Graphic Arts Magazine December 2017 / January 2018 | Page 13

Cover story
The year in review
Tony Curcio
Wow, what a year – and it’s not over! While it’s impos-
sible to chronicle all the important stories of 2017 in just
a few pages, I’d like to humbly present my own personal
selections for each month’s top stories i n rapid fire. For
December news, please visit graphicartsmag.com. Centre. The eye-catching 9m x 10m x 3m structure was cre-
ated using a Massivit 1800 3D Printer that produced 30 panels
in just 18 days.
JANUARY Data Communications Management Corp. (Brampton, ON)
acquired Eclipse Colour & Imaging (Burlington, ON) in one of
the largest recent deals in the industry. Data acquired Eclipse
for about $8.8 million.
Jay Mandarino, President & CEO of C.J. Graphics, concluded
the sale of his company’s three buildings totaling 125,000 sq
ft in Etobicoke, ON. At the same time, he purchased the Veritiv
facility (formerly Unisource) in nearby Mississauga. The new
location occupies 230,000 sq. ft. Mandarino indicated that
he’ll add another 30,000 sq ft and could also add 50,000 sq
ft if required. This will be the largest independently-owned
facility for printing in Canada and a $25 million-plus invest-
ment. The final move-in date was set for October.
Tokyo-based OEM Ricoh acquired Avanti Computer Systems
Limited, a Toronto-based leading provider of Print MIS. The
final cost of the investment was not disclosed. The acquisition
enabled Ricoh to further expand the value that its production
print workflow delivers to customers. In July of 2013 we
reported that Ricoh made a strategic investment in Avanti,
which established the foundation for this acquisition. The
strategy links Avanti’s systems not only with the Ricoh Pro
Series of printers, but also with other company products,
providing a wider range of customer solutions.
Massivit 3D-printed pop-up retail store.
@graphicarts
Israel-based Massivit
3D created the world’s
first 3D-printed pop-up
retail store highlighting
the Louis Vuitton fash-
ion brand during
Christmas of 2016 in
Sydney, Aus t ralia’s
Westf ield Shopping
FEBRUARY
Drupa 2020 dates were moved back by one week and will
take place June 16 to June 26, 2020. The reason? In some
European countries and German states, the summer holidays
would have already started during the initially planned dates
(June 23 to July 3, 2020).
Heidelberg Primefire 106
Multi Packaging Solutions (NY) became the first pilot user of a
Heidelberg Primefire 106, the first industrial digital printing
system in B1 format powered by Fujifilm Inkjet Technology. The
Primefire 106 enables packaging printers to produce variable
and personalized packaging and add traceability and security
elements on each box. The 7-colour inkjet system covers up
to 95% of the Pantone colour space, resulting in time and cost
reductions when producing jobs.
Prime Data (Aurora, ON) put its full support behind the Women’s
March in Washington, DC with an innovative postcard
GRAPHIC ARTS MAGAZINE | December 2017 / January 2018 | 13