JimRaffel.com

I will be attending the SGIA (Specialty Graphic Imaging Association) conference and expo in Orlando next week. As I reviewed the conference sessions and expo web-site it became clear this would be a great opportunity to get back to writing for JimRaffel.com. Since GraphExpo I have been busy with show follow-up and have not had the time to write a Golden Nugget. So, next week keep an eye on JimRaffel.com for daily posts, and at the end of the week I will email an overall digest format of the week’s posts like I did after GraphExpo.

Color is becoming an increasingly important factor in a market that by and large (there are always exceptions) has not paid very close attention to color. In the three years since my first SGIA experience I have kept tabs on the specialty graphic market and have even sold a fair amount of software into the industry. What better indicator could there be that color is becoming increasingly important?

The specialty graphic market is making the move to digital at a rate that exceeds that of traditional graphic arts. I believe the move to digital is driving the increased interest in color. Digital printing allows specialty printers to move into markets once controlled by traditional printers, and vice versa. As a result specialty graphic printers are now dealing with more color critical customers like consumer product companies.

I plan to address three themes in my SGIA Live coverage:

• Increased interest in color verification and process control
• The move to digital imaging and printing
• Cross-over with traditional print as the industry goes digital

Remember to keep your eyes on JimRaffel.com for daily show coverage.