Finishing & Screen Printing
“Graph Expo is more than just a show”
Friday 07. November 2008 - As we do every Fall, the Graphics industry met in late October at the Graph Expo Show, October 26 - 29 at the McCormick Center in Chicago, Illinois.
As a supplier, in light of the current economic conditions, we were not sure what to expect. Would the show be well attended? Would prospects be buying? While our expectations were low, now that the show is over, Graph Expo has proven itself to be the show people attend.
Why is that?
As president of Brandtjen & Kluge, I asked a lot of people why they were attending this show. Everyone basically said the same thing in response. Graph Expo, and PRINT next Fall, are more than just trade shows. they are an opportunity to meet with one’s peers, look at equipment and ideas that are “outside the box,” attend educational seminars and learn what is new in the industry. In other words, success today comes from being pro-active instead of reactive.
As for Kluge, the show was a success. In showing six products (see below), we showed people what is new at Kluge and, more importantly, we discussed with people what Kluge can do for them to make investing in a Kluge machine a profitable investment.
If I had to say what generated the greatest interest, I would have to say our new EHG Series foil stamping, die cutting and embossing press. Designed along the format of our existing EHD EHF platen presses, the EHG has a 22″ x 30″ inch platen area thus allowing the finisher to run a half sized sheet. With the press’s small footprint and low cost, the EHG is the ideal press for those wanting to finish a half sized sheet.
Kluge is, of course, known for foil stamping. Complimenting our EHG’s entry into the half sheet market is our new V-10 full sheet 42″ press. At Graph Expo we showed the V-10 F ; a vertical machine designed to foil stamp and emboss. Standard features allow the press to run light weight stock as well as be operator friendly.
At Graph Expo. we showed three different folding and gluing machines. Our ComFold was running a dual stream of boxes at over 70,000 per hour (watch the video online. Our OmniFold was running a pocket folder at over 16,000 per hour. Our UniFold ) was on the GMS stand and it was also finishing a folder at over 14,000 per hour. All quite impressive to say the least!
For Kluge, Graph Expo is more than just an opportunity to sell. It is the opportunity to meet with our friends in the industry and discuss issues. By working together, we find solutions and that is what being a business partner is really all about. Now, of course, we are busy following up on the leads and questions we generated at the show. As we do so, we look forward to proving to people that Kluge is more than just a supplier of equipment. We want to be our customer’s business partner; offering equipment, industry knowledge and solutions enabling our customers and friends to be successful.