digitaldots.info

Digital Dots is an independent graphic arts research group specialising in digital prepress, printing and publishing technologies. The company is a collection of like-minded consultants and professional journalists with decades of experience working in the graphic arts industry. We publish a range of articles and reports and we also manage The Verdigris Project.

2K/Denmark getting back to basics

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner It’s been a long time since we heard a company talk about typesetting, rather than page layout. However a small Danish company is doing just that, with a view to improving print’s sustainability. 2K/Denmark has not so much developed a new technology. Rather it leverages digital prepress technology to … Read more

EcoFillX cutting waste during platemaking

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner Materials science is one of the most dynamic areas of development for improving print’s environmental sustainability. But it’s a relatively new idea to use software to control the amount of material surface waste generated during plate making. XSYS, a specialist developer of flexo plates, sleeves and adapters, with a … Read more

20 years of Sonora technology

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner It’s been twenty years since the introduction of Kodak’s Sonora plate technology. Two decades during which time the printing industry has undergone massive upheavals. 2004 saw the start of considerable consolidation amongst makers of printing plates, consolidation which continued for many years. Who now remembers Ipagsa or Southern Litho? … Read more

Where do you start with sustainability? 

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner The basics of what companies in the printing and publishing sectors should be doing to be more sustainable are really not that hard. They’re common sense in many ways, because they are about conserving resources and minimising waste. But they can be easy to overlook if the whole topic … Read more

Sustainability at drupa

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner At drupa next month everyone will be talking about technology, innovations and the latest new products. We might also be talking about what it will take to ensure the graphics industry’s continued sustainability: environmental, societal and economic. The last of these is pertinent for an industry undergoing profound change. … Read more

pre-drupa sustainability

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner I first attended drupa in 1986, when I spent a strange fortnight manning the stand for Seybold Publications. We had three early Macs supplied by Apple; they had 128KB RAM and attracted considerable attention. The sainted (possibly) Andy Tribute was editorial point man and our coverage extended to two … Read more

Keeping it local

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner It’s been clear for many years now that processless printing plates are the way forward to improve sustainability in the printing business. They are increasingly the preferred option for printing companies keen to cut their carbon footprints, as well as saving time and money. Kodak recently presented some compelling … Read more

Sustainability under pressure

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner Techology and innovation go hand in glove and with each advance, recycling in the graphics industry gets a little more complex. Sustainability, environmental and commercial, gets equally harder particularly in the context of other business pressures. This being a Drupa year we’re expecting all sorts of new technologies to … Read more

FESPA’s Print Census

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The Verdigris blog by Laurel Brunner Sustainability is at the top of the table, according to FESPA’s recently published findings from the latest Print Census. Respondents confirmed that rising sustainability demands are concerning them, along with keeping up with new business models and investment. The survey of 1,778 printing companies from more than 120 countries … Read more