The April 2018 edition of Printing Press: What’s Happening includes new designer software from Fundy to easily create a variety of photo cards. Moreover, it looks at new vinyl print media from Canon and Mimaki that expand a print service provider’s offerings. In addition, HP Inc.’s ISA booth is covered. The section also announces an Avery Dennison boot camp for wrap professionals.
Fundy Designer Releases Card Designer
Fundy Software, creator of Fundy Designer, released Card Designer as part of its album and wall art design suite. Card Designer was created to enable professional photographers to create modern-looking photo cards in a few clicks. Card Designer is bBased on the Fundy Software patented technology. It comes with predesigned baby announcements, holiday-themed cards, graduation announcements and save-the-date cards.
“Card Designer is an exciting addition to Fundy Designer. It will help professional photographers easily create cards that look far superior and more professional than those available at consumer sites. Plus, photographers can use their own design assets to create cards that they can save and use over again. It’s a great way to augment sales,” said Andrew “Fundy” Funderburg, founder of Fundy Designer. 
At launch, U.S. photographers can order cards through Miller’s Professional Imaging. The capability to order outside the U.S. is expected later in 2018.
Along with Card Designer, Fundy launched its cloud-based Design Library. It contains hand-lettered card designs, album design sets, premade wall collages, stock music for slideshows and stock rooms to show off wall art. A portion of the library is free for all users; some areas require a Pro Enhancements subscription. The subscription also includes unlimited online design proofing, one-click skin retouching and HD slideshow exports.
Fundy Designer includes premade album designs created by renowned wedding photographers, including Two Mann Studios and Chrisman Studios. The software also includes professionally designed baby albums, high school senior albums and family albums. And all offer the ability to create one-click album designs fitting the style of the design set. The update to Fundy Designer is free to owners of the Lite, Album or Pro Suite.
Weather-Resistant Media for Canon Large-Format Printers
Canon announced two media options for their imagePrograf large-format printers: Water Resistant Adhesive Matte Vinyl (330gsm) and Water Resistant Matte Banner Vinyl (480gsm). Both are designed to withstand most weather elements for six months without lamination. For posters, banners and signage, the media can be used with aqueous imagePrograf printers. As a result, they help print service providers produce colorful output for outdoor display.
“Canon has refined our media offerings to help protect what is most important: the image,” said Toyotsugu Kuwamura, executive vice president and general manager, Business Imaging Solutions Group, Canon USA. “With the combination of these media types and an imagePrograf aqueous pigment printer, the end result is a frame-worthy print that can be hung outdoors.” 
The new media has the ability to produce vibrant applications through environmentally friendly technology. Users can print color posters without the fumes associated with solvent ink technology. And Canon-conducted tests show they are capable of withstanding six months of outdoor use without laminating the output. The media feature a durable ink-receiving layer on top of the base material. This layer helps protect absorbed ink from running when exposed. It also provides resistance to ultraviolet photo degradation.
Additionally, the Water Resistant Adhesive Matte Vinyl (330gsm) features a peel away back for easier application and repositioning. Moreover, air release grooves provide the ability to smooth out air bubbles when hanging onto a surface. The Water Resistant Matte Banner Vinyl (480gsm) lends itself to outdoor banners, tapestries and long displays. It provides attached grommets for rope or wire hanging.
Both come in 24, 36 and 42 inches. The Matte Vinyl is also available in 54 inches, and the Banner Vinyl in 60 inches.
Mimaki Vision Media Line Announced
Mimaki USA, a manufacturer of printers, cutting plotters, hardware, software and associated consumables, such as inks and cutting blades, released a media line called Mimaki Vision. It includes a gloss vinyl print media, Mimaki Vision Vinyl; a matte and gloss laminate film, Mimaki Vision Laminate; and a UV gloss laminate film, Mimaki Vision Laminate 310. 
Mimaki Vision Vinyl print media is engineered with strong dimensional stability and low shrinkage. It offers adhesive force and leaves behind little residue after removal, according to Mimaki. Additionally, “it enables excellent color developing with Mimaki original inks, providing exceptional weatherability,” Mimaki announced. Furthermore, its two-sided PE coating liner prevents moisture absorption.
Mimaki Vision Laminate was designed for solvent printers to be paired with Mimaki Vision Vinyl. It is engineered to enhance its stability and low shrinkage benefits. Mimaki Vision Laminate 310 is a laminate film with a gloss finish designed for Mimaki UV inks. It can also be used for solvent and latex printing. Moreover, it helps diminish the effect of silvering by reducing the air bubbles commonly produced when laminating over UV ink. The film also gives a gloss appearance to normally matte UV prints.
Avery Dennison Business Boot Camp for Wrap Professionals
Avery Dennison Graphics Solutions launched a workshop focused on how to successfully run a business in the vinyl wrap industry. The Business Boot Camp classes were developed in collaboration with wrap industry pioneers Justin Pate, the Wrap Institute; and John Duever, Vinyl Images and Design. It’s designed for wrap installers interested in starting a business as well as wrap shop owners and team members looking for professional advice on how to improve efficiency and increase profits.
Pate and Duever will lead the classes with added expertise from guest speakers. These will include Dallas Fowler, Digital EFX, who will address wrap design and production. In addition, Paul Roba, OEM relationship manager at Avery Dennison, will be on hand. Roba will teach attendees about digital printing and lamination. 
Also, Austin Smith, founder of the Paint Is Dead Network and president of #201WRAP, will speak about branding and marketing a wrap business as well as up-selling services. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with the speakers and members of the Avery Dennison graphics team during a reception held the evening of the first day of the class.
The first Business Boot Camp for Wrap Professionals will be held May 18–19, 2018 at Car Wrap City in Dallas, Texas. The cost is $1,200. A full course description and registration information are available at graphics.averydennison.com/bootcamp.
HP Invited Print Service Providers to “Say Yes” at ISA
At the International Sign Expo (ISA), HP Inc. invited attendees to experience its latest technologies designed to make it easier for print services providers (PSPs) to “Say Yes” to any print job. “We created the ‘Yesville’ booth to help inspire confidence for PSPs to always say yes when printing with HP,” said Dave Prezzano, vice president and general manager of HP Graphics Solution Business Americas.
In addition to getting hands on with HP’s latest applications, PSPs could stop by the Surf Shop and see what’s possible with textiles and HP Latex technology. Along with receiving printed samples, they could learn at the substrate tent how HP Latex can be used in a sustainable textile production. HP Latex was certified to Eco Passport by OEKO-TEX. They could also have a photo taken on HP’s UV printed surfboard in front of the inflatable HP Latex-printed wave. 
At the Juice Shop in Yesville, they could “soak up everything print and cut, PrintOS or customized clothing while sipping on fresh juice from our juice bar.” They could also check out the floor graphics, wall decals as well as wall and floor coverings—all by HP printers. Attendees also received a customized T-shirt or stickers.
And at Yesville’s Business Solution Center, attendees could see various HP Latex solutions. They included the HP Latex 315 Print and Cut solution, the HP Latex 335 Print and Cut, the Latex 365 printer and HP Latex 560 and HP Latex 570 printers. The latter are capable of printing everything from backlit images and wall coverings to floor graphics.
