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The Packaging Council of New Zealand elected David Carter, group environment and technical projects director Lion Nathan, as its new President, at its AGM last week. Also at the meeting, Melissa Hodd, executive director Foodstuffs NZ, was appointed vice president.

Canon Australia has launched PosterArtist 2009, the latest software for its imagePROGRAF large format printer, which the company says is a poster-creation application designed to make in-house poster production easier, with better quality output. The range will be sold through Alloys, GBC, DES, Anitech and Canon’s regional business partner channel.

Market research completed by the PPA (the UK Periodical Publishers Association) after the recent 37th FIPP World Magazine Congress in London, has shown that the value added printing techniques demonstrated by PrintCity Alliance members within the innovative & interactive FIPP09 printed Congress programme had created a noticeable impact.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has released an LED-UV (ultraviolet ray) ink-drying system using light-emitting diodes (LED) which the company claims enables significant energy saving in printing.

As the digital printing market continues to grow, Spicers Paper says it is making paper selection for printing on-demand and variable data jobs easier with the addition of another digital paper to its range.

Alf Taylor, founder of packaging solutions company tna, has been named one of Australia's 100 most influential engineers of 2009 in the June edition of Engineers Australia. The list, published annually, identifies the country's leading engineers in academia/research, associations, consulting, engineering expertise, industry, public service and politics, according to tna.

Prime Minister John Key called for more technological solutions in business, and gave a thumbs up to the state of the art innovation on display at the official opening of the Ricoh Technology Centre, at Wellington on Wednesday.

Orders for Fuji Xerox’s new 700 Digital Color Press have surpassed 150 systems since its launch, while Xerox iGen4 sales have now exceeded 10 units, for a combined total of more than 160 orders.

Reports on Bloomberg suggest Heidelberg looks likely to obtain Euro1.4bn (A$2.4bn) in financing from banks and government funds as early as this week, a month ahead of plan, according to four people familiar with the negotiations.

Kate Jones, Queensland climate change and sustainability minister recently launched the Printing Industries’ Sustainable Green Print (SGP) programme in Brisbane and commended the programme as being an effective branding tool for green printers.

Creative Folks has signed a new reseller agreement with dutchsoftware.com to distribute Elvis, an enterprise grade media asset management solution to the to the Australian and New Zealand market place.

Print and finishing solutions company GBC has announced its move back into the New Zealand market under its own banner.

International food and beverage company PepsiCo has opened a green packaging plant in China. The company says it is the first plant of any kind in the industrial centre of Chongqing to comply with the rigorous sustainable engineering standards known as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), set by the Green Building Council.

PaperlinX has completed the initial review of its Tasmanian paper manufacturing business, Tas Paper, however the company has not yet made any decision on the fate of the mills at Burnie and Wesley Vale.

Ligare has engaged an environmental auditor through the NSW DECC Sustainability Advantage Program to help measure and reduce Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions throughout its operations. The printer says once complete it will be able to offer clients the ability to accurately offset the emissions created to produce books when required.

PrintNZ says that its updated and re-released book Health Safety & Environment Guide for Printing and Related Industries, first published in 2001, will be made available to everyone in the industry.

Winners of the Australian Packaging Machinery Association (APMA) Excellence Awards were announced during this month’s Auspack. Product identification solutions provider Matthews took out the best new product award.

NZ Gardener, New Zealand’s top selling gardening magazine, has turned green into gold by winning the supreme magazine of the year award at the Magazine Publishers Association magazine awards.

Despite PMP’s transformation strategy – which aims to create a focused, best practice operation – the print giant is still set to lose its lucrative ACP magazines contract. PBL Media says its plan to establish an ACP printing and distribution operation in Sydney is going ahead, however the start date may be slipped back.

Fuji Xerox Australia and RMIT have launched a new managed print centre at the University’s Brunswick campus, home to the institution’s graphic design students. Fuji Xerox says the new Brunswick print centre caters for all the design, printing, finishing and on-site delivery needs of the University.