This year's New Zealand Pride In Print Awards honoured processes in six categories: Web printing, Flexible packaging, Sheetfed/Offset, Digital, Finishing and Screen.
Web printing
Entered in the magazine section, Valley Voice was printed by Horton Media Ltd of Auckland for Valley Publishing. Judges commented on the excellent colour reproduction and the tidiness of the whole job. Valley Voice was designed by Inhouse Design with Horton Media Bindery the print finisher. Spicers Paper supplied the Chen Ming 60gsm stock for use on a Goss Community press, with DIC New Zealand inks, Fuji plates and Reeves blankets.
Flexible packaging
The Flexible Process prize went to Christchurch’s Aperio Flexipac Branston Street for Pam’s Vege and Chicken Stir Fry Wrapper.
Entered in the flexible packaging section, the wrapper won plaudits for its great use of process colours with reds and greens to enhance the vibrancy of the multi-colour process. Other judges’ comments included “well hidden plate join”, “good print job nice densities” and “great black ink lay down”.
Printed on a W&H Novoflex press in eight colours, the wrapper was printed for Foodstuffs, with Aria Farms the print buyer. Colorite was the reproduction house, and Coated Polyester Unitika and Coex PE Aperio Flexipac CRD stocks were used with inks by DIC New Zealand and plates by Digital ACE.
Finishing
A CD holder that judges thought encapsulated “very clever pre-press with beautiful printing” has taken the Finishing Process prize for Auckland’s Sentra Print.
The Julia Grace CD Holder was entered in the specialty finishing products section and came through with the judges’ comment “A wonderful product with many finishing elements and very well executed.”
Printed for Parachute Music, with SMP Solutions the print buyer, the CD holder was designed by Danny Carlsen. The Worx was the reproduction house, and Doherty Print Finishers and Coast Services the finishers. BJ Ball Group supplied the stocks of Cover Novatech 350gsm and Novatech 170gsm for use on a Komori L628 press, with DIC New Zealand inks, Fujiplates and Conti blankets.
Sheetfed/Offset
GEON’s combination of an innovative cover design, and a superb-quality insert on the Urbis publication was judged best entry in the Sheetfed/Offset Print Process.
The attention to detail on the cover included a matched image where the cover finishes just short of the fore-edge. The result is seamless. Inside, there is a tip-in insert which has been printed to match the colour and position of the image on the page beneath. It was printed on different stock, on a different day from the magazine, yet it matches perfectly.
Urbis was printed by GEON and Pacific Laminations on a Heidelberg Speedmaster using Hostmann-Steinberg NZ inks, Agfa plates and Contitech Litho Hc blankets. Spicers Paper supplied the Media and Expression stocks.
Digital
The Kings Collection Translite Honey Mustard Tender Crisp print, which won the Digital Process Award, impressed judges by the fact it was done on a printer well past its normal life expectancy. Waikato printers Admark Visual Imaging printed the award-winning entry on an eight-year-old Seiko 64S Colourprinter.
The Antares–Burger King print was designed for backlighting using Solbit Backlit film and ink supplied by the Aarque Group, giving the product an extra lift in the supermarket shelves and making it more appealing to buyers. It was deemed an excellent job with lovely prepress work.
Screen
Winner of the Screen Process category was Seabreeze Fashions NZ Ltd of Orewa with T-shirts depicting The Colemans – A Countdown Story, supporting the television advertising campaign which was allied to NZ MasterChef.
While runs in excess of 4000-5000 are usually sent offshore, the 12,500 run was produced locally, because the customer required changes and control right up to the last minute. Judges said the result shows that NewZealand can achieve the very top levels of quality The shirts were printed in five colours on the front and three on the back and sleeve. A high degree of skills were required and the result was beautifully executed.
The T-shirt was created for Progressive Enterprises, with Novelli Trading Ltd the print buyer and Ogilvy the designer. Novelli Trading Ltd supplied the stock. The shirt was printed on a TAS press using inks supplied by Blueprint Imaging Ltd and CCG Industiries Ltd.
Rural publication Valley Voice has won the Web Process prizein the New Zealand Pride In Print Awards with its strong and vibrant colour.