converter St. Joseph Packaging of St. Joseph, MO. The sheetfed, offset system features a center slitter, allowing two streams of 13,000-sph material to be run from 28x40-in. substrate. Materials up to F-flute microflute for direct-print corrugated can be handled.

The Project D offset press (Enter 213) from Komori America (Rolling Meadows, IL) is reportedly the first digital-imaging system in a 40-in. full-format sheet width. It uses Creo-Scitex 830-nm thermal heads to image four no-process plates at 2,400-dpi resolution in less than four mins. With a thickness capability of up to 30-pt paperboard, the Project D offers converters fast turnaround for short-run packaging.

On the digital-printing front for converters: PRINT 01 exhibitors showed the Omnius WebStream 100 digital press (Enter 214) from Indigo America (Woburn, MA) for labels and flex packs at speeds to 50 fpm; and the Xeikon (Wood Dale, IL) DCP 500 D digital press (Enter 215), which was shown with a Ucoat inline UV coater.

New software and plate-imaging developments were highlights of the prepress area at PRINT 01.

For packaging applications, Barco Graphics' (Vandalia, OH) modular, open workflow centers around its CDI (flexo CTP) imager (Enter 216). To help clients maximize the benefits of digital flexo, Barco launched its Flexo Implementation Quality certification program. Through assessment of current processes, and education regarding process optimizations, converters get the knowledge and tools needed to take full advantage of the CDI imager.

Workflow solutions introduced by Agfa (Ridgefield, NJ) included its Apogee Series3 (Enter 224), now offering a more advanced level of automation, control, openness, scalability and ease of use. The system imports JDF standard to further expand and streamline workflow. Other Agfa introductions at the show included a new generation of its Sherpa inkjet proofing systems. Grand Sherpa is the first in its class with true 1,440x1,440-dpi resolution, variable dot size, 8-color capacity, and two-minute print speed.

Networked Graphic Production (Enter 217) is CreoScitex America's (Bedford, MA) new integrated environment for prepress workflow from the creative desktop to delivery of finished product. Making use of the new Prinergy® Powerpack workflow-management system is Chicago-based Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. Multiple CreoScitex CTP devices will be installed by rival converter Rock-Tenn Co., Winston-Salem, NC, which plans to go 100-percent digital prepress by the end of 2002.

Heidelberg USA's new Prinect (Enter 218) digital-workflow components provide for networked production where prepress, press and postpress data are all combined with management data for true cost control, analysis and savings. Because converters do not always need or use all the functions of commercial-printing software, Heidelberg's specialized packaging-applications software is available, including SuperPack for digital trapping and SignaPack for step-and-repeat.

New SuperFormat™ foils and films (Enter 219) from Crown Roll Leaf (Paterson, NJ) expand the usable area of substrate by being free of intrusive plate lines or shims. This allows for both cost savings and waste reduction, says co. Time-consuming overprinting is eliminated. Three sheet sizes are available up to 40 in. wide in hot-stamping foils, lamination film and transfer lamination film.

Flint Inks' (Ann Arbor, MI) new line of packaging products includes new Matrix™ inks (Enter 220)—a premium UV-offset system designed for wide-performance parameters; and Matrix AD—a UV-offset system for high adhesion on polyboard, synthetic substrates and other non-porous surfaces. Also new is the Optimiser™ (Enter 221)—an automated cartridge-based ink dispensing system for enhanced ink control, usage tracking and reporting capabilities.

In-house coating-blanket cutting meets the digital world via Gerber Innovations' (Manchester, CT) new computer-controlled Sector™ (Enter 222), which eliminates hand cutting of blankets and provides a complete solution for spot, knock-out and flood coating applications. Driver software fits into existing prepress workflows and controls a compact, mobile cutting unit. Standardized blanket sheets, made by Day Intl., fit all mid-size presses up to 33x42-in.

Roll-to-sheet converters benefit from the Total Systems Approach of Körber Paperlink North America (Windsor, CT) for cut- and folio-size paper converting and packaging machinery. Along with a full line of sheeters and ream wrappers, the co.'s SHM 1450 Series sheeter (Enter 223) converts paper, paperboard, film and laminates. Its optional double rotary cross cutter handles webs up to 57 in. wide, and the unit runs at speeds of up to 980 fpm.

"Each edition of PRINT over the years has both summarized current technological trends and shaped the industry's history," notes GASC's Delmontagne. "This year's show continued that tradition."

Mark your long-range calendars for the next PRINT on Sept. 8-15, 2005, at Chicago's McCormick Place. More info: 703/264-7200, fax: 703/620-9187, www.gasc.org