Laurence Liss

Clarity is an important quality of an excellent print job. The kind of eye-popping projects that draw people from across a room are the result of the concerted effort of all involved. Just as the ink must be properly aligned on the substrate to ensure clarity in a given piece, the wants and needs of the manufacturer, distributor and client must also be properly aligned to ensure clarity in the focus and content of a commercial print job. What can distributors do to ensure they act as the best possible conduit for information and help their clients to produce the products exactly as desired? To help

Not very long ago, few people knew about RFID tags. Label converters and electronic engineers were among this minority. Suddenly, it has expanded in the vast social consciousness. Stories about RFID have appeared in consumer and tech journals alike. The technology has been discussed in every form of media, and not always with praise. As RFID gains popularity and people grow increasingly aware of it, the technology meets greater resistance. At the same time, it is working its way into more businesses and industries. RFID critics have been vocal, but there are many supporters on both sides of the supply and demand chain. In health-care, RFID

Recently RFID has been in the cross-hairs of every media outlet. With big businesses and some government offices finding more uses for the technology, the general public is starting to feel a little on edge. Accusations started flying: concerned citizens groups fear this technology could lead to a totalitarian state comparable to Orwell’s 1984 and some religious groups even declared RFID to be related to biblical tales of Armageddon. “The unfortunate thing about that is once [a group] makes such a claim or statement, from that point on, it puts the RFID industry on the defensive,” said Max Golter, vice president of sales at

Selling to insurance markets hasn’t gotten any easier. Since e-forms started to topple traditional, paper-based markets, nothing has surfaced to put distributors and manufacturers back in high demand in this field. Laser forms have also usurped much of the work from traditional printers. With each passing year, it seems distributors have a harder time making in-roads into the insurance market. The problem is further augmented by the merging of insurance providers. While the conglomeration of corporate giants may benefit the largest printers and most prominent distributors, it has proven detrimental for smaller companies and independent printing professionals. “I think years ago there were a lot

Frank Abagnale, a consultant in document security and expert in methods of fraud and forgery, was kind enough to speak with BFL&S to help us inform our readers about check fraud and how it will be affected by Check 21. Abagnale is most known as the author and subject of Catch Me if You Can, which was made into a popular Steven Spielberg film. He is also the author of several books about fraud and identity theft. His renown in the security field comes from his ability to circumvent it. As a minor, Abagnale became one of the most notable, successful and notorious forgers

Though the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act (“Check 21 Act” or simply “Check 21”) isn’t new anymore, the issues have not been sorted out and “Check 21” as a topic of debate, confusion and aggravation is far from finished. Partially, the reason for the ongoing dilemma is a discrepancy between what the legislation means and how it works. Check 21 affects banks, distributors, producers and consumers in different ways. These groups are trying to reconcile the issues that have the greatest impact on their own uses and purposes. For banking institutions, Check 21 simply allows the image of a check to be

For decades now, we’ve been hearing talk of the death of print. Cliché phrases such as, “No one reads,” “Books are on the way out,” and “Paper printing is a dead technology,” are heard again and again by those modeling the latest, most fashionable gadgets and the so-called experts. Hype comes in many forms. The computer is more than half a century old now; the personal computer has been ubiquitous for two decades – the laptop for 10 years; PDAs and palm-enabled phones are quickly usurping the laptop. With each newer, smaller machine the volume swells on the old chant: “Books are doomed! The

for the average consumer, the phrase “industrial printing” recalls images of smokestacks, machines of frightening complexity and robot-operated plants processing paper through the long night. However, the business of commercial printing has many facets. Between any two companies, there are vast differences in product and procedure, even when filling almost identical consumer needs. But, there are also great similarities. Specifically, the way to look at the process, from project inception to delivery, so every aspect of the commercial print industry can be analyzed simultaneously. Regardless of a commercial printer's niche in the industry, it is unlikely that “caring” would become a befitting word to

there is a war being fought on the roads, but you may not realize it when you cruise down the expressways. No road warriors will assault your vehicle with maces or numchuks. To the public, the war is quiet; to those involved, it is a fight for survival—a bitter battle. Don’t assume you aren’t involved in this war. When you arrive at a destination and begin the search for something to eat, you have just entered the fray. On the highways, in the cities and around the airports, restaurants serve the ceaseless flow of hungry travelers. Eateries are one of the firm pillars supporting